(Radio Iowa) – Iowa Congresswoman Ashley Hinson says she’s confident congress can essentially overrule a U-S Supreme Court opinion that upheld California standards for pork sold in that state. The rules require pork sold in California to come from the offspring of sows that had enough space to move and turn around. Hinson says her “Save Our Bacon Act” will put a stop to that policy.

“California should not be telling Iowa farmers who to raise their hogs,” Hinson says. “Prop 12 set unscientific, arbitrary mandates on producers hundreds, if not thousands of miles away and it’s hurting both farmers and families.” California voters approved Proposition 12 in 2018 by a large margin. In 2023, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled California’s animal welfare law did not violate the Constitution’s commerce clause, but Justice Neil Gorsuch wrote that if pork producers believe it causes a massive disruption in their industry, they can lobby congress to intervene.

“In the Supreme Court’s decision, they noted that congress had the authority to determine how states may regulate and get involved here with interstate commerce,” Hinson says, “and I think that when you look at what we’ve got here, this does exactly that.” Congress typically drafts constitutional amendments to undo U.S. Supreme Court rulings that interpret the constitution. However, Congress has occasionally acted to pass a bill in similar situations and Hinson says this particular legislative fix is necessary.

“According to USDA, the cost for producers to comply with Prop 12 is up to $4500 per sow. That is devastating for small, family-run farms that don’t have that kind of money lying around and it’s not just farmers feeling the pain. Consumers are paying more, too,” Hinson says. “Since Prop 12 went into effect, the price of a pork loin has gone up 41%.” California’s rules require about 24 square feet of space for each sow. Hinson says her bill ensures California activists cannot dictate how pork producers raise pigs in Iowa.

“In California, if they want to decide that they want their sows to live in this much space, then they can do that for their producers,” Hinson says, “but for us it’s telling our Iowa producers they can continue to do things how they have with the farrowing process that is scientifically based.”

Supporters of the California regulations say it’s cruel and inhumane to confine pregnant sows in pens that are so small they cannot turn around. The National Pork Producers Council says gestation stalls allow sows to move side to side and lie down, but NOT to turn around and potentially contaminate her water and food.