Thirty-five California lawmakers have signed a letter urging Congressional leaders to remove the “King Amendment” from the Farm Bill.
They say it would nullify dozens of California laws dealing with the manufacturing of agricultural products.
“The federal government wants to take away the right of California to ensure that our food products are both safe and nutritious and we don’t think that’s right," says Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg.
"It’s not often we get four legislative leaders from different parties and different houses on the same letter,” says Steinberg. He says he thinks it speaks to the importance of the issue.
Opponents say under the amendment, state laws regulating hens in the egg laying industry and setting nutrition standards for milk would be in jeopardy.
“This amendment if it went forward would cause federal preemption issues for any future California legislation. I mean it’s outrageous how far this amendment goes,” says Jennifer Fearing, the California director for the Humane Society of the United States.
The amendment is part of the House version of the Farm Bill, not the Senate’s version.
It’s named after its sponsor, Republican Representative Steve King of Iowa. Iowa is the largest egg producing state in the nation.
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