I 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1337 

To direct the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to take 

certain actions related to pesticides that may affect pollinators, and 

for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

FEBRUARY 25, 2019 

Mr. BLUMENAUER (for himself, Mr. MCGOVERN, Ms. DELAURO, Ms. 

GABBARD, Mr. HUFFMAN, Ms. KUSTER of New Hampshire, Ms. LEE of 

California, Mr. LEWIS, Mr. RYAN, Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN, Mr. DEFAZIO, Ms. PINGREE, Mr. TONKO, Ms. CASTOR of Florida, Mr. TED LIEU

of California, Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts, Ms. HAALAND, Mr. 

KEATING, Mr. CARTWRIGHT, Ms. JACKSON LEE, Mr. COHEN, Ms. 

WASSERMAN SCHULTZ, Ms. KAPTUR, Ms. VELA ́ZQUEZ, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. CONNOLLY, Mr. RASKIN, Ms. OMAR, and Ms. MCCOLLUM) 

introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture 

A BILL 

To direct the Administrator of the Environmental Protection 

Agency to take certain actions related to pesticides that 

may affect pollinators, 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, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Saving America’s Polli5 nators Act of 2019’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

2 Congress finds the following: 

3 (1) Pollination services are a vital part of agri4 cultural production, valued at over 

5 $125,000,000,000 globally. According to a 2014 

6 Presidential memorandum, pollinators provide for an 

7 annual amount of $24,000,000,000 to the economy 

8 of the United States and honey bees account for 

9 $15,000,000,000 of such amount. Similarly, polli10 nation services of native pollinators, such as bumble11 bees, squash bees, and mason bees, contribute over 

12 $3,000,000,000 to the United States agricultural 

13 economy and are estimated to contribute between 

14 $937,000,000 and $2,400,000,000 to the economy 

15 of California alone. 

16 (2) One-third of food produced in North Amer17 ica—including nearly 100 varieties of fruits and 

18 vegetables such as almonds, avocados, cranberries, 

19 and apples—depends on pollination by bees. 

20 (3) Over the past several years, documented in21 cidents of colony collapse disorder and other forms 

22 of excess bee mortality have been at a record high, 

23 with some beekeepers repeatedly losing 100 percent 

24 of their operations. The national honey crop re25 ported in 2013 was the lowest in many decades. 


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1 (4) National surveys sponsored by the Federal 

2 Government indicates that United States beekeepers 

3 lost between 35 and 46 percent of their hives annu4 ally between 2012 and 2018. On average, two-thirds 

5 of beekeepers experienced loss rates greater than the 

6 established acceptable winter mortality rates. 

7 (5) According to scientists at the Department 

8 of Agriculture, current losses of honey bee colonies 

9 are too high to confidently ensure the United States 

10 will be able to meet the pollination demands for agri11 cultural crops. 

12 (6) Native pollinators, such as bumblebees, have 

13 also suffered alarming population declines. There are 

14 currently more than 40 pollinator species federally 

15 listed as threatened or endangered, and most re16 cently, the iconic monarch butterfly has declined by 

17 90 percent. 

18 (7) Scientists have linked the use of a certain 

19 class of systemic insecticides, known as neonicotin20 oids, to the rapid decline of pollinators and to the 

21 deterioration of pollinator health. 

22 (8) Neonicotinoids cause sublethal effects, in23 cluding impaired foraging and feeding behavior, dis24 orientation, weakened immunity, delayed larval de25 velopment, and increased susceptibility to viruses, 


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1 diseases, and parasites. Numerous reports also docu2 ment acute, lethal effects from the application of 

3 neonicotinoids. 

4 (9) Conclusions from a recent global review of 

5 the impacts of systemic pesticides, primarily neonico6 tinoids, warn that they are causing significant dam7 age to a wide range of beneficial invertebrate spe8 cies, are a key factor in the decline of bees, and pose 

9 a global threat to biodiversity and ecosystem serv10 ices. Another recent global review documented high 

11 levels of freshwater contamination. 

12 (10) Science has demonstrated that a single 

13 corn kernel coated with a neonicotinoid is toxic 

14 enough to kill a songbird. Peer-reviewed research 

15 from the Netherlands has shown that the most se16 vere bird population declines occurred in those areas 

17 where neonicotinoid pollution was highest. Starlings, 

18 tree sparrows, and swallows were among the most 

19 affected. 

