R-CALF has filed a lawsuit in Federal District Court in Montana to declare the beef checkoff unconstitutional in 15 states including South Dakota and Nebraska. R-CALF CEO Bill Bullard says the state beef councils in each of the states are private corporations that have been keeping half of all the mandatory beef checkoff assessments collected within their states to fund their private speech.

He says it’s a private speech issue.

Bullard says the way the checkoff funds are currently collected promotes the what third parties want against cattle producer’s primary wishes.

Bullard says because the beef councils are private entities they are not publicly accountable.