As former secretaries of Commerce, with direct oversight of the U.S. Census Bureau, we have grave concerns about the proposed addition of a citizenship question to the decennial census in 2020. If included, this question will put in jeopardy the accuracy of the data that the census collects, and increase costs.  The census should not be a partisan issue. Mandated under the U.S. Constitution, the census requires the actual enumeration of all persons in the United States, not simply all citizens. In fact, the Supreme Court unanimously upheld this system of counting everyone in 2016. [node:read-more:link]

Hawaii's state capital has nearly three times as much solar PV per capita as the next leading city, San Diego, California. [node:read-more:link]

An agency that leads sustainable energy efforts for cities and counties along the state’s Redwood Coast chose a consortium of companies -- including Energias de Portugal SA’s EDPR Offshore North America LLC and Principle Power Inc. -- to build a floating wind farm that may generate as much as 150 megawatts of power. [node:read-more:link]

New measures signed into law by Gov. John R. Kasich in 2015 clarified and enhanced the restrictions on manure application within the Western Lake Erie Basin. [node:read-more:link]

Farm groups pleaded with the Trump administration to back away from a trade conflict with China that will hit hard in states that are key components of the president’s political base and where there are pivotal elections in November. [node:read-more:link]

Under the newly-signed MOU, USDA and SBA will enhance collaboration and coordination in areas of mutual interest. Specifically, such collaboration is intended to improve investment opportunities in rural areas, identify ways to increase the benefits of the Tax Cuts and Job Act of 2017, improve innovation for rural technical assistance providers, and aid rural businesses in providing tools to export products around the world, among other goals. [node:read-more:link]

Donald Trump’s agriculture secretary, Sonny Perdue, has been criticized for rolling back school nutrition standards, attempting to upend the food stamps program, rejecting World Health Organization guidelines on antibiotics in agriculture and ending a pesticide ban, in a new report from the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) advocacy group. Perdue spent his first year in office “sidelining science and favoring industry”, the report claims, calling for greater congressional scrutiny of the agency. [node:read-more:link]

In general, I find the concept of focusing on exports problematic, particularly as a silver-bullet solution to depressed farm income. Exports are important, but they’re only 20% of the market. That leaves 80% of purchasing power among U. S. consumer. Additionally, nearly 100% of farmers are selling the things they produce in a domestic market. Farmers don’t export; agribusiness companies do the exporting. Export-oriented agriculture does not have the best track record in delivering better incomes for farmers. [node:read-more:link]

Chinese officials responded quickly Wednesday to the Trump administration's proposed 25% tariffs on $50 billion in Chinese imports by announcing higher tariffs on 106 more U.S. commodities, including soybeans. The new reciprocal tariffs will be on products including soybeans, automobiles and chemical products, worth a total of $50 billion. Soybeans are at the top of the list. The Chinese Ministry of Commerce did not indicate when the tariffs would take effect. [node:read-more:link]

Retaliatory Chinese tariffs introduced this week on U.S. produce risk prompting American fruit growers to flood the Canadian market, causing wholesale prices to fall, says a group representing Ontario apple growers. The Chinese government announced tariffs on Monday ranging between 15 and 25 per cent on 128 items, including fruit, nuts, pork, wine, steel pipe and aluminum scrap in retaliation for an estimated $3 billion in U.S. [node:read-more:link]