Illinois HB 5776 passed the Senate!  This bill : (1) forbids the Illinois Department of Agriculture (IDOA) from requiring premises registration or NAIS electronic identification for participating in fairs, unless required by federal law and (2) requires the IDOA to develop a procedure for people to withdraw from NAIS, so that the thousands of people who have already signed up can get back out.

The Senate version of the bill is different from the House version, so the bill has gone back to the House.  Either the House will have to concur in the Senate version, or the Senate will be asked to concur in the House version.  The difference between the two versions is not related to NAIS.  Rather, it’s a provision which would strip the Governor and agency of rulemaking authority without legislative approval.  But the arguments over that provision threaten to kill HB 5776.

Please call both your state Senator and Representative to urge their continued support for HB 5776.  We also need calls to Speaker Madigan.

TAKE ACTION

1)  Call your Illinois Representative and Senator. You can look up who represents you at www.congress.org.  Remember, HB 5776 is a state bill, so look for your state legislators’ information. You can also call the Illinois Legislature's information line at 217-782-3944 and ask to be connected to your Representative’s and Senator’s offices.

MESSAGE:  “I am a constituent who is against the National Animal Identification System.  I appreciate Representative (or Senator) _________ voting yes on HB 5776 when it came to the floor.  Now that the Senate and House have passed different versions, I am asking that he (she) set aside any other issues and help pass HB 5776.”

2)  Call House Speaker Madigan at 217-782-5350.  MESSAGE: “Please call HB 5776 for a vote.”

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

There is a lot of debate around a provision that was added to HB 5776 in the House.  This provision would strip the Governor and agency of rulemaking authority without legislative approval.  The provision was added to many of the bills in the House and has nothing to do with NAIS --  it is about the balance of power between the branches of government.  The Senate Agriculture Committee removed the provision.  So, assuming HB 5776 passses the Senate, either the House will have to concur in the Senate version or the Senate will have to concur in the House version.  In other words, there’s major risk that the bill could die because of disagreements that have nothing to do with NAIS. 

So it’s important to call BOTH your Senator and Representative, and be clear that you want them to pass HB 5776.  Ask them to set aside the other issues, and agree that NAIS should not be forced on our children and that people should be able to withdraw from it.

Background on NAIS in Illinois and HB 5776 

The Illinois Department of Agriculture was requiring children to register in NAIS in order to be part of the county and state fairs.  HB 5776 was filed to reverse that policy. 

On April 1, the House unanimously voted yes on HB 5776.  This bill would stop the IDOA from requiring NAIS premises registration or electronic identification for people competing in the state fairs.  HB 5776 also provides an explicit right to withdraw from the program.

On April 18, the IDOA announced that it is reversing its policy and making premises registration voluntary for state fair exhibitors: http://www.sj-r.com/News/stories/28597.asp

This is great news, but it does not end the fight!  We still need the Illinois Legislature to pass HB 5776:
1)  To stop the IDOA from changing its mind again and making NAIS premises registration – or electronic identification – mandatory in the future;
2) To provide an express right to withdraw, so that the thousands of people who were coerced into registering can get back out.

TALKING POINTS ABOUT NAIS

• It is wrong to use our children to implement a controversial program opposed by many of their parents.
• NAIS is not a good program for Illinois, even beyond the issue of our children.
• NAIS will hurt Illinois’ economy:
  • No agency has completed a cost-benefit analysis.
  • Costs of the program include the cost of the tags, hardware, software, time and labor
  • Many small farmer and ranchers cannot afford these costs
  • Service providers (veterinarians, feed stores, auction houses, meat processors, etc.) will be harmed when the farmers and ranchers go out of business.
  • Remaining farmers will pass the costs on to consumers, lowering demand for local foods
• Neither the USDA nor the Illinois Agriculture Department has scientific proof that NAIS will improve disease control:
  • It does not address the cause, treatment, or transmission of disease, in domestic or wild animals.
  • It does not significantly improve on current methods for identification and tracking of disease.
• NAIS will not improve food safety
  • USDA itself has stated that this is not a food safety program
  • Contamination of food with e. coli and other bacteria occurs at the slaughterhouse or afterwards, while NAIS will stop before that point.
• NAIS is not necessary for the market.  Age- and source-verification is already available through the USDA's Process Verified Program
• NAIS will not protect against terrorism and the technology is flawed
  • The microchips chosen by the state can be cloned, destroyed, or infected with computer viruses, and reprogrammed. Any terrorist or thief can use this.
  • The database of information, created by the state agency and available to USDA, will provide a target for hackers.
• NAIS infringes on people's constitutional rights, including due process, privacy, and religious freedom.
• NAIS unfairly attacks the rights of pet owners and those who raise animals as food for their family.
• USDA states that NAIS is voluntary at the federal level, so there is no "federal mandate" requiring Illinois to implement this program
• Other states are also rejecting or limiting NAIS, so Illinois will not be disadvantaged by refusing to participate.

