SNAP Sales Data Ruled Confidential – June 25, 2019

Supreme Court rules SNAP sales data are confidential

A solid majority of the Supreme Court ruled on Monday that SNAP sales data at the store level are confidential and outside of the reach of public-records laws. The Argus Leader newspaper fought for access to the information for eight years on grounds that taxpayers deserved to know how and where the largest U.S. anti-hunger program spends more than $65 billion a year.

Justice Dept. intervenes in major poultry price-fixing case

The Department of Justice intervened Friday in a landmark price-fixing suit against the country’s biggest poultry companies, possibly signaling that its own grand jury investigation into the chicken sector could result in criminal indictments.

Trump tariff payments may prop up financially weak farms

The past five years, since the collapse of the commodity boom, “has resulted in a massive drain of farm sector liquidity,” said economist Brent Gloy on Monday. The new round of up to $14.5 billion in trade mitigation payments promised by President Trump may improve the financial picture for some producers.

TODAY’S QUICK HITS

Solar farms as big as a lake (Dayton Daily News): State officials have approved six solar farms in four Ohio counties covering a combined 12,573 acres, as big as the largest inland lake in the state, but there is dissension in rural communities over using land for electrical power rather than growing food.

Farm Bureau hires communications chief (AFBF): Terri Moore, who worked in press shops at the White House, Senate and USDA, will start work on July 8 as communications vice president for the American Farm Bureau Federation, the largest U.S. farm group.

USDA faces re-survey decision (USDA Radio): Given concerns about the slow planting season, USDA will announce on Friday, when it releases the annual Acreage survey, whether it will revisit parts of the country to get a better picture of plantings.

Obesity rates decline for WIC children (The Hagstrom Report): The obesity rate among children enrolled in WIC fell by 2 percentage points, to 13.9 percent, from 2010 to 2016, said a study released by the CDC.

Community facilities to benefit 631,000 people (USDA): Forty communities will receive a total of $50 million in USDA loans and grants for projects ranging from hospital renovations to the purchase of firefighting equipment and new snow plows, benefitting 631,000 people in 17 states.

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