The Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior and Environment released its FY 18 bill and has requested continued funding for the Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP). This request is necessary because the current Pesticide Registration Improvement Act (PRIA) expires in 2017, and attempts to extend the act are being held up due by several democrats who serve on the Senate Agriculture Committee.
The Committee’s request is to provide funding for EPA’s OPP in the amount of $128.3 million, which is the statutory minimum currently required under PRIA and the amount that NALP and other members of the Pesticide Policy Coalition were asking for in our outreach to appropriators. The Committee also included the following report language directing the EPA to conduct timely reviews and to base them on sound science:
Pesticide Registration Improvement Act.—The Committee appreciates the work of the Agency and its partners to implement a sensible registration service fee system for applications for pesticide registration. The Committee has provided funding to meet the statutory minimum of $128,300,000. As such, the Committee expects the Agency to ensure that its review of applications complies with the predictable evaluation process and specific decision review periods contemplated in the legislation.
