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House debates S.124 to clarify state CAFO permitting after EPA directive
Summary
The Vermont House took up the second reading of S.124, a bill that would clarify that the Agency of Natural Resources is the lead state permitting authority for concentrated animal feeding operation discharges and would add CAFO-specific definitions, inspection duties and deadlines to comply with a directive from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
The Vermont House took up the second reading of S.124 on the floor, a bill titled “An act relating to miscellaneous agricultural subjects” that amends state law to address concentrated animal feeding operation permitting and agricultural water quality.
The measure, discussed by the House Agriculture, Food Resiliency, and Forestry Committee and the House Environment Committee, responds to a September notice from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency that the Agency of Natural Resources (ANR) must begin issuing CAFO permits to comply with the federal Clean Water Act or risk loss of the state's delegated permitting authority. Representative Ben Durfee of Shaftsbury, speaking for the agriculture committee, described the bill as largely intended to bring Vermont into compliance with federal requirements.
S.124 clarifies that ANR is the lead permitting authority for discharges from CAFOs and preserves the Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets’ (AAFM) role over nonpoint-source agricultural runoff from fields. The bill replaces references to the existing memorandum of understanding between the two agencies with a new document, to be issued by ANR in consultation with EPA and AAFM, that will set out each agency’s roles and responsibilities in implementing CAFO permitting and the state nonpoint-source program.
Key provisions discussed on the floor include: - New definitions for large, medium and small CAFOs in Title 10, aligning state terminology with federal Clean Water Act concepts and defining “waters” for permitting purposes; a large CAFO threshold discussed is 700 or more mature dairy animals, and a medium CAFO is described as 200 to 699 mature dairy animals where discharges require a permit. - A requirement that ANR inspect potentially jurisdictional farms and determine whether a CAFO permit is required; if AAFM identifies a possible unpermitted discharge it must immediately refer the matter to ANR. - A provision that two or more adjoining farms under common ownership be treated as a single large farm to prevent circumvention of permitting rules. - Clarification that compliance with Vermont’s required agricultural practices (RAPs) alone does not exempt a farm from a CAFO permit; ANR must require nutrient management plans for all CAFOs and include those plans in permits available for public comment. - A new stakeholder engagement requirement directing ANR, in coordination with AAFM, to convene agricultural stakeholders as part of a pre-rulemaking process and report back by Feb. 15, 2026, on proposed CAFO rules and implementation issues. - A deadline directing ANR to issue a CAFO permit application by July 1, 2026, and authority for ANR to request additional information from farms and to require individual or general permits as appropriate. - A change that persons required to obtain a large CAFO permit are not required to pay the $2,500 large farm operation permit fee to AAFM.
Representative Durfee told the chamber these statutory changes were requested by both agencies to meet the EPA’s listed corrective actions, which include inspecting potentially jurisdictional farms, tracking permitting and enforcement, taking enforcement where discharges occur without a permit, and securing statutory authority for the work. Representative Matt Logan of Burlington, who spoke for the environment committee, described the Title 10 amendments that add CAFO-specific powers and procedural requirements for ANR.
Floor discussion on the bill as recorded in the transcript focused on the statutory reallocation of permitting authority, inspection and referral procedures between AAFM and ANR, the stakeholder process for rulemaking, and compliance documentation and timelines. The transcript shows committee recommendations for amendment and concurrence with further amendment by the Ways and Means Committee but does not record a final vote on S.124.
If enacted as discussed on the floor, S.124 would formalize ANR’s role in issuing CAFO permits under the Clean Water Act while preserving AAFM’s responsibility for required agricultural practices and nonpoint-source field runoff regulation.
