One Big Beautiful Bill Act
- The One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) was signed into law on July 4, 2025, and contains key tax and spending policies. It permanently increases federal estate, gift, and generation-skipping transfer tax exemptions to $15 million for individuals and $30 million for married couples.
Cattle and Emissions Regulations
- The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) won a legal victory against new emissions regulations. The ruling, affirmed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, protects cattle producers from being subject to these regulations. The NCBA sees this as a win for cattle producers across the country.
Illinois Agricultural Law
- A new law in Illinois is designed to help young farmers by establishing the Farmland Transition Commission. The commission, within the Illinois Department of Agriculture, will study challenges faced by young farmers and recommend policies to encourage the transfer of farmland to those aged 25 to 40.
- A new law in Illinois has been enacted that expands poultry processing limits. This legislation exempts farmers who process fewer than 7,500 birds annually from state and federal inspections. The previous limit was 5,000 birds. Several states have also enacted new food safety legislation in 2025, addressing issues such as raw milk, food additives, and alternative proteins.
USDA News
- A federal court has ordered the USDA to restore grants that were terminated, which were intended for farmers and nonprofits. The court found that the terminations were likely illegal, arbitrary, and capricious, and that the organizations would suffer irreparable harm without the funding.
- The USDA terminated union contracts for about 8,000 food safety and plant inspectors, citing Trump’s executive order excluding federal workers in national security agencies from collective bargaining. One union sued, arguing their work isn’t security-related. The move adds uncertainty as USDA has already lost over 15,000 employees since January.
Immigration, Employment, and Labor
- In a win for ag employers, a federal court tossed out a complex 2023 rule for H-2A wage determination, and the Department of Labor will now revert to the simpler 2010 rule. There has been an increase in immigration enforcement actions, with federal officers raiding farms and arresting workers.
Antitrust
- A class-action lawsuit by 11 farmers against Syngenta and Corteva is advancing in federal court. The farmers allege the pesticide companies used illegal “loyalty programs” requiring distributors to purchase 85-99% of certain active ingredients from them, blocking generic competitors and inflating farmer costs by approximately 40%. The court dismissed treble damages but allowed core antitrust conspiracy claims to proceed.