Blog By: Phillip Burress
In the summer of 2024, the Supreme Court overturned a precedent relied upon for decades by federal agencies. In this blog, 3L Staffer Phillip Burress discusses that with the death of Chevron deference, federal agencies face new challenges and an increased risk of litigation for interpretations they make on ambiguous statutes. Burress points out that many agencies have been preparing for this change for the past decade, and the threat this change imposes may not be as severe as many people think.
In this blog, 3L Staffer Bailey Truitt discusses the current trend of selling horse farms and the push to divide the land into housing in Lexington and all across Kentucky. Truitt discusses that while housing is necessary for Lexington, dividing up agricultural land is detrimental to the historical equine industry as well as contributing to the urban sprawl problem found in Lexington. Truitt argues that maintaining horse farms and agricultural land in and around Lexington is the best choice for the economic development and protection of historical business, as well as the prevention of urban sprawl.
Blog By: Lydia Deaton
In this blog, 2L Staffer Lydia Deaton argues that the agricultural community should apply intellectual property doctrines to solve agriculture’s emerging data security issues. Deaton discusses that so far, neither Congress nor the agriculture industry has provided much guidance on potential solutions to data security issues. Deaton contends that creating legislation with agricultural-specific IP protections would provide the data protections that are needed.
Blog By: Erica Joan Radermacher
In this blog, 2L Staffer Erica Joan Radermacher argues that it is important to prioritize collaboration when considering environmental conservation efforts in Mobile Bay juxtaposed with efforts to spur trade and economic development. Radermacher analyzes arguments of both proponents and critics of dredging the channel of Mobile Bay and pushes for an attitude of partnership between environmental and economic actors.
Blog By: Ben Bertram
In this blog, 2L Staffer Ben Bertram reviews the Kentucky General Assembly's removal of the bourbon barrel tax, the only tax of its kind in the world. Bertram argues that the decision to phase out this tax eliminated an unnecessary economic barrier for an industry already facing an unreasonably high tax burden. The benefits, Bertram says, will be especially apparent to Kentucky farmers.
Gua Sha and Jade Roller treatments have become viral skin care fads on TikTok. But these tools are typically made from jade stone, a symbol of destruction and devastation in Myanmar. 2L staffer Brooklyn Brown discusses the ongoing environmental & human rights abuses in Myanmar’s jade industry & and advocates for the U.S. & its allies to take a more direct approach to help the citizens of Myanmar.
In late July of this year, eastern Kentucky experienced devastating rainfall, leading to extensive flooding. In this blog, 3L staffer Aaron Ambrose provides insight on how coal companies' failure in reclamation of abandoned mines may have played a role in the extensive flooding along with providing potential solutions to hold coal companies accountable.
The Food and Drug Administration issued warning letters to Delta-8 THC companies in May 2022 addressing three major areas of concern about the cannabinoid. 2L staffer Cori Agnoni argues that the companies must consider serious change and transparency if they hope to keep this hemp-derivative in their control. She suggests that taking action now prevents a repeat of this in the near future.
Soil tilling grew popular as a means of planting seeds more efficiently. However, soil tilling comes with drawbacks. In this blog, 3L staffer Gabby Mason weighs the pros and cons of soil tilling. Mason concludes that tilling has led to soul degradation, and thus, advocates for solutions to reverse the negative effects that soil tilling has had on soil structure.
The United States is one of the largest contributors to plastic pollution in the world. 2L staffer Lauren Willard discusses the Reducing Waste in National Park Act and the Break Free From Plastic Pollution Act and believes they are both strong solutions to fixing the plastic pollution problems in our country. Willard strongly advocates that Americans should seriously consider these bills before it is too late.
The Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act, if passed, will make strides in society by removing marijuana from the list of scheduled substances under the Controlled Substances Act and decriminalizing possession, distribution, and manufacture of cannabis. However, 2L staffer, Hannah Thompson, notes that there is no discussion of the Dormant Commerce Clause (DCC) in the bill. Thompson strongly argues that Congress should suspend the DCC in the MORE Act to help achieve the end goal of combating disproportionate impacts from drug enforcement from the use of marijuana.
Farmers have a unique way to stop climate change. Landon Woods, southern regional director for the American Conservation Coalition, discusses the idea of farmers using natural climate solutions to reverse climate change. Although there are many different strategies to solving climate change, Woods strongly argues that natural climate solutions will play a key role in reducing climate change.
