Ag-gag

ACLU Iowa has filed a lawsuit challenging the sates new ag-gag law.  Filed Monday, the lawsuit claims the law is unconstitutional, like the 2012 law passed in Iowa that was struck down in a federal court in January. The new law creates a new crime, called “agricultural production facility trespass,” that makes it illegal for a person to gain access to an agricultural production facility through de

Idaho officials have agreed to pay $260,000 to the attorneys for an animal welfare group following a federal court ruling that found the state’s law banning spying at farms, dairies and slaughterhouses violated free speech rights.  The Idaho Press reports that the Constitutional Defense Council approved the payment to the Animal Legal Defense Fund on Wednesday.   The U.S. Di...

A federal judge struck down Iowa’s “Ag-Gag Law.” The law prevents journalists and advocacy groups from taking part in undercover investigations of farms, slaughterhouses, and other agricultural facilities. The law, passed in 2012, is called the Agricultural Production Facility Fraud Law. It was widely su...

A federal judge struck down Iowa’s “Ag-Gag Law.” The law prevents journalists and advocacy groups from taking part in undercover investigations of farms, slaughterhouses, and other agricultural facilities. The law, passed in 2012, is called the Agricultural Production Facility Fraud Law. It was widely su...

On Thursday, a federal appeals court ruled, Idaho’s ban on spying at farms, dairies and slaughterhouses violated free speech rights.  In 2014, Idaho lawmakers passed a bill making it a crime to videotape agriculture operations after the state’s $2.5 billion dairy ...

Utah has agreed to pay $349,000 in attorney fees to settle a lawsuit over the state's so-called "ag-gag" law that a federal judge found unconstitutional last summer.  In 2012, Utah lawmakers approved a bill that made it a class B misdemeanor to trespass on private livestock or poultry operations and record sound or images without the owner's permission.  It also proh...

A federal judge has officially overturned a 2012 Utah law that made a criminal offense of lying to access a farm and filming once inside.  Politico’s Morning Agriculture Report said that makes it the second “ag-gag” law to be struck down for violating the First Amendment.   The Animal Le...

Laws designed to prohibit hidden-camera filming substantially reduce trust in agriculture by U.S. consumers.   Researchers at the University of British Columbia say the so-called “ag-gag” laws that criminalize secret recordings and obtaining employment under false pretenses is more likely to breed suspicion of farmers than to shield their public image.  Reports say th...

A self-described activist, journalist and blogger has raised more than $75,000 to fly drones over farms.   Will Potter raised the funds from more than 1,300 donations on Kickstarter. Politico reports he will use the funds as part of an investigation to “find out what factory farms are hiding with ‘ag-gag’ laws.”  Potter has since expande...