20 (11) In June 2013, over 50,000 bumblebees 

21 were killed as a direct result of exposure to a neonic22 otinoid applied to linden trees for cosmetic purposes. 

23 (12) In February 2014, Eugene, Oregon, voted 

24 to ban the use of neonicotinoid pesticides on city 

25 property. Similar bans and restrictions have been 


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1 enacted in Thurston County, Spokane, and Seattle, 

2 Washington, Portland, Oregon, Skagway, Alaska, 

3 and several other communities across the United 

4 States. 

5 (13) In June 2014, a Presidential memo6 randum established a Pollinator Health Task Force 

7 after identifying pollinator decline as a threat to the 

8 sustainability of food production systems, the agri9 cultural economy, and the health of the environment 

10 in the United States. 

11 (14) In July 2014, the United States Fish and 

12 Wildlife Service announced plans to phase out 

13 neonicotinoid pesticides in all national wildlife ref14 uges across the United States by January 2016. The 

15 United States Fish and Wildlife Service recognized 

16 that the prophylactic use of neonicotinoids for agri17 cultural purposes harms a wide range of nontarget 

18 species and is therefore inconsistent with the man19 agement policy of the United States Fish and Wild20 life Service. 

21 (15) In October 2014, an assessment by the 

22 Environmental Protection Agency found that neonic23 otinoid seed coatings provide little benefit to overall 

24 soybean crop yield. Additional studies determined 

25 that in approximately 80 to 90 percent of row crop 


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1 uses, neonicotinoid coatings are unnecessary. The 

2 prophylactic overuse of neonicotinoids violates the 

3 fundamental principles of integrated pest manage4 ment. 

5 (16) In November 2014, the Province of On6 tario, Canada, announced the province will move to 

7 restrict the use of neonicotinoid-coated corn and soy8 bean seeds because of the broad harms from their 

9 overuse, with a goal of 80 percent reduction by 

10 2017. 

11 (17) In September 2015, the Circuit Court of 

12 the United States for the Ninth Circuit ruled to re13 voke the Environmental Protection Agency’s ap14 proval for sulfoxaflor—a neonicotinoid pesticide. 

15 (18) In November 2016, Health Canada, the 

16 department of the Government of Canada respon17 sible for national public health, proposed a ban on 

18 almost all outdoor uses of the neonicotinoid 

19 imidacloprid, saying it is seeping into Canadian wa20 terways at levels that can harm insects and the eco21 system. 

22 (19) The President’s budget for fiscal year 

23 2018 cuts funding for pesticide review programs of 

24 the Environmental Protection Agency by 20 percent 

25 delaying reviews of new, potentially safer pesticides 


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1 as well as reviews of older, more dangerous pes2 ticides such as neonicotinoids. 

3 (20) In 2018, the European Union permanently 

4 banned outdoor uses of the neonicotinoids 

5 imidacloprid, clothianidin, and thiamethoxam after 

6 the European Food Safety Authority confirmed their 

7 risks to honey bees and wild bees. 

8 (21) In August 2018, Health Canada, proposed 

9 a ban on almost all outdoor uses of clothianidin and 

10 thiamethoxam similar to the proposed ban on 

11 imidacloprid, citing concerns that the chemicals are 

12 seeping into Canadian waterways at levels that can 

13 harm insects and the ecosystem. 

14 (22) Worldwide, insects are experiencing popu15 lation declines twice as high as those of vertebrate 

16 species, with a rate of local species extinction eight 

17 times higher than that of vertebrate species. About 

18 one-third of all insect species are threatened with ex19 tinction, with 1 percent added every year. Such de20 clines result in an annual 2.5 percent loss in bio21 mass, which threatens the overall functioning and 

22 stability of ecosystems worldwide. 

23 (23) Insect biodiversity is essential to the prop24 er functioning of ecosystems, and declines are dis25 rupting pollination, natural pest control, food reVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:23 Mar 07, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1337.IH H1337

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1 sources, nutrient recycling, and decomposition serv2 ices provided by insects. 

3 (24) Major declines in insect populations can be 

4 traced to the expansion of intensive, industrial agri5 culture, including the systematic and widespread use 

6 of insecticides, herbicides, fungicides, and chemical 

7 fertilizers. 

