Re: [Homesteadingfamily] FOOD SAFETY BILL HITS CONSTITUTIONAL SNAG

I don't get why they would want this to pass. Other than absolute control. Am I
looking at this to simplistically?
To me it's power out of control. Controlling someone's food? come on.

Jen

________________________________
From: Deb <debsbread@yahoo.com>
To: Homesteadingfamily@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Thu, December 2, 2010 2:15:21 PM
Subject: [Homesteadingfamily] FOOD SAFETY BILL HITS CONSTITUTIONAL SNAG

This is not intended to be anything political at all..since it's passage would
effect us all, organic farmers, homesteaders and basically anybody who eats or
raises their own foods. Evidently, it has not officially been 'passed" YET.
~deb

WHOOPS -- FOOD SAFETY BILL HITS CONSTITUTIONAL SNAG

By Sarah Foster
Posted 1:00 AM Eastern
December 2, 2010
© 2010 NewsWithViews.com

WASHINGTON -- A controversial food safety bill that supporters were confident
would sail through the House following passage this Tuesday by the U.S. Senate,
has been stopped in its tracks by a constitutional provision that
revenue-raising measures must originate in the lower chamber.

The bill had come under fierce attack for its grant of massive new powers to the
Food and Drug Administration, and today's announcement that the chances for
passage during the lame duck session are slim-to-none was hailed by natural food
groups, family farming organizations, health freedom advocates and their allies.

"We see it as dead in the water," said Darrell Rogers, communications director
for the Alliance for Natural Health-USA, an advocacy group that has been on the
frontlines opposing the bill.

"If not dead, it's verifiably on life-support and its condition is terminal," he
added.

S. 510: The FDA Food Safety Modernization Act, is intended to extend the
regulatory and enforcement powers of the FDA over food production and
distribution, empowering the agency to inspect food facilities more often and
expanding its access to food facility records. It further requires food
producers and processors to develop and keep detailed records and prevention
plans.

Critics view it as a highly intrusive measure, the enforcement of which will not
lead to greater food safety, but could spell the end of both family farming and
the burgeoning local food movement.

The House had already passed a version, H.R. 2749: the Food Safety Enhancement
Act, on July 30, 2009.

S. 510 was introduced in March 2009, but held back in the Senate and not brought
to the floor until the current lame duck session, where it ran into a firestorm
of opposition. Yet despite a massive outpouring from the opposition, the Senate
voted 73-25 in favor, with 15 Republicans joining all the Democratic senators.
Click here for Nov. 30 vote.

Normally, the two bills would go to a conference committee where the differences
between them would be worked out, and a final vote taken by each house. But that
takes time, and as NWV warned might happen, Democratic leaders in the House
(specifically Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Rep. Henry Waxman, agreed that since
there are only a couple of weeks left that they'd accept the Senate version and
send it to the floor as is for passage.

Once it had arrived in the House, the Ways and Means Committee staff caught a
serious constitutional blooper: a fairly lengthy provision – Sec. 107 – that
authorizes the Food and Drug Administration to collect fees to pay for food
recalls, inspections, re-inspections of food facilities, and the registration of
food importers.

The authors of S. 510 decided not to include the House version's $500 annual
registration fee for domestic food facilities, which was intended as a source of
revenue to pay for the FDA's vastly expanded responsibilities, but to use a fee
scheme instead.

Originating Clause

However, the "Originating Clause" of the U.S. Constitution clearly gives
revenue-raising authority only to the lower House, stating: "All bills for
raising Revenue shall originate in the House of Representatives."

"So it's up to the House Ways and Means Committee, particularly the Republican
members, because there's a tax-raising provision in the food safety bill that
was sent from the Senate, and any bill that raises any taxes or revenues has to
originate in the House," said Rogers.

There's a procedure that's called "blue slipping" that's used in cases like
this. The House has to give the bill the "blue slip," that is, it rejects the
bill, and returns it to the Senate.

Wikipedia explains:

"This blue-slipping procedure, done by an order of the House, is routinely
completed to enforce its interpretation that the House is the sole body to
introduce revenue or appropriations legislation. The failure of the House to
consider the legislation means it cannot become a law. This tactic has
historically proven to be of great use to the House and, as a practical matter,
the Senate does not introduce tax or revenue measures to avoid a blue slip."

According to Roll Call, the Hill newspaper that broke the story, "the blue slip
in this case could lead to one of two likely outcomes. Senate Majority Leader
Harry Reid (D-Nev.) could simply drop the issue and let the next session of
Congress start from scratch, a strategy that would allow him time in the
lame-duck session to tackle other last-minute priorities, such as the expiring
2001 and 2003 tax cuts, a long-term continuing resolution, an immigration bill
and a repeal of the military's ban on openly gay service members.

"Or he could try to force the issue in the Senate after the House passes a new
version of the bill. But in order to do that and still tackle the other issues,
he would need a unanimous consent agreement to limit debate."

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Asked what he thought the chances were of the Senate agreeing unanimously to
limit debate or to remove the offending section, Rogers said it was "very
unlikely" – particularly since there are several senators, such as Sen. Tom
Coburn (R-Okla.), that are strongly opposed to the bill.

"So right now [S. 510] is in limbo, on life support, and nobody really knows
what to do," he said.

Earlier Stories:

1 - Sarah Foster: FDA Food "Safety" Bill Can Be Stopped: Nov. 24, 2010
2 - Sarah Foster: Hey Tea Partiers -- Where Are You?: Nov. 18, 2010
3 - Sarah Foster: FDA Food "Safety" Bill Poised for Passage: Nov. 16, 2010
4 - Doreen Hannes: Cheese Factory, FDA and Corruption: Nov. 13, 2010
5 - Sarah Foster: House Set to Vote on Fast-Tracked "Food Safety" Bill: July 30,
2009
6 - Sarah Foster: Will Congress Wipe Out Home Gardens, Growers Markets? Mar. 23,
2009
7 - Sarah Foster: "Lame-Duck" Harry Reid Flying High With Food Safety Bill: Nov.
30, 2010

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