Letter to USDA Re: Furloughs of Inspectors

by ehartman — last modified 2007-02-12 11:43

May 15, 2006

Dr. Richard Raymond
Under Secretary for Food Safety
United States Department of Agriculture
Room 227-E, Jamie L. Whitten Building
12th Street and Jefferson Drive, S.W.
Washington, DC 20250

Dear Dr. Raymond:

I am writing concerning reports that the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) intends to institute furloughs of FSIS inspection personnel in the very near future because of budget shortfalls.

If this information is correct, I am very concerned about the impact of these staffing cuts on the agency’s ability to ensure the safety of products under its jurisdiction entering the food supply.

I would like responses to several questions regarding this issue:

1)    What factors contributed to the budget shortfall?

2)    What other measures has the Agency undertaken to reduce costs, short of cutting back on the inspections that protect public health?

3)    How long will the furloughs last? How many inspection personnel will be affected?

4)    Will all Agency personnel be impacted by furloughs (e.g., headquarters staff, supervisory personnel, administrators)?

5)    Will meat and poultry production be impacted by these furloughs? Will meatpackers and food processors be forced to curtail production? If not, how does the Agency plan to cover inspection assignments to avoid disruptions in production?

6)    Will the “continuous inspection” requirement of the Federal Meat Inspection Act and the Poultry Products Inspection Act be compromised in any way by the impending furloughs?

This decision, in addition to cutbacks at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that have crippled that agency’s ability to carry out its food safety tasks in a timely fashion, seem to indicate an alarming pattern in the Bush Administration of undercutting food safety programs across the board – not exactly the way FSIS and FDA should be celebrating their centenaries this year.

I look forward to your response. Should you have any questions regarding this letter, please feel free to contact me at (202) 797-6550.

Sincerely,

Wenonah Hauter
Executive Director
Food & Water Watch

cc: Senator Thad Cochran
      Senator Robert Byrd
      Senator Robert Bennett
      Senator Herb Kohl
      Congressman Jerry Lewis
      Congressman David Obey
      Congressman Henry Bonilla
      Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro

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