U.S. Rep. Ron Paul | NAIS |
NAIS
Statement In Support Of NAIS
26 September 2006 2006 Ron Paul 87:1
Mr. PAUL. Mr. Speaker, I recently become a cosponsor of H.R. 6042, offered by my colleague Mrs. Emerson. This bill prohibits the federal government from implementing the National Animal Identification System (NAIS). It also provides some privacy protections for framers and ranchers who choose to participate in a voluntary identification system. I hope all of my colleagues join me in supporting this bill.
NAIS
Statement In Support Of NAIS
26 September 2006 2006 Ron Paul 87:2
NAIS is a proposal to force all farmers and ranchers to “tag” their livestock with a radio frequency identification device tag (RFID) or a similar item so information on the animals’ locations can be stored in a federal database. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is currently implementing the program through state premise registration plans. Participation in the NAIS is currently voluntary, but my office has been informed that the USDA will likely make NAIS mandatory by 2009.
NAIS
Statement In Support Of NAIS
26 September 2006 2006 Ron Paul 87:3
Small, family farmers and ranchers will be forced to spend thousands of dollars, as well as comply with new paperwork and monitoring regulations, to implement and operate NAIS. These farmers and ranchers will be paying for a massive assault on their property and privacy rights as NAIS forces farmers and ranchers to provide detailed information about their private property to the government. In addition, the NAIS system empowers the Federal government to enter and seize property from farmers and ranchers without a warrant. Mr. Speaker, this is a blatant violation of the Fourth Amendment-protected right to be free of arbitrary searches and seizures.
NAIS
Statement In Support Of NAIS
26 September 2006 2006 Ron Paul 87:4
NAIS is unnecessary since most states already have identification systems to identify and track animals and virtually all stockyards issue a health certification for each animal that is sold. Furthermore, the NAIS “trace back” procedures only begin after an incident has been reported, which could be days, weeks, or even months after the harm has occurred. Since most contamination happens after the animal has left the farm or ranch and entered the food chain, tracing animals back to the farm will not help identify the source of the problem — although farmers and ranchers could be held legally liable if any of their animals becomes diseased after leaving their possession. According to a 1998 Harvard study, preventive measures already in place can protect the American people from dangers such as mad cow disease.
NAIS
Statement In Support Of NAIS
26 September 2006 2006 Ron Paul 87:6
Dairy Farmer and Rancher Bob Parker best stated the case against NAIS: “We currently have the systems in place to track animals, as has just happened with the recent ‘mad cow’ in Alabama. Sacrificing our freedoms for security is not a good trade off, in my opinion. Our Founding Fathers knew the dangers of Government becoming too big. This plan is too intrusive, to costly, and will be devastating to small farmers and ranchers.” I urge my colleagues to listen to Mr. Parker and protect America’s small farmers and ranchers from being burdened with a costly, intrusive and unnecessary NAIS program by cosponsoring H.R. 6042.
NAIS
Stop the NAIS
29 May 2006 Texas Straight Talk 29 May 2006 verse 1 ... Cached
Stop the NAIS
NAIS
Stop the NAIS
29 May 2006 Texas Straight Talk 29 May 2006 verse 3 ... Cached
The House of Representatives recently passed funding for a new federal mandate that threatens to put thousands of small farmers and ranchers out of business. The National Animal Identification System, known as NAIS, is an expensive and unnecessary federal program that requires owners of livestock-- cattle, dairy, poultry, and even horses-- to tag animals with electronic tracking devices. The intrusive monitoring system amounts to nothing more than a tax on livestock owners, allowing the federal government access to detailed information about their private property.
NAIS
Stop the NAIS
29 May 2006 Texas Straight Talk 29 May 2006 verse 4 ... Cached
In typical Washington-speak, NAIS is “voluntary”—provided USDA bureaucrats are satisfied with the level of cooperation. Trust me, NAIS will be mandatory within a few years. When was the last time a new federal program did not expand once implemented?
NAIS
Stop the NAIS
29 May 2006 Texas Straight Talk 29 May 2006 verse 5 ... Cached
As usual, Congress is spending millions of dollars creating a complex non-solution to a very simple problem. NAIS will cost taxpayers at least $33 million for starters.
NAIS
Stop the NAIS
29 May 2006 Texas Straight Talk 29 May 2006 verse 6 ... Cached
Agribusiness giants support NAIS, because they want the federal government to create a livestock database and provide free industry data. But small and independent livestock owners face a costly mandate if NAIS becomes law.
NAIS
Stop the NAIS
29 May 2006 Texas Straight Talk 29 May 2006 verse 7 ... Cached
Larger livestock operations will be able to tag whole groups of animals with one ID device. Smaller ranchers and farmers, however, will be forced to tag each individual animal, at a cost of anywhere from $3 to $20 per head. And NAIS applies to anyone with a single horse, pig, chicken, or goat in the backyard—no exceptions. NAIS applies to children in 4-H or FFA. Once NAIS becomes mandatory, any failure to report and tag an animal subjects the owner to $1,000 per day fines.
NAIS
Stop the NAIS
29 May 2006 Texas Straight Talk 29 May 2006 verse 8 ... Cached
NAIS also forces livestock owners to comply with new paperwork and monitoring regulations. These farmers and ranchers literally will be paying for an assault on their property and privacy rights, as NAIS empowers federal agents to enter and seize property without a warrant-- a blatant violation of the 4th amendment.
NAIS
Stop the NAIS
29 May 2006 Texas Straight Talk 29 May 2006 verse 9 ... Cached
NAIS is not about preventing mad cow or other diseases. States already have animal identification systems in place, and virtually all stockyards issue health certificates. Since most contamination happens after animals have been sold, tracing them back to the farm or ranch that sold them won’t help find the sources of disease.
NAIS
Stop the NAIS
29 May 2006 Texas Straight Talk 29 May 2006 verse 10 ... Cached
More than anything, NAIS places our family farmers and ranchers at an economic disadvantage against agribusiness and overseas competition. As dairy farmer and rancher Bob Parker stated, NAIS is “too intrusive, too costly, and will be devastating to small farmers and ranchers.”
NAIS
Stop the NAIS
29 May 2006 Texas Straight Talk 29 May 2006 verse 11 ... Cached
NAIS means more government, more regulations, more fees, more federal spending, less privacy, and diminished property rights. It’s exactly the kind of federal program every conservative, civil libertarian, animal lover, businessman, farmer, and rancher should oppose. The House has already acted, but there’s still time to tell the Senate to dump NAIS. Please call your Senators and tell them you oppose spending even one dime on the NAIS program in the 2007 agriculture appropriations bill.
Texas Straight Talk from 20 December 1996 to 23 June 2008 (573 editions) are included in this Concordance. Texas Straight Talk after 23 June 2008 is in blog form on Rep. Paul’s Congressional website and is not included in this Concordance.
Remember, not everything in the concordance is Ron Paul’s words. Some things he quoted, and he added some newspaper and magazine articles to the Congressional Record. Check the original speech to see.