In November of 2018, California voters passed Proposition 12 which goes into effect January 1, 2022. The bill increases regulations on eggs, pork, and veal producers both in the state of California and any out of state producers that want to sell products in the state. Prop 12 was written, funded, and marketed by the Humane Society of the United States and their “Prevent Cruelty California” coalition.
Currently, only 1% of pork producers comply with the housing requirements of Prop 12. When it goes into effect at the beginning of 2022, a majority of the nation’s pork producers will not be allowed to seek its products in California.
The American Farm Bureau Federation and the National Pork Producers Council have jointly filed an appeal with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circut to ask that Prop 12 be ruled invalid. The appeal claims that Prop 12 is unconstitutional and seeks to allow California to regulate states outside its governance by requiring producers to abide by the state’s own regulations in order to do business there.