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Committee reviews House Bill H941 to limit municipal regulation of farms, debates carve-outs for small parcels
Summary
The Senate Committee on Agriculture on April 7 reviewed House Bill H941, which largely preempts municipal bylaws for farming meeting the Required Agricultural Practices (RAPs) but allows towns narrow regulatory authority on parcels under 0.75 acres not operating before July 1, 2026, and creates a stakeholder study with a report due Jan. 30, 2027.
The Senate Committee on Agriculture reviewed House Bill H941 on April 7, a proposal that would bar municipalities from enforcing bylaws against farming that meets state Required Agricultural Practices (RAPs) while carving out limited exceptions for very small parcels and establishing a stakeholder study to help resolve local conflicts.
Bradley Schopenhoffs, legislative counsel, walked the committee through the bill, describing section 1 as a narrower findings-and-intent statement and explaining that section 2 would "prohibit a municipality from regulating by bylaw farming that meets the minimum threshold criteria" and the RAPs. He said the house version narrows the definition of protected farming to activities "for food,"…
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