8 (25) Because insects constitute the world’s 

9 most abundant and speciose animal group and pro10 vide critical services within ecosystems, such event 

11 cannot be ignored and should prompt decisive action 

12 to avert a catastrophic collapse of nature’s eco13 systems. 

14 SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF A POLLINATOR PROTECTION 

15 BOARD. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator of the Envi17 ronmental Protection Agency shall establish a Pollinator 

18 Protection Board in accordance with the Federal Advisory 

19 Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App. 2 et seq.) (hereafter re20 ferred to in this section as the ‘‘Board’’) to assist in the 

21 development of an independent review process for pes22 ticides that pose a threat to pollinators and pollinator 

23 habitat, and advise the Administrator on any other aspects 

24 of the implementation of this title. 


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1 (b) COMPOSITION OF THE BOARD.—The Board shall 

2 be composed of 15 members without conflicts of interests 

3 (as defined in subsection (g) of this Act) of which— 

4 (1) 4 shall be scientists with expertise in polli5 nators, toxicology, and ecosystems, of which at least 

6 1 shall have expertise in native bees; 

7 (2) 3 shall be beekeepers— 

8 (A) 1 shall be a commercial beekeeper; 

9 (B) 1 shall be a chemical-free beekeeper; 

10 and 

11 (C) 1 shall be a hobby beekeeper; 

12 (3) 2 shall be certified organic farmers; 

13 (4) 2 shall be non-organic farmers; 

14 (5) 3 shall be representatives of environment, 

15 conservation, or resource organizations; and 

16 (6) 1 shall be a representative of a commercial 

17 enterprise that protect bees. 

18 (c) APPOINTMENT.—Not later than 180 days after 

19 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Administrator 

20 shall appoint members of the Board under subsection (b) 

21 from nominations received from States, State beekeeping 

22 organizations, and other interested persons and organiza23 tions. 

24 (d) TERM.—A member of the Board shall serve for 

25 a term of 5 years except that with respect to initial apVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:23 Mar 07, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1337.IH H1337

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1 pointments of the Board, 7 members shall serve for a 4- 

2 year term. A member may not serve consecutive terms un3 less such member served an original term that was less 

4 than 5 years. 

5 (e) MEETINGS.—The Administrator shall convene a 

6 first meeting of the Board not later than 60 days after 

7 the appointment of the members under subsection (c) and 

8 shall convene subsequent meetings at least once a year 

9 thereafter. 

10 (f) COMPENSATION AND EXPENSES.—A member of 

11 the Board— 

12 (1) shall serve without compensation; and 

13 (2) may be allowed travel or transportation ex14 penses under section 5703 of title 5, United States 

15 Code. 

16 (g) CONFLICT OF INTEREST.—Except for the rep17 resentative mentioned in section 3(b)(6), no member of the 

18 Board or any technical advisory panel of such Board may 

19 have a conflict of interest with a registrant as defined in 

20 the 7 U.S.C. section 136(y) or a trade association or orga21 nization that represents the interests of one or more reg22 istrants. 

23 (h) CHAIRPERSON.—The Board shall select a Chair24 person for the Board. 


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1 (i) QUORUM.—A majority of the members of the 

2 Board shall constitute a quorum for the purpose of con3 ducting business. 

4 (j) DECISIVE VOTES.—Two-thirds of the votes cast 

5 at a meeting of the Board at which a quorum is present 

6 shall be decisive of any motion. 

7 (k) OTHER TERMS AND CONDITIONS.—The Adminis8 trator shall authorize the Board to hire a staff director 

9 and shall detail staff of the Environmental Protection 

10 Agency or allow for the hiring of staff and may, subject 

11 to necessary appropriations, pay necessary expenses in12 curred by the Board in carrying out the provisions of this 

13 Act, as determined appropriate by the Administrator. 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Board shall evaluate 

15 pesticides registered and under application for reg16 istration for application to plants or plant seeds by 

17 the Environmental Protection Agency under sections 

18 3 and 4 of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and 

19 Rodenticide Act (7 U.S.C. 136a) for their toxicity to 

20 pollinators and pollinator habitat, using the fol21 lowing evaluation procedures: 

22 (A) EVALUATION PROCEDURES.—In evalu23 ating pesticides for their toxicity to pollinators 

24 and pollinator habit, the Board shall consider 

25 the following: 


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1 (i) Available information from the En2 vironmental Protection Agency, United 

3 States Department of Agriculture, Na4 tional Institute of Environmental Health 

5 Studies and such other sources as appro6 priate, concerning the potential for adverse 

7 effects of a pesticide on pollinator popu8 lations or pollinator habitat. 

