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A cache of internal memos that federal regulators intended to keep private reveals a culture of secrecy, falsehood and dysfunction that permeated the Waters of the U.S. rulemaking process.

Yesterday, the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform released more than 50 pages of documents in which the Army Corps of Engineers repeatedly rebuked EPA officials for their abuse of the rulemaking process in producing the deeply controversial Waters of the United States rule. The entire economic analysis used to support the rule, Army Corps officials wrote, had no basis in either science or economics.

At least one farm organization jumped all over these memos from the Army Corps.  The President of the American Farm Bureau, Bob Stallman, is livid.  

"The Corps documents confirm what we have been saying all along," Stallman said. "Even the Army Corps of Engineers concedes this rule is unworkable. The Army Corps' name is on the rule, yet experts tasked with determining its validity said they wanted the Corps' name removed from the economic analysis used to justify it.

"U.S. Army Assistant Secretary Darcy pleaded with Congress to keep these memos from the public eye. Well, now we know what they say, and we want to know more. What other internal agency documents are out there? If the Corps' economists objected so strongly, what did the EPA's economists think? What else are these agencies hiding from the public? As Americans, we expect better, but during the entire WOTUS rulemaking process, we got worse - much, much worse."

AFBF is calling on EPA to immediately withdraw its flawed rule, go back to the drawing board and address the concerns of farmers, ranchers and business owners across the country.  

Click here for our webstory on these latest 'soap opera like' developments on the Clean Water Rule from EPA- we have a link that takes you to the actual "litigation sensitive" Army Corps memos- they are amazing to read- go check them out.

The Time to Build Positive Momentum for State Question 777 Right to Farm is Now- Glenn Coffee 

The coalition that will ask Oklahoma voters to say yes to State Question 777 next November continues to get organized. Helping the farm organizations that are at the heart of this movement is one of the most savvy political operatives in the state of Oklahoma- former State Senate President Glenn Coffee.  

Senator Coffee talked with us on Friday about the effort to get the "Right to Farm" placed into the Oklahoma State Constitution- and the plans that are taking shape to organize an army of volunteers, raise a mountain of money and get ready to answer those who will oppose the State Question between now and next November.

We have both our audio conversation as well as the video of Senator Coffee and I in our weekly In the Field segment that is aired on News9 and then made available in cyberspace on the News9.com and on via their App as well.  

Click here to see the video and/or hear the audio conversation- and read more about the efforts to get the ball rolling on a Yes Vote for State Question 777.

The Time Has Come for the US to Get Into the Game and Export Beef to China- Phil Seng

Phil Seng, President and Chief Executive Officer of the US Meat Export Federation, believes it is time that the United States do what must be done on a government to government basis to establish beef trade with China.  And, he has authored an "op-ed" that offers a compelling case for our government to become pro-active in getting the Chinese market open for US Beef.

Cattle Prices Are Now Headed Slowly But Surely Downward- Jim Robb of the LMIC

Cattle prices have peaked and have already started a long, slow, slide downward. That's the contention of Jim Robb of the Livestock Market Information Center, who made that case in an article now posted on the LMIC website. Robb is our guest on the Beef Buzz- and he explains how we got to the peak and how the slide downward will be impacting beef cattle outlook in the months ahead.


In our Beef Buzz- as well as in that written analysis on the LMIC website, he sees no wholesale collapse, but rather a year over year gradual decline for the next couple of years.

Jim Robb says this is what you might call a cyclical transition.  And he says it will become more apparent in the second half of 2015 as prices slip.  "Still, through 2016 prices will remain high by historical standards. Look for prices to erode year- on-year rather than collapse."

He believes that fed cattle prices peaked in the fourth quarter of last year- and that calf and yearling prices have just seen their peak in the second quarter of this year.

Read his full analysis and hear his comments in our latest Beef Buzz report on our website- available here. 

Tom Buis Leaving Growth Energy CEO Position- to Remain as Co- Chairman of the Board

Growth Energy announced Friday  that CEO Tom Buis has been named as co-chairman of the organization's Board of Directors. Buis will join POET Founder and Executive Chairman Jeff Broin as co-chairmen of the Growth Energy board. In his new role Buis will remain actively involved in member activities and policy matters important to the industry. Buis will continue overseeing the day-to-day operations of the organization until a new CEO has been appointed.

