California Federal Milk Marketing Order delayed

Supreme Court ruling could have effect on rule-making procedures

The USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) has announced that the California Federal Milk Marketing Order rulemaking proceeding will be delayed pending the outcome of a related case before the United States Supreme Court.

In 2015, the AMS held a hearing regarding a proposal from three dairy cooperatives to put in place a federal milk marketing order in California. The hearing was presided over by an administrative law judge who was an employee of the USDA. However, in 2017, the Solicitor General of the United States submitted a brief to the US Supreme Court in which the government took the position that administrative law judges are “inferior officers” of the United States and not employees. If the Supreme Court upholds that position, then administrative law judges would need to be appointed under Article II of the United States Constitution.

The case is Lucia v. Securities and Exchange Commission, and a ruling will be issued by the Supreme Court no later than June 30, 2018.

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Casey Laughman is the former Editor in Chief of Food Engineering magazine. He has almost two decades’ experience as a writer and editor for mainstream and trade publications. He spent several years as a writer and editor for two news services before becoming the editor of a legal publication and managing editor of a trade magazine that covered the commercial facilities market.