Attorney General Gentner Drummond of Oklahoma is challenging California's Proposition 12, which imposes strict hog-housing regulations affecting out-of-state pork producers. This law requires compliance with California's farming standards to sell pork products in the state. As the leading pork-consuming state, California's regulations significantly influence the market.
Drummond expressed concerns about these regulations: "Californians have every right to set laws impacting their own state, but they should not be able to dictate how hog farmers in Oklahoma raise their pigs. Proposition 12 is a textbook example of excessive regulations that burden farmers with exorbitant costs."
Pork production ranks as Oklahoma's second-largest agricultural industry, providing over 23,000 jobs within the state. Drummond and officials from 22 other states are advocating for a federal appeals court to consider their case against Proposition 12. They argue that the law could lead to an interstate trade conflict, which would violate constitutional provisions such as the Dormant Commerce Clause, Import-Export Clause, and Full Faith and Credit Clause.
Oklahoma has joined an Iowa-led brief alongside Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Ohio, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia and Wyoming.