Michigan Farm Bureau urges legislature to strengthen rule review, reduce regulatory uncertainty

Rob Anderson, manager of government relations for the Michigan Farm Bureau, told the House Rules Committee on March 13 that unclear or duplicative administrative rules harm farmers and their communities. "For Michigan farmers, regulations aren't just lines in a rule book. They directly impact their families, businesses, and way of life," Anderson said.

Anderson said the Farm Bureau represents more than 40,000 farm families in Michigan and that members favor limiting rulemaking authority where appropriate, making regulations easier to understand and comply with, and matching penalties to violations. "Our members also believe state agencies should conduct science based studies, standardized risk assessments, cost benefit analyses, and economic impact statements for proposed regulations," he said.

As an example of where review and transparency have been reduced, Anderson told the committee he was "disappointed in the last legislative session when the legislature repealed the statutes establishing the environmental rules review committee, the Environmental Science Advisory Board and the Environmental Permit Review Commission." He urged reinvestment in those bodies, saying they provided review and transparency useful to businesses making investment decisions.

Anderson emphasized that his testimony reflects policy developed through the Farm Bureau's grassroots process and that members seek a balance between economic growth and necessary regulatory oversight. He concluded by offering to answer questions from the committee.