Country of Origin Labeling Amendments Act of 2015
Floor Speech
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Mr. VAN HOLLEN. Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to H.R. 2393, the Country of Origin Labeling Amendments Act of 2015. This bill represents a hasty response to a recent WTO ruling on Country of Origin Labeling (COOL) and fails to take into account the wide-ranging views of multiple stakeholders, including consumer, labor, farm, environmental and faith-based groups.
The WTO Appellate Body ruled against United States COOL regulations only a few weeks ago and two days after, H.R. 2393 was pushed through the House Agriculture Committee. While the WTO ruled that COOL discriminated against imported livestock, it also determined that COOL is a ``legitimate objective'' to provide consumers information on food origin. COOL has been successfully implemented for various nuts, fruits, vegetables, seafood and other food products. Congress must support this progress and take its time to develop a COOL policy that is WTO compliant and reflects the views of consumers and other stakeholders.
While critics have pointed to the retaliatory threats issued by Canada as a reason to expedite this legislation, it is too soon to know whether these threats have merit. Canada and Mexico still must seek WTO authority to impose retaliatory tariffs. The WTO must determine whether this amount equals the damages incurred by Canada and Mexico under COOL. The U.S. can appeal these claims and request that the WTO appoint an arbitrator to determine the proper level of damages. Arbitration cases generally last several months. There is still ample time for the U.S., Canada and Mexico to come to an agreement before retaliation can take effect. The Congress should let this process play out before taking action.
I also have concerns about the level of damages Canada is seeking in response to COOL. Its claims cite data that is not publically available, while studies from the U.S. supported by data from USDA show that COOL has not had a negative impact on Canadian and Mexican livestock imports.
Consumers have a right to know where their food comes from and studies show that Americans strongly support country of origin labeling. Congress should support the desires of consumers and wait for the WTO process to run its course before taking action. I urge a no vote.
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