Farm bill deliberations hit a snag on Monday as both Democrats and Republicans pushed back on a proposal to establish federal supremacy over state pesticide labeling laws.
The issue of health warnings on agriculture chemicals spurred strident debate in the House Rules Committee over a controversial farm bill provision and proposed amendments to remove it.
Critics say the farm bill’s pesticide language is meant to “shield” chemical manufacturers like ag chemical giant Bayer from lawsuits and preempt state and local warning label laws for “potentially harmful products.”
House Agriculture Chairman Glenn “GT” Thompson, R-Pa., rejects claims that the provision is a liability shield. Under the legislation as written, “bad actors” can still be sued and states can opt not to register a chemical and ban it if they see fit, he said. The legislation, poised for a vote in the House later this week, is intended to avoid a patchwork state and local approach to pesticide label laws, according to the ag chair.
“If you want the labeling done with 50 different states … it's going to raise the cost of affordability for that compliance, and I think it's going to put people at more risk,” Thompson said.
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Democratic Reps. Jim McGovern and Joe Neguse, and Republican Reps. Anna Paulina Luna and Chip Roy are among lawmakers speaking out against the pesticide clause. Reasons for the opposition include concerns about states’ rights, food safety and public health.
The debate on Capitol Hill is taking place the same date the Supreme Court heard arguments in a high-profile pesticide case involving Bayer. The high court is expected to rule by the end of June on the scope of federal authority over pesticide labeling. The matter involves Bayer’s Roundup product that’s made with glyphosate, the world’s most widely used weedkiller.
Bayer says glyphosate has repeatedly been deemed safe by top regulatory agencies worldwide, including by the EPA. The German company acquired the Roundup product when it bought Missouri-based ag behemoth Monsanto in 2018.
The safety of pesticides has drawn increasing attention due to MAHA. Some backers of the movement are disappointed there hasn’t been more focus on farm chemicals.
Bayer and a broad range of farm groups have warned restrictions on chemicals like glyphosate would lead to a drastic reduction in crop production and limit the world’s ability to feed people.
The House Rules Committee as of late Monday evening was in recess as lawmakers mulled how to deal with a bipartisan amendment that would strip the farm bill of the pesticide provision.
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