House Resolution 138 - Introduced HOUSE RESOLUTION NO. 138 BY HELLAND , SWEENEY , MOORE , PAUSTIAN , KLEIN , DE BOEF , QUIRK , MUHLBAUER , H. MILLER , and SANDS A Resolution to urge the United States Congress not 1 to enact House Resolution 3798, the Egg Products 2 Inspection Act Amendments of 2012. 3 WHEREAS, House Resolution 3798 (HR 3798), the Egg 4 Products Inspection Act Amendments of 2012, introduced 5 in the United States House of Representatives on 6 January 23, 2012, would mandate that commercial egg 7 producers transition to a new system of egg production 8 using colony housing by the end of 2029; and 9 WHEREAS, HR 3798, if enacted, would codify an 10 agreement reached in 2011 between United Egg Producers 11 (UEP) and the Humane Society of the United States 12 (HSUS) nullifying existing state laws and denying state 13 legislatures the ability to enact laws to regulate egg 14 production in their respective states; and 15 WHEREAS, the agreement reached in 2011 between UEP 16 and HSUS has resulted in the threatened cessation of 17 ballot initiatives in a number of states mandating 18 hen spacing and housing requirements, undercover 19 investigations promoted by HSUS, campaigns to 20 intimidate customers, and legal attacks waged against 21 UEP; and 22 WHEREAS, while HR 3798 is supported by the American 23 Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, Farm 24 Sanctuary, and other animal rights activist groups, 25 overwhelmingly mainstream agricultural organizations 26 oppose this radical legislation; and 27 -1- LSB 6112YH (4) 84 da/rj 1/ 5

H.R. 138 WHEREAS, mainstream agricultural organizations 1 opposed to HR 3798 include the American Farm Bureau 2 Federation, the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, 3 the National Pork Producers Council, the National 4 Chicken Council, the National Turkey Federation, 5 and the National Milk Producers Federation which all 6 understand that the proposed federal legislation sets 7 a dangerous precedent for future federal intrusions 8 into state legislative jurisdiction by preempting state 9 control over all of livestock; and 10 WHEREAS, HR 3798 threatens to create federally 11 imposed standards for egg production that are based on 12 the political goals of HSUS, which seeks to eventually 13 shut down animal agriculture by government mandate; and 14 WHEREAS, as agricultural science has improved 15 animal care, farmers and ranchers have steadily and 16 voluntarily adopted improvements to enhance the health, 17 well-being, and productivity of their animals and the 18 viability of their operations; and 19 WHEREAS, the United States food supply, which 20 is critical to the security of this nation, and 21 which depends upon scientifically proven production 22 standards, should not be outlawed on the basis of a 23 political agenda; and 24 WHEREAS, HR 3798, if enacted, would deprive the 25 freedom of producers to operate using methods that are 26 in the best interests of their agricultural animals, 27 would increase food prices, would devastate the 28 operations of niche and small agricultural producers 29 by requiring overzealous labeling requirements, and 30 -2- LSB 6112YH (4) 84 da/rj 2/ 5

H.R. 138 would redirect vital resources away from enhancing food 1 safety; and 2 WHEREAS, HR 3798 or similar legislation, that, 3 if enacted, would result in mandated animal care 4 standards based on the political goals of animal 5 rights activists who seek to eventually shut down vital 6 sectors of animal agriculture by government mandate, 7 and threatens all livestock producers by the use of 8 coercive tactics; and 9 WHEREAS, HR 3798 ignores long-standing science that 10 supports the consensus of mainstream agricultural 11 veterinarians, animal scientists, and livestock 12 producers regarding scientifically proven production 13 standards; and 14 WHEREAS, HR 3798 is a prime example of a 15 heavy-handed government mandate based primarily on the 16 extreme political agenda of animal rights activists who 17 have no regard for science-based animal husbandry or 18 for this nation’s hard-working and conscientious farm 19 families who each day provide our nation with wholesome 20 food from well-cared-for livestock; and 21 WHEREAS, Iowa is one of the leading agricultural 22 states, ranking first in egg production as well as 23 first in corn, soybean, and swine production; and 24 WHEREAS, in 2010 the average number of egg layers on 25 hand in Iowa was 54.25 million, with a total production 26 equaling 14.61 billion eggs having a value of $824.3 27 million; and 28 WHEREAS, according to Iowa State University, 29 agricultural production and agricultural-related 30 -3- LSB 6112YH (4) 84 da/rj 3/ 5

H.R. 138 industries directly or indirectly employ one out of 1 every six Iowans and are responsible for contributing 2 $72.1 billion to the state’s economy; and 3 WHEREAS, any federal legislation which would nullify 4 existing state laws and deny state legislatures the 5 ability to enact laws specific to their own needs is an 6 unacceptable intrusion into the ability of states to 7 meet the needs of their citizenry; and 8 WHEREAS, HR 3798 threatens to establish a model for 9 a one-size-fits-all approach to livestock production 10 regulation, which does not account for the agricultural 11 diversity of the 50 states; NOW THEREFORE, 12 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, That 13 the Iowa House of Representatives opposes HR 3798, 14 the Egg Products Inspection Act Amendments of 2012, 15 which if enacted would nullify existing state laws and 16 abrogate the traditional right of state legislatures to 17 regulate conditions associated with egg production; and 18 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the Iowa House of 19 Representatives urges the Iowa congressional delegation 20 to oppose the passage of any federal legislation that 21 would significantly harm Iowa’s livestock industry, 22 including HR 3798 that establishes a dangerous 23 precedent by intruding into the affairs of states 24 regulating the methods for housing and producing 25 livestock; and 26 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That a copy of this 27 resolution be delivered to the Honorable United States 28 Representative Frank Lucas, Chairman of the House 29 Committee on Agriculture and the Honorable United 30 -4- LSB 6112YH (4) 84 da/rj 4/ 5

H.R. 138 States Representative Collin Peterson, Ranking Member 1 of the House Committee on Agriculture; and 2 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That a copy of this 3 resolution be delivered to the Honorable United States 4 Senator Debbie Stabenow, Chairwoman of the United 5 States Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and 6 Forestry, and the Honorable United States Senator Pat 7 Roberts, Ranking Member of the United States Senate 8 Committee on Agriculture; and 9 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That a copy of this 10 resolution be delivered to each member of Iowa’s 11 congressional delegation. 12 -5- LSB 6112YH (4) 84 da/rj 5/ 5