On December 7, 2017, plaintiff filed a complaint against defendants to foreclose on secured property pursuant to two outstanding loans to Branden J. LaBatte (“borrower”). Defendant Timothy LaBatte filed an answer to the foreclosure complaint pro se. Defendant Branden J. LaBatte did not file an answer to the foreclosure complaint. On September 6, 2018, plaintiff moved for summary judgment requesting a judgment of foreclosure, a decree of sale, and a finding that plaintiff’s interest is superior to any other stated interest. No defendant has filed a response to the motion for summary judgment or requested to enlarge the deadline for responding. The Court addressed the merits of Timothy LaBatte’s answer in its December 3, 2018 Order, Document 18, in the closely related case of 17-CV-01032, where he provided an identical answer. Plaintiff’s Motion for Summary Judgment is granted.

REGULATORY:
Notice of public meeting and request for comments: U.S. Codex Office, USDA; The U.S Codex Office is sponsoring a public meeting on March 7, 2019. The objective of the public meeting is to provide information and receive public comments on agenda items and draft United States (U.S.) positions to be discussed at the 51st Session of the Codex Committee on Pesticide Residues (CCPR) of the Codex Alimentarius Commission, in Macau Special Administrative Region (SAR) of the People’s Republic of China, April 8-13, 2019. The U.S. Manager for Codex Alimentarius and the Under Secretary for Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs recognize the importance of providing interested parties the opportunity to obtain background information on the 51st Session of the CCPR and to address items on the agenda. Info HERE

Establishment of application deadlines, and clarification: Rural Utilities Service, Department of Agriculture: The Rural Utilities Service (RUS) announced its general policy and application procedures for funding under the eConnectivity Pilot Program (ReConnect Program) on December 14, 2018, in the Federal Register. The Reconnect Program will provide loans, grants, and loan/grant combinations to facilitate broadband deployment in rural areas. In facilitating the expansion of broadband services and infrastructure, ReConnect will fuel long-term rural economic development and opportunities in rural America. The awards made under this program will bring high speed broadband to the farms which will allow them to increase productivity. This Notice amends the original application window closing dates that were published in the December 14, 2018, Federal Register Notice and provides the anticipated date that the opening application window will be announced. Info HERE

Notice for request and comments: Rural Utilities Service, USDA; In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35, as amended), the Rural Utilities Service (RUS) invites comments on this information collection for which approval from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) will be requested. Info HERE