U.S. Senator Cory Booker introduced a new bill on Thursday that would allow people to sue pesticide makers Bayer, Syngenta, and others for alleged health harms such as cancer and Parkinson’s disease tied to their products.
Carey Gillam reports for The New Lede.
In short:
- Sen. Cory Booker’s proposed Pesticide Injury Accountability Act would let people sue pesticide manufacturers in federal court — even if state laws block them from doing so.
- The bill is a direct counter to Bayer and Syngenta’s aggressive legal campaigns, which include lobbying for state laws that shield them from liability and preempt warning requirements beyond U.S. Environmental Protection Agency labels.
- Thousands of Americans have sued over pesticides like Roundup (linked to cancer) and paraquat (linked to Parkinson’s), with companies already paying billions yet still fighting to avoid future claims.
Key quote:
“Rather than providing a liability shield so that foreign corporations are allowed to poison the American people, Congress should instead pass the Pesticide Injury Accountability Act to ensure that these chemical companies can be held accountable in federal court for the harm caused by their toxic products.”
— Sen. Cory Booker, D-NJ
Why this matters:
For decades, pesticide manufacturers like Bayer and Syngenta have banked on a legal shield — EPA-approved labels and state-level preemption laws — to duck responsibility when their products are linked to deadly diseases. Seventeen environmental, public health, and consumer groups have already endorsed the bill, including some “Make America Healthy Again” (MAHA) movement advocates.
Read more:
- Bayer pushes for laws shielding Roundup from cancer warnings
- Agricultural pesticide exposure linked to childhood cancers, study says
- For a second time, US court bans dicamba weed killers, finds EPA violated law
- Move to consolidate US paraquat litigation as cases mount against Syngenta
- Glyphosate, explained