9 (ii) Peer-reviewed scientific literature 

10 relating to the impact of a registered pes11 ticide on individual pollinators, pollinator 

12 populations, overall insect biomass and bio13 diversity, and pollinator habitat, includ14 ing— 

15 (I) chronic and acute toxicity of 

16 a registered pesticide on individual 

17 pollinators, pollinator populations, and 

18 pollinator habitat; 

19 (II) ecosystem-wide impacts of a 

20 pesticide, including but not limited to 

21 secondary non-target impacts and im22 pacts to the trophic food web; and 

23 (III) synergistic effects of a pes24 ticide on individual pollinators, polli25 nator populations, overall insect bioVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:23 Mar 07, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1337.IH H1337

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1 mass and biodiversity, and pollinator 

2 habitat. 

3 (iii) Field studies examining the im4 pact of a pesticide on honey bees and na5 tive bees, including bumblebees and soli6 tary bees. 

7 (iv) Alternative products and practices 

8 that may be adopted in place of the pes9 ticide under evaluation. 

10 (B) TECHNICAL ADVISORY PANELS.—The 

11 Board shall convene technical advisory panels, 

12 without conflicts of interest, to provide scientific 

13 evaluation of pesticides under paragraph (1). 

14 Such panels may include experts in agronomy, 

15 entomology, conservation ecology, health 

16 sciences, toxicology, and other relevant dis17 ciplines. 

18 (2) RECOMMENDATIONS.— 

19 (A) IN GENERAL.—After conducting eval20 uation procedures, the Board shall hold a deci21 sive vote regarding whether to affirm the reg22 istration of an evaluated pesticide under section 

23 3 or 4 of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, 

24 and Rodenticide Act (7 U.S.C. 136a). The AdVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:23 Mar 07, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00013 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1337.IH H1337

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1 ministrator of the Environmental Protection 

2 Agency shall adopt this recommendation. 

3 (B) NO VOTE.—If an evaluated pesticide’s 

4 registration is not affirmed by a decisive vote of 

5 the Board, the Administrator shall within 30 

6 days issue a notice of intent to cancel the reg7 istration of a pesticide pursuant to section 6 of 

8 the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and 

9 Rodenticide Act (7 U.S.C. 136d). 

10 (C) CANCELLATION.—Pesticides subject to 

11 cancellation procedures as a result of the 

12 Board’s recommendation are prohibited from 

13 continued sale and use of existing stocks under 

14 section 6(a)(1) of the Federal Insecticide, Fun15 gicide, and Rodenticide Act (7 U.S.C. 

16 136d(a)(1)). 

17 (D) DENIAL OF REGISTRATION.—If a pes18 ticide not yet registered pursuant to under sec19 tion 3 or 4 of the Federal Insecticide, Fun20 gicide, and Rodenticide Act (7 U.S.C. 136a) is 

21 not affirmed registration by a decisive vote, the 

22 Administrator shall deny registration under 

23 such sections. 

24 (3) PRIORITIZING REVIEWS.— 


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1 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Board shall estab2 lish procedures to evaluate registered pesticides 

3 for their harm to pollinators and pollinator 

4 habitat, prioritizing those identified by the En5 vironmental Protection Agency as posing acute 

6 risks to honey bees or native bees. 

7 (B) PRIORITY.—The Board shall review 

8 pesticides prior to registration under sections 3 

9 and 4 of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and 

10 Rodenticide Act (7 U.S.C. 136a) if preliminary 

11 data indicates acute or chronic risks to honey 

12 bees or other pollinators. Such pesticides shall 

13 be prioritized by the Board. 

14 (4) REPORT.—Pesticides not affirmed for reg15 istration by a decisive vote of the Board shall be 

16 transmitted to the Administrator in a formal report. 

17 Such a report shall outline in detail the Board’s rea18 soning for its recommendation. 

19 (l) NO ADDITIONS.—The Administrator may not in20 clude exemptions for the use of specific substances or spe21 cific uses of substances proposed for cancellation by the 

22 Board. 

23 (m) NOTICE AND COMMENT.—Before issuing the 

24 cancellation, the Administrator shall seek public comment 


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1 on such proposals, and may adopt standards that are only 

2 more restrictive than the Board’s recommendation. 

