[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 55 (Thursday, April 14, 2011)]
[Senate]
[Page S2552]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 FOOD SAFETY ACCOUNTABILITY ACT OF 2011

  Mr. REID. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate 
proceed to the consideration of Calendar No. 21, S. 216.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the bill by title.
  The assistant legislative clerk read as follows:

       A bill (S. 216) to increase criminal penalties for certain 
     knowing and intentional violations relating to food that is 
     misbranded or adulterated.

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the 
bill, which had been reported from the Committee on the Judiciary, with 
an amendment to strike all after the enacting clause and insert in lieu 
thereof the following:

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Food Safety Accountability 
     Act of 2011''.

     SEC. 2. CRIMINAL PENALTIES.

       Section 303(a) of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act 
     (21 U.S.C. 333(a)) is amended--
       (1) in paragraph (1), by striking ``Any'' and inserting 
     ``Except as provided in paragraph (2) or (3), any'';
       (2) in paragraph (2), by striking ``Notwithstanding the 
     provisions of paragraph (1) of this section, if'' and 
     inserting ``If''; and
       (3) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(3) Any person who violates subsection (a), (b), (c), or 
     (k) of section 301 with respect to any food--
       ``(A) knowingly and intentionally to defraud or mislead; 
     and
       ``(B) with conscious or reckless disregard of a risk of 
     death or serious bodily injury,

     shall be fined under title 18, United States Code, imprisoned 
     for not more than 10 years, or both.''.

  Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, today, the Senate will pass the Food Safety 
Accountability Act, an important bill to hold criminals who poison our 
food supply accountable for their crimes. I would like to thank 
Senators Klobuchar, Franken, Durbin, Feinstein, Kohl, and Blumenthal 
for their support. Senators Hatch, Sessions, Coburn, and Grassley had 
concerns about the breadth of the bill, and we were able to work 
together to address those concerns. The bill received unanimous, 
bipartisan support when it was reported out of the Judiciary Committee, 
and I am pleased that it has now received similar support from the 
Senate. I urge the House to quickly take up the Senate bill and join us 
in taking this important step toward protecting our food supply.
  The Food Safety Accountability Act increases the sentences that 
prosecutors can seek for people who violate our food safety laws in 
those cases where there is conscious or reckless disregard of a risk of 
death or serious bodily injury. Last summer, a salmonella outbreak 
caused hundreds of people to fall ill and triggered a national egg 
recall. The cause of the outbreak is still under investigation, but 
salmonella poisoning is all too common and sometimes results from 
inexcusable knowing conduct like that carefully targeted by the Food 
Safety Accountability Act.
  In the last Congress, a mother from Vermont, Gabrielle Meunier, 
testified before the Senate Agriculture Committee about her 7-year-old 
son, Christopher, who became severely ill and was hospitalized for 6 
days after he developed salmonella poisoning from peanut crackers 2 
years ago. Thankfully, Christopher recovered, but Mrs. Meunier's story 
highlighted improvements that are needed in our food safety system. No 
parent should have to go through what Mrs. Meunier experienced. The 
American people should be confident that the food they buy for their 
families is safe.
  Current statutes do not provide sufficient criminal sanctions for 
those who knowingly violate our food safety laws. Knowingly 
distributing adulterated food is already illegal, but it is merely a 
misdemeanor right now, and the Sentencing Commission has found that it 
generally does not result in jail time. The fines and recalls that 
usually result from criminal violations under current law fall short in 
protecting the public from harmful products. Too often, those who are 
willing to endanger our children in pursuit of profits view such fines 
or recalls as merely the cost of doing business.
  The company responsible for the eggs at the root of the last summer's 
salmonella crisis has a long history of environmental, immigration, 
labor, and food safety violations. It is clear that fines are not 
enough to protect the public and effectively deter this unacceptable 
conduct. We need to make sure that those who knowingly poison the food 
supply will go to jail. This bill will help to do that. This bill 
significantly increases the chances that those who commit food safety 
crimes will face jail time, rather than a slap on the wrist, for their 
criminal conduct.
  Food safety received considerable attention last year, and I was 
pleased that Congress finally passed comprehensive food safety reforms. 
But our work is not done. On behalf of the hundreds of individuals 
sickened by recent salmonella outbreaks, I urge the House to quickly 
pass the Food Safety Accountability Act and join the Senate in 
continuing to improve our food safety system.
  Mr. REID. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the committee 
substitute amendment be agreed to, the bill, as amended, be read a 
third time and passed, the motions to reconsider be laid upon the 
table, with no intervening action or debate, and any statements related 
to the bill be printed in the Record.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The committee amendment in the nature of a substitute was agreed to.
  The bill was ordered to be engrossed for a third reading and was read 
the third time.
  The bill (S. 216), as amended, was passed.

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