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Agriculture

Agriculture and Ecoterrorism Legislation

February 2003

Kansas enacted S.B. 395 (Chap. 88) in June 2002. The new law creates the new crime of endangering the food supply; the crime would be a class A misdemeanor. The severity of the crime can increase to a felony based upon the disease introduced (foot and mouth disease) or if the intent is to cause economic harm or social unrest or to cause illness, injury or death to a human being. Acts that would trigger the statute include bringing into the state any domestic animal with a contagious or infectious disease, exposing an in-state animal to a contagious or infectious disease, delivering poultry infected with a contagious/infectious disease to a poultry producer, bringing into the state or releasing a plant pest, or exposing any raw agricultural commodity, animal feed or processed food to any contagious/infectious disease.

Utah recently approved H.B. 322 (Chap. 32) to amend §76-10-2402. The act relates to domestic terrorism by animal rights activists and creates a specific offense of commercial terrorism and penalties.

Bills introduced to date during the 2003 legislative sessions that address agricultural or eco-terrorism include:

Hawaii's S.B. 865 which establishes a food security council for the state. The council will advise the legislature and the governor and will coordinate and collaborate with federal programs and public and private entities about state food security policy.

Missouri has a concurrent resolution (HCR 5) that urges the University of Missouri-Columbia Veterinary School to establish a biosafety level 3 lab for the handling of animal and plant infectious agents.

New York has several bills of interest. A.B. 1289 creates the crime of agri-bioterrorism to protect the agricultural industry and the state's food production industry and food supply chain. A person of a class B felony if he/she: deliberately alters the genetic structure of plant life used for human consumption with the intent to make it toxic or unsuitable for human or livestock consumption, intentionally introduces an animal pathogen that can kill livestock or make their byproducts unusable for human consumption, intentionally alters a food or farm product with the intent to cause injury or death, or intentionally alters genetic material to caused the production of a pathogen, virus or bacteria capable of disrupting or destroy a food or farm product. S.B. 180 is a companion bill.

S.B. 178 establishes the crime of tampering with an agricultural product as a class D felony. The bill provides that a person has not right to alter, adulterate or otherwise contaminate an agricultural product with the intent to cause physical harm, injury or instill fear in another person.

Oregon has proposed S.B. 57 which relates to ecoterrorism. The bill would provide that prosecution for the crime of ecoterrorism may be commenced at any time after the commission of the offense, eliminating the statute of limitations. Persons committing ecoterrorism can be charged under the state Racketeer Influenced and Corruption Organization (RICO) Act.

Agriculture page