Keep up the Calls on the Farm Bill!

The Senate continues to debate the Farm Bill, and there are some behind-the-scenes negotiations occurring over Section 10305, the NAIS provision. The Senate is not going to vote on the Farm Bill until next week or even later, so we still have time to call! One of our Steering Committee members, Judith McGeary, is up in DC right now, and says that the staffers are swamped with the Farm Bill issues. Some of the staffers say they've heard from a lot of their constituents about NAIS, while others say they've only gotten a few calls. They need to know that people are paying attention and care about this issue! There's a significant chance that the issue will go to conference committee, so you should also call your Representative. In the meantime, the uncertainty over the appropriations bill for funding USDA continues, and we cannot predict when that will be voted on. So be sure to mention both the Farm Bill and stopping funding when you call!

TAKE ACTION

• STEP 1: Call or fax your Senators. You can find contact information for your Senators here. Ask to talk to the agricultural staffer. If they aren't available, be sure to leave a message with your name, the fact that you are a constituent, and what you want: Section 10305 taken out of the Farm Bill. Then call the front desk back, and leave the same message with them.

• MESSAGE 1: Take Section 10305 out of the Farm Bill because it implies approval of NAIS, a badly conceived and badly implemented program. Section 10305 also provides false reassurance that the information in the databases will be confidential, when experience has shown that databases are vulnerable. I want Section 10305 removed from the bill completely.
• MESSAGE 2: Stop funding for NAIS because the federal funding is driving mandatory and coercive programs in the states.

• STEP 2: Call or fax your Representative. You can find contact information for your Representative here. Both the Farm Bill and the Appropriations Bill will ultimately go to conference committee, so we need Representatives educated as well. Use the same message as for your Senators.
• STEP 3: Send your Senators and Representative a copy of the Liberty Ark letter outlining some of the frauds USDA has perpetrated to promote registration under a so-called "voluntary" NAIS. The letter is posted here.

ADDITIONAL TALKING POINTS: NAIS needs to be stopped, not encouraged:

• It will destroy independent agriculture, the backbone of this country and its food supply
• It will not increase food safety, because food contamination happens at the slaughterhouses and processing plants.
• NAIS will actually decrease food safety, by driving local and independent producers out of business and increasing the consolidation of our food suppy in the hands of a few large corporations.
• It will cost millions we can't afford
• USDA's claims of success to date are based on fraudulent claims of "voluntary" premises registrations - people have been coerced, bribed, and registered without their consent.
• Regardless of the protections in the bill, having the government or private entities compile information on what animals citizens own, leaves those citizens open to harassment or worse by people who hack into that database or use the information for purposes other than what is intended.

You can find more talking points and arguments on our website, www.libertyark.net.

TOLL-FREE NUMBERS

Here are some toll-free numbers for the Capitol Switchboard:

1-866-220-0044
1-866-340-9281
1-877-851-6437
1-888-355-3588
1-800-833-6354
1-800-450-8293
1-877-762-8722
1-877-762-8762

SAMPLE LETTER:

It is best to FAX the letter to your Senator or Representative. Because of security measures, letters mailed to DC take weeks or months to get there. If you can't fax, then use email. We recommend that you follow up with a call, to make sure the email does not get overlooked.

Dear _________:

I oppose Section 10305 of the Farm Bill because it implies approval of the USDA's National Animal Identification System (NAIS). NAIS has never been approved or even debated by either branch of Congress. Indeed, few members of the Senate or House know the details of NAIS, understand its implications for destroying America's remaining independent farms, or recognize the misleading and coercive tactics USDA uses to push this program.

I urge you to remove section 10305 from the Farm Bill and to stop funding for NAIS.

Sincerely,
Name
Address
City, State, Zip

BACKGROUND AND MORE INFORMATION:

FARM BILL, Section 10305. Section 10305 of the Farm Bill, as approved by the Senate Agriculture Committee, amends the Animal Health Protection Act to (1) insert a definition of NAIS; and (2) provide various exceptions from public disclosure for information collected under NAIS. The inclusion of Section 10305 implies Congressional approval of NAIS. It also creates the impression that Congress can protect our informaion from disclosure. But once that information is collected, it is vulnerable to hackers, accidental release, and other misuse. So this is a move in the wrong direction, and we want it taken out! At the same time, Section 10305 is not a complete adoption of NAIS, nor does it mandate NAIS directly. Section 10305 represents a battle in this war against NAIS, but it is not a decisive battle for either side.

The majority of Senators and Representatives still know little about NAIS, and what they've been told comes primarily from mainstream corporate agriculture representatives, and people who claim it's a food safety program. We must continue to educate our legislators. This means sticking with the basics of NAIS and why it is the wrong thing for America.

FUNDING ISSUES:

Coalition Letter on the Fraud of "Voluntary" Premises Registrations. To protest continued funding of NAIS based on fraudulent claims by USDA of "voluntary" premises registrations, we've sent a letter to the Chair and Ranking Minority Members of the Agriculture Appropriations Committees of both the Senate and House, and sent copies to all of the Committee members. The letter outlines the various ways USDA has manipulated information to claim a greater percentage of premises are registered than is true, and the coercion, bribing, and data dumping that's been used to produce these supposedly "voluntary" registrations. Citizens are having their real estate registered against their will, and our legislators aren't aware. We urge you to send a copy of this letter to your Senators. You can find the letter posted here.