Washington, D.C. (RELEASE) June 14th, 2024 — Congresswoman Harriet Hageman and Senator Cynthia Lummis introduced a joint resolution disapproving of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) rule mandating electronic identification (EID) eartags for bison and cattle moving interstate. Senator John Barrasso has also joined this legislation as an original cosponsor.

Representative Hageman stated, “This rule is a solution in search of a problem that will advance a federal mandate which the American ranching community will have to pay for. America produces the highest quality meat in the world and there is nothing wrong with our traditional disease traceability system. This unfunded mandate raises serious privacy concerns for ranchers and their herds, with the potential to lock ranchers out of their traditional markets, thereby furthering vertical integration of the U.S. food supply chain.

“We need look no further than what happened in Ireland to recognize the threat of a USDA-driven EID mandate.” Hageman continued, “In early 2022 Ireland adopted an EID mandate, and by August 2023, their government was reporting that they needed to slaughter as many as 41,000 head of livestock – not because of a disease outbreak, but because of so called “climate change.”  A mandatory EID simply gives the federal government too much power.”

“Wyoming’s ranchers provide some of the highest quality meat in the world, yet this administration continues to find creative ways to make their jobs harder,” said Lummis. “Forcing Wyoming’s ranchers to shell out their hard-earned money to trace and chip their livestock not only threatens to erode their privacy but puts unnecessary pressure on our supply chain. As a rancher myself, I understand the devastating impact this will have on our industry and will do everything in my power to block this administration’s chronic federal overreach.”

“Mandating ear tags for all cattle and bison will financially crush independent Wyoming ranchers,” said Barrasso. “Senator Lummis’ and Congresswoman Hageman’s legislation will stop this overreaching federal mandate in its tracks.”

Background:

• The CRA is an additional check on the administrative state passed in 1996 which allows Congress to overturn federal agency action. It requires agencies to report final rules to the House, Senate, and the Government Accountability Office, at which point Congress can review a rule, and if opposed to it, vote on a joint resolution of disapproval nullifying the rule. Proper consideration of the joint resolution allows it to be expedited through the Senate, providing timely oversight of agency action.

• On May 9, 2024, APHIS issued the final rule which amends animal disease traceability regulations to require bison and cattle eartags to be both visually and electronically readable to be recognized as official eartags for interstate movement. In 2013, APHIS created the animal disease traceability framework which recognizes visually readable tags, brands, tattoos, and breed registry certificates as official identification. This system continues to succeed and keep the U.S. as the producer of the highest quality meat in the world. APHIS’ proposed rule acknowledges this successful disease traceability system stating “Foreign animal diseases such as FMD have been largely excluded from the United States.