Housing and Development Newsletter
By any measure, Arlen and Cindy Foster have been good stewards to the property, working it with their daughter, son-in-law and six grandchildren. They are third-generation farmers who raise cattle, corn, soybeans and hay. They practice no-till farming and have a long history of conservation efforts dating back to 1900, when Arlen s grandfather, Francis Foster, bought the land with a loan of $1,000.
In 1938, as the Dust Bowl era saw farms across the country decimated, Grandpa Francis planted stands of trees to prevent erosion. Today, the Fosters groves of trees are large and trap snow during the severe South Dakota winters. The spring melt creates a stream of water that seeps the lowland, thus creating the controversial mud puddle.
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Just thought you might like to know what the federal government is doing on your behalf, how the feds are spending your tax dollars on a crazy-sounding lawsuit.
The dispute pits a South Dakota farm family, the Fosters, against the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The fight is over a mud puddle. Yep, you read that right. Said mud puddle is located smack in the middle of prime farmland.
The USDA has decreed the family may not fill in the muddy patch to plant more crops because it considers the .08 acre of land to be federally protected under the 1985 Swampbuster Act, which protects wetlands. No matter that the Fosters’ puddle is not connected to any waterway and is not near any other officially designated wetlands property. According to their lawyer, if the family dares to tamper with the puddle they will lose access to crop insurance and other federal programs designed to help American farmer
Federal judge rules lawsuit alleging racial discrimination in admissions at elite high school can proceed hotair.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from hotair.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Last modified on Fri 21 May 2021 13.11 EDT
Billionaire Charles Koch’s foundation has bankrolled three conservative legal groups leading the court battle to eliminate prohibitions against tenant evictions during the Covid-19 pandemic in America.
At the same time, Koch’s corporate empire has suddenly stepped up its real estate purchases during the pandemic – including making large investments in real estate companies with a potential financial interest in eliminating eviction restrictions.
In the last few months, the Texas Public Policy Foundation, the Pacific Legal Foundation and the New Civil Rights Alliance havebeenpushing federal courts to strike down the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) eviction moratorium, which is designed to protect millions of Americans from being thrown out of their homes during the pandemic. The groups have so far won two rulings.