As pesticide companies like Bayer and Corteva fight to curb legal damages from lawsuits involving products like Roundup, they have increasingly funneled political action committee (PAC) money to state legislators across the U.S.
Rebecca Raney reports for U.S. Right to Know.
In short:
- Contributions from pesticide industry PACs have quintupled since 2016, with companies targeting key states to influence legislators on liability protections.
- Companies aim to limit state-level regulations on pesticides, pushing for legislation that aligns with federal standards, often to preempt stricter state laws.
- Executives from Bayer and Syngenta highlight PAC donations as a way for employees to back legislators who support agricultural interests, but critics argue these contributions influence policy to shield corporations.
Key quote:
“Nobody wastes money. There is a big reason they’re making their contribution. It’s not a charity.”
— Bob Stern, former general counsel of the California Fair Political Practices Commission
Why this matters:
Pesticide companies are effectively pushing to override local control, allowing them to operate with fewer restrictions. It’s a high-stakes play, with public health on the line as communities worry about pesticide exposure while corporate PACs work behind the scenes to rewrite the rulebook. Read more: Bayer’s new Roundup products more toxic than prior formulations, report asserts.
