I 

108TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2918

To provide additional protections for farmers and ranchers that may be 

harmed economically by genetically engineered seeds, plants, or animals, 

to ensure fairness for farmers and ranchers in their dealings with biotech 

companies that sell genetically engineered seeds, plants, or animals, and 

for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 25, 2003

Mr. KUCINICH (for himself, Mr. DEFAZIO, Mr. SANDERS, Ms. LEE, Mr. CONYERS, Mr. OLVER, Mr. GUTIERREZ, Mr. NADLER, Mr. OWENS, Ms. 

VELA ́ZQUEZ, Ms. WATERS, Ms. WATSON, Ms. WOOLSEY, and Mr. 

ACEVEDO-VILA ́) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Agriculture 

A BILL

To provide additional protections for farmers and ranchers 

that may be harmed economically by genetically engineered seeds, plants, or animals, to ensure fairness for 

farmers and ranchers in their dealings with biotech companies that sell genetically engineered seeds, plants, or 

animals, and for other purposes.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS; FINDINGS. 

2 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

3 ‘‘Genetically Engineered Crop and Animal Farmer Protec4 tion Act of 2003’’. 

5 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents of 

6 this Act is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents; findings. 

Sec. 2. Definitions. 

Sec. 3. Information requirements regarding sale of genetically engineered seeds, 

plants, and animals. 

Sec. 4. Contract limitations regarding sale of genetically engineered seeds, 

plants, and animals. 

Sec. 5. Prevention of noncompetitive practices involving technology fees. 

Sec. 6. Measures to avoid cross pollination involving genetically engineered 

seeds or plants. 

Sec. 7. Resistance of agricultural pests to certain naturally occurring pesticide; 

amendment to Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide 

Act. 

Sec. 8. Prohibition on labeling certain seeds as non-genetically engineered. 

Sec. 9. Prohibition on certain non-fertile plant seeds. 

Sec. 10. Prohibition on loan discrimination. 

Sec. 11. Civil penalties for violation. 

Sec. 12. Citizen suits.

7 (c) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 

8 (1) Agribusiness and biotechnology companies 

9 have rapidly consolidated market power at the same 

10 time as the average farmer’s profits and viability 

11 have significantly declined. 

12 (2) Policies promoted by biotech corporations, 

13 such as patenting of seeds, depriving farmers the 

14 right to save seed, unreasonable seed contracts, and 

15 intrusion into everyday farm operations, have sys16 tematically acted to remove basic farmer rights en17 joyed since the beginning of agriculture and essen-
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1 tial for agricultural sustainability and the survival of 

2 family farms. 

3 (3) The introduction of genetically engineered 

4 crops has also created obstacles for farmers, includ5 ing the loss of markets and increased liability con6 cerns. 

7 (4) To mitigate the abuses upon farmers, a 

8 clear set of farmer rights must be established. 

9 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

10 In this Act: 

11 (1) GENETICALLY ENGINEERED ANIMAL.—The 

12 term ‘‘genetically engineered animal’’ means an ani13 mal that contains a genetically engineered material 

14 or was produced with a genetically engineered mate15 rial. An animal shall be considered to contain a ge16 netically engineered material or to have been pro17 duced with a genetically engineered material if the 

18 animal has been injected or otherwise treated with 

19 a genetically engineered material or is the offspring 

20 of an animal that has been so injected or treated. 

21 (2) GENETICALLY ENGINEERED PLANT.—The 

22 term ‘‘genetically engineered plant’’ means a plant 

23 that contains a genetically engineered material or 

24 was produced from a genetically engineered seed. A 

25 plant shall be considered to contain a genetically en-
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1 gineered material if the plant has been injected or 

2 otherwise treated with a genetically engineered mate3 rial (except that the use of manure as a fertilizer for 

4 the plant may not be construed to mean that the 

5 plant is produced with a genetically engineered ma6 terial). 

