Reese Henry & Company, Inc.’s Post

Laws that take effect on Jan 1. 2024: Acts of 2023, Ch. 50: Notably, an increase in child and dependent tax credits, septic system tax credit, rental reductions, a decrease in short-term capital gains, exemption of estates worth under $2 million from the estate tax, doubles the maximum senior circuit breaker tax credit, requires taxpayers who file jointly at the federal level to file a joint return with the Commonwealth Acts of 2022, Ch. 287: A 2022 ballot question titled “Law Relative to Regulation of Dental Insurance" will regulate dental insurance rates, requiring companies to spend at least 83 % of premiums on members' dental expenses and quality improvements instead of administrative expenses. Acts of 2022, Ch. 145: A two-week extension of the deer and turkey hunting season in Wildlife Management Zones 1-9 (in W. Mass.); Mass. joins the Interstate Wildlife Violators Compact, which means if a hunter’s license is suspended in another state part of the compact, their hunting license in Mass. will also be suspended. #mapoli

⚡ Greece Bans Bottom Trawling in Marine Parks - Greece has become the first European country to ban bottom trawling in marine parks. The law will be implemented in national parks within two years and in the country's marine areas by 2030.

Happy World Wetlands Day! What are wetlands, and why are they important? Click on the video to find out! #WorldWetlandsDay #WetlandsMatter #Conservation #ProtectOurWetlands #Nature #Wetlands #Awareness

🌳The face of British agriculture has been radically changing. The cost of increased compliance and the urgent need to diversify have increased an already growing series of financial pressures on all farmers and landowners. But, despite these pressures, successfully preserving the farm or estate for the next generation is still the biggest challenge of them all. 🔎Find out more about succession planning for landowners by reading our Wealth Confidential column, published in The Scotsman Money supplement each month.

#OTD in 1974 Washington Indigenous tribes won a hard-fought battle over their fishing rights in federal court. The legal opinion would become popularly known as the Boldt Decision. We remember the Boldt Decision and the Fish Wars in our new blog post "Remembering the Boldt Decision: Landmark Treaty Rights Case Turns 50." We also have a new book, "Treaty Justice," that documents the case and its legacy. "Eminent legal historian and tribal advocate Charles Wilkinson tells the dramatic story of the Boldt Decision against the backdrop of salmon’s central place in the cultures and economies of the Pacific Northwest." #LawBlog #LegalBlog [Two books sit side by side on a shelf. They are shown with their covers out. The book on the left is titled, "Treaty Justice: The Northwest Tribes, the Boldt Decision, and the Recognition of Fishing Rights." The book on the right is titled, "Pacific Salmon Law and the Environment."]

The blank check written to US federal agencies by the Judiciary may be coming to an end with the following case. In short, Congress legislates, and the Executive regulates (Code of Federal Regulations, CFR). U.S. courts have historically avoided the regulatory weeds of the executive (immigration, education, veterans' disability, etc.) and have since relied on a landmark Supreme Court case, Chevron U.S.A., Inc. v. Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc., which gave us the Chevron Doctrine. This doctrine allows courts to defer to agencies' regulatory decisions unless they're arbitrary, capricious, or manifestly contrary to the statute—in other words, not even in the same ballpark (a ridiculously difficult legal burden to meet). The Chevron doctrine has followed me through immigration (my time with the DOJ EOIR as an honors law clerk), has come up again in veterans' disability claims (my time with the military), and has even come up regarding my advocacy in higher education reform. Put simply, the doctrine has been a thorn in my side (and others') for far too long. The doctrine is not without its justification. As a matter of common sense, we don’t want judges arguing about the ‘correct’ glide scope of different aircraft in different airspaces; such a question would be better resolved by the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration), made up of highly qualified experts who have devoted their entire lives to their craft (aviation). Personally, I would feel safer in a plane knowing that the FAA — and not a judge — has predetermined the exact footage of where planes can travel in relation to other planes, airspaces, events, etc. However, where the doctrine gets very hairy is in situations where federal courts could very easily opine on matters such as veterans' disabilities—a matter regulated by the VA (Department of Veterans Affairs), which — if I may briefly editorialize — has been hijacked by political activists (AFGE) legislating their fringe partisan issues through the CFR (bypassing Congress and the American People, something expressly against the Founding Fathers' intent). Can't sell Congress on an idea? No problem, just publish a Rule (CFR) and hide behind Chevron. Or, in this case, fishermen having to essentially pay for their own government intrusion into their industry, marked by excessive and completely arbitrary regulations. On January 17, 2024, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in the combined cases of Loper Bright v. Raimondo and Relentless Inc. v. Department of Commerce. Don't let the left-wing Big Government enthusiasts fool you with their sensationalistic cries that upending Chevron will wreak havoc on our system of government. It’s nothing more than fear-mongering from those who don’t want to let go of their extraordinary and unconstitutional regulatory power—the same power that has usurped Congressional authority for too long. This, if we’re lucky, will be a slight dent in the deference doctrine, nothing more.

⚡ Greece Bans Bottom Trawling in Marine Parks - Greece has become the first European country to ban bottom trawling in marine parks. The law will be implemented in national parks within two years and in the country's marine areas by 2030.

The BLM Public Lands Rule moves closer to implementation with the formation of a Federal Advisory Committee that will help guide the efforts to conserve public lands. Read more here: https://hubs.li/Q02P8qkt0

Public rights of way allow the public to cross private land, while town and village greens are areas used by the public for recreation. Commercial Property Senior Associate, Dawn Cole discusses how landowners can prevent public rights of way from being established on their land in the latest edition of South East Farmer. #PublicRightsOfWay #legaladvice #agricultureandrural https://lnkd.in/eCptgFpc

🌳The face of British agriculture has been radically changing. The cost of increased compliance and the urgent need to diversify have increased an already growing series of financial pressures on all farmers and landowners. But, despite these pressures, successfully preserving the farm or estate for the next generation is still the biggest challenge of them all. 🔎Find out more about succession planning for landowners by reading our Wealth Confidential column, published in The Scotsman Money supplement each month.