FARM BILL UPDATE

Senator Promises Monsanto Protection Act Won’€™t Be Renewed without a Vote

It pays to complain. Thanks to your calls and letters to your U.S. Senators, the movement to repeal the Monsanto Protection Act has scored a preliminary victory: The much-maligned rider, slipped into the Farm Bill without debate, will not be renewed without a vote. Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich., pictured), chairwoman of the Agriculture Committee, pledged to oppose the extension beyond its September 30 expiration date. Sen. Stabenow made the promise to Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), who had pushed unsuccessfully for a vote on his own amendment to repeal the Monsanto rider. Sen. Stabenow’€™s promise represented a compromise.

Great news, but we have to keep up the pressure to make sure Sen. Stabenow honors her pledge. Please call and email your Senators and ask them to pledge to vote against the Monsanto Protection Act if Sen. Blunt proposes it again.

What’€™s next for the Farm Bill? The Senate completed its work on June 10, passing the legislation without voting on many of the other amendments we asked consumers to support. The bill now moves to the House, where floor debates and votes on amendments are scheduled for the week of June 17. The House version of Farm Bill contains an amendment proposed by Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) that would rob states of the right to regulate factory farms. That’s bad enough, but the King Amendment is so broadly written that it could also overturn hundreds of state laws regulating agricultural products, including laws like the one Connecticut just passed, and many other states are considering, that would require mandatory labeling of genetically modified organisms (GMOs).

There’€™s still time to make your voice heard on the King Amendment, and other key amendments that will have an impact on food, environment and climate change policies. Let Congress know where you stand!

Learn the fate of the Senate Farm Bill amendments and find out what amendments will come up for a vote in the House

TAKE ACTION: Don’€™t Let Congress Stomp Out States’€™ Rights. Stop the King Amendment!