A federal judge struck down Iowa’s “Ag-Gag Law.” The law prevents journalists and advocacy groups from taking part in undercover investigations of farms, slaughterhouses, and other agricultural facilities. The law, passed in 2012, is called the Agricultural Production Facility Fraud Law. It was widely supported by agriculture groups but was also challenged by groups like People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. The Des Moines Register says Senior Judge James Gritzner says it’s his judgment that the law “violates the First Amendment.” Proponents say the law prevents what they call “subversive acts.” Opponents say the law made it much more difficult for employees to report unsafe working conditions or other challenges and dangers within the facilities. The Animal Legal Defense Fund says in a statement that “Ag-Gag Laws are an attempt by animal exploitation industries to hide some of the worst forms of animal abuse within the United States. This victory makes it clear that the government cannot protect these industries at the expense of our constitutional rights.” The state has not yet ruled out appealing the decision.

The Environmental Protection Agency says it will complete a rule to help boost sales of ethanol-blended gasoline by the time the summer driving season is in full swing. A U.S. News Dot Com article says the agency will complete the task in spite of the partial government shutdown. However, the agency did warn two congressional members that the timeline for getting the new rule in place will be delayed. Just before the November election, President Trump had pledged to get rid of the ban on summer sales of E15 gasoline. The goal was to give a boost to the U.S. ethanol industry that’s been hurt by overseas trade disputes and weak domestic demand. The administration had wanted the rule out by February. Again, EPA says the shutdown will delay that timeline, but a spokesman says the agency will still have the rule published by the summer driving season. The EPA still has a ban in place on summertime E15 sales because of concerns that it contributes to smog on hot days. That’s a concern that biofuels advocates say isn’t accurate. The Trump decision to lift the ban on summer E15 sales was applauded by corn-state farmers and lawmakers. The proposal would likely come with a number of reforms to the credit-trading market that underpins the nation’s renewable fuels policy.

Trade talks between the U.S. and China wrapped up this week and covered a wide range of topics. China’s Commerce Ministry released a statement saying the talks are helping to establish a way forward to wrap up the dispute between the two largest economies in the world. However, a Reuters report says the statement didn’t give many specifics on the issues the negotiators are trying to work through. The three days of talks wrapped up in Beijing on Wednesday. It’s the first time the two sides have talked since U.S. President Trump and Chinese President Xi (Zhee) agreed to a 90-day truce during a meeting in Buenos Aires. The Chinese Commerce Ministry statement says the two sides “held extensive, deep, and thorough exchanges on trade and structural issues of common concern, which promoted mutual understanding and established a foundation for resolving each other’s concerns.” The U.S. Trade Representative’s Office issued a statement saying the two sides discussed “ways to achieve fairness, reciprocity, and balance in trade relations.” The Reuters report says China pledged to buy “a substantial amount” of agricultural, energy, and manufacturing goods from the U.S.

House Democrats were expected to push through more individual spending bills late this week that Senators will not consider. A sign of partisan politics and split leadership, the House was expected to move spending bills that would secure funding for federal agencies, including the Department of Agriculture, during the ongoing government shutdown. The piecemeal of spending bills is largely seen as a symbolic move, as Senate Republicans and leadership will block the action. The White House has already rejected the plan, noting that it falls short of Trump’s goal of border security, or funding for a border wall. Both sides, however, the Republican-led Senate and President Trump, and the Democratic-led House appear to be digging in their heals on the issue, refusing to budge. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said earlier this week “the senseless uncertainty and chaos of the Trump shutdown must end, now.”

President Donald Trump Wednesday formally nominated Andrew Wheeler to head the Environmental Protection Agency. Wheeler, who assumed the role of acting EPA administrator following the resignation of Scott Pruitt, has done “a fantastic job,” according to Trump. The nomination will be considered by the Senate, which narrowly confirmed Wheeler as EPA deputy administrator by a vote 53-45. Bloomberg News calls Wheeler a politically savvy former energy lobbyist and Republican Senate aide who shares Trump’s approach to environmental regulation. Wheeler said he was “honored and grateful” for the nomination. President Trump has previously said in November that he would make the nomination of Wheeler. At the time, Renewable Fuels Association President and CEO Geoff Cooper called the move a positive step for the biofuels industry. He says Wheeler has been more open and transparent in managing the Renewable Fuel Standard.

U.S. tariff collections increased, expectedly, in 2018 as President trump waged a trade war on China, along with other tariff heavy trade policies. The U.S. government collected 6.7 billion more in customs duties in fiscal 2018 than in the previous fiscal year, according to the Treasury Department’s final monthly statement for fiscal 2018. That’s more than the estimated $5 billion needed to build the Trump border wall that’s shuttered the federal government for now 20 days. But, as Politico reports, the trade policies have perhaps cost the U.S. more than it’s received. The data from the Treasury Department does not include the $12 billion aid plan for farmers through the Market Facilitation Program. Further, economists say the extra revenue isn’t actually paid by foreign governments, but rather American companies importing those products into the United States.

The government shutdown is delaying a comment period for the Trump administration’s new Waters of the U.S. proposal. The Environmental Protection Agency and Army Corps of Engineers will delay publishing the proposed WOTUS replacement in the Federal Register until after funding is restored at EPA, according to Politico.

The 60-day comment period won’t begin until the proposed rule is published in the federal register. Additionally, the EPA had planned a hearing in Kansas City, Kansas, later this month on the proposal. However, due to the shutdown, that hearing has been delayed indefinitely. The WOTUS replacement, welcomed by U.S. agriculture, protects resources, respects the law and provides greater clarity so the agencies and the public can identify regulated federal waterways, according to the American Farm Bureau Federation.

Following the announcement of the proposal last month, AFBF President Zippy Duval said the new rule “will empower farmers and ranchers to comply with the law,” protect water resources and allow farmers to “productively work their land without having to hire an army of lawyers and consultants.”