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The War You Don't See - John Pilger

The War You Don't See

In an extraordinary alliance of TV and cinema, John Pilger's new film, 'The War You Don't See', opened in the UK mid-December. Having premiered at The Barbican on Tuesday 7 December 2010, the first Pilger film since 2007 started its UK run at Curzon Soho in London on Sunday 12 December. On Tuesday 14 December, ITV1 broadcast 'The War You Don't See' at 10.35pm. The film is available to watch on the ITV website until 14 January 2011 (UK users only).



The new film is a powerful and timely investigation into the media's role in war, tracing the history of 'embedded' and independent reporting from the carnage of World War One to the destruction of Hiroshima, and from the invasion of Vietnam to the current war in Afghanistan and disaster in Iraq. As weapons and propaganda become even more sophisticated, the nature of war is developing into an 'electronic battlefield' in which journalists play a key role, and civilians are the victims. But who is the real enemy?
John Pilger says in the film: "We journalists... have to be brave enough to defy those who seek our collusion in selling their latest bloody adventure in someone else's country... That means always challenging the official story, however patriotic that story may appear, however seductive and insidious it is. For propaganda relies on us in the media to aim its deceptions not at a far away country but at you at home... In this age of endless imperial war, the lives of countless men, women and children depend on the truth or their blood is on us... Those whose job it is to keep the record straight ought to be the voice of people, not power."

Become a fan of 'The War You Don't See' on Facebook and get regular updates on the film, the latest information on where you can watch it and messages from John Pilger himself. You can also follow the film on Twitter.

'The War You Don't See' will launch in Australia in early 2011 and in the United States in summer 2011, dates will be confirmed on this website.

Directors: John Pilger & Alan Lowery. Editor: Joe Frost. A Dartmouth Films Production.

http://www.johnpilger.com/videos
Read More... The War You Don't See - John Pilger

Torrent Finder Domain Seizure

Torrent Finder Domain Seizure

On Thursday, the 25th of November 2010, the Torrent Finder domain ( www.torrent-finder.com ), registered with Godaddy, was seized by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) without any prior takedown notice or specific allegations of infringing activity. The Domain IP was suddenly changed without the registrar's knowledge and the system displayed a "Pending Registry Action" message on the domain's status. No contact was given until Wednesday, the 1st of December, when Godaddy replied to my inquiries, giving a contact for an ICE agent.
On Thursday, the 2nd of December, David Snead who is representing Torrent Finder contacted the ICE agent in charge who told him that "the orders are under seal, but that the seal will be lifted today or tomorrow". However, we have not heard from them until writing this post. Another email from Godaddy clarified that the action was taken by VeriSign: "please understand that these actions were taken by Verisign at the Registry level; and not by Go Daddy". The story was first reported on TorrentFreak and NYTimes.com.
Torrent Finder is a meta search engine that searches other search engines through iframes redirecting users to other domains and websites that Torrent Finder does not manage or control; most of the sites are suggested by Torrent Finder users through URL suggestion form. There have been many explanations about the mechanism of Torrent Finder Search on the media and how it works just like Google or Bing despite that Google does link to .torrent files directly. "So, when is the U.S. Government going to seize the Google domain?" Inquisitr.com asks. Ands Torrent Freak writes "When a site has no tracker, carries no torrents, lists no copyright works unless someone searches for them and responds just like Google, accusing it of infringement becomes somewhat of a minefield - unless you're ICE Homeland Security Investigations that is" and many others ask the same question, for instance Techdirt and Technobuffalo.com.
However, Torrent Finder was moved to torrent-finder.info domain and is still operating without any problem.
"The Rise of Web Censorship" is how Steven Vaughan-Nichols describes the seizure; he says "You see, Torrent-Finder, which is back up under a new domain name, Torrent-Finder.info doesn't host Torrent file or even BitTorrent file trackers. It's just a search engine dedicated to file torrents such as movies, TV shows, or software programs. You can find the same file torrents with Google if you know what you're doing. Torrent-Finder, and sites like it, just makes specific kinds of file searches easier.". Grant Gross reported to PCWorld that The Electronic Frontier Foundation vowed to fight domain-name seizures; advanced correspondence between David Snead and EFF attorney are in progress.
So far, the real reason of the seizure is not clear. However, there have been suggestions that this is a test case for COICA which has already been protested by many online campaigns such as demandprogress.org and EFF. We ask for your support in our case. please join these campaigns and send your suggestions to our email address. If you are a webmaster please add a link to this post, this is serious and if they pass the law then the sites list will be much bigger, it is as simple as shutting down the sites they do not like!
Please follow us on twitter for more updates.
Read More... Torrent Finder Domain Seizure

