Nebraska State dismissed from corporate farming case

NEBRASKA - A case challenging Nebraska's ban on corporate farming will move to trial even though the state has been dismissed as a defendant.

U.S. District Judge Laurie Smith-Camp dismissed Nebraska as a defendant on Friday, saying states have sovereign immunity from such actions.

But the case will continue with Attorney General Jon Bruning and Secretary of State John Gale as defendants.

The case involves two lawsuits -- each challenging the farming ban -- that were consolidated for trial.

No trial date has been set. The ban, widely known as Initiative 300, was added to the constitution through a citizen initiative petition spearheaded by the Nebraska Farmers Union in 1982.

I-300 generally prohibits corporations and certain other business entities from owning farmland or engaging in agricultural activity, although there are numerous exceptions.

It exempts farms that are family owned and operated, nonprofit corporations, American Indian tribal corporations, land used for seed or nursery purposes and land used for research or experimental purposes.

Source: SiouxCityJournal