Right-to-farm laws

Last updated
Rehoboth, Massachusetts, is a Right to Farm community. Rehoboth a right to farm community.jpg
Rehoboth, Massachusetts, is a Right to Farm community.

Right to farm laws in the United States deny nuisance lawsuits against farmers who use accepted and standard farming practices and have been in prior operation even if these practices harm or bother adjacent property owners or the general public. Agricultural nuisances may include noise, odors, visual clutter and dangerous structures. All 50 states have some form of Right to Farm law.

Contents

Many of these laws were passed after 1980 because of the reduction of available farmland, adversity from private and public nuisance actions, which hinder the prospect of farming. The laws are aimed to minimize the threat to normal farming practices from nuisance litigation and prohibitive state and local government regulation. In contrast to typical farmland preservation policies, which aim to preserve farmland itself, Right to Farm laws attempt to preserve the agricultural practices and enhance farm viability. [1]

Local laws represent support for farming practices by a community and are often so more refined and clearer than state laws; they typically define the extent of protection farmers actually receive from nuisance suits and inappropriate regulation.

Protection for farmers

Rochester, Massachusetts adopted a Right to Farm law in 2012 Rochester is a Right to farm community.jpg
Rochester, Massachusetts adopted a Right to Farm law in 2012

Right to farm laws vary across the nation. They are intended to bolster the legitimacy of agricultural concerns, defend farmers rights without undue outside interference, and minimize or resolve public and private land use conflicts. In a broader sense the notion originally referred to relief from all kinds of undue interference, usually involving legal interpretations focused on nuisance issues such as noise, odors, environmental, visual, farm technology, etc. This is partly because it is a modification of the common law doctrine of nuisance. [3] Common law nuisances are seen as private or public nuisances. A public nuisance impairs the health, safety, morals, and comfort of the general community without necessarily harming particular property rights in any kind way. A private nuisance unreasonably interferes with the use and enjoyment of another's land. [4]

For a nuisance that the law will provide a remedy, there must he a substantial and unreasonable interference with the property interest being asserted. The interference can be negligent or intentional. For instance in the duties of farm operations, an action constituting a nuisance will be deemed intentional even if it is unintended if it is an easily likely consequence of the farmer's otherwise protected farming activities. The drifting of sprayed farm pesticides onto a neighbor's land is considered an intentional nuisance even though this particular result is unintended. [4]

Right-to-farm policies vary at different policy levels, resulting in inconsistent interpretations regarding what constitutes an 'agrarian district' or 'proper' agrarian practice. Government officials may intervene and enact such laws for resource preservation or municipal management purposes, but states and their respective localities are usually left to their own devices. In New York, the NYSDAM (New York State Department of Agriculture & Markets) evaluates nuisance lawsuits on a case-by-case basis. As per §308 of New York's Right-To-Farm Statute, farm owners and operators are protected from private nuisance suits "provided such agricultural practice constitutes a sound agricultural practice pursuant to an opinion issued upon request by the commissioner". [5] Further, New York's policy does not protect against damages for personal injury or wrongful death claims, nor does it apply to public nuisances. Note that this policy definition may influence stakeholders to obtain farmland in states where their interests are protected by that state's respective right-to-farm law.

History

The laws were developed in the 1970s as a response to suburban encroachment on agricultural land. The concern was that as farmland was converted to suburban developments, the new residents would bring lawsuits against the pre-existing farms complaining about agricultural noise, dust, and other nuisances. [6] The legal costs to defend themselves would tend to push farmers out of business, and the trend toward urbanization would accelerate. The laws were created as a way to protect small farmers from these lawsuits and thereby preserve the open space that made the communities attractive in the first place. Massachusetts passed the first right to farm law in 1979. [7]

In 1979, Pilesgrove Township, New Jersey enacted the state's first right-to-farm ordinance, protecting farming as a "natural right hereby ordained to exist as a permitted use everywhere in the Township of Pilesgrove." [8]

By 2015, every state has a similar law, but the details can vary. [9]

Debate

The utilization of right to farm policies for corporate agriculture can be considered a 'wicked problem'. These problems are shaped by "dynamic social and political factors as well as biophysical complexities", and an array of local, state, and government stakeholders. [10] These diverse actors result in a high degree of variability in terms of defining what is protected under respective right to farm laws. Thus, the initial intention of such policies was to preserve the nation's agrarian roots and support the small-scale farmer, potential for misappropriation exists. In 2014, the American Legislative Exchange Council financially backed Missouri's Right-to-Farm amendment (Amendment 1), fueling further controversy that Right-to-Farm laws are being enacted to assist corporate agriculture, not small family-owned farms and the traditional farming practices used by small farm owners. [11] In November 2016, Oklahoma voters defeated a Right-to-Farm bill (State Question 777) which garnered just 39.7 percent of the vote. [12] [13] State Question 777 was heavily backed by the Oklahoma Farm Bureau and by voters in the Oklahoma panhandle where the giant multinational agribusiness Seaboard Corporation has a pork production plant. [14]

