I 
115TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 3040 
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 
JUNE 23, 2017 
Mr. CONYERS (for himself, Mr. BLUMENAUER, Mr. CONNOLLY, Mr. MEEKS, 
Ms. DELAURO, Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts, Mr. LARSEN of Wash-
ington, Mr. NADLER, Mr. LEWIS of Georgia, Ms. LEE, Mr. CARTWRIGHT, 
Ms. MCCOLLUM, Ms. TSONGAS, Ms. ROYBAL-ALLARD, Mr. PASCRELL, 
Ms. NORTON, Ms. SPEIER, Mr. HUFFMAN, Mr. HIMES, Mr. ELLISON, 
Ms. JUDY CHU of California, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN, 
Mr. COHEN, Mr. RUSH, and Ms. LOFGREN) 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. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Saving America’s Polli-
nators Act of 2017’’. 
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SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds the following: 
(1) Pollination services are a vital part of agri-
cultural 
production, 
valued 
at 
over 
$125,000,000,000 globally. According to a 2014 
Presidential memorandum, pollinators provide for an 
annual amount of $24,000,000,000 to the economy 
of the United States and honeybees account for 
$15,000,000,000 of such amount. Similarly, polli-
nation services of native pollinators, such as bumble-
bees, squash bees, and mason bees, contribute over 
$3,000,000,000 to the United States agricultural 
economy and are estimated to contribute between 
$937,000,000 and $2,400,000,000 to the economy 
of California alone. 
(2) One-third of food produced in North Amer-
ica—including nearly 100 varieties of fruits and 
vegetables such as almonds, avocados, cranberries, 
and apples—depends on pollination by bees. 
(3) Over the past several years, documented in-
cidents of colony collapse disorder and other forms 
of excess bee mortality have been at a record high, 
with some beekeepers repeatedly losing 100 percent 
of their operations. The national honey crop re-
ported in 2013 was the lowest in many decades. 
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(4) A recent national survey sponsored by the 
Federal Government indicates that United States 
beekeepers experienced a 45.2 percent annual mor-
tality rate with their hives during the period begin-
ning in April 2012 and ending in March 2013. Dur-
ing the winter of 2013–2014, two-thirds of bee-
keepers experienced loss rates greater than the es-
tablished acceptable winter mortality rate. 
(5) According to scientists at the Department 
of Agriculture, current losses of honeybee colonies 
are too high to confidently ensure the United States 
will be able to meet the pollination demands for agri-
cultural crops. 
(6) Native pollinators, such as bumblebees, have 
also suffered alarming population declines. There are 
currently more than 40 pollinator species federally 
listed as threatened or endangered, and most re-
cently, the iconic monarch butterfly has declined by 
90 percent. 
(7) Scientists have linked the use of a certain 
class 
of 
systemic 
insecticides, 
known 
as 
neonicotinoids, to the rapid decline of pollinators 
and to the deterioration of pollinator health. 
(8) Neonicotinoids cause sublethal effects, in-
cluding impaired foraging and feeding behavior, dis-
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orientation, weakened immunity, delayed larval de-
velopment, and increased susceptibility to viruses, 
diseases, and parasites. Numerous reports also docu-
ment acute, lethal effects from the application of 
neonicotinoids. 
(9) Conclusions from a recent global review of 
the 
impacts 
of 
systemic 
pesticides, 
primarily 
neonicotinoids, warn that they are causing signifi-
cant damage to a wide range of beneficial inverte-
brate species, are a key factor in the decline of bees, 
and pose a global threat to biodiversity and eco-
system services. Another recent global review docu-
mented high levels of freshwater contamination. 
(10) Science has demonstrated that a single 
corn kernel coated with a neonicotinoid is toxic 
enough to kill a songbird. Peer-reviewed research 
from the Netherlands has shown that the most se-
vere bird population declines occurred in those areas 
where neonicotinoid pollution was highest. Starlings, 
tree sparrows, and swallows were among the most 
affected. 
(11) In January 2013, the European Food 
Safety Authority determined that the most widely 
used neonicotinoids pose unacceptable hazards to 
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bees, prompting the European Union to suspend 
their use on agricultural crops. 
(12) In June 2013, over 50,000 bumblebees 
were killed as a direct result of exposure to a 
neonicotinoid applied to linden trees for cosmetic 
purposes. 
(13) In February 2014, Eugene, Oregon, voted 
to ban the use of neonicotinoid pesticides on city 
property. Similar bans and restrictions have been 
enacted in Thurston County, Spokane, and Seattle, 
Washington, and Skagway, Alaska. 
