A bipartisan coalition of 35 members of the House of Representatives says the Environmental Protection Agency should stop issuing small refiner exemptions to large or unqualified refiners. The EPA has approved 54 waivers through the Renewable Fuel Standard, totaling 2.61 billion ethanol-equivalent gallons of renewable fuels in the past year and a half, and has 40 more waiver petitions pending.

In a letter, led by Representatives Cindy Axne of Iowa and Adrian Smith of Nebraska, the lawmakers say the “unprecedented rate of granting waivers is a betrayal of our rural communities.” The National Corn Growers Association and others welcomed the letter, saying the action sends a “strong message to EPA to stop granting unjustified waivers.”

The lawmakers say the EPA must halt the process and reallocate waived gallons as intended by law. NCGA has consistently called on the Trump administration to “rein in RFS exemptions” for refiners with large profits, and account for waived biofuels blending and increase transparency in the process.

Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue will travel to Japan and South Korea next week to participate in the G-20 Agriculture Ministers’ Meeting. The travel itinerary also includes meetings with his counterparts on global agriculture issues. The Secretary will deliver a keynote address at the G-20 Innovation and Agriculture seminar this Saturday and speak at the Cotton Council International’s annual Cotton Day on May 14.

As part of his meetings, Perdue will join his counterparts from Argentina, Brazil, Canada, and Mexico to discuss global agriculture issues. The Secretary has planned meetings with U.S. Ambassador to Japan William Hagerty, and Japan’s State Minister of Health, Labor, and Welfare, along with Korea’s Agriculture Minister.

During the trip, Perdue will attend a U.S. Meat Export Federation promotional event highlighting the importance of the Japanese market for U.S. meat, as USDA says Japan is the top overseas market for U.S. beef and pork. Finally, Perdue will attend the U.S.-Japan Agriculture Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony, as part of his travels.

A group of Midwest Senators is urging the Army Corps of Engineers to communicate better with lawmakers and stakeholders during flood events. Senators Jody Ernst and Chuck Grassley of Iowa led the effort, along with Senators from Kansas, Missouri, and North and South Dakota.

In a letter to the Army Corps of Engineers, the Senators describes issues with communications between the Corps and local levee sponsors and those in harm’s way. The Senators requested the Corps begin sending email updates to all local sponsors of Corps levees in the Missouri River Basin weekly starting within 30 days of receiving their letter. Better communications, the Senators say, “could have mitigated some of the damages,” during the beginning of ongoing flooding along the Missouri River this spring, according to the letter.

During heightened flood events along the Missouri River, the Corps of Engineers hosts scheduled conference calls with stakeholders and media, sometimes daily, with the most recent call scheduled Tuesday. The Corps also generally provides a forecast for the Missouri River once every three weeks. During this spring, that forecast has been updated weekly.

Trade officials from China are in Washington, DC this week as the Trump administration places further pressure on China to reach an agreement with the United States. Trump will increase tariffs on China Friday, saying talks between the two nations are going too slowly. On Twitter, Trump states he will increase tariffs on $200 billion of goods from 10 to 25 percent.

Trade organization Tariffs Hurt the Heartland says the move would cost nearly one million American jobs, and “increase the likelihood of retaliation on American farmers.” China and the U.S. meet this week in what was expected to be the final round of formal talks. Trump is expected to host his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping in June, with the expectation the two would sign an agreement.

A spokesperson for China’s Foreign Ministry said Monday the negotiations held so far between the two sides have achieved positive progress, adding, China hopes the U.S. will work to “meet each other halfway and strive for a mutually beneficial agreement on the basis of mutual respect.”