Dear Doctor

Dear Doctor

Oh help me, please doctor, I'm damaged
There's a pain where there once was a heart
It's sleepin, it's a beatin'
Can't ya please tear it out, and preserve it
Right there in that jar?

Oh help me, please mama, I'm sick'ning
It's today that's the day of the plunge
Oh the gal I'm to marry
Is a bow-legged sow
I've been soakin' up drink like a sponge

"Don't ya worry, get dressed," cried my mother 
As she plied me with bourbon so sour
Pull your socks up, put your suit on
Comb your long hair down,
For you will be wed in the hour

So help me, please doctor, I'm damaged
There's a pain where there once was a heart
I'm sleepin, it's a beatin'
Can't ya please take it out, and preserve it
Right there in that jar?

Oh help me, please doctor, I'm damaged 
There's a pain where there once was a heart
It's sleepin, it's a beatin'
Can't ya please tear it out, and preserve it
Right there in that jar?

I was tremblin', as I put on my jacket 
It had creases as sharp as a knife
I put the ring in my pocket
But there was a note
And my heart it jumped into my mouth

It read, "Darlin', I'm sorry to hurt you. 
But I have no courage to speak to your face.
But I'm down in Virginia with your cousin Lou 
There be no wedding today."

So help me, please doctor, I'm damaged 
You can put back my heart in its hole 
Oh mama, I'm cryin'
Tears of relief
And my pulse is now under control
 
 
 
Read More... Dear Doctor

The new Vietnam!

Iraq & Afghanistan the new Vietnam! how many more needles deaths will both sides suffer... the war mongering fascist government run by big business lies to We The People yet again and you all eat it up and wave your blood soaked flags.
"Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it." remember the The Gulf of Tonkin yet... another lie in the long chain of lies.
Read More... The new Vietnam!

My new Nokia E72 phone!

