Pushing for Preemption

FAIRFAX, Va. — While pest management professionals will certainly face new regulatory challenges in 2023, the new year also brings an opportunity for the pest control industry to earn a victory in a long-fought battle: Congressional codification of state level pesticide preemption.

At this year’s NPMA Legislative Day, set for March 22-24, the goal of Capitol Hill visits will be to urge the 118th Congress to codify the role of state lead agencies as co-regulators of pesticides alongside the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

BACKGROUND. State agencies, which are often housed in state agriculture departments, have been the primary leads since the 1970s in working with EPA to administer Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) laws and support the development of scientifically based pesticide labels that can be clearly read and safely administered by those applying pesticides.

Currently, 46 states have preemption, meaning the state lead agency preempts local government when it comes to determining how pest control products and services are employed. PMPs who operate in states without preemption (Alaska, Maine, Maryland and Nevada) are challenged with having to comply with different laws and regulations in each of the communities they service.A pest control company in Maryland, for example, might have a service professional whose route includes four different counties, meaning he or she may encounter four different sets of rules governing the application of pesticides. In states without preemption “our member companies are dedicating a lot of resources to training their employees to be safe and effective applicators of pesticides,” said JD Darr, director of regulatory and legislative affairs, National Pest Management Association. “There’s a burden to businesses operating in those states without preemption. And, our fear is that state legislatures in the other states will repeal or roll back the preemption that they currently have in place. So, we are seeking a national solution.”

Darr, along with NPMA President Justin McCauley (president of McCauley Services, Bryant, Ark.), recently met with John Boozman (R-AR), who is the ranking member of the Senate Agriculture Committee, to discuss preemption. 

McCauley said preemption is important to pest control companies across the country — both large and small — because “local regulation of pesticides makes it extremely difficult to plan routes, schedule technicians, purchase products and provide the best quality service to customers,” he said.

“By ensuring that only one single state-level agency (and not local counties, cities or towns) can regulate pesticides, it not only helps businesses run better, but also allows pest management professionals to use all EPA-approved tools at their disposal to protect public health, food and property.”

FARM BILL. Last March, Rep. Rodney Davis (IL-13) introduced a stand-alone pesticide preemption bill, H.R. 7266, which would have amended FIFRA to prohibit local regulations relating to the sale, distribution, labeling, application or use of any pesticide or device subject to regulation by a state or the EPA under FIFRA.

NPMA wrote a letter in support of H.R. 7266, gathering 159 individual associations as signatories. Both national and state associations signed on, representing diverse areas such as agriculture, pest management, landscaping, golf, forestry and pesticide education. Unfortunately, Davis lost his re-election bid, and NPMA was “saddened to lose Congressman Davis as our champion of H.R. 7266,” Darr said.

NPMA and others have turned their attention to getting preemption included in the Farm Bill, which must be re-authorized by the end of September.

At NPMA Legislative Day, Darr said attendees should communicate to their elected officials that preemption is an issue that supports pest control companies, entities that are oftentimes small businesses that give back to their communities “and [pesticide decisions] need to be made by scientific professionals.”

Darr said NPMA is optimistic about the current  makeup of Congress. The U.S. House of Representatives is under Republicans control and NPMA has maintained good relationships with the GOP. “We are also having many conversations with Democrats, both in the House and Senate,” he said. “We feel that this year, more than others, they are really starting to listen to the pest control industry’s talking points and concerns. And that is really important going into the Farm Bill reauthorization.”

NPMA is joined in its support of pesticide preemption legislation by the Agricultural Retailers Association; American Mosquito Control Association; the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America; and the National Association of Landscape Professionals.

This year’s Legislative Day will be the first since the March 2020 event when NPMA members will be having in-person meetings and Darr said “we are really excited for our members to meet with their elected officials.” 

**********************************