URGENT! Don't Allow Biotech Industry & USDA to Override Court Rulings!

[Hotspring 44]

Explanation of what:

This week, the Senate is debating a Continuing Resolution (CR) for the “must-pass” FY 2013 Appropriations bill.

The Senate Appropriations Committee just added the so-called Farmer Assurance Provision (Section 735), which will strip federal courts of the authority to halt the sale and planting of illegal, potentially hazardous GE crops while USDA is performing an environmental impact statement.

If this provision is becomes law, it will be a huge blow to the justice system, completely overriding judicial safeguards that protect both farmers and the public, and rendering judges’ rulings irrelevant. This Monsanto-driven rider is simply a biotech industry ploy to continue to plant GE crops even when a court of law has found they were approved illegally.

Fortunately, Senator Tester, joined by Senators Boxer, Gillibrand and Leahy introduced an amendment to strike the dangerous rider from the CR. This is our one chance to ensure this dangerous language does not become law. Tell your member of Congress to support the Tester amendment and dump the dangerous biotech rider.

Wording of the message (that you can add to or also use your own words in):

I'm writing to express my profound anger and disappointment that the Senate Appropriations Committee has attached the so-called "Farmer Assurance Provision" (Sec. 735) to the Appropriations bill's continuing resolution.

To my relief I learned that Senator Jon Tester recently introduced an amendment (number 74) to strike this provision. Please join Senator Tester's efforts to oppose this dangerous rider!

The "farmer assurance provision" represents a serious assault on the fundamental safeguards of our judicial system and could have a devastating impact on farmers, the environment, and public health across America.

This provision completely circumvents the judicial process. In several recent lawsuits, federal courts have ruled for farmers, businesses, and public interest plaintiffs, finding that USDA had violated federal law by failing to adequately consider the potential harms of genetically engineered (GE) crops it had approved. This rider is specifically intended to prohibit courts from imposing such reasonable restrictions in the event of similar cases in the future, undermining judicial authority in the interests of maximizing biotech industry seed sales. This outlandish provision would prevent a court from putting in place court-ordered restrictions, even if the approval were fraudulent or involved bribery! Congress should be supportive of an independent judiciary that is able to evaluate issues that affect the public and put the legal brakes on fraud and abuse.

Moreover, this provision could cause substantial harm to farmers -- not to mention the agricultural economy. It would allow non-GE crops to be contaminated by neighboring GE crops, without proper environmental studies being performed. Seeds, crops, and foods that are contaminated with GE material cannot be sold in many international markets.

Agricultural commodities contaminated by GE crops that have not been approved for commercial use in the US are particularly shunned.

The "farmer assurance provision" has very little to do with farmers and everything to do with the developers of GE crops. It would strip the Judiciary of its authority to fully adjudicate violations of law by USDA and compel USDA to take actions that might harm farmers and the environment -- all to "assure" the profits of a handful of GE companies, including Monsanto, Dow and Bayer CropScience.

Every court in reversing a USDA decision to deregulate a GE crop has carefully weighed the interests of all affected farmers, as is already required by law. No farmer has ever had his or her crops destroyed. USDA already has working mechanisms in place to allow partial approvals, and the Department has used them, making this provision completely unnecessary.

Congress should not meddle with the judicial review process nor preemptively compel the Secretary of Agriculture to take actions that might harm farmers to serve the special interests of a few powerful firms. If Members feel the Plant Protection Act needs to be changed, let them propose to do it in a transparent manner, with full opportunity for public debate.

For these reasons, I oppose the Monsanto Rider in the strongest possible terms. Please demand that Appropriations Chairwoman Mikulski pull this dangerous and unconstitutional rider, and support Senator Tester's amendment that would strike the rider from the Continuing Resolution.

URL of The letter (petition):
https://secure3.convio.net/aahf/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=1415

The letter (petition) will be sent to at least; Senator Barbara Boxer & Senator Dianne Feinstein.