Nokia E72
Nokia E72

General
2G Network GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900

3G Network HSDPA 900 / 1900 / 2100

  HSDPA 850 / 1900 / 2100 - American version

Announced 2009, June  

Status Available. Released 2009, October

Size





Dimensions 114 x 58 x 10 mm, 65 cc







Weight 128 g
Display Type TFT, 16M colors
Size 320 x 240 pixels, 2.36 inches
 - Full QWERTY keyboard
- Five-way scroll key
- Accelerometer sensor
- Optical trackpad
Sound Alert types Vibration; Downloadable polyphonic, monophonic, MP3 ringtones
Speakerphone Yes
 - 3.5 mm audio jack
Memory Phonebook Practically unlimited entries and fields, Photocall
Call records Detailed, max 30 days
Internal 250 MB storage, 128 MB RAM
Card slot microSD, up to 16GB, hotswap, buy memory
Data GPRS Class 32, 100 kbps
EDGE Class 32, 296 kbps
3G HSDPA, 10.2 Mbps; HSUPA 2 Mbps
WLAN Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g, Nokia VoIP 3.0
Bluetooth Yes, v2.0 with A2DP
Infrared port No
USB Yes, v2.0 microUSB
Camera Primary 5 MP, 2592 x 1944 pixels, autofocus, LED flash
Video Yes, VGA@15fps
Secondary VGA videocall camera
Features OS Symbian OS 9.3, Series 60 v3.2 UI
CPU ARM 11 600 MHz processor
Messaging SMS, MMS, Email, Instant Messaging
Browser WAP 2.0/xHTML, HTML
Radio Stereo FM radio with RDS; Visual radio
Games Downloadable
Colors White, Zodium Black, Metal Grey, Topaz Brown, Amethyst Purple, White Edition
GPS Yes, with A-GPS support; Nokia Maps 3.0
Java Yes, MIDP 2.0
 - Digital compass
- WMV/RV/MP4/3GP video player
- MP3/WMA/WAV/RA/AAC/M4A music player
- Document editor (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, PDF)
- Flash Lite v3.0
- Push to talk
- Voice command/dial
- Organizer
- Printing
Battery   Standard battery, Li-Po 1500 mAh (BP-4L)
Stand-by Up to 480 h (2G) / 576 h (3G)
Talk time Up to 12 h 30 min (2G) / 6 h (3G)
Misc SAR US 1.39 W/kg (head)     0.88 W/kg (body)    
SAR EU 1.31 W/kg (head)    
Read More... My new Nokia E72 phone!

Parental Alienation Syndrome

Problems suffered by Children due to the effects of Parental Alienation Syndrome

Ludwig.F. Lowenstein Ph.D
Southern England Psychological Services

Justice of the Peace, Vol. 166 No. 24, 2002, p 464-466

Parental Alienation Syndrome

Despite the changes in social and cultural norms, this is due to the view that the mother is the centre of family life. Hence alienating mothers feel they have the greatest input and responsibility in caring for the child compared with the male. Mothers who are on their own feel it is only right t and fair for them to make decisions concerning their children. They will fear losing the child to the father once he allegedly influences them that she may be thought of as being paranoid. Women will often claim it was after all they who carried and gave birth to the infant. They will use any weapon fair or foul to make certain that they have the ultimate power and control over their children. Among the weapons used are accusations that the father is unfit to care or even to spend any time with the child. This may be due to allegations of sexual misconduct, alcohol or drug misuse or immorality or a poor mental state, or lifestyle or possibly criminal involvement. Due to the closeness of mothers and children, the children will often believe what the alienator states, namely that the other parent is evil or worse than useless.
Such mothers divorce themselves from the real needs of the child in order to maintain their total control and to eliminate the contact and relationship with the other parent. When litigation is threatened, the alienating parent becomes even harder in her determination to have complete control. She will say to the child:"See what your father is doing now? He is trying to have me imprisoned'.' This turns the child even more against the father as he sees the mother as the victim. Hence she has involved and continues to involve the child in her battle with the father and the process of programming and brainwashing the child until the child sees matters as she does and so she turns the child against the father. The child's behaviour therefore becomes increasingly more difficult when the father is present and the child may even refuse to go with him. Sometimes inlaws allied to one or the other may influence matters further.
Hence the hostility of the mother against the' father will be accepted by the child who responds accordingly. The response of the mother to this is deep gratification; she has achieved her objective. She may even deny that she is doing anything to influence the child and may aver that she is actively encouraging the child to cooperate. The result is that the child will behave in an inimical, unfriendly and hostile way towards the alienated person. In this situation the mother may well believe her own lies and perceptions. Some mothers overindulge their children in order to persuade their children that their mother offers them most. This overindulgence is combined with persistent denigration of the other parent.
Parents who seek to programme their children against a parent have often come from families where this was done to them, by one of their parents. They are therefore very familiar with the techniques that can be used effectively and are perpetuating a vicious and destructive pattern to the next generation.

What are the likely consequences to the alienated person and the children?

