On the recordJuly 18, 2018
I support the amendment. The National Academy of Sciences was established by Congress in 1863 in the midst of the Civil War to provide independent, objective advice to the Nation on matters related to science and technology. The Academy, in 2016, released a comprehensive literature review on the science of genetically engineered crops, or GMOs as they are commonly referred to. The Academy found zero scientific evidence that GMOs are any more or any less safe for human consumption and the environment than organisms modified by more traditional genetic methods, like selective breeding. This amendment blocks an outdated policy made during the last administration which pandered to extreme environmental groups by feeding into the unfounded fears of GMOs. This amendment is an opportunity to rise above fear-mongering and make sound policy based on science and rationality. Mr. Chair, let's do the right thing and vote ``aye.''
