PSATS Opposes ACRE

The Pennsylvania State Association of Township Supervisors has learned that the Agricultural, Communities, and Rural Environment Initiative (ACRE) will be introduced in the General Assembly the week of June 6.

PSATS strongly opposes the bill and is mobilizing the state’s township officials to echo that opposition with their state lawmakers.

While the proposal was originally intended to strike a balance between the often-opposing needs of farmers and the quality-of-life concerns of local residents and elected officials, PSATS contends that ACRE has veered off course. In fact, in its current form, the measure threatens to both undermine the authority of townships and other local governments statewide and set a dangerous precedent.

At issue is the establishment of the Office of Ordinance Review and the five-member Ag Review Board within the state Department of Agriculture. Under the bill, the review board would have unlimited, court-like powers to overturn local farm-related ordinances.

“Despite our best efforts to ensure that ACRE would preserve the ability of townships to govern effectively and in the best interests of their community, that effort is not reflected in this bill,” PSATS Executive Director R. Keith Hite said. “ACRE is no longer about a farmer’s fundamental right to farm. It’s about placing one special interest group above the law. At the same time, it diminishes and restricts the capacity of local government officials to provide for the health, safety, and welfare of their residents.”

Hite is also concerned that if lawmakers enact ACRE in its present form, the law would open the door for other special interest groups to seek similar exemptions from local ordinances.

“It’s conceivable that the long arm of ACRE could extend far beyond the farm,” Hite said. “If this proposal passes, other groups will be encouraged to skirt legitimate local government regulation, too. For that reason, ACRE has to be stopped – for the good of every municipality and every resident in Pennsylvania.”

The Pennsylvania State Association of Township Supervisors represents Pennsylvania’s 1,456 townships of the second class and for the past 84 years has been committed to preserving and strengthening township government. Townships represent more Pennsylvanians – 5.1 million – than any other type of political subdivision in the commonwealth.

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