Children hate to see their parents in acrimony It reduces their sense of security and they feel in jeopardy. The successful indoctrination, programming and brainwashing of a child leads to bitterness, sadness and anger in the unjustly accused parent and prevents the parent from exercising his rights, obligations and love for the child. He or she will either give up the fight, considering it best all round or there will be an acrimonious conflict. When this happens the child suffers confusion and ultimately alienation from one of the parents. This may go on for months or for many years.
Fear is sometimes induced in the child towards the alienated parent. Fear is ultimately often translated into attacking and humiliating the alienated parent. Fear induction is especially likely to be successful with younger children. Eventually such children consider the alienated parent as "bad", "inadequate" and of little value to them. Such parents eventually are forced to play a peripheral role or no role at all, save as financial providers and sometimes not even that. When mother's economic position is stronger than father's for instance, there is a desire to eliminate father even from the role of being a provider. Some fathers become desperate and contemplate suicide or seek to escape through alcohol or drugs. This merely verifies the picture which mothers frequently inculcate in their children - that their father is an alcoholic or drug addict. Others, as already stated, give up the struggle for any kind of contact with their once cherished children. Some children seeing the once stable parents embroiled in this kind of warfare turn against both parents and become depressed, underachieve at school or turn to delinquency.
Only much later in life, do children sometimes become aware of the wrong which has been done and the way they have been used as pawns and programmed against all the opposing "reality'.' Then the antagonism of the future adult turns against the alienating parent. When they mature and learn to think for themselves they realise that the alienated parent has suffered a great injustice at the hands of the alienator and through themselves by having allowed one parent to turn them against the other. They may feel a sense of desperate guilt. A helpless kind of regret occurs which cannot be assuaged and often follows when the alienated parent has died or vanished. It is this sense of guilt that such youngsters who grow into adults must live with.
Such children as teenagers and adults may well remember the techniques used, including false statements made about the alienated parent and realise they ere totally unjustified.

How is PAS carried out?

Parents who use PAS often view themselves as "victims"; they like their children to see them as "victims". They tend to seek revenge and encourage their children to believe that the other parent is at fault, by claiming that he/she (the victim) and programmer has been cruelly and unjustly treated by their father/mother who suffers from a number of moral and personal problems. Alienating parents will overstate or even create vices such as: "He's an alcoholic, drug taker, womanizer, has no sense of responsibility, drives dangerously etc.

