Electric Co-op Today

Proponents of a bill supported by NRECA that would end regulatory overlap on permits required for pesticide and herbicide applicators are ramping up their push to turn the measure into law.

Sen. Pat Roberts

House Agriculture Committee Chairman Frank Lucas, R-Okla., called on Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., to bring H.R. 872, the Reducing Regulatory Burdens Act of 2011, to a swift floor vote.

“The cost of inaction is far-reaching and significant, and would be a crushing blow to an already struggling economy,” Lucas said June 21, after the Senate Agriculture Committee backed the bill on a bipartisan voice vote. In March, it passed the House on a 292-130 vote.

Co-ops have worked hard for the legislation, which prevents them from having to secure a second round of permits when they apply pesticides and herbicides along rights of way, if they comply with current rules.

Kirk Johnson, NRECA senior vice president of government relations, called it “a common-sense solution that eliminates redundant and costly regulation for co-op users.”

Under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA), the Environmental Protection Agency regulates the distribution, sale and use of pesticides and herbicides.

In 2009, the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled EPA also must issue secondary permits for pesticide and herbicide applicators under the Clean Water Act, since the chemicals could end up in navigable waters. That would be in addition to a FIFRA permit.

Earlier this year, EPA won a court delay on implementing the new policy until October, providing time for a legislative fix.

H.R. 872 reverses the court decision by prohibiting EPA or a state from requiring a permit under the Clean Water Act when the user already has a proper permit under federal law.

“This bill will eliminate a double layer of red tape that ultimately costs producers and consumers,” said Sen. Pat Roberts, R-Kan., the ranking member of the Senate Agriculture Committee and a major supporter of the bill in the Senate.

Tags: 112th Congress, Clean Water Act, Environmental Protection Agency, Legislation