WASHINGTON, June 3, 2015 – While the timing for TPA remains up in the air, the House is scheduled to vote next on bills to repeal country-of-origin labeling (COOL) requirements for meat (HR 2393) and to reauthorize the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
House Agriculture Committee Chairman Mike Conaway, R-Texas, says he would like to have as many as 300 votes for COOL repeal to send a message to the Senate, where there is broader support for the labeling law. The House committee approved the repeal bill, 38-6. Thirteen Democrats supported the measure
But Conaway acknowledged that the National Farmers Union and R-CALF USA (the Ranchers-Cattlemen Action Legal Fund, United Stockgrowers of America), which have long supported the law, are lobbying heavily against the measure.
“Getting the biggest vote we can will be noticed by folks in the Senate, and may … may factor into how they proceed,” Conaway said. Senate Agriculture Chairman Pat Roberts, R-Kan., has announced plans for addressing the COOL law.
Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, told reporters that – in light of the World Trade Organization ruling against the U.S. law, he and other senators want to explore a voluntary label or perhaps a North American label – assuming they are legal. “Short of that, then I’m going to have to vote for repeal,” he added.
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