In a brief eruption of civic and environmental responsibility, Representative Tim Goodwin (R-30/Rapid City) yesterday filed House Bill 1159, calling for a two-year moratorium on the construction or expansion of industrial dairy concentrated animal feeding operations that would exceed 7,499 dairy cows.
HB 1159 proposed this pause to allow but not mandate three activities:
(1) Allow the Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources to undertake an interdisciplinary process of data collection, review, consideration, and analysis of the potential economic and environmental impacts of industrial dairy operations in this state, and to make results available to the public; and
(2) Allow county governments time to update comprehensive land use plans and ordinances to match the scale of industrial dairy operations by:
(a) Requiring road agreements between townships and industrial dairy operations as part of conditional use permit approvals; and
(b) Implementing incremental, increasing setbacks proportional to the size of an industrial dairy operation; and
(3) Allow the Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources to determine whether it has adequate resources to determine the impact of industrial dairy operations on the watersheds of this state [HB 1159, filed 2026.01.28].
I say brief because, following its reading in the House and referral to House Agriculture and Natural Resources, Representative Goodwin withdrew his bill. I suspect Rep. Goodwin got “set straight” by someone with a big hat on the Second Floor.