One of the priorities of the BPIA Government Affairs Committee is to educate elected officials about the benefits of biologicals and empower those officials to become advocates for the technology. That outreach is paying off.
Last month, the House Agriculture Committee held a hearing with EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy about the impacts of EPA policies on rural America. The hearing focused on a handful of EPA policies including pesticide regulation, the Waters of the U.S. Rule, the Clean Power Plan and the Renewable Fuels Standard. As a follow up to the hearing, the House Agriculture Committee submitted numerous questions to EPA for a written response. Susan DelBene (D-WA), the ranking member of the Subcommittee on Biotechnology, Horticulture and Nutrition asked EPA the questions below.
- What actions has the EPA taken to educate organic and conventional pesticide users about biologicals?
- As the number of biological registration actions has increased, has EPA directed any additional resources to the Biological and Pollution Prevention Division?
- What steps has EPA made or is EPA planning to take to ensure biological Pesticide Registration Improvement Act (PRIA) timeframes are met and to reduce the number of biological renegotiations?
It could be quite a while before EPA responds to these questions, but we are grateful to Rep. DelBene for raising these questions.
