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“When you think of SB 85, you should automatically think of wastewater,� said Lara Neiffer, who with her husband, Jake, and two boys, Josh, 11, and Luke, 9, operate Neiffer Ranch.

“We’re the regenerative farm. We actually use the manure in the wastewater to fertilize our pasture. We’re not providing toxic anything. We’re actually using it as a fertilizer correctly. Our land can absorb the amount of chickens we have. It’s just like a drop.�

The family would like to expand the number of chickens it can raise for meat or egg production, but SB 85 has pulled the reins back hard on that goal, Neiffer said.

The bill is in the rulemaking phase with the state agriculture department, which will take public comments in June.

“It’s supposed to be ready by fall 2024 when our season will be done,� Neiffer said, but by then if she has to wrestle with a 100-page application regarding wastewater, “that might put us out another year.�

Neiffer Ranch is a small family farm, she said, raising beef, pork and aiming at 55,000 chickens per year.

She said the ranch’s permit with the Oregon Department of Agriculture is for 20,000 birds.

“But it’s an annual permit,� she said. “We wanted to do 5,000 this year.�

Neiffer said SB 85 puts the small ranch, in the same category as somebody who handles 150,000 per day, and runs 24/7 all year.

“We’re talking about Tyson and Foster Farms,� she said.

On Neiffer Ranch, she said, chicken meat production season runs May through October and does not process every day.

“We don’t have the refrigerator space for that,� Neiffer explained.

“Chickens need to be in refrigeration for 12-24 hours, and you can look at our equipment alone just to see how much space we have.�

Drive to Idaho necessary

She noted there is no U.S. Department of Agriculture inspection facility for poultry close, so the family drives four hours to Idaho to have birds processed.

The family would like to start its own USDA facility to process chickens for the meat market, she said.

“Senate Bill 85 was a terrible bill,� said Sen. Bill Hansell, R, Athena. “We passed it on a straight party line vote, and the Republicans were opposed to it.