Introduction of a Bill to Amend the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act to Improve the Use of Certain Registered Pesticides

Floor Speech

* Mr. LUCAS. Madam Speaker, today I am introducing legislation to amend the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA). The aim of this legislation is to clarify that the use of a pesticide consistent with its registration under FIFRA should not be subject to a costly, redundant and unnecessary permit process under the Clean Water Act.

* Though the intent of Congress was clear in exempting pesticide use from the Clean Water Act, it is unfortunate that the courts have chosen to ignore Congressional intent and instead order pesticide applicators to obtain these permits. It is even more unfortunate that the administration chose not to challenge the lower court's decision, despite the fact that former Solicitor General Elena Kagan stated in her brief to the Supreme Court that the lower court had erred in their ruling; and that this erroneous decision would likely apply to many thousands of pesticide applications each year.

* The former Solicitor General and now Associate Supreme Court Justice acknowledged in her brief that under FIFRA, the EPA is required to determine that to be registered, a pesticide must perform its function without unreasonable adverse effects on the environment and that when used in accordance with widespread and commonly recognized practice, the pesticide will not generally cause unreasonable adverse effects on the environment.

* The Obama administration, or at least Justice Kagan seems to recognize that this permit process is not only duplicative, but will not achieve any additional environmental protection.

* I joined with several of my colleagues in an amicus brief in support of a petition to the Supreme Court to hear this case. The lack of support from the Obama administration ultimately led to this petition being rejected.

* Instead of challenging this misguided decision, the Obama administration has chosen to leave our farmers, ranchers, foresters, mosquito control districts, and even States to face an enormous regulatory burden never intended by Congress.

* Since the passage of the Clean Water Act, the EPA had interpreted the act to exclude lawful pesticide applications. Under the Bush administration, the EPA issued a final regulation codifying this long-standing practice. The
current political leadership of the EPA has chosen a different path, one that on a daily basis adds more and more to the regulatory nightmare that rural America faces in its fight to survive under this administration.

* It is now up to the Congress to fix this problem before the EPA imposes this new bureaucracy on American agriculture. I am pleased to offer this legislative fix and invite all of my colleagues to cosponsor this bill.

Source