This effort was praised by several livestock and poultry industry groups. “There’s not a lot of truly bipartisan legislation in Washington these days, but one thing that pretty much everybody can agree on is that a responsibly run cattle ranch isn’t a toxic Superfund site,” said National Cattlemen’s Beef Association President Kevin Kester in a statement.
The bill also received applause from The National Turkey Federation, National Chicken Council, U.S. Poultry & Egg Association and United Egg Producers. “This is significant breakthrough legislation restoring CERCLA reporting to its intended purpose, a united legislative effort that has been nearly 15 years in the making,” said the poultry groups in a joint statement.
“This delay gives Congress the ability to provide a legislative fix to this overreaching federal regulation,” says U.S. Cattlemen’s Association (USCA) Executive Vice President Kelly Fogarty. “USCA would like to thank all of the senators who recognized that this mandate would have placed an undue regulatory burden on both producers and the EPA. U.S. cattle producers are already excellent stewards of the land – they need to take care of the land and water that provide them with the ability to raise cattle. They shouldn’t be regulated in the same manner as a toxic waste site. We look forward to working with Congress and the [Trump] administration towards a bipartisan solution.”
The EPA has already requested and received an extension until May 1 of the already-existing stay on the court mandate from the U.S. Court of Appeals. 
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Carrie Veselka
- Associate Editor
- Progressive Dairyman
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