7 (3) GENETICALLY ENGINEERED SEED.—The 

8 term ‘‘genetically engineered seed’’ means a seed 

9 that contains a genetically engineered material or 

10 was produced with a genetically engineered material. 

11 A seed shall be considered to contain a genetically 

12 engineered material or to have been produced with 

13 a genetically engineered material if the seed (or the 

14 plant from which the seed is derived) has been in15 jected or otherwise treated with a genetically engi16 neered material (except that the use of manure as 

17 a fertilizer for the plant may not be construed to 

18 mean that any resulting seeds are produced with a 

19 genetically engineered material). 

20 (4) GENETICALLY ENGINEERED MATERIAL.—

21 The term ‘‘genetically engineered material’’ means 

22 material that has been altered at the molecular or 

23 cellular level by means that are not possible under 

24 natural conditions or processes (including recom25 binant DNA and RNA techniques, cell fusion, micro-
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1 encapsulation, macroencapsulation, gene deletion 

2 and doubling, introducing a foreign gene, and chang3 ing the positions of genes), other than a means con4 sisting exclusively of breeding, conjugation, fer5 mentation, hybridization, in vitro fertilization, tissue 

6 culture, or mutagenesis. 

7 (5) BIOTECH COMPANY.—The term ‘‘biotech 

8 company’’ means a person engaged in the business 

9 of creating genetically engineered material or obtain10 ing the patent rights to that material for the pur11 poses of commercial exploitation of that material. 

12 The term does not include the employees of such 

13 person. 

14 (6) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

15 the Secretary of Agriculture. 

16 SEC. 3. INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS REGARDING SALE 

17 OF GENETICALLY ENGINEERED SEEDS, 

18 PLANTS, AND ANIMALS. 

19 (a) FULL DISCLOSURE OF RISKS OF USE.—A biotech 

20 company that sells any genetically engineered animal, ge21 netically engineered plant, or genetically engineered seed 

22 that the biotech company knows, or has reason to believe, 

23 will be used by the purchaser in the United States to 

24 produce an agricultural commodity shall provide written 

25 notice to the purchaser that fully and clearly discloses the
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1 possible legal and environmental risks that the use of the 

2 genetically engineered animal, genetically engineered 

3 plant, or genetically engineered seed may pose to the pur4 chaser.

5 (b) EFFECT OF DISCLOSURE.—The provision of writ6 ten notice under subsection (a) regarding the risks of 

7 using a genetically engineered animal, genetically engi8 neered plant, or genetically engineered seed does not re9 lieve the biotech company from any liability that may re10 sult from the release of genetically engineered material 

11 into the environment. The receipt of the written notice by 

12 the purchaser shall not be construed to create any liability 

13 on the purchaser. 

14 (c) RULEMAKING.—The Secretary shall issue such 

15 rules as may be necessary to implement and enforce this 

16 section. 

17 SEC. 4. CONTRACT LIMITATIONS REGARDING SALE OF GE18 NETICALLY ENGINEERED SEEDS, PLANTS, 

19 AND ANIMALS. 

20 (a) CERTAIN CONTRACT TERMS AND LIMITATIONS

21 UNENFORCEABLE.—If a contract for the sale of a geneti22 cally engineered animal, genetically engineered plant, or 

23 genetically engineered seed to a purchaser for use in agri24 cultural production contains a provision described in sub25 section (b), the provision is hereby declared to be against 
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1 public policy and therefore void and unenforceable as a 

2 matter of law. 

3 (b) PROHIBITED TERMS AND LIMITATIONS.—The 

4 provisions referred to in subsection (a) are any of the fol5 lowing: 

6 (1) In the case of a sale of genetically engi7 neered plants or genetically engineered seeds, a pro8 vision that prohibits the purchaser from retaining a 

9 portion of the harvested crop for future crop plant10 ing by the purchaser or that charges a fee to retain 

11 a portion of the harvested crop for future crop 

12 planting. 

