FrankRep
08-03-2009, 04:20 PM
H.R. 2749 Would Give FDA Vast New Powers (http://www.jbs.org/jbs-news-feed/5168)
Catheriine Mullins | John Birch Society (http://www.jbs.org/)
03 August 2009
A fly-by-night food reform bill, H.R. 2749, giving the FDA new powers over small farms and generating $189 million a year in fees, was passed by the House of Representatives last week with little if any time for congressmen to read it.
With his insistence on getting his stealthcare — ahem — healthcare bill voted on before the August recess, Obama is accelerating a bad trend: just git ‘er done; pass it now, read it later.
H.R. 2749, the Food Safety Enhancement Act of 2009, was previously defeated (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/07/30/AR2009073001203.html) despite the fact that three different versions of the bill were introduced in the same day, giving lawmakers little, if any time to read the bill before voting on it. One version was introduced at 12:15 a.m., one at 9:36 a.m., and 10:50 a.m. on Wednesday morning. By Thursday the bill was again on the table, this time with the option that representatives could offer amendments. One was offered. No action was taken on it (http://www.govtrack.us/congress/amendment.xpd?session=111&amdt=h408), which leaves the question, again, how many representatives voting on this stealth bill actually read it.
“Now, this may be a great bill. I have no idea. But the fact is, is that introducing three different versions of the bill, yet, this day, and then bringing it to the floor some four hours later begins to ask the question, did anybody read the bill?” queried Representative John Boehner (R-OH) (http://congressmatters.com/story/2009/7/29/1348/-Boehner-vs.-Barton-on-Food-Saf). Boehner also complained about the debate time saying, “there’s a whopping 40 minutes of debate. Twenty minutes on each side. Forty minutes and no amendments allowed to be offered. We’ve got this major food safety bill here on the floor, and nobody gets to offer an amendment, nobody gets to have a debated about it, and nobody, clearly, has much of an idea of what’s in the bill.”
Well, it is a great bill…if you’re a member of the FDA. If you’re a smaller player in the food production industry, not so much, which brings us perhaps to the real reason rules were suspended (as they can be for non-controversial bills, unlike this one) and Democrats once again tried to beat the clock before lawmakers had more time to read the 134-page bill, or debate it, and the electorate has a chance to speak their minds on the matter.
“The bill, drafted in response to recent outbreaks of illnesses linked to peanut butter, spinach and peppers, would give the Food and Drug Administration the power to order food recalls, require facilities to have a food safety plan in place and give FDA more access to company recorded” reported Reuters.
In addition, all food producers would have to register with the FDA (http://www.govtrack.us/congress/billtext.xpd?bill=h111-2749) and pay a $1,000 fee to do so. Heavy criminal penalties for “violations relating to food” would be $20,000-$50,000 for one person. Safety inspections and personal branding of food, so the FDA can trace where every morsel comes from, would also become mandatory.
"Small farmers or vendors at farmers markets would be treated the same as multinational companies," opponents to the bill protested recently. Treating farmer John’s fruit stand like SafeWay might just make life impossible for farmer John and force consumers into buying only from the big boys, something big government sponsors would love and freedom lovers would certainly, and rightly, protest, recognizing a centralized food system when they see it.
As Rep. Boehner stated, “Now as a longtime member of the House Ag. committee, I understand that we've got the safest food supply in the world. It's probably not perfect. But it is the safest food supply in the world.”
Yes, some problems have originated with American foods, like E.coli in spinach (http://www.cdc.gov/ecoli/2006/september/), but some of the worst have come from foods imported from places like China and Mexico (http://www.jbs.org/jbs-news-feed/1367-add-another-potentially-deadly-import-from-communist-china). And remember, it was the American consumer who instantly responded to the tainted spinach by not buying any for a long time. That's the free market taking care of itself, as it should.
Though it has passed the House, it still has to go through the Senate approval process. Call your senators and tell them to stop a socialized food system by voting "no" on the Food and Safety Enhancement Act of 2009. As for the Representatives, a call or e-mail to their office asking whether or not they read this bill in its entirety might make them think twice before they jump on the band wagon of fast-tracking socialism.
