6 days Ago By Peyton Haug
BISMARCK — The North Dakota Senate has approved a bill to reduce some liability attached to landowners, namely farmers, for causing damage when using pesticides, a decision some North Dakotans say poses a threat to their land, health and livelihoods.Under House Bill 1318, if an individual uses chemicals with labels approved by state and federal agriculture regulators, such as the state agriculture commissioner and the Environmental Protection Agency, they could not be challenged in court for damages if the products were properly applied.If enacted, the rule could protect a person only if they used the chemical product in accordance with the label.
It would not apply to cases of misuse, such as over-application."Activists and trial lawyers are creating frivolous lawsuits, developing a litigation situation, which is really threatening farmers and our access to some of these products," Sen. Mark Weber, R-Casselton, said.
The state’s grain, soybean and sugarbeet associations; the farmers union; U.S. Chamber of Commerce and North Dakota Ag Commissioner Doug Goehring are among those who support the bill.
Senators supporting the bill said it's unfair to subject companies and farmers to pricey lawsuits when warning labels often take a significant amount of time to be federally approved. Others disagreed."This bill, if passed, would shield some of the most powerful corporate actors from liability, effectively putting their profits above the well-being of North Dakotans.
I think it's a dangerous precedent," Sen. Jeff Magrum, R-Hazelton, said.Sen.
Tim Mathern, D-Fargo, called the bill "ironic" because it gives the EPA more regulating authority while the agency is being actively defunded by President Donald Trump's administration."I don't know if we'll even have an EPA in the next couple years. Certainly, we're not going to have an EPA that's going to be reaching down into North Dakota to take these chemicals away from our farmers," he said.
After a nearly 40-minute debate, the Senate went on to approve the bill with a 29-18 vote.Following the chamber's approval, the Modern Ag Alliance released a statement in support of the action.“If farmers lose access to key crop protection technologies, it will cripple their ability to compete and cause food prices to rise even higher," the group's executive director, Elizabeth Burns-Thompson, said in the release.
Prior to the vote, around two dozen people stood outside the state Capitol building to voice their concerns about the bill.Sam Wagner of the Dakota Resource Council pointed to Bayer, a company pushing similar legislation in other states after it lost $2.1 billion in a lawsuit against Roundup — a weed-killing product sold by its subsidiary company, Monsanto — which has been linked to causing cancer.
Bayer was among the groups that submitted testimony in favor of the bill.“We’re trying to send a message to our legislators that this is a cookie-cutter bill being pushed around to protect them (the companies),” Wagner said. There are thousands of other chemicals with risks people are “not even aware of right now,” chemicals that could leach into food and water supplies, said Charlene Nelson, a landowner from Casselton who protested on Monday.
“They want to say this (the bill) is to stop frivolous lawsuits, but you know what? Lawsuits are the reason why we have seat belts and windshield wipers. Lawsuits are the reason why we don’t have lead paint in our kids' toys,” Nelson said.Lawsuits incentivize pesticide companies to improve the quality and safety of products, she added.
HB 1318 will go back to the House for consideration and, if passed, move on to the governor's desk. Have something to say? Readers with thoughts about this issue can contact their local legislators, testify in person, submit written testimony online, write a letter to the editor, leave a comment below or email Forum News Service reporter Peyton Haug at [email protected].
To track this bill, readers can download North Dakota Legislative Daily — a free app available on Google Play and the Apple App Store. ]]>.
