The U.S. Supreme Court ruled to uphold a California animal welfare law and many Republicans are not happy about it. In 2018, voters passed California’s Proposition 12 ballot initiative, requiring all pork sold in the state to meet certain humane standards.

“California voters in 2018 passed the measure, which strengthened space requirements for egg-laying hens, breeding pigs, and calves raised for veal that were ultimately sold by businesses in the state. The National Pork Producers Council and the American Farm Bureau Federation attempted to block the law, contending it violates the Constitution because it would effectively require the industry, most of which is located outside of California, to transform,” The Hill reported.

The 5-4 decision was upheld by Justices Neil Gorsuch, Clarence Thomas, Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, and Amy Coney Barrett.

The majority reaffirmed a decision from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, arguing that this was not a constitutional issue.

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“Companies that choose to sell products in various states must normally comply with the laws of those various states,” Gorsuch wrote in the opinion. “Assuredly, under this court’s dormant Commerce Clause decisions, no state may use its laws to discriminate purposefully against out-of-state economic interests. But the pork producers do not suggest that California’s law offends this principle.

“Instead, they invite us to fashion two new and more aggressive constitutional restrictions on the ability of states to regulate goods sold within their borders. We decline that invitation. While the constitution addresses many weighty issues, the type of pork chops California merchants may sell is not on that list,” Gorsuch wrote.

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“Prop 12, passed by California voters in 2018, requires veal calves, breeding pigs, and egg-laying hens to be housed in systems that comply with specific standards for freedom of movement, cage-free design, and a specified minimum of 24 feet of space. Sows must be able to turn around without touching their enclosures,” Newsweek reported.

“It also prohibits a farm owner or operator from knowingly confining these specific animals ‘in a cruel manner,’ in addition to disallowing them from knowingly engaging in the sale of shell eggs, liquid eggs, whole pork meat, or whole veal meat from animals housed in such a manner,” the outlet added.

Several Republicans slammed the ruling.

Iowa Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley tweeted: “Iowa is the nation’s top pork producer California comes nowhere close yet its proposed regulations put restrictions on how pork producers in all other states raise hogs. 2day SCOTUS upholds California’s radical regs its HOGWASH.”

Iowa Republican Sen. Joni Ernst tweeted: “Extremists in liberal states like California shouldn’t be allowed to BAN OUR BACON and punish hardworking Iowa pork producers with overreaching policies. Disappointed in SCOTUS decision on Prop 12. I’ll keep fighting for #Iowa farmers!”

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Iowa GOP Rep. Randy Feenstra also tweeted that he was “disappointed,” adding: “California liberals have no jurisdiction over how Iowa farmers raise our hogs. On top of Biden’s radical #WOTUS rule & tax hikes on our producers, this decision is just another attack on rural America.”

The National Pork Producers Council, which filed the lawsuit that was decided as part of this case, said in a statement that “allowing state overreach will increase prices for consumers and drive small farms out of business, leading to more consolidation.”

“AFBF (American Farm Bureau Federation) is disappointed in the closely-divided Supreme Court ruling on California’s Proposition 12. At the heart of this argument is whether one state can set the rules for the entire country. The arbitrary standards take away the flexibility to ensure hogs are raised in a safe environment. Prop 12 will cause further consolidation in agriculture nationwide and lead to higher pork prices at the grocery store for America’s families. This law will ultimately harm consumers, farmers, and animals,” AFBF President Zippy Duvall said in a statement.