Problems suffered by Children due to the effects of Parental Alienation Syndrome


General aspects of children suffering from the effects of PAS

The effect of PAS has been investigated by relatively few individuals so far but I should like to acknowledge my own gratitude to one researcher, Professor Richard A. Gardner for the work he has done in this area. (Gardner 1992, 1998, 2001.) In what follows we will be concentrating on the effect both short term and long term of parental alienation on children. Whatever one may think children associated with parental alienation are victims but not of their own making. Parents are responsible for the child becoming a victim and most especially the parent who is carrying out the alienation process. However we will not consider the role of the parent extensively although it must be remembered that they have an important role to play producing the product of alienation.
We will instead concentrate on the child and what his victimisation produces. We hear a great deal about child abuse increasingly so especially sexual abuse. We hear somewhat less about emotional abuse. Parental alienation is a form of child abuse since children are being used for the purpose of parents showing their animosity towards the other half of a relationship. The animosity displayed towards the other parent who is being alienated can have a terrible affect on the child in question. Later my own research in this area will be presented indicating the effect upon the child of the alienation process. I will further consider how I feel the problem could best be remedied.
Children who are suffering within the alienation process are often unaware of it’s impact. They merely feel the consequences such as developing views propagated by the alienating parent that the other parent is “evil,” “wicked,” “stupid” or “dangerous” or all of these. Children therefore are frequently used by the alienating parent against the other parent to act as spies or saboteurs generally being used for unethical purposes in relation to the alienated parent.
Additionally they are often encouraged to treat the alienated parent with a lack of respect with the purpose of humiliating that parent. The children are even encouraged to behave in a deceitful manner with that parent such as already mentioned, spying on that parent and any relationship they may have developed with another person, stealing from that person or lying to that person. This of course will be denied by the alienating parent.
Encouraging a child to betray one of the most important members of his family be it the father or the mother produces within that child a tendency towards psychopathic behaviour. Once the alienating parent has denigrated the other parent to the child, the child due to the pressure upon him and the “power” wielded by the alienator needs to carry on the process of denigration.
Children who suffer from the PAS syndrome develop a concept that one parent is the loving parent and hence to be loved back while the other is the hated parent who has done evil or wickedness, etc., not only towards the alienating parent but towards the child. This has been consciously as well as unconsciously indoctrinated in to the child. This has also resulted in fear as well as hatred for the alienated parent. Virtually all indoctrination of a negative type is carried out by the mother who usually retains the child in residence. Occasionally it is the father or one of the relations to the child who may have taken over the role of parenting.
Gardner (1998) considers that there are eight cardinal symptoms of PAS in it’s effect on the child:
  1. The campaign of denigration.
  2. Weak, frivolous and absurd rationalisations for the denigration.
  3. Lack of ambivalence.
  4. The “independent thinker phenomenon.”
  5. Reflexive support of the alienating parent in the parental conflict.
  6. Actions of guilt over cruelty to and/or exploitation of the alienated parent.
  7. The presence of borrowed scenarios.
  8. The spread of animosity to the extended family and alienated parent.
The result of alienation as I have found it is that the child develops a hatred for the other person that is the non-resident other parent and seeks to denigrate and vilify that parent much as has been done by the alienating parent. The destruction of one parent can have serious consequences not only immediately but in the long term. One might say the child has been robbed of the possibility of having a supportive and caring parent. Very often that parent is a father who has become a poisonous object. All memories of a good relationship have been destroyed.
Additionally there has been brainwashing in order to make the child fearful of the alienated parent very often the father. The animosity created through being programmed or brain washed frequently leads not merely to antagonism towards the alienated parent but also towards his or her whole family. This means the child will not merely lose one of it’s parents for support but also the grandparents of that alienated parent.
Another common reaction of children who have been programmed is to pretend to the programming parent that they have strong hatred or dislike for the alienated parent when in fact they do not at all feel this way and do not demonstrate this in the presence of the alienated parent. Hence they have practised deception and a form of lying in order to placate the programming parent while at the same time seeking to form some kind of warm relationship with the absent parent. Such deception is unlikely to lead to an individual who will be truthful and honest in other dealings now and in the future.
Sometimes the alienating parent seeks to exploit the parent who has been defiled. This is done in various ways including seeking to get money or clothes or other material objects for the children who are then used in this scheme or manipulation. The manipulator will often clothe the children in the filthiest clothes hoping the alienated parent will be forced to buy new clothes for the child. This teaches children a strategy which is unlikely to endear them to others in the future. Such practices of deception and exploitation then may well become a repertoire of how the way the children will behave in later life. Other forms of deception are when the child is called by the alienated parent on the telephone and that parent is told in front of the child that the child is not in or the child refuses to speak to him or her when in fact this is not the case at all. Again children are taught that lying is acceptable. This runs counter to what many parents do to instil truthfulness in their children for the purposes of being accepted by others now and in the future.
