Does North Carolina's old swine-keeping ban around state institutions also keep hog farms a quarter-mile away from local public schools and churches?

Plain-English summary

North Carolina's swine law, G.S. § 143-153, allows a petition by a majority of legal voters living within a quarter-mile of the administrative building of a "State educational or charitable institution." Once that petition is made, keeping swine or swine pens within the radius is unlawful. A legislator asked whether the law protects churches and local public schools.

The AG gave a firm no for churches. The statute's coverage is limited to governmental, or "State," entities. For local public schools, the answer was less categorical: the AG concluded that the legislature likely did not intend to include them. The opinion notes that other Chapter 143 statutes treat local public schools differently depending on the context.

The AG compared the swine law with C.S. § 7442, a companion statute listing "State educational institutions" receiving direct legislative appropriations. That list contained public colleges and universities and statewide institutions such as the State School for the Blind. It did not include local public schools. The opinion also stresses that even for a covered institution, the swine law protects its "administrative buildings," not all of its buildings.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 2001. Subsequent statutory amendments, court decisions, or later AG opinions may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context, not current legal advice. Verify current law before relying on any specific rule, deadline, or remedy mentioned here.

Background and statutory framework

The statutory text quoted in the opinion sets the petition threshold and distance: a majority of the legal voters living within one-quarter mile of a covered institution's administrative building must petition. A violation is a Class 3 misdemeanor punishable by a fine of $10 to $50. The quarter-mile is measured from the administrative building.

The opinion uses the rule quoted from State v. Emery that "a statute is to be interpreted as it was intended to be understood at the time of its enactment." The AG says no reported case had construed G.S. § 143-153. For churches, however, its restriction to State entities was clear on the statutory text alone.

Local public schools posed a harder question. The AG compared two other Chapter 143 settings: state construction contract procedures apply to public schools under G.S. §§ 143-128 et seq., while public school employees are generally outside the Defense of State Employees Act under G.S. §§ 143-300.2 et seq. The companion C.S. § 7442 list supplied the AG's reason for concluding that local public schools were likely outside this particular swine law. The opinion does not give an enactment date for C.S. § 7442.

Common questions

Can church neighbors use this petition law?

No. The AG says churches and other non-governmental organizations are outside the law because it covers only State entities.

Can neighbors of a local public school use it?

The AG concluded that the legislature likely did not mean to include local public schools. That conclusion rests on the companion statute's list of State educational institutions, which excluded them.

Does the law protect every building of a covered institution?

No. The opinion calls out the statute's reference to the institution's "administrative buildings." The petition radius runs from the administrative building.

Does the opinion decide whether a particular hog operation violates the law?

No. It answers which kinds of institutions the law covers. It does not apply the petition and distance requirements to a particular property.

Citations from the opinion

• N.C. Gen. Stat. § 143-153
• N.C. Gen. Stat. §§ 143-128 et seq.
• N.C. Gen. Stat. §§ 143-300.2 et seq.
• C.S. § 7527 (earlier codification of § 143-153)
• C.S. § 7442 (companion statute listing State educational institutions)
• State v. Emery, 224 N.C. 581, 31 S.E.2d 858 (1944)

Source

• Landing page: https://ncdoj.gov/opinions/swine-near-state-institutions/

Original opinion text

§ 143-153. Keeping swine near State institutions; penalty.

On the petition of a majority of the legal voters living within a radius of one quarter of a mile of the administrative building of any State educational or charitable institution, it shall be unlawful for any person to keep swine or swine pens within such radius of one quarter of a mile. Any person violating this section shall be guilty of a Class 3 misdemeanor and shall be subject to only a fine of not less than ten dollars ($10.00) nor more than fifty dollars ($50.00). (1909, c. 706; C.S., s. 7527; 1993, c. 539, s. 1015; 1994, Ex. Sess., c. 14, s. 62; c. 24, s. 14(c).)

Your specific questions are: (1) whether a public school is a "State educational institution" within the meaning of N.C.G.S. § 143-153 and (2) whether a church is a "State educational or charitable institution" within the meaning of that statute.

N.C.G.S. § 143-153 was enacted in 1909 but there are no reported cases construing its terms. There is, however, no ambiguity in the statute with respect to its application to churches. By its plain terms, it does not apply to protect any church or other non-governmental organization; its coverage is limited entirely to governmental entities, i.e., to "State" entities.

The scope of the statute's coverage of governmental entities is much less clear. Chapter 143 of the General Statutes generally applies to state agencies and institutions. For purposes of Chapter 143, local public schools are sometimes treated as state institutions and sometimes not. Compare: N.C.G.S. §§ 143-128 et seq. (public schools covered by state construction contract procedures) and N.C.G.S. §§ 143-300.2 et seq. (public school employees generally not covered by Defense of State Employees Act). In this instance it appears likely that the General Assembly did not intend the phrase "State educational institution" to encompass local public schools. Ordinarily, "a statute is to be interpreted as it was intended to be understood at the time of its enactment." State v. Emery, 224 N.C. 581, 585, 31 S.E.2d 858 (1944). When N.C.G.S. § 143-153 was first enacted in 1909 it was codified as C.S. § 7527. While neither C.S. § 7527 nor any other statute expressly defined the term "State educational institution," a companion statute, C.S. § 7442, did list the "State educational institutions" which were to receive direct legislative appropriations. The institutions listed were public colleges and universities or state-wide institutions like the State School for the Blind. Local public schools were not included. For this reason, we conclude that the General Assembly likely did not intend the phrase "State educational institution" as used in N.C.G.S. § 143-153 to include local public schools. Moreover, it should be noted that the statute does not protect all buildings of "State educational institutions"; it only protects their "administrative buildings."

Please call if we can provide additional advice regarding this matter.

Very truly yours,

Edwin M. Speas, Jr.

Chief Deputy Attorney General