Ken Calvert: “Prior to finalizing the worker protection rule, the EPA shared a draft with the House Committee on Agriculture. The…”

“Prior to finalizing the worker protection rule, the EPA shared a draft with the House Committee on Agriculture. The draft did not contain a section that authorized the use of designated representatives. It was later inserted by the EPA without congressional consultation, and the EPA failed to follow the law that requires consultation with the authorizers on these pesticide rules. However, the broader concern is the substance of the rule. Farmers are concerned they will have little recourse but to turn over their documents to unauthorized individuals. The section of the rule is ill- advised, and unintended consequences were clearly not considered. The EPA needs to reengage with the authorizing committee and the agricultural community on this. In the meantime, I urge a ``no'' vote on the amendment. I reserve the balance of my time. {time} 2045”