See also

Related Research Articles

Agrarianism is a social and political philosophy that has promoted subsistence agriculture, family farming, widespread property ownership, and political decentralization. Adherents of agrarianism tend to value traditional bonds of local community over urban modernity. Agrarian political parties sometimes aim to support the rights and sustainability of small farmers and poor peasants against the wealthy in society.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Farmer</span> Person engaged in agriculture, raising living organisms for food or raw materials

A farmer is a person engaged in agriculture, raising living organisms for food or raw materials. The term usually applies to people who do some combination of raising field crops, orchards, vineyards, poultry, or other livestock. A farmer might own the farm land or might work as a laborer on land owned by others. In most developed economies, a "farmer" is usually a farm owner (landowner), while employees of the farm are known as farm workers. However, in other older definitions a farmer was a person who promotes or improves the growth of plants, land or crops or raises animals by labor and attention.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pilesgrove Township, New Jersey</span> Township in Salem County, New Jersey, United States

Pilesgrove Township is a township in Salem County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's population was 4,183, an increase of 167 (+4.2%) from the 2010 census count of 4,016, which in turn reflected an increase of 93 (+2.4%) from the 3,923 counted in the 2000 census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Corporate farming</span> Large-scale agriculture driven by big business

Corporate farming is the practice of large-scale agriculture on farms owned or greatly influenced by large companies. This includes corporate ownership of farms and selling of agricultural products, as well as the roles of these companies in influencing agricultural education, research, and public policy through funding initiatives and lobbying efforts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Family farm</span> Farm owned or operated by a family

A family farm is generally understood to be a farm owned and/or operated by a family; it is sometimes considered to be an estate passed down by inheritance.

Nuisance is a common law tort. It means something which causes offence, annoyance, trouble or injury. A nuisance can be either public or private. A public nuisance was defined by English scholar Sir James Fitzjames Stephen as,

"an act not warranted by law, or an omission to discharge a legal duty, which act or omission obstructs or causes inconvenience or damage to the public in the exercise of rights common to all Her Majesty's subjects".

The agrarian reforms in Cuba sought to break up large landholdings and redistribute land to those peasants who worked it, to cooperatives, and the state. Laws relating to land reform were implemented in a series of laws passed between 1959 and 1963 after the Cuban Revolution. The Institutio Nacional de Reforma Agraria (INRA)—an agency of the Cuban government responsible to implement the first and second Agrarian Reforms. The agency adapted the Soviet model of organisation—small collectives and large(er) state farms.

American Farmland Trust (AFT) is a non-profit organization in the United States with a mission to protect farmland, promote environmentally sound farming practices, and keep farmers on the land. AFT is staffed by farmers, policy experts, researchers, and scientists, and governed by a board of directors. Its headquarters are in Washington, D.C., and it has regional offices throughout the country. AFT also runs the Farmland Information Center, an online collection of information on farmland and ranchland protection and stewardship established as a public-private partnership with the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service.

The Wild Farm Alliance (WFA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to increasing biodiversity by expanding the idea and practice of wild farming.

Farmland preservation is a joint effort by non-governmental organizations and local governments to set aside and protect examples of a region's farmland for the use, education, and enjoyment of future generations. They are operated mostly at state and local levels by government agencies or private entities such as land trusts and are designed to limit conversion of agricultural land to other uses that otherwise might have been more financially attractive to the land owner. Every state provides tax relief through differential (preferential) assessment. Less common approaches include establishing agricultural districts, using zoning to protect agricultural land, purchasing development rights, and transferable development rights. It is often a part of regional planning and national historic preservation.

The following outline is provided as an overview of and introduction to tort law in common law jurisdictions:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Agriculture in the United Kingdom</span> Economic sector in the United Kingdom

Agriculture in the United Kingdom uses 69% of the country's land area, employs 1% of its workforce and contributes 0.5% of its gross value added. The UK currently produces about 60% of its domestic food consumption.

Land acquisition is the power of the union or a state government in India to take private land for public, and to compensate the original owners and other persons affected due to such acquisition.

Chinese property law has existed in various forms for centuries. After the Chinese Communist Revolution in 1949, most land is owned by collectivities or by the state; the Property Law of the People's Republic of China passed in 2007 codified property rights.

Agrarian reform and land reform have been a recurring theme of enormous consequence in world history. They are often highly political and have been achieved in many countries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Collective farming</span> Type of agricultural organization

Collective farming and communal farming are various types of "agricultural production in which multiple farmers run their holdings as a joint enterprise". There are two broad types of communal farms: agricultural cooperatives, in which member-owners jointly engage in farming activities as a collective, and state farms, which are owned and directly run by a centralized government. The process by which farmland is aggregated is called collectivization. In some countries, there have been both state-run and cooperative-run variants. For example, the Soviet Union had both kolkhozy and sovkhozy.

