State of Washington | 59th Legislature | 2005 Regular Session |
READ FIRST TIME 02/10/05.
TO THE HONORABLE GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES,
AND TO THE PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE AND THE SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF
REPRESENTATIVES, AND TO THE SENATE AND HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
UNITED STATES, IN CONGRESS ASSEMBLED, AND TO THE SECRETARY OF
AGRICULTURE, MIKE JOHANNS:
We, your Memorialists, the Senate and House of Representatives of
the State of Washington, in legislative session assembled, respectfully
represent and petition as follows:
WHEREAS, On January 4, 2005, the United States Department of
Agriculture proposed a rule to reopen on March 7, 2005, the United
States border to the importation of Canadian live cattle and processed
beef products; and
WHEREAS, On January 11, 2005, Canada announced that yet another cow
in Alberta tested positive for bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE);
and
WHEREAS, The United States Department of Agriculture has dispatched
a technical team to Canada to investigate the circumstances that
resulted in this additional infection including effective enforcement
by Canada of the 1997 ruminant-to-ruminant feed ban; and
WHEREAS, The only incident in the United States where a cow tested
positive with BSE was on December 23, 2003, and that animal originated
in Canada and unfortunately was shipped into Washington State; and
WHEREAS, The severe ramifications caused by this single animal was
the closure by many foreign markets to beef produced within the United
States; and
WHEREAS, Although progress has been made in reestablishing trust
with our Asian trading partners, many of these bans to the import of
beef from the United States continue in effect thirteen months after
this single incident; and
WHEREAS, Even though the United States has commenced a major BSE
testing program and no cattle indigenous to the United States have been
detected to have BSE, once these foreign markets are closed, they have
remained closed for prolonged periods of time; and
WHEREAS, Consumers in the United States continue to have confidence
in beef produced in the United States and maintaining the safety of
food supplies is the paramount concern to state and federal
governmental officials; and
WHEREAS, Reestablishing trust with our trading partners and
reopening export markets is of paramount importance to the American
beef industry; and
WHEREAS, On February 25, 2005, the United States Department of
Agriculture announced the results of the "science-based" decision to
adopt the rule to lift the ban on importation of Canadian beef, for
which a temporary injunction was immediately issued against the United
States Department of Agriculture decision by a federal district court
on February 28, 2005, and for which the United States Senate approved
on March 3, 2005, Senate Joint Resolution 4 to nullify the United
States Department of Agriculture rule; and
WHEREAS, Acceptance by the international community of the United
States Department of Agriculture "science-based" decision has not yet
been established and therefore the United States Department of
Agriculture rule would reopen the United States border to the
importation of Canadian beef without also addressing the reopening of
foreign markets to United States beef, even though the cause of the
bans on United States beef exports was a cow infected with bovine
spongiform encephalopathy that originated in Canada;
NOW, THEREFORE, Your Memorialists respectfully pray that the United
States Department of Agriculture delay moving forward with its plans to
reopen the border to Canadian cattle and beef products until there is
broad international acceptance of the science used by the United States
Department of Agriculture by foreign countries that have banned the
importation of beef from the United States, as demonstrated by the
simultaneous reopening of their markets to the importation of United
States beef.
BE IT RESOLVED, That copies of this Memorial be immediately
transmitted to the Honorable George W. Bush, President of the United
States, the Secretary of the United States Department of Agriculture,
Mike Johanns, the President of the United States Senate, the Speaker of
the House of Representatives, and each member of Congress from the
State of Washington.