SOURCE:
http://www.jbs.org/jbs-news-feed/5168
Catheriine Mullins | John Birch Society (http://www.jbs.org/)
03 August 2009
A fly-by-night food reform bill, H.R. 2749, giving the FDA new powers over small farms and generating $189 million a year in fees, was passed by the House of Representatives last week with little if any time for congressmen to read it.
With his insistence on getting his stealthcare — ahem — healthcare bill voted on before the August recess, Obama is accelerating a bad trend: just git ‘er done; pass it now, read it later.
H.R. 2749, the Food Safety Enhancement Act of 2009, was previously defeated (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/07/30/AR2009073001203.html) despite the fact that three different versions of the bill were introduced in the same day, giving lawmakers little, if any time to read the bill before voting on it. One version was introduced at 12:15 a.m., one at 9:36 a.m., and 10:50 a.m. on Wednesday morning. By Thursday the bill was again on the table, this time with the option that representatives could offer amendments. One was offered. No action was taken on it (http://www.govtrack.us/congress/amendment.xpd?session=111&amdt=h408), which leaves the question, again, how many representatives voting on this stealth bill actually read it.
“Now, this may be a great bill. I have no idea. But the fact is, is that introducing three different versions of the bill, yet, this day, and then bringing it to the floor some four hours later begins to ask the question, did anybody read the bill?” queried Representative John Boehner (R-OH) (http://congressmatters.com/story/2009/7/29/1348/-Boehner-vs.-Barton-on-Food-Saf). Boehner also complained about the debate time saying, “there’s a whopping 40 minutes of debate. Twenty minutes on each side. Forty minutes and no amendments allowed to be offered. We’ve got this major food safety bill here on the floor, and nobody gets to offer an amendment, nobody gets to have a debated about it, and nobody, clearly, has much of an idea of what’s in the bill.”
Well, it is a great bill…if you’re a member of the FDA. If you’re a smaller player in the food production industry, not so much, which brings us perhaps to the real reason rules were suspended (as they can be for non-controversial bills, unlike this one) and Democrats once again tried to beat the clock before lawmakers had more time to read the 134-page bill, or debate it, and the electorate has a chance to speak their minds on the matter.
“The bill, drafted in response to recent outbreaks of illnesses linked to peanut butter, spinach and peppers, would give the Food and Drug Administration the power to order food recalls, require facilities to have a food safety plan in place and give FDA more access to company recorded” reported Reuters.
In addition, all food producers would have to register with the FDA (http://www.govtrack.us/congress/billtext.xpd?bill=h111-2749) and pay a $1,000 fee to do so. Heavy criminal penalties for “violations relating to food” would be $20,000-$50,000 for one person. Safety inspections and personal branding of food, so the FDA can trace where every morsel comes from, would also become mandatory.
"Small farmers or vendors at farmers markets would be treated the same as multinational companies," opponents to the bill protested recently. Treating farmer John’s fruit stand like SafeWay might just make life impossible for farmer John and force consumers into buying only from the big boys, something big government sponsors would love and freedom lovers would certainly, and rightly, protest, recognizing a centralized food system when they see it.
As Rep. Boehner stated, “Now as a longtime member of the House Ag. committee, I understand that we've got the safest food supply in the world. It's probably not perfect. But it is the safest food supply in the world.”
Yes, some problems have originated with American foods, like E.coli in spinach (http://www.cdc.gov/ecoli/2006/september/), but some of the worst have come from foods imported from places like China and Mexico (http://www.jbs.org/jbs-news-feed/1367-add-another-potentially-deadly-import-from-communist-china). And remember, it was the American consumer who instantly responded to the tainted spinach by not buying any for a long time. That's the free market taking care of itself, as it should.
Though it has passed the House, it still has to go through the Senate approval process. Call your senators and tell them to stop a socialized food system by voting "no" on the Food and Safety Enhancement Act of 2009. As for the Representatives, a call or e-mail to their office asking whether or not they read this bill in its entirety might make them think twice before they jump on the band wagon of fast-tracking socialism.
SOURCE:
http://www.jbs.org/jbs-news-feed/5168