('Imtgreaa at the ?niten Svtatea E01 213515 August 27, 2018 Senator Pat Roberts Senator Debbie Stabenow Chairman, Senate Committee on Agriculture, Ranking Member, Senate on Nutrition, and Forestry Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry 328A Russell Senate Of?ce Building 328A Russell Senate Of?ce Building Washington, DC. 20510 Washington, DC. 20510 Representative K. Michael Conaway Representative Collin C. Peterson Chairman, House Committee on Agriculture Ranking Member, House Committee on Agriculture 1301 Longworth House Of?ce Building 1010 Longworth House Of?ce Building Washington, DC. 20515 Washington, DC. 20515 Dear Chairmen Roberts and Conaway and Ranking Members Stabenow and Peterson: As you endeavor to conference the House and Senate?passed legislation to reauthorize our nation?s farm and nutrition programs, we write to share our concerns regarding any ?nal agreement between House and Senate conferees. Simply stated, we cannot support any conference report that undermines investments in critical conservation programs or our nation?s bedrock environmental laws. We strongly support efforts to strengthen conservation programs in any ?nal conference agreement. HR. 2 cut conservation programs by $800 million, completely eliminated the Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP) and rolled it into the Enviromnental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP). CSP is one of our nation?s most important conservation programs. Through voluntary agreements with working farms, CSP improves soil, water and air quality; provides increased biodiversity and supports wildlife and pollinator habitat; sequesters carbon in the soil; and conserves water and energy use. Given the many challenges facing our American farmers, we should be working to expand our nation?s conservation programs, not cut them. We are also deeply concerned about several anti-enviromnent provisions in HR. 2 that threaten public health, including: Sec. 7605, which would allow USDA to transfer the Beltsville Agricultural Research Center a Superfund National Priority List (NPL) site to the Department of the Treasury without ?nishing the cleanup. . Sec. 8506, which would mandate a sale of public land in New Mexico without a clearly identi?ed public purpose. - Sec. 9101 which preempts local governments from pesticides regulation. - Secs. 9111, 9112, 9114, 9115, and 9116, which undermine the Endangered Species Act (ESA), making it easier to spray harmful pesticides at the expense of pollinators, threatened and endangered Species, and public health. Secs. 9113, 9115, 9117, and 9118, which weaken the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (F 1F RA), making it easier to spray harmful pesticides that threaten drinking water and public health. PRINTED ON RECYCLED PAPER a See. 9119, which reauthorizes the Pesticide Registration Improvement Act (PRIA) without protections for farmworkers. . Sec. 9121, which creates an ?emergency event? loophole that would increase the use of the pesticide methyl bromide a powerful ozone-depleting chemical banned for most uses since 2005. . Sec. 11614, which weakens the BSA and makes it more dif?cult for the services to make a jeopardy determination. - Sec. 11615, which exempts producers from the Migratory Bird Treaty Act to kill black vultures. . Sec. 1 1617, which repeals the 2015 Clean Water Rule and eliminates Federal Clean Water Act protections for the drinking water of one in three American families. In addition, we oppose any additional changes to our forestry management and wild?re programs as included in Title of HR. 2. As you know, the recently enacted FY 2018 Omnibus spending bill (PL. 115 141) included a budget fix for addressing the rising costs of ?ghting catastrophic wild?res. It also included several carefully- negotiated provisions to address forest management. HR. 2 seeks a legislative ?do over? of those provisions not included in the ?nal Omnibus agreement. For these reasons, we oppose inclusion in any conference agreement of those provisions in Title that weaken protections for federal lands and bedrock environmental laws, such as the National Environmental Policy Act (N EPA). Speci?cally, objectionable provisions include, but are not limited to: 8102, 8107, 8109, 8303, 8311, 8312, 8313, 8314, 8315, 8316, 8317, 8318, 8319, 8320, 8321., 8334, 8335, 8336, 8337, 8338, 8339, 8402, 8502, 8503, and 8508. Other sections of concern include: 8201, 8202, 8203, 8302(2), and 8333. Finally, we oppose inclusion of HR. 4879, the Protect Interstate Commerce Act, in any ?nal agreement. While the House bill includes the ?King Amendment,? the consequences of this provision are far in reach and scope, both known and