Noland Presents Continuing Legal Education Program in Fayetteville
On January 4, 2016, Ross presented a CLE entitled "Rulemaking to Prohibit Swine CAFOs in the Buffalo River Watershed: Recent Changes in Legislative Oversight of Agency Rulemakings." Members of the Washington County Bar Association learned about the third-party rulemaking brought by the Arkansas Public Policy Panel and the Ozark Society which, as of August 29, 2015, prohibits the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality from considering permits for medium and large swine CAFOs in the Buffalo National River Watershed. A swine CAFO, or "Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation" is an agricultural facility which houses 750 swine weighing 55 pounds or more, or 3,000 swine weighing 55 pounds or less. The program also discussed several changes to legislative review of agency rulemakings which transpired during the pendency of the third-party rulemaking, including recently adopted Section 42 of Article 5 of the Arkansas Constitution, a January 14, 2015, executive order, and a 2015 law defining the legislature's rulemaking review power. Ross served as counsel for the third-party petitioners during the administrative rulemaking and legislative review processes.
