‘Unnecessary red tape’: Trump administration sues California over price of eggs
SACRAMENTO, California — The Trump administration claims California is contributing to the rising price of eggs nationwide — and has filed a lawsuit seeking to nullify state laws regulating their production.
California’s egg standards, the lawsuit says, have “been effective in raising prices for American consumers.”
Egg prices were a recurring theme in the 2024 election, with President Donald Trump accusing the Biden administration of driving up the cost of groceries by failing to better control inflation. But prices have remained high as Avian flu threatens farm animals, tanking the supply of eggs — one opening on the economy for Democrats in the midterms.
The filing targets three California laws — AB 1437, Proposition 2 and Proposition 12 — and argues that regulating eggs falls squarely in the federal government’s domain under a 1970 federal law that sets standards for eggs and egg products.
The administration argues that Prop 2, a statewide ballot measure voters passed in 2008 that created welfare mandates for farm animals such as egg-laying hens, and AB 1437, which regulates egg quality for human consumption, work in tandem to depress egg production, driving up prices.
The lawsuit also calls out a more recent voter initiative passed in 2018, Proposition 12, which introduced specific minimum-space requirements for chickens and other farm animals.
The lawsuit names Gov. Gavin Newsom, Attorney General Rob Bonta and other state officials as defendants alongside the state of California.
The governor’s press office poked fun at the lawsuit in a post on X, writing, “Trump’s back to his favorite hobby: blaming California for literally everything.”