In order to endear themselves to the strong programming parent who is dominant over all the children’s behaviour, the children will tell that parent that they have been starved or deprived or punished at the alienated parent’s home merely to endear themselves to that parent. Here again lying and deception becomes the way which can have detrimental effects in later life. In non-PAS syndrome homes the parent who has been separated does not maintain control over the children but the custodial parent will do all that they can to promote a healthy feeling towards the other parent and to be truthful and to encourage the child or children to enjoy the company of the other parent. This does not occur but rather the reverse in the alienation type environment. Needless to say children benefit from such an attitude by non-PAS type behaviour. It is also of great importance that parents who have been divorced or separated do all they can to enhance the feelings of the child for the parent with whom they are not in residence, and vice-versa.
As children grow older they realise they are in a position of strength wherein they may be able to decide to which parent to go by manipulating situations in order to get their way. This in turn reduces the capacity of the alienating parent to utilise discipline to create the right type of ethical behaviour. This is because the alienating parent is dependent on the child to do that which antagonises or damages the targeted parent. Such children frequently become undisciplined knowing they have the power to manipulate the programming parent through fulfilling or not fulfilling the wishes of that parent towards the alienated parent.
In severe cases of PAS children are placed in seriously unhappy situations and will frequently develop panic reactions when they are asked to visit the alienated parent. This in turn can lead to repercussions in their attitude to school and their capacity to concentrate on their education. In some cases there can be psychotic delusions in the child due to the pressure on that child to passively submit to the alienating parent. In order to overcome such serious disturbances intensive psychological reatment is required and this will be covered in another article entitled: “Dealing with Children who have been involved in Parental Alienation through Therapy.” In some cases children have been indoctrinated with the view that the alienated parent will seriously damage them in some way. Such delusions need urgently to be dealt with through therapy. Following such therapy such unfortunate children may learn to be able to be more rational and realistic in the way they view the alienated parent despite the efforts of the programming parent. This of course is a different matter to resolve in the case of very young children. In the case of older children the habit of hatred towards the target parent may make it extremely difficult but not impossible to alter the attitude of such older children towards the alienated parent.
Perhaps the most interesting scenario that occurs is when the child realises what the alienating or programming parent has been doing and eventually turns against that parent. They often seek the target parent feeling a great sense of guilt in having been a party, albeit an unwilling party, to the humiliation and harm done to the target parent who has done nothing wrong to them to deserve such treatment.
Specific Problems of Children suffering from the Effects of PAS
Now follows a series of symptoms found in children, when they are presented over a period of time, with brain washing or programming against another parent. The effects are both short and long term. It must be stated from the beginning that not all the symptoms about to be mentioned occur in all children who are involved in the parental alienation syndrome scenario. There will also be some difference between the very young child and the older child who have more experience of the PAS process. Not all the symptoms mentioned occur in all children. However some symptoms undoubtedly will occur and effect the child unless some form of treatment is carried out which eliminates the impact of the alienating process:
  1. Anger is a common reaction of many children to the process of alienation. The anger however will be expressed towards the target parent as one sides with one of the parents in the relationship against the other. The fact the children are forced into this kind of situation causes considerable distress and frustration and the response often is to show aggressive behaviour towards the targeted parent in order to accommodate the programmer.
  2. Loss or a lack of impulse control in conduct. Children who suffer from PAS are not merely suffering from aggression but also often turn to delinquent behaviour. There is considerable evidence that fathers and their presence and influence can do much to prevent and alleviate the possibility of delinquency most especially in boys.
  3. Loss of self confidence and self esteem. Losing one of the parents through the programming procedure can produce a lack of self confidence and self esteem. In the case of boys identification with a male figure has been curtailed, especially if the alienated parent is the father.
  4. Clinging and separation anxiety. Children especially very young children who have been programmed to hate or disdain one of the parents will tend to cling to that parent who has carried out the programming. There is considerable anxiety induced by the programming parent against the target parent including threats that such a parent would carry out a great number of different negative actions against the child as well as the programming parent.
  5. Developing fears and phobias. Many children fear being abandoned or rejected now that they have been induced to feel that one of the partners in a relationship usually the father is less than desirable. Sometimes this results in school phobia that is fear of attending school mainly due to fear of leaving the parent who claims to be the sole beneficial partner in the formal relationship. Some children suffer from hyperchondriacal disorders and tend to develop psychological symptoms and physical illnesses. Such children also fear what will happen in the future and most especially there is a fear that the programming parent or only parent who is allegedly the “good parent” may die and leave the child bereft of any support.
  6. Depression and suicidal ideation. Some children who are so unhappy at the tragic break up of the relationship are further faced with animosity between the programming parent and the targeted parent. This leads to ambivalence and uncertainty and sometimes suicidal attempts occur due to the unhappiness which the child feels brought about by the two main adults in his or her life.
  7. