Remember when the left insisted their climate policies wouldn’t hurt everyday Americans? Those were simpler times.

Back then, we only had to worry about skyrocketing gas prices – up 45% in Washington state alone since their disastrous Climate Commitment Act took effect – and rolling blackouts in the name of “saving the planet.”

Now, as American farmers struggle to keep their operations afloat amid rising costs and plummeting commodity prices, radical environmentalists have discovered a new target for their climate crusade. And it’s not just coming for your gas stove or your pickup truck this time.

You might think the Biden administration would be focused on real issues like our open borders or rampant inflation. Instead, Democrat lawmakers in Washington state have cooked up what might be the most ridiculous government overreach since they tried banning gas stoves.

Recently introduced House Bill 1630 would require farmers to track and report something so absurd it sounds like satire: cow flatulence. Yes, you read that right. They want to monitor how much methane cattle are releasing into the atmosphere while China builds two new coal plants every week.

When Climate Activism Meets Barnyard Reality

The new legislation would force dairy farms and feedlots to meticulously report their annual methane emissions.

If these emissions exceed arbitrary CO2 limits, these family operations could fall under the state’s controversial Climate Commitment Act – the same disastrous policy that sent Washington’s gas prices through the roof in January 2025.

From ‘The Post Millennial’:
“You’re asking the growers to pay more taxes, more regulation, in a time when you have record low commodity prices and their costs are astronomical right now. It’s just wrong!” said Colfax Republican Representative Joe Schmick.

Already Struggling Under Failed Policies

The timing couldn’t be worse for Washington’s farming communities. According to recent Washington Farm Bureau data, small farm bankruptcies have increased 32% since the Climate Commitment Act took effect.

The complicated exemption system that was supposed to protect family farms has become a bureaucratic nightmare.

Bre Elsey from the Washington Farm Bureau didn’t mince words: “The Climate Commitment Act is definitely contributing to farm loss.”

While corporate mega-farms might navigate the bureaucratic maze, smaller family farms are being crushed under the weight of compliance costs.

The Real Cost of Climate Virtue Signaling

This isn’t just about cow emissions – it’s about the systematic dismantling of American agriculture by bureaucrats who wouldn’t know a combine from a Prius.

While China increases its emissions by 4% annually and India continues building coal plants, American farmers are being told their cattle are the real climate crisis.

The Democrats behind this bill – Representatives Lisa Parshley, Davina Duerr, Joe Fitzgibbon, and their colleagues – seem more interested in appeasing climate activists than protecting America’s food security.

Remember this in November when they claim to care about rural Americans.

Key Takeaways:

• Democrats’ latest climate scheme targets family farms with unprecedented regulation of livestock.
• Washington state’s new proposal would force farmers to count and report cow flatulence.
• Small farms already struggling under existing Democrat climate policies face new financial burden.

Sources: The Post Millennial, Dailyfly – Lewis Clark Valley News