State
OKTIBBEHA COUNTY ENGINEER ADDRESSES ALLEGATIONS MADE BY SOME SUPERVISORS
WCBI
STARKVILLE, Miss. (WCBI)- The Oktibbeha County Engineer is clearing up confusion after Monday’s decision by the Board of Supervisors to get the Attorney General’s opinion on how he’s doing work for the county.
...He adds the board comes to him with a project and asks him to design a plan that is then sent for approval by another agency like MDEQ, for example.
Lamar County urging tornado victims to push debris to roadside for pickup
WDAM
LAMAR COUNTY, Miss. (WDAM) - Lamar County road management is encouraging people impacted by the April 19 tornado to get any remaining debris onto the sides of the roads for the county to pick up.
Fishing industry hopeful for turnaround this summer
WLOX
BILOXI, Miss. (WLOX) - After a difficult summer last year, fishermen are hoping for a rebound this summer. With the announcement this week of over $21 million in disaster relief finally coming to the state’s fishing industries, fishermen are hopeful it will help them recover some of their losses.
Application process for Alligator Hunting Season begins June 1
WLBT
JACKSON, Miss. (WLBT) - Applications for the 2020 Public Waters Alligator Season will be available from 10:00 a.m. June 1 through 10:00 a.m. June 8.
CMR CERTIFIES FOUR STATE RECORDS
WXXV
BILOXI, Miss. – The state Commission on Marine Resources certified four all tackle state fishing records at today’s monthly meeting.
Oktibbeha County to pay $133K annually for flood control association membership
Commercial Dispatch
Oktibbeha supervisors voted 3-2 Monday to join the Tombigbee River Valley Water Management District after reviving a debate from last year over the pros and cons of becoming a member of the Tupelo-based state agency.
EPA program to help nutrition, economic program in Vicksburg
Vicksburg Post
The city of Vicksburg, Shape Up Mississippi and United Way of West Central Mississippi will be getting federal assistance to develop a program to revitalize the area and develop a local food network. The assistance is provided by the Local Foods, Local Places Program sponsored jointly by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the EPA, Region 4 EPA Administrator Mary Walker said.
$80 million solar farm proposed in Madison County
WLBT
CANTON, Miss. (WLBT) - Madison County supervisors on Monday approved a resolution supporting tax incentives for a company that is proposing to build a solar farm south of Canton.
State Government
Reeves says Mississippi churches can gather again. Here are the guidelines.
Sun Herald
$9M in highway contracts set from Mississippi lottery money
AP
The Mississippi Transportation Commission says it has awarded nearly $9 million in pavement restoration contracts, using money generated by the state lottery that started selling tickets in November.
https://www.sunherald.com/news/business/article242837231.html
Regional
With restaurants closed due to COVID-19, oyster farmers look for a way forward
Tennessean
Anita Arguelles' husband, Mike, convinced her they should get into the oyster business.
"He loves oysters," she said. "He loves to talk about oysters. He loves to take them in the back of his truck in an ice cooler and go around and just open oysters up for people."
National
EPA effort to limit guidance could undermine past administration policy
The Hill
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced Tuesday it would limit issuing guidances, a transparency measure that will ensure more public engagement while making earlier administrations’ policies more susceptible to challenges in court.
EPA Gets Partial Win in State Cross-Border Pollution Appeal
Bloomberg
The EPA fell short in rejecting a petition from Maryland that sought to improve its air quality from cross-border pollution, but the agency was within its rights to reject the one from Delaware, a federal appeals court ruled Tuesday.
Judge rejects Trump administration attempt to toss endangered species lawsuit
The Hill
A federal judge has rejected the Trump administration’s attempt to dismiss a challenge to its rollback of endangered species protections, ruling late Monday that the 17-state lawsuit can proceed.
Whitmer issued a state of emergency after 2 dams were breached in Midland County
Fox News
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer issued a state of emergency for Midland County on Tuesday night after two dams were breached in the area, forcing the evacuation of about 10,000 people in mid-Michigan.
Press Releases
EPA Proposes First Ever Rule to Improve Transparency of Guidance
05/19/2020
WASHINGTON (May 19, 2020) — Today, as directed by President Trump’s Executive Order to promote transparency through improved agency guidance, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is announcing its first-ever proposed rule to establish consistent requirements and procedures for the issuance of guidance documents.
