Attorney General Hilgers and Attorney General Bird Lead Coalition Petitioning EPA to Enact Uniform Labeling Requirements

Omaha - Nebraska Attorney General Mike Hilgers and Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird led an 11-state coalition petitioning the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to enact a rule that would create uniform labeling requirements across the country and preempt California’s Prop 65. Currently, States can require manufacturers to label products with health information that is inconsistent with the EPA’s findings about a product’s health effects. California’s Prop 65 presently requires manufacturers to label products containing glyphosate as likely carcinogenic even though the EPA has concluded that the herbicide does not present a risk to human health.

"One State should not be able to impose its ideologically-driven views on essential farming products on the rest of the country,” said Attorney General Hilgers. “If adopted, our proposed rule would streamline the labeling process, dispel consumer confusion, and ensure that those who help put food on our tables can do their jobs without getting caught up in the red tape of 50 separate States. Our proposed rule advances the rule of law and lifts a burden on the farming industry that drives Nebraska’s economy.”

The current system of patchwork labeling requirements has led to needless, years-long litigation. It has also left manufacturers and farmers unsure about their legal obligations and the health effects of certain products. The Supreme Court, the Department of Justice, and multiple federal courts of appeals have recognized that the EPA has the power to enact a rule like the one proposed in the petition for rulemaking.

In addition to Attorney General Hilgers, attorneys general from the following States joined the petition for rulemaking: Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Montana, North Dakota, South Carolina, and South Dakota.

Smith Statement on Hilgers-Led Petition to EPA on Labeling of Critical Agriculture Input

Today, Rep. Adrian Smith (R-NE), released the following statement after a coalition of 11 state attorneys general led by Nebraska Attorney General Mike Hilgers and Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird petitioned the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to provide federal guidance to prevent mislabeling of herbicides.

"In recent years, American agriculture producers have dealt with supply chain breakdowns, severe drought, and inflated input costs. Current ambiguity from the EPA puts the industry at further risk due to California’s spurious product labeling laws which perpetuate false narratives regarding a critical agriculture input. I applaud Attorney General Hilgers and this state coalition for calling on the EPA to provide guidance consistent with its own findings. Our hard-working farmers should never be hindered by anti-scientific state regulations."

Ricketts Praises Pesticide Petition by Attorneys General Hilgers & Bird

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Pete Ricketts (R-NE) issued the following statement praising the announcement from Attorneys General Mike Hilgers of Nebraska and Brenna Bird of Iowa that the states are leading a petition to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regarding the regulation of commonly-used pesticides: