A Missouri judge is extending an order blocking a new Missouri law that sought to shield large farms from stringent local health rules.
Cole County Circuit Judge Daniel Green banned enforcement of the law until he rules on a Sept. 16 court hearing. Another judge's earlier ruling delayed the lawuntil Thursday.
The law would prevent local officials from enacting more stringent regulations than the state on large farms that raise hogs, poultry and cattle.
In a lawsuit to overturn the law, critics allege it's unconstitutional and infringes on local control.
The Missouri Farm Bureau and several other agricultural groups named in the lawsuit are condemning it as a way to hold back farmers. The groups argue that the law is needed to stop "scientifically unfounded" local health ordinances.
