Raleigh, NC – N.C. House Majority Leader John Bell(R-Wayne, Greene, Johnston) and N.C. Senator Jim Perry (R-Wayne, Lenoir) sent a letter today to N.C. Department of Environmental Quality Secretary Michael Regan urging him to consider the concerns of our hog farmers and rural communities and refrain from adding new and costly regulations in the General Swine Permit.

“As your agency considers final language for the General Swine Permit, we urge you to reject any efforts to include new,unnecessary and excessive regulations that harm North Carolina hog farmers,” the letter states. “From hurricanes to lawsuits, our farmers are facing very challenging times, and now is not the time to place new burdensome government regulations that only make hog farming more difficult and put family farms out of business.

The full letter is attached and can be read below:

Secretary Michael Regan
N.C. Department of Environmental Quality
217 West Jones Street
Raleigh, NC 27603  

Secretary Regan,

As your agency considers final language for the General Swine Permit, we urge you to reject any efforts to include new,unnecessary and excessive regulations that harm North Carolina hog farmers.

As you know, hog farming is already one of our state’s most highly regulated industries. In addition, with more than 80% of hog farms being locally owned and operated by farm families, it is critical that we take into account the unfair burden and costs new regulations place on our family farms.

From hurricanes to lawsuits, our farmers are facing very challenging times, and now is not the time to place new burdensome government regulations that only make hog farming more difficult and put family farms out of business.

As our state’s number one economic impact,farmers are the backbone of our state, particularly in Eastern North Carolina.Furthermore, they are the lifeblood of our rural communities.  If it wasn’t for agribusiness, many of these small town would not exist today.

North Carolina’s farmers work hard every day to feed the public while adhering to some of the most stringent and toughest regulations. We should be actively working to make farming stronger in North Carolina, not more difficult. 

We urge you to please consider the concerns of our hog farmers and rural communities and refrain from adding new and costly regulations.

Sincerely,

Rep. John Bell and Sen. Jim Perry