3 SEC. 4. URGENT REGULATORY RESPONSE FOR HONEY BEE 

4 AND POLLINATOR PROTECTION. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after the 

6 date of the enactment of this Act, the Administrator of 

7 the Environmental Protection Agency shall cancel the reg8 istrations of any pesticides containing imidacloprid, 

9 clothianidin, thiamethoxam, dinotefuran, acetamiprid, 

10 sulfoxaflor, flupyradifurone, or fipronil to the extent such 

11 pesticide is registered, conditionally or otherwise, under 

12 the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act 

13 (7 U.S.C. 136 et seq.) for application to plants or plant 

14 seeds until the Pollinator Protection Board (as established 

15 under section 3) has made a determination that such in16 secticide will not cause unreasonable adverse effects on 

17 pollinators based on— 

18 (1) an evaluation of the published and peer-re19 viewed scientific evidence on whether the use or uses 

20 of such neonicotinoids cause unreasonable adverse 

21 effects on pollinators, including native bees, honey 

22 bees, birds, bats, and other species of beneficial in23 sects; and 

24 (2) a completed field study that meets the cri25 teria determined by the Pollinator Protection Board 


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1 and evaluates residues, including residue buildup 

2 after repeated annual application, chronic low-dose 

3 exposure, cumulative effects of multiple chemical ex4 posures, and any other protocol determined to be 

5 necessary by the Pollinator Protection Board to pro6 tect managed and native pollinators. 

7 (b) CONDITIONS ON CERTAIN PESTICIDES REG8 ISTRATIONS.—Notwithstanding section 3 of the Federal 

9 Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (7 U.S.C. 

10 136a), for purposes of the protection of honey bees, other 

11 pollinators, and beneficial insects, the Administrator of 

12 the Environmental Protection Agency shall not issue any 

13 new registrations, conditional or otherwise, for any seed 

14 treatment, soil application, and foliar treatment on bee15 attractive plants, trees, and cereals under such Act until 

16 the Pollinator Protection Board (as established under sec17 tion 3) has made the determination described in section 

18 3(a), based on an evaluation described in subsection (a)(1) 

19 and a completed field study described in subsection (a)(2), 

20 with respect to such insecticide. 

21 (c) MONITORING OF NATIVE BEES.—The Secretary 

22 of the Interior, in coordination with the Administrator of 

23 the Environmental Protection Agency and the Secretary 

24 of Agriculture, shall, for purposes of protecting and ensur25 ing the long-term viability of native bees and other polliVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:23 Mar 07, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00017 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1337.IH H1337

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1 nators of agricultural crops, horticultural plants, wild 

2 plants, and other plants— 

3 (1) consult with members of the U.S. Depart4 ment of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service’s 

5 Pollinating Insects Research Units, the Pollinator 

6 Protection Board, taxonomists who survey and iden7 tify native bees, and other pollinator scientists on 

8 the best methods and data collection; 

9 (2) annually monitor the health and population 

10 status of native bees, including the status of native 

11 bees in agricultural and nonagricultural habitats in12 cluding rural, urban, and suburban areas within 

13 each of the twelve unified regions as defined by the 

14 U.S. Department of the Interior, noted on U.S. Geo15 logical Survey map dated July 20, 2018; 

16 (3) identify the scope and likely causes of un17 usual native bee mortality; and 

18 (4) beginning not later than 180 days after the 

19 date of the enactment of this Act and each year 

20 thereafter, submit to Congress, and make available 

21 to the public, a report on such health and population 

22 status. 

23 (d) EXEMPTIONS.—Section 18 of the Federal Insecti24 cide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (7 U.S.C. 136p) 

25 shall not apply to this Act, except— 


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1 (1) in an emergency situation to avert signifi2 cant risk to threatened or engendered species as de3 scribed in clauses (i) and (ii) of section 166.2(a)(2) 

4 of title 40 Code of Federal Regulations; 

5 (2) to quarantine invasive species as described 

6 in section 166.2(b) of title 40, Code of Federal Reg7 ulations; or 

8 (3) to protect public health as described in sec9 tion 166.2(c) of title 40, Code of Federal Regula10 tions. 

11 SEC. 5. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

12 There are authorized to be appropriated such sums 

13 as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of this 

14 Act. 

Æ 


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