By Julie Tomascik
Editor

Over 3,500 bills have been filed in the 88th Texas Legislature, and several of them relate to agriculture, property rights and rural communities.

“The session is beginning to pick up speed, and there are already a number of bills filed to address priority issues important to farmers, ranchers and rural Texans,” Texas Farm Bureau (TFB) State Legislative Director Charlie Leal said.

Right to farm
Local municipalities and cities are enacting ordinances to regulate farms and ranches as a nuisance or threat to public health and safety. Strengthening right to farm legislation would help preserve statutory protections to ensure farms and ranches can continuing operating, even if they are within city limits.

“Current law only protects ag operations annexed after Aug. 31, 1981,” Leal said. “Trying to verify with a city which operations were annexed has proven to be a challenge.”

Due to the confusion, cities are enforcing ordinances and zoning against all agricultural operations without following the requirement to prove a governmental requirement is necessary to protect public health.

HB 1750, authored by Rep. DeWayne Burns, addresses these issues by prohibiting cities from imposing “governmental requirements” on all agricultural operations within city limits, no matter when the land was annexed by the city.

Under the bill, cities would only impose restrictions on an agricultural operation if the city can prove it is necessary to protect the public from danger. Some of these dangers include the likelihood of an explosion, flooding, an infestation of vermin or insects, physical injury and crops that cause traffic hazards.

Language in the bill stipulates that to prove an agricultural practice imposes a danger, the city must obtain a report from the city health officer or consultant and must show evidence of a health and safety hazard. Cities would not be allowed to prohibit “generally accepted agricultural practices” except to address a danger listed in the bill.

The bill also calls on Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service to develop a manual detailing generally accepted agricultural practices. The city would be required to consult this manual when adopting any restrictions on agricultural operations.

Truth in labeling
Truth in labeling of meat products is back on the session agenda.

HB 1788, authored by Rep. Brad Buckley, aims to ensure that food labeled as containing meat products does not falsely or misleadingly include alternative protein sources.

Sen. Charles Perry filed a companion bill, SB 664, in the Senate.

These bills clarify the labeling language that must be used on certain meat alternatives.

“Some producers of the ‘meat alternatives’ have been labeling their products in a manner that confuses consumers,” Leal said. “Intentional or not, they put deceptive figures and wording on the labeling for their products to make them seem more like ‘real’ meat.”

The bills require “analogue products,” which are food products made from processed plant products, insects or fungus with food additives to mimic meat, poultry or egg products, to be clearly labeled with one of the following: “analogue; meatless; plant-based; made from plants; or a similar qualifying term.”

The bill also addresses cell-cultured products, requiring the products be labeled as either cell-cultured, lab grown or a similar qualifying term.

Farm animal liability
TFB is supporting bills that provide protections to landowners regarding livestock.

HB 73 by Rep. Andrew Murr addresses farm animal liability.

“This bill proposes more protection for landowners against lawsuits involving livestock,” Leal said. “It builds on the progress we made last session with the Farm Animal Liability Act.”

Under HB 73, landowners and those who lease land for livestock are not liable for any accident involving their livestock under certain circumstances. The new language casts a wider net of protection for those who own or lease land. While current law provides some protection, HB 73 expands the coverage to include any accident that involves livestock.

In its current form, the Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code does not protect lessees from lawsuits arising from an accident involving livestock. HB 73 protects lessees the same as it would landowners.

The bill also adds a provision stating trespassers cannot sue landowners or lessees for incidents involving livestock.

More information
Information on TFB priority issues and legislative activity is available each week in the Austin Newsletter. To sign up for the Austin Newsletter, log in to MyTFB and update contact preferences using the menu on the left side of the screen.