Lawmakers Ask USDA To Withdraw GIPSA Rule

WASHINGTONMore than one-third of the members of the House of Representatives sent a letter to Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack urging him to withdraw the and re-propose a rule on the marketing of livestock and poultry proposed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration (GIPSA). The members also asked for an update from Vilsack on the timeline for completion of the economic analysis and further action on the proposal.

In the letter sent May 18, 147 House members called for withdrawing the June 22, 2010 proposed rule and re-proposing a revised rule once the Department completes its economic analysis." They wrote that would allow stakeholders the opportunity they deserve to comment on what we hope will be substantial changes to the proposal consistent with the intent of Congress outlined in the 2008 Farm Bill."

The rule proposed by GIPSA would make profound changes in the relationship between ranchers and farmers who produce cattle, swine, chickens and turkey and the companies that bring meat and poultry products to market. GIPSA wrote the proposed rule in response to four specific mandates in the last Farm Bill after debate in which several other proposed mandates were rejected.

Congress provided a narrow set of issues for the Department to address," the letter said. It is troubling that the Department appears to be using the rule-making process to accomplish objectives specifically rejected by Congress, and we are confident any such rule will not be looked upon favorably by Congress."

USDA published the proposed rule last year with only a cursory economic analysis, and Vilsack has agreed to conduct a more detailed analysis before a final rule is published.

Particularly in a climate in which additional scrutiny is being applied to regulations seen as overreaching or overly burdensome, we urge the Department to proceed in a transparent manner that allows for those most impacted by this action a chance to comment on not only pending changes to the proposal but the accompanying economic analysis as well," the letter said.