MORE INFORMATION ON HB 5776

HB 5776, as originally filed, stated: Sec. 205-26: Fairs; premises ID numbers.  "The Department shall not require a premises identification number to exhibit or enter livestock or horses at any fair or exhibition in Illinois, unless required by federal law or regulation without first receiving approval for such a requirement from the governing board of the fair or exhibition."  We asked for several amendments and we got everything we asked for and more!

On March 4, the House Agriculture Committee voted to approve an amended version of HB 5776 by a 10-0 vote!  The amended version is much stronger than the original bill, and included all of the amendments we asked for and more!  It (1) removed the loophole that would have allowed the fair board and IDOA to require NAIS if they agreed; (2) added an explicit provision for withdrawing from the program; (3) added a ban on requiring NAIS-compliant electronic ID; (4) added poultry and rabbits to the protections of the bill; and (5) states that the agency does not have rulemaking authority under the bill.

Note: One of the changes to the bill in the House was something we did not ask for.  Because of political issues that have nothing to do with NAIS, a provision was addede that states that "neither the Governor nor any agency or agency head under the jurisdiction of the Governor has any authority to  make or promulgate rules to implement or enforce the provisions    of this amendatory Act of the 95th General Assembly. ...." This is a power struggle between  the branches of government in Illinois.  It poses a barrier to the bill moving forward, but it has nothing to do with NAIS.  This amendment, which was added to many bills in the House, is something the Senate is struggling with how to deal with.

Amended version of HB 5776, as approved by the House Agriculture Committee:

Sec. 205-26. Fairs; premises ID numbers. The Department  shall not require a premises identification number or electronic identification under the National Animal Identification System to exhibit or enter livestock, poultry, rabbits, horses, or any other animal at any fair or exhibition in Illinois, unless required by federal law or regulation. The Department shall develop a process for persons to withdraw from the National Animal Identification System registration, and that process shall provide for the removal of a person's  information from the Department's database. The Department shall also cooperate with the United States Department of  Agriculture to provide for people to withdraw from the federal database. ... [additional language addressing rulemaking authority that appears to be included on all bills at this time]

Say Thanks!  

Tell the members of the House Committee on Agriculture "Thank you" for approving HB 5776 and the amendments!

• Chair: Dan Reitz, (217) 782-1018, (618) 443-5757
• Vice-Chair: Brandon Phelps, (217) 782-5131, (618) 253-4189
• Shane Cultra, (217) 558-1039, (815) 268-4090
• Robert Flider, (217) 782-8398, (217) 428-2708
• Richard Myers (author of the bill), (217) 782-0416, (309) 836-2707
• David Reis, (217) 782-2087, (618) 392-0108 
• Jim Sacia, (217) 782-8186, (815) 232-0774
• Lisa Dugan, (217) 782-5981, (815) 939-1983
• Donald Moffitt, (217) 782-8032, (309) 343-8000
• Patrick Verschoore, (217) 782-5970, (309) 793-4716

MESSAGE: “THANK YOU for approving the amended version of HB 5776. 

More Information

Although premises registration has been the focus of the publicity to date, it looks like it's not stopping there!  The February/March edition of the Illinois Leader, the publication for 4-H Leaders, states:

"Sheep wethers will have statewide required weigh-in and electronic tagging dates and locations, as in 2007. Dates and locations are still to be announced. Electronic tagging of beef steers will also be required. Contact your local Extension office for more information."

We've been told that these are not 840 NAIS-compliant tags and that they can be removed after the Fair.  But we do not have that in writing.  Even if that is true, this procedure sets the stage for requiring NAIS-compliant tags.  So we asked for an amendment to HB 5776 to prevent this from evolving into NAIS tagging (see above).

Last updated May 18, 2008