For the past 15 years, farmers and landowners have been whiplashed by the EPA’s changing definition of Waters of the United States (“WOTUS”). This includes a frequently litigated area of WOTUS: wetlands. Not quite dry land, not quite the Mississippi,
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State Legislation Threatening Livestock Farms
While we are all watching “the big one”—California’s Prop 12, which is now being considered by the U.S. Supreme Court—other state livestock proposals have popped up across the country. Some, if enacted, could put livestock farms out of business
Supreme Court will Consider Whether California Pork Law Violates Constitution
On Monday March 28, 2022, the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) agreed to decide whether pork producers can sue over California’s Proposition 12, which essentially regulates livestock practices nationwide. California voters approved Prop 12 in 2018. The law
Lessons from Criminal Prosecution of Pennsylvania Dairy Farm
A Pennsylvania Court of Appeals recently reversed a trial court’s order to dismiss a petition to review the decision of a district attorney’s office to not prosecute a dairy farm for animal cruelty and neglect. In other words, the court
Indiana Poised to Limit Foreign Ownership of Agricultural Land
The U.S. Government estimates that 2-3% of agricultural land in the United States is owned by a foreign entity. There is concern over increasing investment in U.S. farmland by counties like China, which could give rise to food security issues.
Zoning Hot Topics: Agriculture Edition
I recently presented at the Indiana Farm Bureau’s first-ever zoning school. I was asked to discuss three “hot topics” faced by zoning boards, land owners, and others involved in zoning administration for Indiana counties and towns. Three issues came to
Sharing the Sun: Agrivoltaics
Put simply, agrivoltaics means the simultaneous use of land for solar power production and some kind of agriculture. In other words, one space sharing the sun for two or more uses. Agrivoltaics solves the problem of either/or and zero-sum thinking
New Plan for Meat and Poultry Supply Chain
On January 3, 2022, President Biden announced his plan to create a fairer, more competitive, and more resilient meat and poultry supply chain. How will this plan impact integrators and farmers in the midwest? The Plan is intended to address
Is a Zoning Moratorium Legal?
Agriculture, it seems, has a zoning problem. On top of the various state or federal permits a farm or agribusiness may be required to obtain, local zoning ordinances can create yet another layer of red tape. This is particularly true
New Roadmap to Address PFAS
This month, the Biden Administration announced a new plan to combat PFAS (per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances) contamination. PFAS are a class of chemicals frequently used in fire-fighting tools and packing materials. As part of this plan, the EPA launched a