Hoeven: Legislation Prevents New OSHA Regs Threatening to Limit Supply of Fertilizer for Farmers

Press Release

Senator John Hoeven today announced that he worked to include language in legislation Congress passed in December that prevents the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) from imposing new restrictions on fertilizer sales that would cause many retailers to stop selling to farmers at rural locations. The rule threatened to limit the supply of anhydrous ammonia, a nitrogen fertilizer that is critically important to producers.

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"Anhydrous has long been a staple source of quality fertilizer for farmers in North Dakota and across the nation and has not posed a problem," Hoeven said. "This new rule would have added another layer of bureaucracy and expense to retailers and producers, which would eventually be passed on to the consumer. In the course of the appropriations process, we were able to prevent that from happening, but we still need to make sure the rule is not implemented at all."

"The Fertilizer Institute greatly appreciates the efforts of Senator Hoeven and his colleagues on the Senate Appropriations Committee to ensure that the approximately 3,800 agricultural retailers impacted by this major rule change are offered an opportunity to provide input during the rulemaking process and are given adequate time for compliance," said Chris Jahn, President of the Fertilizer Institute.

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