Nebraska bill to curb NAIS becomes law!

Nebraska law allowed the state agency to implement NAIS anytime it wanted to.  The Nebraska Legislature has just passed LB632, which would:

• insert language making premises registration and "other components" of a national animal identification system voluntary
• require the Department of Agriculture to establish a system for removing people from the premises registration database

LB 632 was signed by the Governor on Tuesday, February 14, and is the new law of Nebraska!  This is a great step for Nebraska and the whole anti-NAIS movement!  Of course, limiting the program to a “voluntary” one is just the first step, although an important one.  LB 632 did not include provisions explicitly against coercion (being forced to provide premises registration when applying for state programs, for example) or against misleading methods being used.  But since the existing law would have allowed the agency to implement a mandatory program, this is still a significant step forward, and hopefully additional bills can be passed in the future to address these other issues. 

To read the bill, go to www.nebraskalegislature.gov and type in 632 in the bill lookup box
in the upper right hand corner.

More Information

You can find more information about the bill on the Nebraska Legislature’s website, http://www.unicam.state.ne.us/web/public/home.

LB 632 was introduced by Senator Dierks.  The Independent Cattlemen of Nebraska, Nebraska Farm Bureau, Nebraska Farmers Union, Nebraska Veterinary Medical Association, and Nebraska Livestock Markets Association all testified in support of the bill during the committee hearing.  The listed opponents to the bill are the Nebraska Pork Producers Association and Nebraska Cattlemen.

The original version of LB 632 would have amended the existing law on confidentiality of information collected under NAIS; the amended bill leaves provisions about confidentiality as they are now. 

Talking Points for Calls

• NAIS will hurt Nebraska’s economy:
  • There has been no analysis at federal or state level that establishes the costs or benefits of NAIS.
  • 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 Nebraska 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 is not necessary for the market.  Age- and source-verification is already available through the USDA's Process Verified Program
• 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 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 Nebraska to implement this program
• Other states are also rejecting or limiting NAIS, so Nebraska will not be disadvantaged by refusing to participate.
• Please support LB632

Last updated February 14, 2008

Take Action

Contact Governor Dave Heineman.

Phone: 402-471-2244

Fax: 402-471-6031

Email through website: http://www.gov.state.ne.us/contact/index.html

Message: “Thank you for signing LB 632.  I'd like to see another bill passed next session to stop the government funding of NAIS and address coercion."

If you have time, ask to speak to the staffer who handles agricultural issues.  Talk with them in a more depth about the problems with NAIS, including the threat of coercion being used to force people into programs that are labeled “voluntary.”  Some talking points are below.

For more information, contact FARFA at info@FarmAndRanchFreedom.org or call 866-687-6452.