The House Ag Committee passed two measures this week that deal with pesticide regulations.
H.R. Bill 953, called the Reducing Regulatory Burdens Act, would clarify Congressional intent regarding pesticide applications around the waters of the U.S.
A 2009 Court of Appeals decision mistakenly applied provisions of the National Pollution Discharge Elimination System permitting process under the Clean Water Act to pesticide applications that were already fully regulated by federal law.
The result was two different permitting processes, which Ag Committee Chair Mike Conaway, a Texas Republican, said was never the intent of Congress. H.R. Bill 1029, titled the Pesticide Registration Enhancement Act, reauthorizes the Pesticide Registration Improvement Act.
PRIA was intended to make the evaluation process more predictable and effective for affected pesticide decisions.
It couples the collection of fees with a specific review period and it shortens the review period for reduced-risk pesticides.
Committee Chair Conaway says, “For over a decade, PRIA has provided predictability and certainty to the Ag and public health communities while bringing transparency to the pesticide registration process.”
