Ricketts Backs Fischer Bill to Stop Biden Regulation of Routine Ag Emissions from Cow Manure

July 25, 2023

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Pete Ricketts (R-NE) co-sponsored fellow Nebraska Senator Deb Fischer’s (R-NE) bill to eliminate the reporting requirement for emissions from animal waste. Biden’s EPA rescinded the 2019 Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know-Act (EPCRA) which exempted reporting of air emissions from animal waste. The bill would clarify EPCRA is not intended to regulate manure emissions, which pose no threat to public safety. It would also ensure that emergency first responders are not inundated with unnecessary reporting.

“The Biden administration’s efforts to regulate routine agriculture emissions shows once again how detached from reality these EPA bureaucrats are,” Ricketts said. “What really stinks here is how Biden’s rule will drive up costs for anyone that enjoys meat or dairy as farmers and ranchers are forced to comply with yet another ridiculous regulation. I am proud to support this bill to defend farmers and ranchers, consumers, and our first responders who would be overburdened with these redundant reports.”

“The last thing producers need are more government regulations. And first responders, who deal with real public safety emergencies every day, don’t need to be inundated with irrelevant reports,” said Senator Fischer upon introducing the bill. “My bill would make permanent the previous administration’s reporting exemption under EPCRA for animal waste emissions. Rural America doesn’t need Washington bureaucrats pushing through more rules that burden producers and provide no value to local emergency planning commissions.”

In addition to Senator Ricketts, the bill is also supported by Senators John Barrasso (R-WY), Joni Ernst (R-IA), Steve Daines (R-MT), Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), Roger Marshall (R-KS), Thom Tillis (R-NC), Ted Cruz (R-TX), Jerry Moran (R-KS), Rick Scott (R-FL), Mike Rounds (R-SD), Ted Budd (R-NC), John Thune (R-SD), Markwayne Mullin (R-OK), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS), and Tommy Tuberville (R-AL).

Click here to read the text of the bill.