'Monsanto Protection Act' Repeal Effort Officially Backed By Sen. Jeff Merkley
Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) confirmed on Sunday that he is
proposing an amendment to the upcoming farm bill that would eliminate
the
"Monsanto Protection Act."
Officially known as the
Farmer Assurance Provision, the controversial agricultural provision was surreptitiously tucked into budget legislation --
passed by Congress
in March and signed into law by President Barack Obama -- that was
intended to avoid a government shutdown. The provision, which the public
at large caught wind of only after the bill's passage, allows
agricultural companies such as Monsanto to ignore court orders against
selling genetically-engineered seeds.
As HuffPost's Ryan Grim
explained last week:
Federal courts have recently ruled that the U.S. Department
of Agriculture had failed to consider the potential harm some
genetically engineered crops may have, and acted too hastily in
approving their sale. The industry fought back with the [Monsanto
Protection Act], preventing the enforcement of court rulings.
Monsanto, which does significant business in genetically-modified seeds and recently
fought a successful Supreme Court battle to protect its interest in them, was reportedly
involved in crafting the legislation.
Merkley sent an email to supporters on Sunday, in which he called the
measure "one of the most outrageous special interest provisions in
years," and declared his intention to kill it.
Merkley's
full email stated:
It's one of the most outrageous special interest provisions in years.
Written anonymously, the Monsanto Protection Act allows corporations
to sell genetically-modified seeds even when federal courts have blocked
them from doing so.
Think about that: We have a process for making sure that
genetically-modified seeds aren’t sold, planted and grown until we know
that they don’t pose a threat to other crops or to humans.
The Monsanto Protection Act overrides that process. It lets Monsanto
and others ignore a court order designed to protect other farmers, the
environment, and human health.
That's just wrong.
And even worse, the Monsanto Protection Act was passed in secret,
stuffed quietly into the budget bill that averted a government shutdown.
That's why I've proposed an amendment to the Farm Bill that would
repeal the Monsanto Protection Act. Please join me - and demand a vote
in the U.S. Senate that would end this outrageous special interest
override of judicial decisions.
-Senator Jeff Merkley
An aide for Merkley previously signaled the
senator's intention to repeal the bill last week.
