Capital Update – For the Week Ending Feb. 13, 2026

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NPPC's Stateler Hits Capitol Hill as House Farm Bill 2.0 Drops

What happened: Just after NPPC President and Ohio pork producer Duane Stateler met with his congressional representative, Bob Latta (R-OH), and the staff of House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) in Washington, D.C., House Agriculture Committee Chairman Glenn "GT" Thompson (R-PA) introduced his Farm Bill 2.0, which includes a federal fix to the issues caused by the impending patchwork of state laws spurred by California Proposition 12.

During the visit to Capitol Hill, Stateler discussed NPPC's priorities for the farm bill, including ensuring it contains a legislative fix to Prop. 12. That measure, which took effect January 1, 2024, bans the sale of pork in California from hogs born to sows raised anywhere across the country where housing fails to meet the state's arbitrary standards.

Chairman Thompson is expected to hold a farm bill markup the week of February 23, and a House floor vote is anticipated ahead of Congress' two-week recess around Easter (April 5).

The U.S. Senate is expected to work on its version of the farm bill after the House approves its legislation. Sen. John Boozman (R-AR), chairman of the Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee, recently told Politico he'll be watching what Thompson does and will avoid including provisions that could make it tough to get the 60 votes needed to pass a farm bill in the Senate.

NPPC's take: "America's pork producers thank Chairman Thompson for continuing to take bold steps once again to protect our livelihoods from an unsustainable patchwork of state laws," said National Pork Producers Council President Duane Stateler, a pork producer from McComb, Ohio. "We implore the full House Agriculture Committee to stand up for the American farmer, preserve states' rights, and help keep pork affordable for the American consumers."

Why it matters: The five-year farm bill sets farm, conservation, forestry, and nutrition policy and authorizes various agricultural programs, including ones related to foreign animal disease preparation and prevention and export promotion.

NPPC President Duane Stateler (right) meets with his congressional representative, Bob Latta (R-OH).

U.S., Taiwan Finalize Reciprocal Trade Agreement

What happened: In a key win for U.S. pork producers, President Trump has finalized a beneficial trade agreement with Taiwan, a direct result of NPPC's long-fought effort to secure greater market access in the Asian nation.

Taiwan agreed to substantially reduce tariffs and remove non-tariff barriers on U.S. imports and provide preferential market access for a host of U.S. agricultural exports. Specifically for pork, the island nation will:

• Cut tariffs on U.S. pork exports by half.
• Follow maximum residue levels (MRLs) set by the Codex Alimentarius Commission for ractopamine in pork fat, kidney, liver, and muscle. For other edible offal, the MRL will be set at 0.09 ppm (90 ppb) or any Codex MRL.
• Eliminate import licensing procedures that restrict U.S. imports, as well as remove facility and product registration requirements.
• End 100% batch-by-batch inspection for ractopamine residues and country of origin labeling requirements on U.S. pork products in favor of import inspection rates based on compliance history.
• Accept U.S. pork from all plants listed in the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Meat and Poultry Inspection Directory, which is maintained by USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), without requiring audits before exporting.
• Accept FSIS-issued export certificates and electronic data elements and limit unnecessary attestations.
• Recognize within six months the African swine fever protection zone established by the United States.

NPPC's take: NPPC President Duane Stateler, a pork producer from McComb, Ohio, said, "Our 15-plus year endeavor to break down trade barriers in the high-value market of Taiwan has paid off. This means more U.S. pork on international tables and more opportunities and prosperity for American producers. Thank you, President Trump and Ambassadors Greer and Callahan, for ensuring American pork producers were included in and greatly benefit from this historic agreement."

U.S. Signs New Trade Agreements with Argentina, Bangladesh

What happened: President Trump continues to enhance market access for U.S. goods and services with countries around the globe, with Argentina and Bangladesh being the latest to open its trade doors to the United States.

The U.S. and Argentina signed a reciprocal trade agreement, agreeing to eliminate tariffs on hundreds of one another's products. Under the deal, Argentina will increase imports of U.S. goods, including agricultural products, and will:

• Recognize the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service as the competent authority with oversight of U.S. meat and poultry.
• Accept the FSIS Meat, Poultry and Egg Product Inspection Directory as the certified list of establishments eligible to export U.S. meat and poultry products to Argentina.
• Accept the FSIS Export Certificate of Wholesomeness, including digitally signed forms, for U.S. meat and poultry imports.
• Limit attestations and information in import certificates for U.S. food and agricultural products to those consistent with international standards or U.S. requirements.

Specific to U.S. pork and beef imports, Argentina's National Service of Agri-Food Health and Quality must ensure any registration procedures applied as a condition of importation are conducted in a timely, transparent, and non-discriminatory manner without causing unnecessary delays. SENASA also must allow U.S. companies to fulfill product registration requirements with a single submission by including multiple U.S. pork and beef products in a single monograph per company.

The U.S. and Bangladesh also inked a deal that will provide "significant preferential market access" for U.S. industrial and agricultural goods and reduce the U.S. tariff on Bangladeshi products to 18% from 20%. Tariffs on some goods will be cut by 50% initially, then phased out over five to 10 years.

Bangladesh, which agreed to purchase $3.5 billion of U.S. agricultural goods, will eliminate non-tariff barriers to American farm imports, including accepting certificates issued by U.S. regulatory authorities and recognizing U.S. sanitary and phytosanitary measures. The Asian country - located on the Indian Ocean between India and Myanmar - also will commit to follow science- and risk-based processes to allow the importation of U.S. food and agricultural products, digitize customs procedures, and adopt good regulatory practices.

