By Diana Carlen Lobbyist, Washington Association of Wheat Growers The Legislature has completed the seventh week of session. Friday, Feb. 28 was the 47th day of the 105-day session. The focus of the past week was on fiscal and transportation committees working late into the night hearing hundreds of bills with fiscal impacts and holding executive session to pass out ... Read More »
State
Week 6, Washington State Legislative Report
By Diana Carlen Lobbyist, Washington Association of Wheat Growers Feb. 21 marked the first major deadline of the 2025 legislative session when bills must have been voted out of their respective policy committees to still be considered alive for this session. The second deadline is less than a week away on Feb. 28, when bills must be passed out of ... Read More »
Week 5, Washington State Legislative Report
By Diana Carlen Lobbyist, Washington Association of Wheat Growers Feb. 16 marked the 35th day of the legislative session. There is less than a week to go until the first big deadline for policymakers. Feb. 21 is the deadline for when all bills must have advanced out of their policy committee, or else they are likely dead for the session. ... Read More »
Week 4, Washington State Legislative Report
By Diana Carlen Lobbyist, Washington Association of Wheat Growers We have completed the fourth week of the 2025 Washington State Legislative Session. Feb. 8 marked day 27 of the 105-day session. Committee hearings were the prime focus this week, but there was some floor action as well. We are less than two weeks away from our first major deadline — ... Read More »
Weather expert: ‘Not a good forecast for wheat in the US’
From the Capital Press Art Douglas admitted his weather forecast isn’t especially ‘rosy’ this year. Easily 60% of the U.S. is under drought, and that’s likely to expand in February through the summer, Douglas told farmers Feb. 4 at the Spokane Ag Show. Douglas, professor emeritus at Creighton University in Omaha, Neb., first spoke at the ag show during the ... Read More »
Crop progress report January 2025: Washington farmland quiet
From the National Agricultural Statistics Service The statewide temperatures for January were mostly below normal to normal for this time of year, with an area in central Washington having above normal temperatures. Producers in the western region reported freezing temperatures helping raspberry and blueberry plants progress into dormancy. In the central part of the state, little activity was reported in ... Read More »
Purchase WA Wheat Foundation Floor Tile
Have you purchased your floor tile for the Washington Wheat Foundation annex? Money raised for this project will be used for the Ambassador Scholarship program, which grants $4500 and $5000 scholarships to high school students entering their senior year; research equipment grants at WSU; Ag in the Classroom; Northwest Natural Resources Institute; and the Washington FFA foundation. You can find information ... Read More »
Week 3, Washington State Legislative Report
By Diana Carlen Lobbyist, Washington Association of Wheat Growers Friday, Jan. 30, was day 21 of the 105-day legislative session. There are 84 days to go. The third week brought another hectic week for the Washington State Legislature. The flurry of new bill introductions has not slowed, and as of Jan. 31, 1,442 bills in total have dropped. The focus ... Read More »
Legislative update 01/24: Legislators hit ground running as 2025 session begins
By Diana Carlen WAWG Lobbyist The 2025 Legislative Session kicked off on Jan. 13, 2025. As this is a “long session” year, the session is expected to last 105 days, ending on Sunday, April 27, 2025. There are a lot of new faces in Olympia. This is the first time in 12 years that Washington state has a new governor ... Read More »
WA farmers wrongly charged under climate laws pleading for a fix
From fox13seattle.com For years, Washington State has been losing two farms per day, and the impact of the Climate Commitment Act is making it even harder for some to survive. The Washington Farm Bureau says the Climate Commitment Act, which passed in 2021, is now disproportionately impacting small farms. If the system worked as intended, farmers wouldn’t have been negatively ... Read More »