The Importance of Pesticide Preemption

Federal Legislative Update

A refresher on pesticide preemption

J.D. Darr, Director of Regulatory and Legislative Affairs, NPMA

In 45 states, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and state lead agencies work together through longstanding cooperative agreements to administer and enforce Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) laws and support the development of science-based pesticide labels. This is a system of pesticide preemption, where states preempt localities in the regulation of the sale, use and distribution of pesticides.

In recent years, many state legislatures have considered rolling back their system of pesticide preemption, which would have the potential to increase the number of towns, cities, counties and other localities that are able to regulate, and often ban, pesticides. This impacts the ability of our industry to do business by creating a patchwork of local laws across the multiple counties that applicators work in on any given day or week. Localities also lack the resources that are available at the state and federal levels, including teams of scientific experts, in addition to enforcement mechanisms.

Furthermore, NPMA member companies work every day to protect Americans from dangerous and deadly pests. In states that do not operate in a system of pesticide preemption, poorly thought-out local restrictions on vital pesticide tools can leave the public without access to proper pest control and expose individuals, families and workers to the diseases pests carry.

In states that do not operate in a system of pesticide preemption, poorly thought-out LOCAL RESTRICTIONSONVITAL PESTICIDE TOOLS CAN LEAVE THE PUBLIC WITHOUT ACCESS TO PROPER PEST CONTROL and expose individuals, families and workers to the diseases pests carry.

PAST ACTIONS

Our biggest priority at the federal level is to include language that would codify statewide pesticide preemption in the Farm Bill. Back in 2018, the House included such language in its initial Farm Bill, the Agriculture Improvement Act. However, it was ultimately not included in the final conferenced version that was signed into law on December 20th. At the time, the Pesticide Registration Improvement Act (PRIA) was being reauthorized. PRIA was seen by Congress as the only vehicle for pesticide provisions, so pesticide preemption in the Farm Bill was ultimately dropped.

In 2022, NPMA worked alongside former Rep. Rodney Davis (R-IL-13) to introduce HR 7266, a bill to amend FIFRA to prohibit the local regulation of pesticide use. However, that same year, former Rep. Davis lost his primary for reelection, resulting in momentum for the bill to slow, and ultimately not being considered by Congress.

While our 2018 and 2022 efforts were promising pushes, neither made it across the finish line; however, this year’s Farm Bill efforts are showing promise!

CURRENT EFFORTS

NPMA is now tracking a 2024 timeline for Farm Bill reauthorization, and NPMA staff are meeting with key officials and members of the House and Senate Agriculture committees, as well as other members of Congress, to push for a national solution to pesticide preemption. In these meetings, we are once again requesting official pesticide preemption language is included—and ultimately kept—in the final version of the reauthorized Farm Bill. As of November 2023, NPMA has met with the following offices to discuss preemption:

U.S. Senate

•    Sen. John Boozman (R-AR)
•    Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI)
•    Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR)
•    Sen. John Thune (R-SD)
•    Sen. Roger Marshall (R-KS)
•    Sen. Deb Fisher (R-NE)
•    Sen. Michael Bennet (D-CO)
•    Sen. Ben Ray Lujan (D-NM)
•    Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL)
•    Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS)
•    Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH)
•    Sen. John Tester (D-MT)
•    Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-GA)
•    Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA)
•    Sen. John Hickenlooper (D-CO)
•    Sen. Pete Ricketts (R-NE)
•    Sen. Alex Padilla (D-CA)
•    Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV)
•    Sen. Tina Smith (D-MN)
•    Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-NM)

U.S. House of Representatives

•    Rep. Ronny Jackson (R-TX-03)
•    Rep. Frank Lucas (R-OK-03)
•    Rep. John Rose (R-TN-06)
•    Rep. James Comer (R-KY-01)
•    Rep. Jim Costa (D-CA-16)
•    Rep. Michelle Fishbach (R-MN-07)
•    Rep. Tracey Mann (R-KS-01)
•    Rep. Jim Baird (R-IN-04)
•    Rep. David Rouzer (R-NC-07)
•    Rep. Troy Balderston (R-OH-12)
•    Rep. Eric Sorensen (D-IL-17)
•    Rep. Don Bacon (R-NE-2)
•    Rep. Mayra Flores (R-TX-34)
•    Rep. Lou Correa (D-CA-46)
•    Rep. Steve Scalise (R-LA-1)
•    Rep. Bruce Westerman (R-AK-04)
•    Rep. Mark Alford (R-MO-04)
•    Rep. Nikki Budzinski (D-IL-13)
•    Rep. Shontel Brown (D-OH-11)
•    Rep. David Scott (D-GA-13)
•    Rep. Glenn “GT” Thompson (R-PA-15)
•    Rep. Sanford Bishop (D-GA-02)
•    Rep. Brad Finstad (R-MN-01)
•    Rep. Barry Loudermilk (R-GA-11)
•    Rep. Austin Scott (R-GA-08)
•    Rep. Elissa Slotkin (D-MI-08)
•    Rep. Mark Alford (R-MO-04)
•    Rep. Mariannete Miller-Meeks (R-IA-02)
•    Rep. Greg Steube (R-FL-17)
•    Rep. Jake LaTurner (R-KS-2)
•    Rep. Buddy Carter (R-GA-01)
•    Rep. Rob Wittman (R-VA-01)
•    Rep. Randy Feenstra (R-IA-04)

Fall and Winter of 2023 were a particularly uncertain time for Congress, which resulted in many unknowns and multiple delays in the reauthorization process. Passage of the 2023 Farm Bill was expected to occur by September 30, 2023, which is when the 2018 Farm Bill expired. The Farm Bill typically receives bi-partisan support, but with recent issues over government spending, international conflict, and a Speaker of the House vacancy, the Bill has become increasingly contentious, which contributed to the drafting process being pushed into 2024. As of November 2023, NPMA is anticipating a Spring or Summer 2024 timeframe for a final Farm Bill to get to President Biden’s desk.

Preemption Task Force

In September 2023, Public Policy Committee Leadership created the Preemption Task Force to finetune our advocacy strategy. NPMA and the Public Policy Committee wanted to prepare for every possible scenario ahead of the Farm Bill process, so the task force was assembled to gather member feedback on our current efforts and develop a plan to position our industry for success. This task force met weekly to develop a set of recommendations that was ultimately shared with and approved by the broader Public Policy Committee.

Task Force Members

•    Chris Haggerty, Public Policy Chair, American Pest Control, Illinois
•    Jim Steed, Public Policy Vice Chair, Neighborly Pest Management Inc., California
•    Bob Dold, Jr., Rose Pest Solutions, Illinois
•    Faye Golden, Cook’s Pest Control Inc., Alabama
•    Suzanne Graham, Massey Services Inc., Florida
•    Marie Horner, Arrow Exterminators, Georgia
•    Billy Olesen, PestStop, Washington
•    Jake Plevelich, Rentokil-Terminix, Pennsylvania
•    Bonnie Rabe, Rollins Inc., Georgia
•    Julie Tesh-Clark, Pest Management Systems Inc., North Carolina
•    Bill Welsh, Rose Pest Solutions, Michigan