Indiana, like every other State, has adopted a Right to Farm Act to “reduce the loss to the state of its agricultural resources by limiting the circumstances under which agricultural operations may be deemed to be a nuisance.” Indiana Code § 32-30-6-9(b) (“RTFA”). The RTFA limits the availability of state-law nuisance actions with respect to agricultural operations.
The Plaintiffs’ residential properties are located in rural Indiana near land owned by a family of second- and third-generation farmers who decided to convert land that had been historically used to grow row crops to a state-of-the art concentrated animal feeding operation (“CAFO”) for raising 8,000 hogs. The farmers obtained the necessary zoning changes, construction and operation permits, and environmental permits to build two 33,500 square foot buildings with ventilation fans, slatted floors and concrete pits to store liquid waste and began operations in October 2013. Two years later, the Plaintiffs commenced the action alleging claims of nuisance, trespass, personal injuries and property damage based on the odors and airborne emissions produced by the hog-farming operation.
The lawsuit was dismissed on summary judgment, with the dismissal upheld on appeal. The lawsuit included several constitutional challenges to Indiana’s RTFA. The Indiana courts held that the Plaintiffs’ nuisance claims were precluded by the RTFA, ruled that their trespass claims should be treated as nuisance claims as a matter of state law because they were essentially a repackaged version of the nuisance claims, and determined that the application of the RTFA did not effect a regulatory taking of the Plaintiffs’ properties.
As the Indiana Court of Appeals held, Indiana’s legislature has declared that the Indiana RTFA is vitally important to Indiana’s agricultural economy and the protection of farmers’ rights related to livestock agriculture and the use of their farmland. The Court held that the RTFA declares that it is the State’s policy “to conserve, protect, and encourage the development and improvement of its agricultural land for the production of food and other agricultural products” and finds that “when nonagricultural land uses extend into agricultural areas, agricultural operations often become the subject of nuisance suits,” which discourage “investments in farm improvements.” Indiana Code § 32-30-6-9(b). The purpose of the law is “to reduce the loss to the state of its agricultural resources by limiting the circumstances under which agricultural operations may be deemed to be a nuisance.” The Court of Appeals also recognized that the RTFA is designed to “protect the rights of farmers to choose among all generally accepted farming and livestock production practices, including the use of ever-changing technology.”
During the litigation, the Plaintiffs’ asserted numerous constitutional challenges to the RTFA, including claims that the Act violated the Indiana and/or U.S. Constitutions by: (a) providing certain privileges and protections only to farmers over their non-farming neighbors in violation of the Privileges and Immunities Clause of the Indiana Constitution; (b) precluding the assertion of certain claims contrary to the Open Courts clause of the Indiana Constitution; and (c) violating the Takings Clause of the Fifth Amendment. The trial court, the Indiana Court of Appeals and the Indiana Supreme Court each considered and rejected the Plaintiffs’ various constitutional challenges to the RTFA.
On February 20, 2020, the Indiana Supreme Court voted to uphold the Court of Appeals opinion and de nied the Plaint iff s ’ petition for transfer.
The Plaintiffs’ filed a petition for certiorari with the U.S. Supreme Court. The question presented by the Plaintiffs’ petition was whether the application of Indiana’s RTFA to preclude Plaintiffs’ nuisance claims constituted a regulatory taking without compensation violative of the federal Constitution.
The Plaintiffs argued that the Supreme Court should take the case because the RTFA allegedly violated the Takings Clause by providing the Defendants with complete immunity from nuisance and trespass claims and that there was a conflict among lower courts regarding various states’ right to farm statutes. The Defendants responded that Indiana’s RTFA does not provide complete immunity from nuisance or trespass liability. Nor is there a conflict among various States and lower courts regarding right to farm statutes across the U.S.
The Plaintiffs’ litigation came to an end on October 5, 2020, when the U.S. Supreme Court denied the Plaintiffs ’ petition. As a result, Indiana farmers are now permitted to modernize their farming operations and change the use of their farmland while being protected from nuisance lawsuits by neighbors who disagree. Janet L. Himsel, et al. v. 4/9 Livestock, LLC, et al., 122 N.E. 2d 935 (Ind. App. 2019), Petition to Transfer Denied (Ind. S. Ct., Feb. 20, 2020), Cert. Denied (U.S. S. Ct.., Oct. 5, 2020, page 27).
Agriculture is an important part of Indiana’s economy as it contributes approximately $31 billion to the State, with $3.55 billion of that revenue coming from animal and animal product production. More than 85% of the livestock raised in Indiana are raised in confined feeding operations. There are more than 56,000 farming operations in Indiana and 96% of those farms are family owned and operated. This case was important because the Indiana courts recognized the Indiana Legislature’s statutory framework to protect farmers who are not negligent in operating their farms while rejecting the various constitutional challenges to the RTFA, including equal protection, due process and taking arguments. This case provides the necessary assurances to Indiana’s farmers and the agricultural community that they have the right to choose how best to modernize their farming and livestock operations. In addition, Indiana’s RTFA and this case provide a helpful guide to other states that are interested in updating their own RTFA statutes to ensure a proper balance is struck between the needs of the agricultural community and neighboring property owners when dealing with such land use issues.