13 (2) A provision that limits the ability of the 

14 purchaser to recover damages from the biotech com15 pany for a genetically engineered animal, genetically 

16 engineered plant, or genetically engineered seed that 

17 does not perform as advertised. 

18 (3) A provision that shifts any liability from the 

19 biotech company to the purchaser. 

20 (4) A provision that requires the purchaser to 

21 grant agents of the seller access to the purchaser’s 

22 property. 

23 (5) A provision that mandates arbitration of 

24 any disputes between the biotech company and the 

25 purchaser. 
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1 (6) A provision that mandates any court of ju2 risdiction for settlement of disputes. 

3 (7) A provision that mandates that the pur4 chaser pay liquidated damages of more than a tech5 nology fee or similar fee itself, plus interest. 

6 (8) A provision that imposes any unfair condi7 tion upon the purchaser, as determined by the Sec8 retary or a court. 

9 SEC. 5. PREVENTION OF NONCOMPETITIVE PRACTICES IN10 VOLVING TECHNOLOGY FEES. 

11 (a) DISCLOSURE OF TECHNOLOGY FEES.—Any 

12 biotech company that sells a genetically engineered ani13 mal, genetically engineered plant, or genetically engi14 neered seed for use in agricultural production in the 

15 United States shall notify the Secretary, at such times and 

16 in such manner as the Secretary shall require, of—

17 (1) the nature and amount of any technology, 

18 nonproduction, royalty, or similar fees collected by 

19 the biotech company in each country where that ge20 netically engineered animal, plant, or seed is mar21 keted, and 

22 (2) in the case of genetically engineered plants 

23 or genetically engineered seeds, the prices charged 

24 by the biotech company for herbicides associated 

25 with that genetically engineered seed or plant. 
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1 (b) PROHIBITION ON NONCOMPETITIVE PRAC2 TICES.—A biotech company that sells a genetically engi3 neered animal, genetically engineered plant, or genetically 

4 engineered seed for use in agricultural production in the 

5 United States may not charge higher technology, non6 production, royalty, or similar fees for sales of the geneti7 cally engineered animal, plant, or seed in the United 

8 States than in other countries in which the genetically en9 gineered animal, plant, or seed is sold. 

10 (c) PUBLICATION OF DATA.—The Secretary shall 

11 publish all data received under subsection (a)(1) every six 

12 months in an electronic format and in the Federal Reg13 ister. 

14 SEC. 6. MEASURES TO AVOID CROSS POLLINATION INVOLV15 ING GENETICALLY ENGINEERED SEEDS OR 

16 PLANTS. 

17 (a) DESIGNATION OF PREDOMINATELY OUTCROSSED

18 POLLINATORS.—The Secretary shall determine which 

19 plants are predominately outcrossed pollinators and make 

20 such information available to persons who sell or purchase 

21 such plants or the seeds of such plants for use in agricul22 tural production. 

23 (b) MINIMIZING THE NEGATIVE EFFECTS OF PRE24 DOMINATELY OUTCROSSED POLLINATORS.—The Sec25 retary shall issue rules to require effective mitigation
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1 strategies for any crop that is a predominately outcrossed 

2 pollinator. 

3 (c) PROVIDING INSTRUCTIONS TO AVOID CROSS

4 POLLINATION.—The seller of any genetically engineered 

5 plant or genetically engineered seed that has been identi6 fied as a predominately outcrossed pollinator shall provide 

7 written instructions to each purchaser of the plants or 

8 seeds regarding how to plant and cultivate the plants or 

9 seeds so as to avoid cross contamination. 

