Wine Smoke Damage Legislation and Local Food for Schools Cuts
From the Ag Information Network, this is your Agribusiness Update.
**Legislation out of both houses of Congress has been introduced to protect winegrape growers against wildfire smoke damage.
Reps. Mike Thompson and Doug LaMalfa have partnered with Sens. Alex Padilla and Jeff Merkley to introduce the Smoke Exposure Research Act of 2025.
The bill would authorize $32.5 million annually over the next five-year Farm Bill cycle to better understand the impacts of wildfire smoke on vines and wineries and provide fair insurance.
**USDA is ending two pandemic-era programs that provided more than $1 billion for schools and food banks to purchase food from local farmers and producers.
About $660 million of that went to schools and childcare centers to buy food for meals through the Local Foods for Schools program.
Proposed spending cuts to fund Republican’s tax bill include raising the poverty level needed for schools to provide free meals without an application.
**Federal court rulings in California and Maryland have ordered multiple government agencies to reinstate probationary employees who they say were unlawfully terminated.
The California Judge found the firings violated legal protections, while the Maryland Judge ruled the Trump administration failed to follow proper procedures for large-scale layoffs.
The USDA says the Department will work quickly to develop a phased plan for return-to-duty, and while those plans materialize, all probationary employees will be paid.
