• Support Country of Origin Labeling for beef, rules to implement the Packers & Stockyards Act, more rigorous enforcement of antitrust laws, moratorium on further agriculture mergers, strengthening of import standards to prevent introduction of foreign animal diseases, reform of beef checkoff program, reform trade policies to protect the price-sensitive cattle industry, investigation into commodity futures trading activity, oppose any expansion of animal traceability rules, reform competitive structure of cattle industry, support spot market protection bill, amend Livestock Mandatory Reporting Act by reforming confidentiality rules. Support M-COOL bill. Request USTR to initiate a section 201 investigation for the sheep industry.
• All of R-CALF USA's lobbying efforts are on behalf of U.S. cattle and sheep producers and the cattle and sheep they raise and sell. We specifically oppose USDA's efforts to mandate radio frequency identification (RFID) eartags.
• Support investigation into cattle futures market anomalies and reform of that market to restore its function as a risk management tool for cattle producers.
• We have opposed the Waters of the U.S. proposal but have not directly engaged in this issue for some time. We also oppose the 30X30 project.
• Defend the First Amendment rights of cattle producers in a lawsuit against the Beef Checkoff Program. Though that litigation is over, we have a related lawsuit pending against the USDA's beef checkoff program that is impacted by our defense of the Constitution.
• We continue monitoring the impacts on cattle producers within the Powder River Training Complex. We also encourage the Defense Department to source beef and lamb exclusively from animals born, raised, and slaughtered in the United States. No direct lobbying activity this quarter.
• Support mandatory country of origin labeling for beef, pork and dairy products and the requirement that all foreign beef to retain its foreign label through retail sale. We also oppose imports of beef from cattle produced by deforest practices. We further urge Congress to reinstate weakened food safety import standards that were relaxed following the 1995 entry into the World Trade Organization. Support resolution of disapproval introduced to reverse the final rule allowing fresh beef from Paraguay into the U.S.
• We continue to oppose the NBAF project where the live foot-and-mouth disease virus is planned to be introduced onto the mainland in Manhattan, Kansas.
• Support more rigorous enforcement of antitrust laws, the Packers and Stockyards Act, and the Commodity Exchange Act to protect independent producers from the market power of large packers. We support the President's Executive Order on competition reforms.
• Support tariffs on cattle and beef from countries that persistently maintain a trade surplus with the United States. Support continued Section 301 tariffs. Support use of tariffs to balance goods trade deficit. We are encouraging Congress to update the 100-year-old tariff schedule for beef, lamb, and mutton and to establish a tariff rate quota system for lamb and mutton imports and a more meaningful tariff rate quota system for cattle and beef.
• Continue opposing the TPP and the USMCA while supporting mandatory Country of Origin Labeling on beef so U.S. cattle producers can compete against the growing volumes of imports. We are calling for reforms of free trade agreements with countries that maintain a trade surplus in beef and cattle with the United States. We are encouraging the Administration and Congress to limit the quantity of imported cattle, beef, lamb, and mutton.
• We supported increased funding for chronic wasting disease. Support reinstatement of mandatory country of origin labeling, which was repealed in a prior appropriations bill. We also oppose any riders on the appropriations bill that would prevent the USDA from promulgating rules to implement the Packers and Stockyards Act of 1921 through agency rulemaking. We support a budget rider to prevent USDA from implementing its electronic identification rule. We support increased funding for the Packers and Stockyards division of USDA-AMS and for the Department of Justice.
• Continue opposing any restrictions on grazing and water rights owned by independent cattle producers.

Duration: January 1, 2008 to present

General Issues: Agriculture, Animals, Commodities (Big Ticket), Clean Air & Water (Quality), Constitution, Defense, Food Industry (Safety, Labeling, etc.), Homeland Security, Labor Issues/Antitrust/Workplace, Miscellaneous Tariff Bills, Trade (Domestic & Foreign), Budget/Appropriations, Real Estate/Land Use/Conservation, Financial Institutions/Investments/Securities, Environmental/Superfund, Natural Resources

Spending: about $3,130,000 (But it's complicated. Here's why.)

It can be tricky to figure out how much an organization spent on a particular lobbying engagement. The law only requires lobbyists to report the amount they were paid for federal lobbying each quarter rounded to the nearest $10,000—and if it's less than $3,000 in a given quarter (or less than $13,000 for organizations with in-house lobbyists), they don't have to disclose it at all. Plus, some organizations include spending that doesn’t belong in the report—for instance, money spent lobbying state governments or other legal work.

Agencies lobbied since 2008: U.S. Senate, House of Representatives, Agriculture - Dept of (USDA), Homeland Security - Dept of (DHS), Interior - Dept of (DOI), Justice - Dept of (DOJ), U.S. Trade Representative (USTR), Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), Government Accountability Office (GAO), White House Office, Federal Trade Commission (FTC), Small Business Administration (SBA), Commerce - Dept of (DOC), U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Army - Dept of (Corps of Engineers), Justice - Dept of (DOJ), Defense - Dept of (DOD), Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Air Force - Dept of, Commerce - Dept of (DOC), Interior - Dept of (DOI), Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Agriculture - Dept of (USDA), Justice - Dept of (DOJ),, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (USFWS), Office of Management & Budget (OMB), Treasury - Dept of, State - Dept of (DOS), Labor - Dept of (DOL), President of the U.S., Food & Drug Administration (FDA), Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC), Health & Human Services - Dept of (HHS), Intl Trade Administration (ITA), Vice President of the U.S., Centers For Disease Control & Prevention (CDC), Executive Office of the President (EOP), Congressional Budget Office (CBO)