[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 156 (2010), Part 11]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 15490]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




INTRODUCTION OF A BILL TO AMEND THE FEDERAL INSECTICIDE, FUNGICIDE, AND 
  RODENTICIDE ACT TO IMPROVE THE USE OF CERTAIN REGISTERED PESTICIDES

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                          HON. FRANK D. LUCAS

                              of oklahoma

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, August 10, 2010

  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.

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