unknown. The King Amendment does more than prohibit any new regulations and preempt hundreds of existing state and local laws that oversee agriculture products imported state to state. This provision would virtually wipe out critical protections for communities and farmers that govern food safety, and air and water safety, workers? rights, community health, food labeling, ?shing, animal welfare, permitting, record keeping, invasive species, and procurement. Instead of trampling critical consumer and farmer protections, we urge the conference to resoundingly reject this provision again as it did in the 2014 Farm Bill. In addition to these concerns about conservation and environmental protection, we share other concerns with the House version of the bill, including its treatment of rural development, energy, and nutrition programs. We appreciate your attention to these matters and sincerely hope a ?nal conference agreement will reject the House bill?s cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), support our nation?s farmers and consumers, and strengthen our nation?s commitment to a clean and healthy enviromnent for our children and grandchildren. Sincerely, A. Donald McEachin Earl Blumenauer ar (1 P01 Member of Congress Member of Congress nber oh: ongress Mark DeSaulnier Member of Congress WC arm/9620 Debbie Dingell Member of Congress a?oa?md41 0.24.124 My Alan Lowenthal Member of Congress Val Butler Demings Member of Congress Michael F. Doyle Member of Congressv Anna C. Eshoo Member of Congress 74/4 David N. Cicilline Member of Congress W- Donald M. ?are, Member of Congress Ruben J. Kihuen Mem er of Congress Pramila ayapaEE by Member of gress saiuci?o. Cabajal Member of Congress Thomas R. Suozzi Member of Congress afar/28a? Ted W. Lieu Member of Congress Colleen Hana usa Member of gress Jamie Raskin Member of Congress Joseph . Kenne- Member of Congress Wu, SuzIC/ine Bonamici er of Congress Me Member of Corringrge'ss Raja Krishn?moorthi Member of Congress Ch??l?lie Pingree Member of Congress Cartwright Member of Congress 75,62 Lois Frankel Member of Congress Debbie Wasserman Schultz Member of Congress Donald S. Beyer Jr. g? Member of Congress Tini Ryan Member of Congress ?aw? ?a Brendan F. Boyle Member of Congress /Mc5?b~w Brenda L. Lawrence Member of Con ess Ruben Gallego Member of Congress Duel. Pete Aguilar Member of Congress W??r Bil] Foster Member of Congress Raul MD. athleen M. Rlce Member of Congress Member of Congress 23% Nanette Diaz Barragan Member of Congress Jared Huffman Member of Congress Member of Congress eth Moulton Marc AWeasey Member of Congress Member of Congress Mo?? . Tau?Q Wm Michael E. Capuano Carol Shea-Porter Member of Congress Member of Congress WM may.? Mark Poean Donald Norcross Member of Congress Member of Congress Ron Kind nie Watson Coleman Member of Congress Member of Congress Anthony G. Brown Hakeem S. Jeffri Member of Congress a Member of Congress gawk A/an Eleanor Holmes Norton Member of Congress Adriano Espaillat Danny K. ?avis Member of Congress Member of Congress Niki Tsongas Marcy Kapar (I Member of Congress Member of Congress Kathy Caz?r Sheila Jacksonlld Member 0 ongress Member of Conge ss Um 0. Cam tte D. Clarke Maxine Waters ember of Congress Member of Congress Lucille Royba?l?llard Member of Co gr ess Member of Congress Diana DeGette Gerald E. Connolly Member of Congress Member of Congles Andr? Carson Karen Bass Member of Congress Member of Congress Ennis Noam; Gwen Moore Doris O. Matsui Member of Congress Member of Congr Ke?it?'Ellison Coniess Alb' Sires mber of Congress Jerry McNerney Joe Courtney Member of Congress .. Member of Congress :33? wr?fy?'r?? ?1 - r; Barbara Lee Alcee Lf?as?ngs Member of Congress Member of Congress s? . Serrano Member of Congress ember of Congress (I .Doggetti Nita M. Lowey Member of Congress Member of Congress ee I. Schakowsky -. ber of Congress Carolyn .Maloney? Member of Congress Pad/w Bill Pascrell, Jr. Member of Congress ohen Member of Congress Um; Gregorio Kilili Camacho Sablan Member of Congress 81? d9 3! 04m?? Rosa L. DeLauro Member of Congress 04. Judy Chu Member of Congress Member of Con ess M. 0M, alohn P. Sarbanes Member of Congress Mike Quig ey Member of Congress MW Dina Titus Member of Congress 44.2% Adam B. Schiff Member of Congress (Nab/x, eter Welch Member of Congress adv/M David Price Member of Congress QJJM Daniel W. Lipinsly Member of Congress Wm 35% Frederica S. Wilson Member of Congress El?n. H. Esty Me er of Congress Dwight Evans Member of Congress Susan A. Davis Member of Congress Membe of Congress WW Mark Takano Member of Congress Brian Member of Congress 73/34 (mew/r0? Tu'lsi Gabbard Member of Congress m/A ?dia M. Velazque Member of Con