Letter to the Editor submitted by Sherry Wernicke, Riverside, May 8, 2018
Imagine states being compelled to sell products they know are produced in an unsafe way simply because another state permits their sale? This could soon be a reality should Rep. Steve King’s measure (HR 4879) become law.
King’s bill, deceptively called the “Protect Interstate Commerce Act” could gut hundreds of state laws concerning agricultural products, environmental requirements, food safety and labeling requirements, and more. This dangerous legislation could threaten Connecticut’s regulation of wastewater and nitrogen runoff into its water supplies. Out-of-state producers with lower environmental standards could flood the market with their cheaper goods, and force our state to join them in a race to the bottom. Under the King bill, the job of protecting the environment could be shifted exclusively to Congress, which is of course largely controlled by powerful special interests.
King’s measure was recently added to the Farm Bill as an amendment so it is imperative that we act now to prevent it from advancing any further in Congress. The King bill is a major threat to public health and the environment.
Please contact Representative Jim Himes and Senators Blumenthal and Murphy and urge them to strongly oppose the horrible King Amendment.
Sherry Wernicke
Riverside