Midwest Environmental Advocates is a nonprofit law center that combines the power of law with the resolve of communities facing environmental injustice to secure and protect the rights of all people to healthy water, land, and air.

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Home » Our Work » Pushing back against efforts by industrial agriculture lobbyists to intimidate local officials

Pushing back against efforts by industrial agriculture lobbyists to intimidate local officials

— MEA works with local officials across the state to develop strategies for protecting clean air and water in the face of growing pressure from lobbyists for industrial agriculture.

Case Summary

In 2020, when Polk County residents heard about plans to build a massive hog confinement facility in their community, they were concerned about threats to clean air and water. A group of community members reached out to MEA for support and guidance as they worked to develop more protective local regulations.

Above: Polk County residents gather at a meeting to discuss CAFO regulation and water concerns.

That fall, Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce (WMC) and industrial agriculture lobbyists sent Polk County board supervisors a threatening letter alleging the supervisors could face criminal felony liability for efforts to protect water from CAFO pollution.

In response, MEA attorneys helped community members stand their ground and speak out against efforts to intimidate them.

While state law places certain limits on local control of large livestock operations (known as CAFOs), the law does not entirely preempt local regulation. When it comes to livestock siting, towns and counties have the authority to enact standards that are stricter than state regulations if those local standards are based on reasonable and scientifically defensible findings. In addition, local units of government may enact ordinances that regulate the operations—as opposed to the siting—of livestock facilities.

In addition to laying out the legal basis for local authority to regulate large livestock operations, MEA helped initiate a larger conversation among county officials in other parts of Wisconsin who were concerned about what was happening in Polk County. Soon, local officials from across the state came together to speak out publicly against the escalating rhetoric and intimidation tactics coming from lobbyists for the CAFO industry.

County supervisors from Chippewa, Brown, Bayfield, Monroe, Polk, Lincoln, Crawford, Clark, Dunn, and La Crosse Counties sent a letter to the Wisconsin Counties Association (WCA) asking WCA to take a clear position in opposition to the attempted intimidation. The Wisconsin Counties Association responded by voicing strong opposition to the tactics used by WMC and industrial agriculture lobbyists in their communication with Polk County officials.

Moreover, attorneys for the Wisconsin Counties Association issued a legal analysis refuting the legal basis for the threats made against the county and county supervisors. An official response from a respected organization like WCA sends an important signal to corporate lobbyists that attempting to bully county officials into submission is an attack on fair and representative democracy.


"We are undeterred by special interest groups who oppose efforts to protect our community, because we know the people are with us. And while we aren't sure exactly where the road ahead will lead, we know that MEA will be there too, fighting alongside us for the clean air and water we all deserve."

- Lisa Doerr, Polk County