On May 16th, Representatives Chellie Pingree (D-ME), Dan Newhouse (R-WA), and Jimmy Panneta (D-CA) introduced a bill to increase federal funding for organic research. Congressman Panneta represents the Monterey Bay area. The Organic Agriculture Research Act will raise funding for USDA’s Organic Research Extension Initiative (OREI) from $20 million to $50 million annually. As the organic industry grows rapidly, OREI allows university and other researchers to stay on the cutting edge of science and innovation. Now is the period when members of Congress are introducing “marker bills,” legislation not intended to be passed on its own, but rather to be included in the 2018 Farm Bill package.

Read more about the bill here.