Agriculture

Local agriculture makes a significant contribution to the North Bay economy.  I support the protection of agriculture and the open space that greatly enhances our quality of life.  Sonoma and Marin counties play an important role in California’s agriculture industry, and I will continue to make certain that the federal government is responsive to the needs of our local agricultural community.

 CHILD NUTRITION

The rising cost of food has put a strain on working families across the country.  That’s why I support nutrition programs that provide children, students, and low-income families with healthy, nutritious meals.  Federal nutrition programs, which include school lunch programs, childcare programs, and summer food programs, serve nearly forty million children nationwide and two million lower-income pregnant and post-partum women.

The first line of defense in the war against childhood obesity begins in our schools. The last time the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) set nutrition standards for school vending machines and lunch line a la carte items was in 1979.  That’s why last Congress, I introduced H.R. 1324, the Child Nutrition Promotion and School Lunch Protection Act, which raised the nutrition standards of foods and drinks sold alongside school meals in cafeterias, vending machines, and school stores so that students have access to healthy foods throughout the school day.  During the House Committee on Education and Labor consideration of H.R. 5504, Improving Nutrition for America's Children Act, I offered an amendment which authorized the Secretary of Agriculture to create a pilot program to provide competitive grants to school food authorities to increase the amount of organic food offerings.  Both of my provisions were included in S. 3307, the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act which was signed into law by President Barack Obama.

FOOD SAFETY

California's Sixth Congressional District farmers are known worldwide for their high quality products.  I will continue to fight for initiatives that help our local farmers.  It’s important that consumers can trust the food they purchase does not contain harmful substances.  H.R. 2112, the Agriculture, Rural Development, and Food and Drug Administration Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year 2012, provides $2.5 billion to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) which ensures the safety of our domestic and imported food products, $234 million above the President’s budget.  H.R. 2997 passed into law on November 18, 2011. 

In 2010, I voted for H.R. 2741, the Food Safety Modernization Act, a bill that included an amendment which exempted small farms from federal requirements if the farms sell the majority of their food directly to consumers within the state (or within a 275-mile radius of where it was produced) or earned $500,000 or less per year in sales.  H.R. 2741 passed Congress and was signed into law by President Barack Obama on January 4, 2011.

SUPPORTING THE NORTH BAY'S DAIRY INDUSTRY 

As a result of California's high standards, California dairies produce some of the best tasting and most nutritious milk in the world.  I support maintaining the dairy safety net and voted for the Farm Bill, which extended the price support program through 2012 and the Milk Income Loss Contract (MILC) program to help farmers if market prices drop below a target price.  Since Congress reauthorized the last Farm Bill in 2002, I have written to both appropriators and the Agriculture Committee asking them to keep their commitment in the Farm bill to our dairy farmers. 

GENETICALLY ENGINEERED FOODS

Many people are skeptical of genetically engineered (GE) foods and may prefer not to purchase them. We cannot afford to overlook the potential health-related risks of consuming GE foods.  Furthermore, it’s unacceptable that current regulations do not give consumers adequate information about the contents of food products they are consuming.   Labeling such products would ensure that consumers are knowledgeable about the characteristics of the food they purchase and consume.  That’s why, I am a cosponsor of H.R. 3553, the Genetically Engineered Food Right to Know Act, which would require that foods that contain GE material or produce with GE seeds are labeled accordingly.  Additionally, I signed a letter to the Commissioner of FDA, Margaret Hamburg asking that GE foods require labeling.  

(Updated April 2012)