Green Report

TNLA takes a deep dive with Mike Meroney, an independent lobbyist fighting for better workforce solutions and developing curriculum for high school students. Mike is a strong advocate when it comes to developing a strong workforce for the future. During this episode, he provides insight on some of the bills he has worked on when industries have hit the panic button on their employment struggle. Mike also walks us through his current work on driving policymakers to pass legislation to help add highly valued high school curriculum to TEA's "magic list" of IBC's, plus much more.

Dr. Marco Palma & Dr. Charlie Hall

What is the economic contribution of the Texas nursery and landscape industry?  Listen in as Dr. Marco Palma and Dr. Charlie Hall dive into the details of the most recent report from Texas A&M University on the impact of our industry on the State of Texas.  With the 2020 report detailing over $22 billion dollars in total sales, there is a lot of value to discuss for business owners and policymakers. 

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Episode 10 features Zaira Garcia, Texas State Director of FWD.us, a national organization with state-level chapters focused on fixing the broken U.S. immigration system.  Amongst the priorities for FWD.us is improving the H-2B and H-2A programs, something the green industry has been working on for years. In this episode, we go into the work of FWD.us and their partnership with TNLA along with other Texas business groups to improve these vital programs.

For additional information on the Texas Nursery & Landscape Association click here.

In this episode of the TNLA Green Report we interview Tiffany Lashmet, author of the Texas Agriculture Law Blog. Tiffany is an associate professor and extension specialist for the Texas A&M Agrilife Extension.  In our interview we covered the Water of the United States update, liability on pesticide drift, landowner liability, and property rights.  Be sure to listen to the episode and check out Tiffany's blog at https://agrilife.org/texasaglaw/about/.

In the past two years, major cities across Texas have expanded their regulatory authority by creating new employment mandates on businesses of all sizes.  As Texas employers struggle to comply, the business community, including TNLA, have begun to push back on these patchwork regulations.  This episode we speak with Annie Spilman, Texas State Director for NFIB and spokeswoman for the ASSET coalition on the fight against cities creating employer mandates. 

Texas is preparing for the start of a new industrial hemp market and it has grower's curious about the role of nursery growers in the business potential of hemp propagation.  Listen in as we talk with Zack Guignardi from Colorado about how he is using greenhouses for the propagation of hemp clones, and producing clean, genetically consistent stock for row crop farmers in his state.  We get into propagation techniques, seeds vs. clones, the variations of the hemp plant, and potential risks.

Listen in as TNLA speaks with Texas House Ag Chairman Drew Springer Chairman Springer represents an expansive rural district in North Texas and, as a four-time elected state official, he is in his first session as a committee chairman.  We discuss some of the major issues being tackled this session and the work of his committee.  

State Representative Mary Gonzalez represents Texas House District 75 in eastern El Paso County.  A four-term Texas House member, she has served on various committees important to the Green Industry including Agriculture, Public Education, and House Appropriations.