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s net income for American farmers has exceeded $100 billion for the fourth time since 1973. s according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which forecast 2013 net income at $129.7 billion. Net income measures the difference between cash expenses and the combination of commodities sold during the calendar year plus other sources of farm income.
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U.S. Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA) led a group of Senators in introducing bipartisan legislation to ensure volunteer firefighters and other first responders can continue protecting communities that rely on them. Some volunteer firefighters are nominally paid, and most volunteer first responders have other full-time employment.
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The Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services announced the state’s top 20 agricultural commodities for the 2012 production year. “This list shows the diversity of Virginia agriculture, which is just one of the reasons our products are in such demand in the global marketplace,” said Matt Lohr, VDACS Commissioner.
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Indeed, many of our local waterways have seen better days, thanks to decades of pollution. And cleaning them up and preventing further damage can be challenging, since much of the contamination has accumulated over time and results from what is known as “non-point source” pollution, which accounts for as much as 60 percent of the water pollution in the U.S.
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Hydraulic fracturing (known as “fracking”) is a method of causing fissures in underground shale rock formations to facilitate the extraction of otherwise inaccessible natural gas and oil. In a typical fracking operation, drillers inject a mixture of pressurized water and chemicals underground to fracture the rock and free up the gas and oil.
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U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine introduced the Entrance Fee Suspension Act of 2013 today to encourage tourism at national parks and wildlife refuges and bolster local economies that were harmed by the 16-day government shutdown. The bill will assist businesses that lost revenue or were forced to close temporarily during the government shutdown because of national park closures.
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Virginia Gov.-elect Terry McAuliffe announced on Monday his choices for four key senior administration positions: Paul Reagan as Chief of Staff, Suzette Denslow as Deputy Chief of Staff, Secretary Ric Brown, who will stay on through at least the passage of the upcoming budget as Secretary of Finance, and Levar Stoney as Secretary of the Commonwealth.
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On Wednesday, Speaker of the House John Boehner said the House had no intention of passing a comprehensive immigration reform bill this year. “Speaker Boehner is going back on his word,” said Virginia Organizing Chairperson Sandra A. Cook.
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Americans are observing Veterans Day. Some will observe it with a day off from work or checking out the special Veterans Day sales that will be held in department stores. But the real meaning of the day should be to think about the great sacrifices of the men and women who deserve to be honored.
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Indeed, private property makes up about 60 percent of the total land base across the United States. In 42 states there is more private land than public, and by a wide margin in most cases. (Only Alaska, Nevada, Utah, Idaho, Oregon, Arizona, Wyoming and California have more public land—that is, land owned by a federal, state, county or municipal government—than private.) Of course, all this private land isn’t just the parcels where our houses sit.
