A New Mexico judge has delayed his decision regarding a horse processing plant in Roswell so he can hear arguments on both sides of a case brought by the state’s attorney general to prevent the plant from opening.

Horse slaughter has not taken place in the United States since 2007 when court rulings and legislation shuttered the last domestic processing plants. Prior to 2007, USDA personnel carried out inspections at horse processing plants until Congress voted to strip the USDA of funds to pay personnel conducting those inspections. In 2011, legislation reinstated USDA funding for U.S. horse processing plants and, in June 2013, Valley Meats Co. LLC in Roswell, N.M., received FSIS permit, which allows placement of personnel at the plant to carry out horsemeat inspections. Blair Dunn, attorney for Valley Meats, said the plant would employ between 40 and 100 workers and would serve markets outside the United States.

In April 2013, the Front Range Equine Rescue and the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) announced that they would bring a federal lawsuit challenging any permit issued to Valley Meats on grounds that the USDA failed to consult with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service about the plant’s potential environmental impact. On Oct. 31, 2013, a U.S. District allowed the lawsuit to expire without ruling on the case.

At the time, HSUS Director of Equine Welfare Keith Dane said in a written statement that both Front Range Equine Rescue and HSUS would appeal the decision