Agrarian socialism is a political ideology that promotes social ownership of agrarian and agricultural production as opposed to private ownership. Agrarian socialism involves equally distributing agricultural land among collectivized peasant villages. Many agrarian socialist movements have tended to be rural, locally focused, and traditional. Governments and political parties seeking agrarian socialist policies have existed throughout the world, in regions including Europe, Asia, North America, Latin America, and Africa.

Land reform in South Africa is the promise of "land restitution" to empower farm workers and reduce inequality. This also refers to aspects such as, property, possibly white-owned businesses. Proponents argue it will allow previously unemployed people to participate in the economy and better the country's economic growth. It also relates to restitution in the form of settling Land Claims of people who were forcefully removed from their homes in urban areas that were declared white, by the apartheid government's segregationist Group Areas Act: such areas include Sophiatown, Fietas, Cato Manor, District Six and Greyville; as well as restitution for people forcibly evicted from rural land because of apartheid policies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Agriculture in Connecticut</span> Overview article

Agriculture played a major role in the early growth of Connecticut as one of the original 13 colonies that would form the United States of America, particularly in the Connecticut River valley which provides fertile soil, temperate climate and easy access to markets. As the Industrial Revolution helped focus capital on mercantile centers in the 19th century, Connecticut farmers over time ceded their relative economic and political influence.

Oklahoma State Question 777 was a referendum on a proposed amendment to the Oklahoma Constitution held in November 2016. The referendum attempted to exempt agriculture and agribusiness from compliance with state laws passed in 2015 and later, unless a "compelling state interest" was involved.

References

  1. Adesoji, Adelaja; Friedman, Keith (1 December 1999). "Political Economy of Right-to-farm". EconBiz. Journal of Agricultural and Applied Economics: 568.
  2. "Town of Rochester Massachusetts Zoning By-Laws". Town of Rochester, MA. Retrieved 19 March 2015. This By-Law encourages the pursuit of agriculture, promotes agriculture-based economic opportunities, and protects farmlands within the Town of Rochester by allowing agricultural uses and related activities to function with minimal conflict with abutters and Town agencies, when done in compliance with applicable state laws, Town By-Laws and regulations. This By-Law shall apply to all jurisdictional areas within the Town.
  3. Lisansky and Clark, Judith and George (1 January 1987). "Farmer-Nonfarmer Conflicts in the Urban Fringe: Will Right-to-Farm Hel" (PDF). Farmland: 220. Retrieved 29 April 2015.
  4. 1 2 Lapping and Leutwiler, Mark B.and Nels R. (1 January 1987). "Agriculture in Conflict: Right-to-Farm Laws and the Peri-Urban Milieu for Farming" (PDF). Farmland: 211. Retrieved 29 April 2015.
  5. Weldon, Kyle; Rumley, Elizabeth (2016). "States' Right-To-Farm Statutes: State of New York" (PDF). Fayetteville, AR: National Agricultural Law Center. Retrieved April 15, 2017.
  6. "Right-to-Farm Laws: History & Future" (PDF). Oak Brook, IL: Farm Foundation. Retrieved 19 March 2015.
  7. Richardson, Jill. "ALEC Exposed: Protecting Factory Farms and Sewage Sludge?". PRWatch. The Center for Media and Democracy. Retrieved 19 March 2015.
  8. de Palma, Anthony (1980-11-16). "Right-to-Farm Gains Backing; Right-to-Farm Laws Picking Up Support". The New York Times. Last April, the Pilesgrove Township Council passed New Jersey's first right-to-farm ordinance. It recognizes the farmers' right to go about their daily business as a 'natural right hereby ordained to exist as a permitted use everywhere in the Township of Pilesgrove.'
  9. "Right to Farm Laws". Sourcewatch. The Center for Media and Democracy. Retrieved 19 March 2015.
  10. Batie, Sandra S. (2008). "Wicked Problems and Applied Economics". American Journal of Agricultural Economics. 90 (5): 1176–1191. doi:10.1111/j.1467-8276.2008.01202.x.
  11. "The Farm Bill Makes The Koch Brothers Richer While Destroying the Clean Water Act". Politicus USA. 6 February 2014. Retrieved 28 November 2016.
  12. "Right to Farm bill fails". KOCO-TV. Retrieved 28 November 2016.
  13. "State Question 777 divided Oklahoma along geographic lines". The Oklahoman (NewsOK.com). Retrieved 28 November 2016.
  14. "'Right to Farm' Debate: Sorting out a divisive state question" . Retrieved 28 November 2016.

Further reading