February 7, 2025 Weekly Round Up

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We are back with another weekly round up of agricultural law news from around the country. * Texas law requires confirming homestead exemption status every 5 years. A new law, passed in 2023, requires appraisal districts in Texas to determine eligibility for a homestead exemption every 5 years. Appraisal districts will do this by sending out a letter seeking confirmation of homestead status.  It is critical that homeowners do not ignore this letter! [Read article here.] *Senate agriculture committee advances nomination of Brooke Rollins as Secretary of Agriculture.  A… Read More →

The Beef Checkoff and Direct Beef Sales

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An important issue for direct beef sales businesses to consider is the payment of the Beef Checkoff assessment. The national Beef Checkoff program was established through the Beef Promotion and Research Act as part of the 1985 Farm Bill. The Beef Checkoff aims to build demand for beef and beef products, both domestically and internationally, through initiatives such as consumer advertising, marketing partnerships, public relations, education, research, and new product development. In 2014, Texas cattle producers voted to pass a state Beef Checkoff that works specifically for in-state… Read More →

Wildfire: Preparing the Ranch

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We are excited to announce the release of our most recent publication, Wildfire: Preparing the Ranch.   I was thrilled to be asked to join as a co-author on this handbook, which was primarily drafted by Dr. Morgan Treadwell, one of the nationwide experts on fire and rangelands. Our goal is to provide Texas landowners with practical information and tools to prepare for wildfires and to know what steps to take to protect their property, livestock, belongings, and people should a wildfire occur.  Having had to evacuate livestock… Read More →

January 24, 2025 Weekly Round Up

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It has been quite the week with much of the country facing cold temperatures and snow!  Beyond the weather-related news, there were a number of important ag law stories as well. * SCOTUS weighs in on Corporate Transparency Act reporting; a nationwide injunction remains in place.  The litigation surrounding the constitutionality of the Corporate Transparency Act continued this week.  On Thursday, the United States Supreme Court lifted the nationwide injunction in Texas Top Cop Shop v. Garland.  [Read article here.]  Although that stay is no longer in place, there was… Read More →

Enrollment Periods for Crop and Dairy Safety-Net Programs Announced

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The United States Department of Agriculture announced the enrollment periods for key farm safety-net programs.  The enrollment period for ARC (Agriculture Risk Coverage) and PLC (Price Loss Coverage) will run from January 21 – April 15.  For the DMC (Dairy Margin Coverage) program, dairy producers will have from January 29 – March 31 to enroll. ARC/PLC Producers who have land with base acres of covered commodities likely qualify to enroll in either ARC or PLC.  These programs offer financial assistance to producers.  ARC provides payments when a farm’s… Read More →

Court Finds Surface Owner Unable to Enforce Burial Provision in Oil and Gas Lease

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A recent Amarillo Court of Appeals opinion in Unitex WI. LLC v. CT Land and Cattle Co., LLC, raises important questions of the enforceability of surface protections in an oil and gas lease. Background CT Land and Cattle Co., LLC (“CT”) owns the surface interest in a ranch.  It purchased this interest in 2013.  There were a number of oil and gas wells and corresponding pipelines on the ranch at this time.  Unitex WI, LLC and Unitex Oil and Gas, LLC (collectively “Unitex) maintains at least some of the wells… Read More →

January 10, 2025 Weekly Round Up

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Happy New Year!  We are back from the holiday and ready to kick off 2025 with a round up of recent ag law stories in the news.  We know many of you have been dealing with frigid winter weather, and we hope you are all staying warm and safe! *Corporate Transparency Act ping pong.  If you are a subscriber to this blog, you saw multiple posts over the holiday as the status of the Corporate Transparency Act changed multiple times.  On December 23, 2024, the United States Court… Read More →

Top Blogs and Podcast Episodes of 2024

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Each year, we take a look back at our most popular content of 2024 across our various platforms. Texas Agriculture Law Blog Drumroll please…our top 5 most popular blog posts for 2024 are: Renew Your Ag Timber Number Now!  Our most popular post for 2024 involved a January 1, 2024, deadline for Texas producers to renew their ag timber numbers.  Having an ag timber number allows producers and landowners to be exempt from paying sales taxes on the purchase of certain products used in the course of their… Read More →

Yet Another Corporate Transparency Update: Injunction Reinstated

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*Update:  On January 23, 2025, the United States Supreme Court lifted the nationwide injunction in Texas Top Cop Shop, LLC v. Garland.   However, a nationwide injunction entered by the United States District Court for the District of Texas remains in place in a separate case, Smith v. US Department of Treasury. In ight of that, at this time the reporting deadlines are not in place and the requirement is not being enforced.  For the most up to date information, click here.   In what feels a bit like… Read More →

BREAKING NEWS: Court Lifts Injunction; Corporate Transparency Act Reporting Deadline January 13, 2025

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*Update:  On January 23, 2025, the United States Supreme Court lifted the nationwide injunction in Texas Top Cop Shop, LLC v. Garland.   However, a nationwide injunction entered by the United States District Court for the District of Texas remains in place in a separate case, Smith v. US Department of Treasury. In ight of that, at this time the reporting deadlines are not in place and the requirement is not being enforced.  For the most up to date information, click here. Santa Claus is not the only one… Read More →