INDIANAPOLIS — Indiana's large livestock farms would face annual inspections and other tightened regulations under a bill given initial approval by a House committee.
The House Agriculture and Rural Development Committee voted along party lines Tuesday, with seven Democrats endorsing it and five Republicans opposing it.
The bill now moves to the full House for possible amendment. It comes a year after similar legislation fell apart in the waning hours of the last General Assembly, disappointing environmentalists worried about the farms' impact on waterways and drinking water.
The current bill would affect Indiana's roughly 2,200 confined feeding operations, of which 625 are large enough for a separate distinction of concentrated animal feeding operations.
Those sprawling farms with thousands of hogs, cattle or chickens are often opposed by neighbors because of their odor and potential impact on property values and the environment.
"I think we could all get along much better with a bill like this," said Barbara Sha Cox of Richmond, a member of Environmentally Concerned Citizens of Randolph County.
But Nicholas Ellis of Jefferson County said the bill lacks a setback limiting where confined feeding operations can locate.