Hummer v. State ex rel. Oklahoma Board of Agriculture

2010 OK CIV APP 133, 245 P.3d 1244, 2010 Okla. Civ. App. LEXIS 113
CourtCourt of Civil Appeals of Oklahoma
DecidedJuly 2, 2010
DocketNo. 107261
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 2010 OK CIV APP 133 (Hummer v. State ex rel. Oklahoma Board of Agriculture) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Civil Appeals of Oklahoma primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Hummer v. State ex rel. Oklahoma Board of Agriculture, 2010 OK CIV APP 133, 245 P.3d 1244, 2010 Okla. Civ. App. LEXIS 113 (Okla. Ct. App. 2010).

Opinion

CAROL M. HANSEN, Judge.

11 Plaintiff/Appellant, Mary Lou Hummer (Protestant), seeks review of the district court's order affirming the decision of Defendant/Appellee, Oklahoma Board of Agriculture (Board), to grant a license to Defendant/Appellee, Land O'Lakes, Inc. (Applicant), to construct and operate a concentrated swine feeding operation as a swine nursery in Beaver County, Oklahoma, pursuant to the Oklahoma Swine Feeding Operations Act (OSFO Act), 2 0.8.8upp.2007 §§ 20-1 to 20-29. At issue is whether the Board erred in granting the license when Applicant intended to sell the nursery to another operator. We hold the OSFO Act does not prohibit an applicant from seeking a license for a concentrated swine feeding operation when the applicant intends to sell the operation after constructing the facility. We affirm the district court's order, leaving the Board's order in effect.

T2 Applicant initiated its application for the concentrated swine feeding operation license in 1997 and received a certificate of the application's completeness in 2004 from De[1246]*1246fendant/Appellee, Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food, & Forestry (ODAFEF). Applicant gave notice of its application. Protestant and the other plaintiffs sought hearing. An ODAFF administrative law judge (ALJ) conducted a hearing on the application on May 3-12, 2005. The ALJ recommended the application be denied because Applicant did not plan to own, operate, and manage the concentrated swine feeding operation for which it sought a license. The Board rejected the ALJ's recommendation and remanded the matter to the ALJ for consideration of the merits of the application. The ALJ again recommended denial because Applicant did not intend to operate or own the business.

13 The Board again rejected the ALJ's recommendation. On May 21, 2008, the Board entered its final order granting the license. The order found Applicant had entered into an agreement with Quarter M Farms under which it might convey ownership of the nursery at some future date subject to numerous contract contingencies, terms, conditions, and provisions. It found the potential sale would not occur until after Applicant paid all licensing costs and constructed the nursery in accordance with the ODAFF-approved plans and specifications, and Quarter M Farms obtained approval of its application for license transfer. The order concluded:

Protestants took exception to the notice provided by the Application, ... asserting that the notice and other materials filed were false and misleading because they indicated that the Applicant Land O'Lakes would be the owner and operator of the proposed facilities when in truth and fact the Applicant previously entered into an agreement pursuant to which the facilities might be sold to another at some unknown future date. While the Board understands and appreciates Protestants' assertions, the undisputed evidence established that although the agreement alluded to in fact exists and in fact the proposed facilities might be sold by the Applicant to another at some unknown future date after application approval, after issuance of a building permit, after construction of the facilities, after certification of the as-built facilities and after licensure, at all times relevant here (when applications were filed, when notice was given, at hearing on the application and through the current date and beyond), Land O'Lakes is the license applicant, owner of the proposed facilities and may be the future operator of the facilities if the possible future sale in fact never occurs.... Under the evidence presented, the notice provided cannot be found to be false or misleading given the present status of the Applicant and the proposed facilities. Moreover, the claimed omission clearly did not defeat the underlying purpose of the notice which is to provide landowners and the public with notice of the application and opportunity to be heard on the application.

1 4 Protestant sought judicial review in the district court of Oklahoma County pursuant to 75 0.98.2001 § 818. The district court affirmed the Board's order. Protestant appeals pursuant to 75 0.8.2001 § 823.

15 We note both parties filed appendices to their briefs in violation of Okla.Sup.Ct.R. 1.110), 12 0.8.2001, Ch. 15, App. 1. Accordingly, the appendices are stricken.

T6 We may not disturb a final agency order exeept upon one of the grounds listed in 75 0.8.2001 § 3221 We may not substi[1247]*1247tute our judgment for that of the agency, particularly in the area of expertise which the agency supervises. City of Hugo v. State ex rel. Public Employees Relations Bd., 1994 OK 134, 886 P.2d 485, 490 .

I

T7 As a threshold matter, we must inquire into our jurisdiction. Applicant asserts the district court lacked subject matter jurisdiction to review the agency order because Protestant filed the petition for judicial review more than 830 days after the May 21, 2008 open meeting in which the Board approved the final agency order and at which Protestant personally appeared. Pursuant to 75 0.8.2001 § 318(B)(2), a petition for judicial review must be filed within thirty days after the appellant is notified of the final agency order as provided in $ 312. Section 312 provides the order must be in writing and states, "Parties shall be notified either personally or by certified mail, return receipt requested, of any final agency order. Upon request, a copy of the order shall be delivered or mailed forthwith to each party and to his attorney of record."

18 The final agency order in this case states it was signed and filed on May 21, 2008. Attached to the order is a certificate of mailing stating the "Final Order was mailed, by first class mail, postage prepaid," to Protestant's attorney, among others, but not to Protestant, on June 2, 2008. Protestant filed her petition for judicial review in district court on June 27, 2008. Protestant's personal appearance at the Board's open meeting in which it adopted the order is not sufficient under the statute to trigger the running of the thirty-day time period for appeal. It appears Protestant was never notified of the order as required by § 312. However, even if we treat delivery by first class mail as sufficient to trigger the appeal time, Protestant's petition was timely filed. Accordingly, the district court properly exercised subject matter jurisdiction.

II

1 9 Protestant's first contention is the trial court erred in upholding the agency's decision because it was not supported by substantial evidence in the record and was arbitrary and capricious. She first argues the approval of the application was contrary to the OSFO Act's intent that the entity applying for the license would be the entity able to construct, operate, and manage the facility. Protestant argues the trial court should have upheld the ALJ's recommendations for denial.

110 The Oklahoma Administrative Procedures Act provides for judicial review of final ageney orders in individual proceedings. 75 0.8.2001 § 818(A)(1). We will review only the final agency order and not the actions of the ALJ or other agency staff. The recommendation of the ALJ is entitled to no special weight in determining whether the agency's order is supported by substantial evidence. Cameron v. Corporation Commission, 1966 OK 75, 414 P.2d 266, 272. The ALJ's report and recommendations are advisory only and are not binding upon the Board.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Hummer v. STATE EX REL. BD. OF AGRICULTURE
2010 OK CIV APP 133 (Court of Civil Appeals of Oklahoma, 2010)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
2010 OK CIV APP 133, 245 P.3d 1244, 2010 Okla. Civ. App. LEXIS 113, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/hummer-v-state-ex-rel-oklahoma-board-of-agriculture-oklacivapp-2010.