Buis indicated in a statement that ""As co-chair, I will remain engaged in growing membership and advocating for policies that benefit American farmers and consumers, but I'm also at a point in life where I'm ready to assume more of a guiding role as a leader on the board. I am proud of the accomplishments we have had at Growth Energy, as it has grown from a startup to the largest trade association representing the ethanol industry in America."

Buis has been along every step of that journey with Growth Energy.  He moved from being President of the National Farmers Union over to the Growth Energy position in 2009.   

We have worked with Buis since his days as the lead lobbyist for NFU in the 1990s- then his time as NFU President and finally his role as the chief advocate for ethanol and biofuels in this country. One take away we have always been able to say about Tom Buis- while you might not always buy what he was selling from a policy point of view- you never doubted for a moment his love for rural America and the people who live in rural America. He's one of the good guys.

Click here for the full statement from Friday from Growth Energy on the Buis move.

Award winning broadcast journalist Jerry Bohnen has spent years learning and understanding how to cover the energy business here in the southern plains-  Click here to subscribe to his daily update of top Energy News.

Market Research- A Key to Beef Promotion Success Driven by the Beef Checkoff

Beef Checkoff Leaders are constantly reviewing the impact of programs being paid for by beef checkoff dollars. We have posted a story on our website that shows some of the thinking about how to gauge the impact of programs in today's world- which includes marketing on digital platforms to younger demographics who may or may not have a clue how to prepare many of the beef cuts they see in the supermarket meat case.

In this story spotlighting market research in this brave new world for the beef industry- we learn a little about the why- "Knowledge about consumers - beef buyers and potential buyers - is critical. After all, consumers are in the driver's seat when it comes to buying beef - or any other product, for that matter. Until we understand the wants and needs of a target audience, what are the chances of meeting their requirements in the beef and beef products we produce for them? It would be like shooting in the dark and hoping to hit something.

"That's why market research is the foundation of all other programs funded by the beef checkoff. In short, it grounds checkoff planning efforts with knowledge about what drives a beef-purchase decision at the retail meat case and in restaurants. It spotlights beef's strengths and weaknesses. It helps planners set consumer goals and track progress toward those goals, then share that information with chefs, retailers, restaurants, nutritionists, dietitians, doctors, foodies, and other influencers. And it helps target checkoff investments in the most efficient and effective ways possible."

Click here to read more.  

Sierra Club Bashes Right to Farm and Flunks Most Lawmakers in Their Annual Scorecard 

The Sierra Club has released their annual State Legislative Scorecard- and they used HJR1012 as one of the votes that they rated lawmakers on.  In the scorecard- the Sierra Club says "

"Many bills focused on so-called "farm and ranch" issues, but were in effect nothing more than attempts to insulate large corporate farms and ranches from having to live by the rules that other Oklahomans live by. The Oklahoma Farm Bureau once again requested legislation that both directly and indirectly works to lower the thresholds of various rules and regulations that are in place to keep Oklahoma's air, land, and water safe and clean. For example, HB1514 changed the rules regarding Confined Animal Feeding Operations in the state-and in ways that make it better for corporations and worse for neighbors and the environment.   

"And worst of all, the passage of HJR1012, which will now call for a vote of the people to "protect Oklahoma farmers and ranchers" with a constitutional amendment-what they did not say, was that this bill was requested by large corporations and American Legislative Exchange Council  who used the Oklahoma Farm Bureau as a mouthpiece to set the stage for potentially completely insulating these large corporate interests from laws and lawsuits no matter what these corporations want to do. This is like giving a free pass to pollute."

Jerry Bohnen writes about the scorecard on his website- Oklahoma Energy Today- and he says most lawmakers were not in the good graces of the environmental group.

"How did the legislators fare? Legislative leaders failed. In the Senate, there were 40 Fs handed out, five C grades, one B and only two As. The A's were given to Senators Kay Floyd and Earl Garrison, both Democrats.

"In the House, 62 legislators received an 'F' including Speaker Jeff Hickman. Ten received a 'D' while 9 C's were handed out along with eleven B grades. Seven A's were given to Reps. Jason Dunnington, William Fourkiller, Claudia Griffith, Jeannie McDaniel, Seneca Scott, Mike Shelton and Cory Williams, all Democrats."

You can read Jerry's complete article on the Scorecard by clicking here.