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DPA Authority Delegated to Department of Agriculture to Combat Food Supply Chain Threat

Client Alert | 1 min read | 04.29.20

On April 28, the President signed an Executive Order on Delegating Authority Under the DPA with Respect to Food Supply Chain Resources During the National Emergency Caused by the Outbreak of COVID-19. The new EO delegates to the Department of Agriculture (“the Department”) Defense Production Act (DPA) Title I priorities and allocation authority with respect to food supply chain resources, expressly including meat and poultry, during the COVID-19 national emergency. The new EO specifies that the Department shall use this authority to ensure the continued supply of protein, specifically meat and poultry to Americans, consistent with the Center for Disease Control and Occupational Safety and Health Administration COVID-19 guidance. The EO also grants the Department authority to identify other at-risk food supply chain resources that should be subject to its Title I priorities and allocation control. This EO builds on previously-issued COVID-19 Executive Orders concerning the delegation of DPA authorities that we have previously discussed.

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Client Alert | 3 min read | 04.25.24

JUST RELEASED: EPA’s Bold New Strategic Civil-Criminal Enforcement Collaboration Policy

The Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance (OECA) just issued its new Strategic Civil-Criminal Enforcement Policy, setting the stage for the new manner in which the agency manages its pollution investigations. David M. Uhlmann, the head of OECA, signed the Policy memorandum on April 17, 2024, in order to ensure that EPA’s civil and criminal enforcement offices collaborate efficiently and consistently in cases across the nation. The Policy states, “EPA must exercise enforcement discretion reasonably when deciding whether a particular matter warrants criminal, civil, or administrative enforcement. Criminal enforcement should be reserved for the most egregious violations.” Uhlmann repeated this statement during a luncheon on April 23, 2024, while also emphasizing the new level of energy this collaborative effort has brought to the enforcement programs....