10 SEC. 7. RESISTANCE OF AGRICULTURAL PESTS TO CER11 TAIN NATURALLY OCCURRING PESTICIDE; 

12 AMENDMENT TO FEDERAL INSECTICIDE, 

13 FUNGICIDE, AND RODENTICIDE ACT. 

14 Section 3(c) of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, 

15 and Rodenticide Act (7 U.S.C. 136a(c)) is amended by 

16 adding at the end the following subsection: 

17 ‘‘(11) BT RESISTANCE REGARDING PLANT-IN18 CORPORATED PESTICIDES.—

19 ‘‘(A) Not later than six months after the 

20 date of enactment of this paragraph, the Ad21 ministrator, in consultation with the advisory 

22 panel established under subparagraph (D), shall 

23 establish the best achievable resistance plan for 

24 plant-incorporated pesticides engineered to in25 clude toxins derived from the bacterium Bacil-
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1 lus thuringiensis (which bacterium is referred to 

2 in this paragraph as ‘Bt’).

3 ‘‘(B) Once the best achievable resistance 

4 plan is established under subparagraph (A), the 

5 Administrator shall revoke all Bt registrations 

6 that are not in compliance with the plan and 

7 may not issue new registrations unless the ap8 plicant has achieved the plan. 

9 ‘‘(C) If pursuant to subparagraph (A) the 

10 Administrator determines that plant-incor11 porated Bt pesticides may have an unreasonable 

12 adverse effect on the environment by facilitating 

13 the development of Bt-toxin resistance in pests, 

14 or that the review has been inconclusive on 

15 whether the pesticide facilitates such resistance, 

16 the Administrator shall take such actions under 

17 this Act as may be necessary to significantly re18 duce the extent to which such pesticides are 

19 used. 

20 ‘‘(D) Before establishing the best achiev21 able resistance plan under subparagraph (A), 

22 the Administrator shall, in accordance with pro23 cedures under section 25(d), establish an advi24 sory panel to provide advice to the Adminis-
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1 trator on scientific matters involved in the re2 view. 

3 ‘‘(E) For purposes of this paragraph, the 

4 term ‘plant-incorporated Bt pesticide’ means a 

5 plant-incorporated pesticide described in sub6 paragraph (A).’’. 

7 SEC. 8. PROHIBITION ON LABELING CERTAIN SEEDS AS 

8 NON-GENETICALLY ENGINEERED. 

9 A seed company or other person may not sell, or offer 

10 for sale, seeds for planting that are labeled as non-geneti11 cally engineered or otherwise represented as not con12 taining genetically engineered material if the Secretary 

13 finds that any sample of the seeds contains genetically en14 gineered material. 

15 SEC. 9. PROHIBITION ON CERTAIN NON-FERTILE PLANT 

16 SEEDS. 

17 Notwithstanding any other provision of law, effective 

18 45 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, a 

19 person may not manufacture, distribute, sell, plant, or 

20 otherwise use any seed that is genetically engineered to 

21 produce a plant whose seeds are not fertile or are rendered 

22 infertile by the application of an external chemical inducer. 

23 SEC. 10. PROHIBITION ON LOAN DISCRIMINATION.

24 A financial institution may not discriminate against 

25 an agricultural producer that refuses to use genetically en-
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1 gineered plants or animals or add as condition to a loan 

2 the requirement that the producer use genetically engi3 neered plants or animals.

4 SEC. 11. CIVIL PENALTIES FOR VIOLATION. 

5 (a) AUTHORITY TO ACCESS PENALTIES.—The Sec6 retary may assess, by written order, a civil penalty against 

7 a biotech company or other person that violates a provi8 sion of this Act, including a regulation promulgated or 

9 order issued under this Act. Each violation, and each day 

10 during which a violation continues, shall be a separate of11 fense. 

12 (b) AMOUNT AND FACTORS IN ACCESSING PEN13 ALTIES.—The maximum amount that may be accessed 

14 under this section for a violation may not exceed 

15 $100,000. In determining the amount of the civil penalty, 

16 the Secretary shall take into account—

17 (1) the gravity of the violation; 

18 (2) the degree of culpability; 

19 (3) the size and type of the business; and 

20 (4) any history of prior offenses under this Act 

21 or other laws administered by the Secretary. 

