Glyphosate Warning Label Requirement Deemed Unconstitutional (1)

California’s requirement that products containing the herbicide glyphosate include a warning label to consumers is unconstitutional, the Ninth Circuit ruled Tuesday, holding that the Prop 65 listing violated agricultural producers’ First Amendment right to be free from compelled speech.

The warning required agricultural producers and businesses, which brought the suit, to “convey a controversial, fiercely contested message that they fundamentally disagree with,” a split panel on the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit said. “Although commandeering speech may seem expedient, it is seldom constitutionally permissible.”

The government can only compel commercial speech if it can demonstrate that it ...