NPPC's take: NPPC supports the trade deals with Argentina and Bangladesh and will continue urging the Trump administration to negotiate trade deals that boost U.S. agricultural exports.

Why it matters: Total trade between the United States and Argentina topped $26 billion in 2024, with U.S. exports of $16.5 billion and imports of $9.8 billion from Argentina, giving the United States a trade surplus of more than $6.6 billion.

The U.S.-Bangladesh trade agreement will help reduce the $6.1 billion U.S. trade deficit with Bangladesh and increase overall trade between the countries, which in 2024 totaled $12.4 billion.

New Rule Restores H-2A Workers Ability to Obtain CDLs

What happened: The U.S. Department of Transportation's Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration published a final rule clarifying state restrictions on issuing commercial driver's licenses to "non-domiciled individuals." While it is subject to a 30-day public comment period, the regulation will become effective March 15.

The rule, which otherwise limits the eligibility for non-domiciled individuals to obtain CDLs, clarifies that foreign agricultural workers holding H-2A visas are exempted from the prohibition. It also provides for a process for enhanced consular vetting - an increased scrutiny and screening process - and interagency screening by the departments of Homeland Security and State, which provides a way for state licensing agencies to obtain the foreign driving history of H-2A visa holders. Last September, FMCSA issued an emergency interim final rule that limited the authority of state licensing agencies to issue CDLs to non-domiciled individuals. In November, a U.S. Court of Appeals stayed the rule. Despite the injunction, many state licensing agencies were refusing to issue CDLs to non-resident foreign nationals. The FMCSA amended the interim final rule to allow CDLs for foreign-born individuals with specific work visas.

Why it matters: The new CDL rule establishes a "bright-line" eligibility standard to replace a complex framework that the FMCSA claimed was "administratively unworkable" for state licensing agencies.

By clarifying that H-2A workers qualify for CDLs, the rule will help labor availability and provide certainty for pork producers and other agricultural producers who rely on these workers for specialized tasks like pumping, hauling, and applying manure.

Ag, Business Groups Want Regulatory Flexibility Act Strengthened

What happened: NPPC and a coalition of agriculture and business groups asked Congress to pass legislation to help small entities deal with federal regulations.

In a letter spearheaded by the National Federation of Independent Business, NPPC and more than 70 other organizations urged House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-LA) to schedule a House floor vote on the "Prove It Act of 2025" (H.R. 1163) to strengthen the Regulatory Flexibility Act. The RFA, signed into law in 1980, requires federal agencies to consider the economic impact of their rules on small businesses and other entities such as small farms.

Sponsored by Rep. Brad Finstad (R-MN), the "Prove It Act" would require greater transparency for federal regulatory decisions that impact small businesses, ensuring that agencies assess the direct and indirect costs of proposed regulations before they are finalized. There is evidence, including in a 2024 House Small Business Committee report, that federal agencies have routinely disregarded the RFA's requirements.

The "Prove It Act" passed the House Judiciary and Small Business committees in 2025; an identical bill was approved by the entire House in 2024 during the 118th Congress but never considered by the Senate.

Why it matters: The RFA is supposed to help reduce the burden of federal regulations on small entities but has been largely ignored under some administrations. During the Biden administration, for example, new rules added $1.8 trillion in costs and 356 million hours of paperwork in response to business and agricultural concerns. The coalition says those regulations fell disproportionately on small entities, which often lack lawyers and compliance officers necessary to navigate complex regulatory issues.

The Trump administration has begun cutting the overall regulatory burden on businesses. Last year, it reduced regulatory compliance costs by $128.5 billion and almost 51 million paperwork hours, but that relief will be short-lived without strengthening the RFA through the "Prove It Act," according to the coalition.

USDA to Open Facility to Help Combat New World Screwworm

What happened: With an outbreak of New World screwworm in the United States seemingly inevitable, the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced the completion of a U.S. facility that will produce sterile flies to help stamp out the pests.

NWS flies are a species of blowfly, the larvae of which feed on the tissue of warm-blooded animals. Female flies lay eggs in wounds and can infest animals that have just given birth, suffered an injury, or had a surgical procedure such as tail docking or branding. Even tick bites can attract NWS flies.

Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said the new plant on the USDA-owned Moore Air Base near Edinburgh, Texas, will begin producing up to 300 million flies a week by the end of 2027. The United States currently produces 100 million flies a week at a facility in Panama and distributes them in Mexico and Texas. Endemic in many countries in South America and the Caribbean NWS flies have in recent years moved north through Central America into northern Mexico.

Last May, USDA closed the U.S. southern border to imports of cattle from Mexico - sent to U.S. feed lots - to prevent NWS from entering the country. It also is investing in technologies to eradicate NWS and increasing surveillance at U.S. ports of entry.

NPPC's take: NPPC is thankful for the progress being made to protect our borders from NWS. In January, NPPC submitted comments to USDA on their draft response plan, should NWS make its way to the U.S. In the comments NPPC advocated for risk-based response and business continuity.

Why it matters: In additional to the welfare implications for affected animals, a detection of NWS in the United States could result in movement restrictions, and surveillance and treatment requirements of livestock from affected regions. USDA estimates an economic impact of $100 billion to livestock industries. Producers can learn more about NWS here.

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