22 (c) NOTICE AND OPPORTUNITY FOR HEARING.—The 

23 Secretary shall not assess a civil penalty under this section 

24 against a biotech company or other person unless the com25 pany is given notice and opportunity for a hearing on the
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1 record before the Secretary in accordance with sections 

2 554 and 556 of title 5, United States Code. 

3 (d) JUDICIAL REVIEW.—(1) An order assessing a 

4 civil penalty against a person under subsection (a) may 

5 be reviewed only in accordance with this subsection. The 

6 order shall be final and conclusive unless the person—

7 (A) not later than 30 days after the effective 

8 date of the order, files a petition for judicial review 

9 in the United States court of appeals for the circuit 

10 in which the person resides or has its principal place 

11 of business or in the United States Court of Appeals 

12 for the District of Columbia; and 

13 (B) simultaneously sends a copy of the petition 

14 by certified mail to the Secretary. 

15 (2) The Secretary shall promptly file in the court a 

16 certified copy of the record on which the violation was 

17 found and the civil penalty assessed. 

18 (e) COLLECTION ACTION FOR FAILURE TO PAY AS19 SESSMENT.—If a person fails to pay a civil penalty after 

20 the order assessing the civil penalty has become final and 

21 unappealable, the Secretary shall refer the matter to the 

22 Attorney General, who shall bring a civil action to recover 

23 the amount of the civil penalty in United States district 

24 court. In the collection action, the validity and appro-
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1 priateness of the order of the Secretary imposing the civil 

2 penalty shall not be subject to review. 

3 SEC. 12. CITIZEN SUITS. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subsection 

5 (c), any person may commence a civil action in an appro6 priate district court of the United States against—

7 (1) a person who has introduced a genetically 

8 engineered organism into the environment without 

9 approval under this Act; 

10 (2) the Secretary, where there is alleged a fail11 ure of the Secretary to perform any act or duty 

12 under this Act that is the responsibility of the Sec13 retary and is not discretionary; or 

14 (3) the head of another Federal agency, if there 

15 is alleged a failure of the agency head to perform 

16 any act or duty under this Act that is the responsi17 bility of the agency head and is not discretionary. 

18 (b) RELIEF.—In a civil action under this section, the 

19 district court involved may, as the case may be—

20 (1) enforce the compliance of a person with the 

21 applicable provisions referred to in the complaint; or 

22 (2) order the Secretary or the agency head to 

23 perform the act or duty referred to in the complaint. 

24 (c) LIMITATIONS.— 
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1 (1) NOTICE TO SECRETARY.—A civil action may 

2 not be commenced under subsection (a)(1) prior to 

3 60 days after the plaintiff has provided to the Sec4 retary notice of the violation involved. 

5 (2) RELATION TO ACTIONS OF SECRETARY.—A 

6 civil action may not be commenced under subsection 

7 (a)(1) against the Secretary if the Secretary has 

8 commenced and is diligently prosecuting a civil or 

9 criminal action in a district court of the United 

10 States to enforce compliance with the applicable pro11 visions referred to in the complaint. 

12 (d) RIGHT OF SECRETARY TO INTERVENE.—In any 

13 civil action under subsection (a)(1), the Secretary , if not 

14 a party, may intervene as a matter of right. 

15 (e) AWARD OF COSTS; FILING OF BOND.—In a civil 

16 action under subsection (a), the district court involved 

17 may award costs of litigation (including reasonable attor18 ney and expert witness fees) to any party whenever the 

19 court determines such an award is appropriate. The court 

20 may, if a temporary restraining order or preliminary in21 junction is sought, require the filing of a bond or equiva22 lent security in accordance with the Federal Rules of Civil 

23 Procedure. 

24 (f) SAVINGS PROVISION.—This section does not re25 strict any right that a person (or class of persons) may 
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1 have under any statute or common law to seek enforce2 ment of the provisions of this Act, or to seek any other 

3 relief (including relief against the Secretary or the head 

4 of another Federal agency).

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