Florida Moves to Silence Pesticide Critics

Florida is trying to limit America's freedom of speech to question the safety of pesticides, herbicides, and other chemicals. Section 48 of Florida Senate Bill 290 wants to give agricultural and pesticide producers a right of action to sue people for questioning whether agricultural products such as pesticides are safe for human consumption. The bill would allow pesticide producers to target and sue individuals for what they deem to be defamatory statements with a two year statute of limitations.

Senate Bill 290 was introduced by Florida Senate Agriculture Chair Keith Truenow who received $3,000 in lobbying from US Sugar Corp and who owns a turf and grass installation company. Sugar production relies on herbicides like 2-4D and grass production relies on weedkillers like glyphosate and Dicamba which are all facing increased scrutiny and litigation.

Senate Bill 290 already passed the agriculture committee and fiscal policy committee and will next be voted on by the rules committee tomorrow, January 27th. The rules committee chair Kathleen Passidomo also sits on the fiscal policy committee where she voted yea to pass the senate bill. 

Here are talking points for speaking with the Florida representatives.

1). Pesticide producers have consistently misrepresented, downplayed, and withheld data on the carcinogenic and reproductive harms of their chemicals.

2). Pesticide producers submit their own labels for review that the EPA does not put to the test. Pesticide producers such as Monsanto and Bayer (which are now one company) continually lead attacks on scientists and journalists who present new data questioning the safety of the chemicals. 

3). Without rigorous public scrutiny, criticism, and testing, pesticide producers would be left unchecked. Last month, the scientific journal Regulatory Toxicology and Pharmacology officially retracted a landmark study from the year 2000 that claimed the weed killer glyphosate was safe for human health. The paper, which concluded glyphosate posed no cancer risk, was ghostwritten by Monsanto employees to falsify safety. Just this week, Dr. Daniele Mandrioli was terminated as the Director of the Cesare Maltoni Cancer Research Center in Bologna, Italy. Dr. Mandrioli led the global glyphosate study which found that glyphosate can cause multiple types of cancer at exposure levels corresponding to the European Union acceptable daily intake and the European Union no-adverse effect level. Discoveries like these which protect public health would face threat of lawsuits if Senate Bill 290 passes. 

4). Americans are protected under our first Amendment right to criticize and question the safety of pesticides, herbicides, and fungicides. 

Here is a contact list for the Florida Senate Committee on Rules. 

Chair: Senator Kathleen Passidomo (R) - passidomo.kathleen.web@flsenate.gov - 850-487-5028

Vice Chair: Senator Shevrin D. "Shev" Jones (D) - jones.shevrin.web@flsenate.gov - 850-487-5034
Senator Bryan Avila (R) - avila.bryan.web@flsenate.gov - 850-487-5039
Senator Lori Berman (D) - berman.lori.web@flsenate.gov - 850-487-5026
Senator Jim Boyd (R) - boyd.jim.web@flsenate.gov - 850-487-5020
Senator Jennifer Bradley (R) - bradley.jennifer.web@flsenate.gov - 850-487-5006
Senator Jason Brodeur (R) - Brodeur.Jason.web@flsenate.gov - 850-487-5010
Senator Danny Burgess (R) - Burgess.Danny.web@flsenate.gov - 850-487-5026
Senator Colleen Burton (R) - Burton.Colleen.web@flsenate.gov - 850-487-5012
Senator Tracie Davis (D) - Davis.Tracie.web@flsenate.gov - 850-487-5005
Senator Nick DiCeglie (R) - DiCeglie.Nick.web@flsenate.gov - 850-487-5018
Senator Don Gaetz (R) - Gaetz.Don.web@flsenate.gov - 850-487-5001
Senator Ileana Garcia (R) - Garcia.Ileana.web@flsenate.gov - 850-487-5036
Senator Erin Grall (R) - Grall.Erin.web@flsenate.gov - 850-487-5029
Senator Gayle Harrell (R) - Harrell.Gayle.web@flsenate.gov - 850-487-5031
Senator Ed Hooper (R) - Hooper.Ed.web@flsenate.gov - 850-487-5021
Senator Jonathan Martin (R) - Martin.Jonathan.web@flsenate.gov - 850-487-5033
Senator Rosalind Osgood (D) - Osgood.Rosalind.web@flsenate.gov - 850-487-5032
Senator Jason W. B. Pizzo (NPA) - Pizzo.Jason.web@flsenate.gov - 850-487-5037
Senator Ana Maria Rodriguez (R) - Rodriguez.Ana.web@flsenate.gov - 850-487-5040
Senator Darryl Ervin Rouson (D) - Rouson.Darryl.web@flsenate.gov - 850-487-5016
Senator Corey Simon (R) - Simon.Corey.web@flsenate.gov - 850-487-5003
Senator Jay Trumbull (R) - Trumbull.Jay.web@flsenate.gov - 850-487-5002
Senator Tom A. Wright (R) - Wright.Tom.web@flsenate.gov - 850-487-5008