Washington, D.C. — In an effort to continue to ensure a safe food supply and protect America’s farmers from unnecessary regulatory burdens, U.S. Senator Chuck Hagel (R-NE) introduced legislation today to amend the Food Quality Protection Act (FQPA).

Joined by a bipartisan group of 16 Senators in introducing the “Regulatory Openness and Fairness Act,” Hagel said the bill was necessary to ensure the Environment Protection Agency (EPA) uses the scientific analysis required under the FQPA in its evaluation of pesticide use.

“The FQPA requires that the standards used by the EPA be based on hard data and sound science, not arbitrary assumptions. However, as the EPA has moved forward to implement this law, it has not fully used the sound scientific analysis called for and instead has relied on theoretical computer models and worst case scenarios,” said Hagel at a press conference announcing the introduction of the legislation.

“This is not what Congress intended. We did not intend for farmers to lose the use of safe and effective pesticides. We did not intend public health officials dealing with pest control issues to lose the products that help them protect the public. The ‘Regulatory Openness and Fairness Act’, which we will introduce today, makes sure that the EPA follows the intent of Congress.”

Hagel also spoke of the impact of this bill on America’s agricultural producers, “We can’t forget that crop protection products allow our farmers to produce the grains, fruits, and vegetables that feed not just our nation, but the world. Unnecessary regulations have a dampening effect on the engine that has fueled America’s economic growth -- productivity.

“If the FQPA is not implemented fully and fairly, based on sound science, we will unnecessarily place our agricultural producers at a competitive disadvantage in world market. Production prices will increase, productivity will decrease, and consequently our farmers will see their exports decline. This is hardly the time to be placing an extra, unnecessary burden on America’s farmers,” said Hagel.

Specifically, the “Regulatory Openness and Fairness Act” would:

➔ lessen the chance that safe and effective pesticides would be removed from the market without justification;

➔ provide a clear and predictable regulatory process based on scientific data;

➔ streamline the process for evaluating new pesticides; and

➔ provide Congress with facts on how the act, as applied by the EPA, affects agriculture exports.

“This bill is good for both consumers and agricultural producers. Consumers will continue to have safe, affordable, and abundant agricultural goods. And farmers will continue to have the tools they need to produce safe, quality food products and to compete in the world market. In Nebraska, we call that common sense. And I am proud to join my colleagues today in introducing this legislation,” Hagel concluded.

Congress passed the FQPA to protect the safety of our nation’s food supply. It passed with the overwhelming support of the agriculture industry, and was seen as a much-needed modernization and consolidation of laws governing pesticide use. The FQPA requires the EPA to reassess all of the nation’s pesticides using more data, taking more factors into account and allowing greater margins of safety. The EPA faces its first deadline under the FQPA for announcing its evaluation of some 3,000 uses of pesticides on August 3, 1999.