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It’s Getting Hot in Here, So Turn Off All Your ...

Blog By: Antonio C. Ellzey

In this blog, 3L Antonio C. Ellzey points out that California Governor Newsom recently vetoed a pending California state law that aimed to address the dangers of gas appliances. Specifically, the new law would have required manufacturers to place warning labels on gas stoves to inform consumers of their health effects. Some say the new law would help build awareness around a hidden danger while others say the new would restrict Californians’ freedom. Ellzey believes the pending law would positively impact Californians because they can make better-informed decisions around their health and safety, which would ultimately help save lives.

It’s Getting Hot in Here, So Turn Off All Your (Gas) Stoves
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Whiskey Business: Utilizing Certification Marks ...

Blog By: Stevi Whitman

In this blog, 3L staffer Stevi Whitman argues for the use of certification marks to promote authenticity within the whiskey industry by introducing the Estate Whiskey Alliance® (EWA). The EWA is a member led association spearheaded by UK Innovate at the University of Kentucky, the James B. Beam Institute, Marker’s Mark Distillery, and other founding members, tasked with ensuring quality standards of whiskey production, promoting the benefits of local sourcing, and advancing sustainability efforts throughout the whiskey industry through the use of certification marks.

Whiskey Business: Utilizing Certification Marks to Protect Intellectual Property and Promote Authenticity within the Whiskey Industry
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Whiskey Fungus: the Kentucky Courts' Ticking ...

Blog By: Phillip Burress

Kentucky is home to 100 distilleries in 42 counties and produces 95% of the world's bourbon. In this Blog, 3L Phillip Burress discusses the threat posed by "Whiskey Fungus" on Kentucky property owners and the legal challenges facing Kentucky distillers.

Whiskey Fungus: the Kentucky Courts' Ticking Timebomb
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Prop 12 – Should Congress Stay Silent?

Blog By: Ashton Edwards

In this Blog, 3L Staffer Ashton Edwards argues that instead of staying silent on the issue, Congress should respond to the interstate commerce concerns that reside in the Prop 12, a proposition that was made law by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2023. Edwards discusses that so far, Congress has yet to address the arguments and concerns of Farmers, the Court, or citizens, even though this law arguably has a substantial impact on interstate commerce.

Prop 12 – Should Congress Stay Silent?
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Cut the Tax: What Rescheduling Marijuana Could ...

Blog By: Antonio C. Ellzey

In this Blog, 3L Staffer Antonio C. Ellzey discusses the challenges faced by entrepreneurs in the cannabis industry, particularly the impact of Section 280E of the Internal Revenue Code, which limits deductions for businesses engaged in the cannabis trade due to federal prohibition. Ellzey discusses the potential benefits of rescheduling cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule III, which he argues would alleviate financial burdens on cannabis businesses, enhance safety, and stimulate economic growth.

Cut the Tax: What Rescheduling Marijuana Could Mean for Section 280E and Cannabis-Related Businesses

Fighting Against Fossil Fuels: The Reprise of Nuclear Power

Fighting Against Fossil Fuels: The Reprise of Nuclear Power

Nuclear power plants, especially small, single reactor plants in competitive electricity markets, have struggled financially for years.  This financial struggle has many contributing factors, including fear of nuclear meltdown, the exorbitant start-up cost of a nuclear power plant, and most importantly, environmental sanctions put in place by state and Federal governments.  However, nuclear power plants generate nearly twenty percent of America’s electricity and are critical reliability components that contribute to both the stability and integrity of the system.

Cooperative Federalism as a Solution to the Climate Crisis

Cooperative Federalism as a Solution to the Climate Crisis

Two years ago, the deeply conservative state of Kansas repealed a law requiring twenty percent of the state’s electric power to come from renewable sources by 2020, seemingly delivering a blow to the state’s environmentalists. Kansas zipped past that twenty percent goal in 2014 and actually produced more than thirty percent of its energy from wind by 2016. This underscores the reality that some of the fastest growth in renewable energy is occurring in states led by Republican governors and legislators.

 

“Wherever there is no consensus that can be achieved, disagreement has to be made clear.”

“Wherever there is no consensus that can be achieved, disagreement has to be made clear.”

German Chancellor Angela Merkel recently closed the G20 summit citing the “unfortunate” position the United States was in compared to the other nineteen members of the G20 who remain committed to the Paris climate accord. The Chancellor’s statements were seemingly borne from the intention of ringing the proverbial bell, however, President Trump’s position on climate change, somewhat uncharacteristically, has stood firm since he learned “[t]he concept of global warming was created by and for the Chinese in order to make U.S. manufacturing non-competitive.”

 

 

“The Silicon Prairie:” Modern Agricultural Equipment and the Right to Repair Movement

“The Silicon Prairie:” Modern Agricultural Equipment and the Right to Repair Movement

Farmers of the twenty-first century depend on agricultural equipment outfitted with computer systems and state-of-the-art software. The proliferation of high-tech farm equipment in recent years not only increased average yields in light of unreliable market prices, but it also distorted traditional notions of ownership.  

Bucking the Resource Curse in Appalachia: The Hopeful Rhetoric of the Braidy Industries Aluminum Mill

Bucking the Resource Curse in Appalachia: The Hopeful Rhetoric of the Braidy Industries Aluminum Mill

Braidy Industries will break ground on construction of a greenfield aluminum mill in Eastern Kentucky in early 2018.  While proponents like Matt Bevin believe the aluminum mill is the answer to the economic devastation caused by the collapse of the region’s coal industry, Kentuckians should consider whether swapping one fluctuating industry for another is the long-term solution we need. 

Lighthizer’s Options: Where to go when Trade and Science Collide?

Lighthizer’s Options: Where to go when Trade and Science Collide?

Robert Lighthizer has set his department’s sights on attacking overseas regulations restricting the importation of American GMO crops and other agricultural products made possible by technological innovation.The question now turns to how the new taskforce will accomplish this objective.

 

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Indiana Farmers Unhappy About 100-Mile Powerline

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Indiana Farmers Unhappy About 100-Mile Powerline

The Northern Indiana Public Service Company (NIPSCO) has decided to install a 100-mile electrical transmission line starting in Reynolds, Indiana and ending in Topeka, Indiana. This $270 million dollar transmission line is supposed to help improve Indiana’s access to wind and solar renewable energy and maybe even lower the cost of energy and reduce greenhouse gases. However, this new powerline has been a matter of dispute with local Northern Indiana farmers who are complaining that the 100-mile powerline is interfering with their farms.