Washington State Hearing on Proposed New Rules
June 11, 2008
There will be a hearing at the Natural Resources Building in Olympia, June 11, 2008, at 2:00 pm on proposed new rules that will require Certificate of Veterinary Inspections (CVI) for travel into and out of the State of Washington.
USDA's Business Plan to Advance Animal Disease Traceability stated clearly to use Premises ID Numbers (PIN's) for both premise of origin and destination on the CVI's.
Written testimony for the Record is also being accepted, but it is recommended to send it Certified Mail as the Department has a habit of losing letters.
Click here for more information.
Last year, HB 1151 was introduced to bar any NAIS in Washington. A committee substitute was introduced and passed in the House Committee on Agriculture & Natural Resources. The new bill would establish a Livestock Identification Advisory Committee to study the impacts of NAIS. The bill passed the House and then stalled in the Senate Committee on Agriculture & Rural Development. Although the bill does not stop the agency from implementing NAIS, it is a good step.
This year, HB 1151 was reintroduced and placed in the House Rules "X" file. The bill was never taken out of the X file.
Take Action
1) It's important to start laying the groundwork for a 2009 anti-NAIS bill now. Contact your Representative and Senator and educate them about NAIS. If you don't know who your legislator is, you can find their information .
Ask to speak to the staffer who handles agricultural issues. Ask them what they already know about NAIS, explain your objections to it, and respond to the issues they bring up. Stay in touch through email after the phone call, so that they know you really care about this issue. As always, be polite and respectful of the staff's time.
2) Educate your community! Download materials from our site, and put them out at feed stores, farmers markets, co-ops, sales barns, riding stables, etc. We need everyone to know about NAIS!
Talking Points for Calls
- NAIS will hurt Washington's economy:
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- There has been no analysis at federal or state level that establishes the costs or benefits of NAIS.
- Costs of the program include the cost of the tags, hardware, software, time and labor
- Many small farmer and ranchers cannot afford these costs Service providers (veterinarians, feed stores, auction houses, meat processors, etc.) will be harmed when the farmers and ranchers go out of business.
- Remaining farmers will pass the costs on to consumers, lowering demand for local foods
- Neither the USDA nor the state agency has scientific proof that NAIS will improve disease control:
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- It does not address the cause, treatment, or transmission of disease, in domestic or wild animals.
- It does not significantly improve on current methods for identification and tracking of disease.
- NAIS is not necessary for the market. Age- and source-verification is already available through the USDA's Process Verified Program
- NAIS will not improve food safety
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- USDA itself has stated that this is not a food safety program
- Contamination of food with e. coli and other bacteria occurs at the slaughterhouse or afterwards, while NAIS will stop before that point.
- NAIS will not protect against terrorism and the technology is flawed
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- The microchips chosen by the state can be cloned, destroyed, or infected with computer viruses, and reprogrammed. Any terrorist or thief can use this.
- The database of information, created by the state agency and available to USDA, will provide a target for hackers.
- NAIS infringes on people's constitutional rights, including due process, privacy, and religious freedom.
- NAIS unfairly attacks the rights of pet owners and those who raise animals as food for their family.
- USDA states that NAIS is voluntary at the federal level, so there is no "federal mandate" requiring Washington to implement this program
- Other states are also rejecting or limiting NAIS, so Washington will not be disadvantaged by refusing to participate.
Press Releases:
Representative Kirk Pearson has introduced legislation to stop NAIS in Washington
January 11, 2007
Summary as of 2/22/07
HB 1151 bill cuts off the existing agreements with the USDA and stops the state from participating in NAIS or any component of it. It limits private tracking programs to prevent Agri-business from abusing their control of the market to force individuals into their systems, and stops government entities from discriminating against people based on their refusal to participate in a private system.
Grassroots activity:
Extensive Freedom of Information Act request was filed, and the documents are being reviewed.
Political activity:
Department of Agriculture is implementing "voluntary" premises registration, and intends to begin implementation of animal identification and tracking in early 2007. Implementation has been aggressive.
From your Washington State Coordinator:
We will be having a booth at the entrance to the Evergreen State Fair in Monroe, Washington. The dates are August 24th thru Sept. 4th, 2006. Our booth hours will be from 10am - 10pm. The theme of our booth is "Back to Traditional Farming" with an emphasis on educating folks on the dangers of the National Animal Identification System, and preserving our freedom to engage in farming.
We will be having an interactive booth where you can try your hand at felting soap, daily drawings, lots of brochures on NAIS, Liberty Ark sign up and petitions, and some surprises. This is our opportunity to share with 1 million people, including the media and the politicians, on NAIS. Your help is needed to make this a success. To keep our freedom we are going to have to fight for it. If you would like to take a four hour shift, please contact Celeste by phone at: .
This fall legislation will be drafted to amend and to prevent further NAIS action in Washington State. This legislation will be introduced in January 2007. Representative Kirk Pearson will be the sponsor. Please contact your Representative and Senator and ask them to support Representative Kirk Pearson's legislation opposing NAIS. We are having great success in educating candidates on the NAIS program we encourage you to contact candidates in your districts. We have been asking those who commit to opposing NAIS to put that commitment in writing.
FROM WSDA:
We advise people to frequently check the WSDA site in its entirety. Anything of interest, please save to your hard drive and make a hard copy. The WSDA site frequently changes.
Existing numbering systems for premises and animal identification will be phased out by July, 2006.
Tracking:
In early 2007, USDA will have the Animal Trace Processing System in place.
NAIS Cattle Advisory Group to submit a report to the Legislature by December 1, 2006.
Substitute Senate Bill 5891 - AN ACT Relating to livestock identification, passed by the Senate March 19, 2003 pdf file
The Washington State Cooperative Agreement - MS Word
The Washington State Cooperative Agreement Grant Form
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