IMMIGRATION
REFORM EFFORTS BUILD MOMENTUM U.S.
Senate Majority Whip Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., predicted Tuesday (May 23) that the
Senate would have the necessary 60 votes to invoke cloture, or limit debate, today
on the bipartisan immigration bill that follows President Bush's broad outline
of immigration reform. The bill (S 2611), sponsored by Judiciary Chairman Arlen
Specter, R-Pa., would offer a path to citizenship to many of the illegal immigrants
now in the U.S., create a workable guest worker program, help secure the border,
and step up enforcement. Passage is expected to follow later today or tomoorrow.
As
of today, the AgJobs legislation remains intact with no amendments. AgJobs would
reform the H-2A guest worker program and allow workers who lack legal status,
but have worked in this country’s agriculture industry for a certain period
of time, to apply for permanent worker status.
“It
looks fairly obvious that the Senate will pass this immigration reform bill,”
said Walter Kates, director, FFVA Labor Relations Division. “The question
is how it comes out of the Conference Committee with the House. That’s the
key to all this,” he added.
- STUDY
SHOWS BROCCOLI, CAULIFLOWER MAY REDUCE RISK OF CANCER
-
- A
new study at Rutgers shows that certain vegetables – broccoli and cauliflower,
in particular – have natural ingredients that may reduce the risk of developing
hereditary cancers.
-
- A
research team has revealed that these widely consumed cruciferous vegetables –
so called because their four-petal flowers resemble crosses – are abundant
in sulforaphane (SFN). This compound had previously been shown to inhibit some
cancers in rodents induced by carcinogens. Investigations, however, focused on
whether SFN might inhibit the occurrence of hereditary cancers.
The
American Cancer Society estimates that more than two-thirds of cancer may be prevented
through lifestyle modification, and nearly one-third of these cancer occurrences
can be attributed to diet alone. CITRUS
COMMISSION PROPOSES HIKE IN BOX TAX, NAMES NEW EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
At a
meeting Wednesday (May 17), the Florida Citrus Commission proposed to raise the
per-box tax on citrus from 18.5 cents to 25 cents, the highest increase in a decade.
The
additional revenue would fund marketing and public relations programs that would
supplement current TV ads and build on the theme that Florida orange juice is
a healthy drink choice. The Department of Citrus plans to spend a month getting
input from those affected before it is put into place.
Also
at the Wednesday meeting, the Citrus Commission voted to appoint Ken Keck, its
general counsel and head of governmental relations, as the Florida Department
of Citrus’ new executive director to succeed Bob Gunter, who announced his
resignation in March.
-
GAO
RECOMMENDS BETTER MANAGEMENT, COORDINATION BETWEEN APHIS AND DHS
In a
report issued this month, the General Accountability Office (GAO) said it had
found coordination and management problems between USDA Animal and Plant Health
Inspection Service (APHIS) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in regard
to port inspections for agricultural pests.
GAO
recommended the two departments work more closely together to develop meaningful
performance measurements to judge the success of port inspections, establish staffing
models based on levels of risk, ensure agricultural alerts are efficiently shared
by the departments and the ports, improve the canine inspection program, and revise
user fees so that they cover changing costs.
USDA
and DHS generally agreed with the report’s recommendations. - To
view the report, click
here.
NOMINATIONS
SOUGHT FOR FLORIDA AG HALL OF FAME
The
Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services is seeking nominations
for candidates to the Florida Agricultural Hall of Fame in 2007. The deadline
for submitting nominations is September 1, 2006. The Hall of Fame was created
to honor Florida’s agricultural pioneers and leaders, and previous inductees
have come from all walks of life including teachers, researchers, farmers, ranchers
and government leaders.
The
nominees will be chosen by an independent panel of judges and announced later
this year. The induction ceremony will take place during the 29th Annual Agricultural
Hall of Fame banquet at the Florida State Fair next February.
Call
(813) 628-4551 for a nomination form or go to www.flaghalloffame.com.
-
NEW
WEBSITE OFFERS EXTENSION INFORMATION
The
University of Florida’s extension service has debuted a new website where
consumers, growers and others can get answers to questions about agricultrue,
gardening, the environment and other topics.
The
site can be accesssed at www.solutionsforyourlife.com.
It offers a gateway to extension, research and education resources from UF’s
Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences.
-
| 