(14) In June 2014, a Presidential memo-
randum established a Pollinator Health Task Force 
after identifying pollinator decline as a threat to the 
sustainability of food production systems, the agri-
cultural economy, and the health of the environment 
in the United States. 
(15) In July 2014, the United States Fish and 
Wildlife Service announced plans to phase out 
neonicotinoid pesticides in all national wildlife ref-
uges across the United States by January 2016. The 
United States Fish and Wildlife Service recognized 
that the prophylactic use of neonicotinoids for agri-
cultural purposes harms a wide range of nontarget 
species and is therefore inconsistent with the man-
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agement policy of the United States Fish and Wild-
life Service. 
(16) In October 2014, an assessment by the 
Environmental 
Protection 
Agency 
found 
that 
neonicotinoid seed coatings provide little benefit to 
overall soybean crop yield. Additional studies deter-
mined that in approximately 80 to 90 percent of row 
crop uses, neonicotinoid coatings are unnecessary. 
The prophylactic overuse of neonicotinoids violates 
the fundamental principles of integrated pest man-
agement. 
(17) In November 2014, the Province of On-
tario, Canada, announced the province will move to 
restrict the use of neonicotinoid-coated corn and soy-
bean seeds because of the broad harms from their 
overuse, with a goal of 80 percent reduction by 
2017. 
(18) In September 2015, the Circuit Court of 
the United States for the Ninth Circuit ruled to re-
voke the Environmental Protection Agency’s ap-
proval for sufloxaflor—a neonicotinoid pesticide. 
(19) In November 2016, Health Canada, the 
Department of the Government of Canada with re-
sponsibility for national public health, proposed a 
ban on almost all uses of the neonicotinoid 
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imidacloprid, saying it is seeping into Canadian wa-
terways at levels that can harm insects and the eco-
system. 
(20) The President’s budget for fiscal year 
2018 cuts funding for pesticide review programs of 
the Environmental Protection Agency by 20 percent 
delaying reviews of new, potentially safer pesticides 
as well as reviews of older, more dangerous pes-
ticides such as neonicotinoids. 
SEC. 3. URGENT REGULATORY RESPONSE FOR HONEYBEE 
AND POLLINATOR PROTECTION. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after the 
date of the enactment of this Act, the Administrator of 
the Environmental Protection Agency shall suspend the 
registration of imidacloprid, clothianidin, thiamethoxam, 
dinotafuran, and any other members of the nitro group 
of neonicotinoid insecticides to the extent such insecticide 
is registered, conditionally or otherwise, under the Federal 
Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (7 U.S.C. 136 
et seq.) for use in seed treatment, soil application, or foliar 
treatment on bee-attractive plants, trees, and cereals until 
the Administrator has made a determination that such in-
secticide will not cause unreasonable adverse effects on 
pollinators based on— 
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(1) an evaluation of the published and peer-re-
viewed scientific evidence on whether the use or uses 
of such neonicotinoids cause unreasonable adverse 
effects on pollinators, including native bees, honey-
bees, birds, bats, and other species of beneficial in-
sects; and 
(2) a completed field study that meets the cri-
teria required by the Administrator and evaluates 
residues, including residue buildup after repeated 
annual application, chronic low-dose exposure, cumu-
lative effects of multiple chemical exposures, and any 
other protocol determined to be necessary by the Ad-
ministrator to protect managed and native polli-
nators. 
(b) CONDITIONS
ON CERTAIN PESTICIDES REG-
ISTRATIONS.—Notwithstanding section 3 of the Federal 
Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (7 U.S.C. 
136a), for purposes of the protection of honeybees, other 
pollinators, and beneficial insects, the Administrator of 
the Environmental Protection Agency shall not issue any 
new registrations, conditional or otherwise, for any seed 
treatment, soil application, and foliar treatment on bee- 
attractive plants, trees, and cereals under such Act until 
the Administrator has made the determination described 
in subsection (a), based on an evaluation described in sub-
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section (a)(1) and a completed field study described in 
subsection (a)(2), with respect to such insecticide. 
(c) MONITORING OF NATIVE BEES.—The Secretary 
of the Interior, in coordination with the Administrator of 
the Environmental Protection Agency, shall, for purposes 
of protecting and ensuring the long-term viability of native 
bees and other pollinators of agricultural crops, horti-
cultural plants, wild plants, and other plants— 
(1) regularly monitor the health and population 
status of native bees, including the status of native 
bees in agricultural and nonagricultural habitats and 
areas of ornamental plants, residential areas, and 
landscaped areas; 
(2) identify the scope and likely causes of un-
usual native bee mortality; and 
(3) beginning not later than 180 days after the 
date of the enactment of this Act and each year 
thereafter, submit to Congress, and make available 
to the public, a report on such health and population 
status. 
Æ 
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