SARL Members and Alumni

Legislation aimed at reducing crop damage from elk has pitted Oregon agriculture groups against hunting organizations that say the proposals will allow for irresponsible killing. [node:read-more:link]

Proposals to treat large Oregon dairies as industrial facilities met with an uproar of objections but have quietly died due to a legislative deadline. [node:read-more:link]

For the first time, Massachusetts prisons are providing a medication to treat opioid addiction to newly arriving inmates, as the state launches a groundbreaking program established by legislation passed last year. For now, the Department of Correction is providing just one of the two medications required under the law, which took effect Monday.Still, the change puts Massachusetts ahead of most prisons and jails in the country, where the medications are usually denied.

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Medical marijuana sales are coming to Georgia eventually, but a bill that lawmakers passed late Tuesday contains substantial hurdles before the state’s 8,400 registered patients can buy the drug.The General Assembly approved a unique distribution system that could force patients to wait months or years before they’re legally able to obtain medical marijuana oil here. [node:read-more:link]

After securing a hefty financial settlement from Purdue Pharma last month, Oklahoma Attorney General Mike Hunter is training the state’s legal armaments on a much bigger pharmaceutical player: Johnson & Johnson. The company already has become a popular target. Many of the more than 1,600 opioid lawsuits in state and federal courts name Johnson & Johnson, even though its analgesic products account for less than 1% of the U.S. [node:read-more:link]

Six states and the District of Columbia sued the Department of Agriculture on Wednesday, saying it weakened nutritional standards in school breakfasts and lunches when it relaxed the requirements affecting salt and refined grains last year. [node:read-more:link]

The met Wednesday afternoon with members of the Army Corps of Engineers and FEMA to review the status of flood recovery and map out a direction toward critical improvements need to prevent this from happening in the future. [node:read-more:link]

 A State Bill that hopes to help prevent animal abuse in Indiana has passed the House. Senate Enrolled Act 474 would establish a mandatory condition of probation and parole that would not allow any person convicted of animal abuse to own, harbor, or train a 'companion animal.'It passed the Indiana House by a unanimous vote. [node:read-more:link]

A Texas house bill that had some advocates and pet owners concerned will now be researched instead of being put up for a vote.House Bill 3806 would have stopped non-profit, low-costs vet clinics from providing certain services to some pet owners based on their income.Monday the House Agriculture and Livestock Committee heard citizens explain how the bill, if passed, would leave many pets untreated. Local Wichita County pet owners and animal advocates echoed their concerns. [node:read-more:link]

Most Washington dairy farmers don’t brand cows and aren’t in the mood to pay more to support a brand program, an industry representative told lawmakers, complicating a last-ditch push to save the program aimed at marketing cattle and deterring rustlers. Other cattle groups endorsed a plan to raise fees to fund inspections by the state Department of Agriculture of cattle changing owners. Washington State Dairy Federation policy director Jay Gordon said recent meetings with members revealed strong opposition. [node:read-more:link]