Attorney General Sean D. Reyes joined a coalition of states in sending a letter to U.S. Congressional leaders supporting the Ending Agricultural Trade Suppression (“EATS”) Act. The letter, led by the State of Iowa, was addressed to U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell.
The EATS Act is sponsored by U.S. Senator Roger Marshall (R-KS) and U.S. Representative Ashley Hinson (R-IA). According to the letter from the attorneys general, this bill would “prevent states like California from regulating farmers and ranchers nationwide by preserving the right of states and local government to regulate agriculture within their jurisdictions.”
The letter follows a U.S. Supreme Court decision earlier this year that upheld a 2018 California law regulating out-of-state poultry and pork production. The California law says that egg and pork products can only be sold in California if they meet the live confinement standards approved by California.
As the States write in their letter, “America’s pork production is nationwide and relies on coordination across the country. One state, or even a few states, should not upend that system. And California is learning the wrong lesson — that it can dictate, and that the nation must follow.” The States urge Congress to pass the EATS Act to “make clear that a State can regulate how livestock is produced within its borders but not in other States.”
Joining Iowa and Utah on this letter were the States of Arkansas, Idaho, Indiana, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, New Hampshire, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia.
