Good Day BIO: Senate passes Growing Climate Solutions Act

June 25, 2021
Happy Friday—we’re celebrating the passage of the Growing Climate Solutions Act in the Senate. It was a busy week in Washington, so read to the end for a jam-packed BIO Beltway Report with news on the infrastructure deal and the FDA budget proposal. (887 words, 4…
BIO

Happy Friday—we’re celebrating the passage of the Growing Climate Solutions Act in the Senate. It was a busy week in Washington, so read to the end for a jam-packed BIO Beltway Report with news on the infrastructure deal and the FDA budget proposal. (887 words, 4 minutes, 26 seconds)

 

Senate passes Growing Climate Solutions Act

 
 

Yesterday the U.S. Senate passed the Growing Climate Solutions Act (GCSA), legislation that BIO’s long supported for its ability to help farmers help the planet 

In a nutshell, the Growing Climate Solutions Act (GCSA) would create a voluntary, producer-led certification program at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and provide farmers with technical resources to participate in the markets. 

Inside baseball: The legislation passed the Senate yesterday 92-8, with 54 bipartisan cosponsors. The bill was first introduced in 2020, and reintroduced this year with support from 175+ agricultural and environmental organizations, including BIO.

BIO championed this bill from the start, leading a BIOAction campaign to drive support—which we know helped get it passed. (So, thanks for your help!) 

Dr. Michelle’s Diagnosis: This bill is at the heart of everything we fight for at BIO and proves that climate action and economic growth can go hand in hand. It will encourage farmers and ranchers to use biotechnology breakthroughs to reduce emissions and deploy their land in the fight against climate change. It will bring greater value to the biobased economy and allow those across the biotech ecosystem—from farmers to renewable chemical developers and biobased manufacturers—to reliably demonstrate the true environmental benefit of carbon-reducing technologies in agriculture. BIO President and CEO Dr. Michelle McMurry-Heath

The next steps: Now, it’s up to the House. BIO will work with our companies and partners in the Food and Agriculture Climate Alliance (FACA) to encourage passage in the House. 

Also: Senate Finance considered key nominees yesterday for HHS and USTR, including Jayme White for Deputy United States Trade Representative for the Western Hemisphere, Europe, the Middle East, Labor, and Environment. 

Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) asked White about Mexico: “Last month when Ambassador Tai appeared before the Committee, I asked for her commitment to address Mexico’s failure to issue biotech import approvals and its decree to phaseout imports of biotech corn for human consumption. I was pleased to see Ambassador Tai emphasize the importance of science and risk-based regulatory approaches in her conversations during the USMCA free trade commission meeting. As Deputy USTR, are you of the same frame of mind to be able to commit to enforcing USMCA’s SPS and biotechnology provisions to prevent disruption to North American grain markets and on farm innovation?” 

White’s response: “Yes, and if confirmed I look forward to working with my colleagues at USTR and Secretary Vilsack’s team to address this issue.” Watch around 1:13:50.

 

More Agriculture and Environment News: 

AFP: Crushing climate impacts to hit sooner than feared: draft UN report
“Climate change will fundamentally reshape life on Earth in the coming decades, even if humans can tame planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions, according to a landmark draft report from the UN's climate science advisors obtained by AFP.”

 

More Health Care News: 

The Washington Post (Opinion): Here’s why we approved the first new Alzheimer’s drug in two decades
“The decision to approve this drug was based on rigorous science, with thorough evaluation of data from clinical studies,” write Patrizia Cavazzoni, Director of FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (CDER); Billy Dunn, Director of CDER’s Office of Neuroscience; and Peter Stein, Director of CDER’s Office of New Drugs.

 
 
 
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BIO Beltway Report
BIO Beltway Report
 
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President Biden’s Friday: Signing H.R. 49, which creates the National Pulse Memorial at the site of the Pulse Nightclub in Orlando, FL, where a gunman killed 49 people in 2016. At 2 PM ET, he’ll deliver remarks with Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg to commemorate Pride Month. Later this afternoon, he’ll meet with President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani of Afghanistan and Dr. Abdullah Abdullah, Chairman of the High Council for National Reconciliation of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, at the White House. 

What’s Happening on Capitol Hill: Closing out a busy and productive week—here are a few key things to know. 

Hey, there's a bipartisan infrastructure deal. President Biden and bipartisan Senators agreed to a $579 billion infrastructure plan, which markets have perceived as good news, Bloomberg reports.

What’s in it: $312 for transportation infrastructure, $21 billion for “environmental remediation,” and $47 billion for “resilience.” 

What’s not in it: The deal omits some major climate measures, says CNBC. Democrats are expected to push a separate bill with these measures, possibly through reconciliation.  

There’s still “a long way to go before they get to a vote,”reports CNN. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told reporters yesterday that the House won’t take up the bill unless the climate bill ALSO passes the Senate. 

Meanwhile, today, House Appropriations will markup the Agriculture and FDA funding bill for FY22.According to the committee’s fact sheet, “the bill provides discretionary funding of $26.55 billion—a critical increase of $2.851 billion, more than 10 percent—above 2021.” 

For FDA, the bill “invests in our public health infrastructure by modernizing FDA’s data infrastructure to better ensure the safety and security of the food and medical supply chain.” 

For USDA, the bill provides $347.4 million “to address the impacts of climate change. These investments are aimed to tackle the climate crisis in farming and rural communities and include research to monitor, measure, and mitigate climate change, accelerate climate smart agriculture practices, reduce greenhouse gases, and advance clean energy technologies.” It also “provides important investments to ensure equitable participation in USDA programs,” including funding for access to grants and USDA’s Office of Civil Rights. 

Read: What USDA’s doing about racial justice and equity

 
 
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