Title: DIRECT Act
Policy area: Agriculture and Food

Summary:
Direct Interstate Retail Exemption for Certain Transactions Act or the DIRECT Act
This bill allows meat and poultry products inspected by State Meat and Poultry Inspection programs to be sold by retail stores, restaurants, or similar retail-type establishments over the internet and shipped by a carrier in commerce (other than for export to a foreign country), provided the meat and poultry products so inspected are shipped directly to household consumers and in normal retail quantities. (Under the inspection programs, the Department of Agriculture Food Safety and Inspection Service allows states that meet certain requirements to inspect meat and poultry. The state-inspected products are currently limited to intrastate commerce, unless a state opts into a separate Cooperative Interstate Shipment Program.)

[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 547 Introduced in House (IH)]

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117th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 547

   To amend the Federal Meat Inspection Act and the Poultry Products 
 Inspection Act to allow for the interstate internet sales of certain 
       State-inspected meat and poultry, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            January 28, 2021

 Mr. Johnson of South Dakota (for himself and Mr. Cuellar) introduced 
 the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To amend the Federal Meat Inspection Act and the Poultry Products 
 Inspection Act to allow for the interstate internet sales of certain 
       State-inspected meat and poultry, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Direct Interstate Retail Exemption 
for Certain Transactions Act'' or the ``DIRECT Act''.

SEC. 2. INTERSTATE INTERNET SALES OF CERTAIN STATE-INSPECTED MEAT.

    (a) In General.--Section 301 of the Federal Meat Inspection Act (21 
U.S.C. 661) is amended--
            (1) in subsection (a)(1), by inserting ``or for 
        distribution pursuant to the second sentence of subsection 
        (c)(2)'' before the period at the end; and
            (2) in subsection (c)(2)--
                    (A) in the first sentence, by inserting ``or by'' 
                after ``conducted at'' each place it appears; and
                    (B) by inserting after the first sentence the 
                following: ``For the purposes of this paragraph, any 
                retail store, restaurant, or similar retail-type 
                establishment may sell over the internet and ship by 
                carrier in commerce (other than for export to a foreign 
                country) any State-inspected meat or meat food product, 
                provided that the State-inspected meat or meat food 
                product is shipped directly to household consumers and 
                in normal retail quantities.''.
    (b) Technical Amendments.--Section 301 of the Federal Meat 
Inspection Act (21 U.S.C. 661) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``he'' each place it appears and inserting 
        ``the Secretary''; and
            (2) in subsection (c)--
                    (A) in paragraph (1), in the first sentence, by 
                striking ``subparagraph (2)'' and inserting ``paragraph 
                (2)'';
                    (B) in paragraph (2)--
                            (i) in the first sentence, by striking 
                        ``paragraph (c)'' and inserting ``subsection''; 
                        and
                            (ii) in the third sentence (as so 
                        redesignated), by striking ``subparagraph'' and 
                        inserting ``paragraph'';
                    (C) in paragraph (3)--
                            (i) by striking ``paragraph (c)'' each 
                        place it appears and inserting ``subsection'';
                            (ii) by striking ``subparagraph (1)'' and 
                        inserting ``paragraph (1)''; and
                            (iii) by striking ``this paragraph'' each 
                        place it appears and inserting ``this 
                        subsection''; and
                    (D) in paragraph (4), by striking ``paragraph (c)'' 
                and inserting ``subsection''.

SEC. 3. INTERSTATE INTERNET SALES OF CERTAIN STATE-INSPECTED POULTRY.

    (a) In General.--Section 5 of the Poultry Products Inspection Act 
(21 U.S.C. 454) is amended--
            (1) in subsection (a)(1), by inserting ``or for 
        distribution pursuant to the second sentence of subsection 
        (c)(2)'' before the period at the end; and
            (2) in subsection (c)(2)--
                    (A) in the first sentence, by inserting ``or by'' 
                after ``conducted at'' each place it appears; and
                    (B) by inserting after the first sentence the 
                following: ``For the purposes of this paragraph, any 
                retail store, restaurant, or similar retail-type 
                establishment may sell over the internet and ship by 
                carrier in commerce (other than for export to a foreign 
                country) any State-inspected poultry product, provided 
                that the State-inspected poultry product is shipped 
                directly to household consumers and in normal retail 
                quantities.''.
    (b) Technical Amendments.--Section 5 of the Poultry Products 
Inspection Act (21 U.S.C. 454) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``he'' each place it appears and inserting 
        ``the Secretary'';
            (2) in subsection (a)(3), in the third sentence, by 
        striking ``subparagraph (4)'' and inserting ``paragraph (4)''; 
        and
            (3) in subsection (c)--
                    (A) in paragraph (1)--
                            (i) in the first sentence, by striking 
                        ``subparagraph (2) of this paragraph (c)'' and 
                        inserting ``paragraph (2)''; and
                            (ii) in the fourth sentence, by striking 
                        ``subparagraph (a)(4) of this section'' and 
                        inserting ``subsection (a)(4)'';
                    (B) in paragraph (2)--
                            (i) in the first sentence, by striking 
                        ``paragraph (c)'' and inserting ``subsection''; 
                        and
                            (ii) in the third sentence (as so 
                        redesignated), by striking ``subparagraph'' and 
                        inserting ``paragraph'';
                    (C) in paragraph (3)--
                            (i) by striking ``subparagraph (1) of this 
                        paragraph (c)'' and inserting ``paragraph 
                        (1)'';
                            (ii) by striking ``paragraph (c)'' each 
                        place it appears and inserting ``subsection''; 
                        and
                            (iii) by striking ``this paragraph'' each 
                        place it appears and inserting ``this 
                        subsection''; and
                    (D) in paragraph (4), by striking ``paragraph (c)'' 
                and inserting ``subsection''.
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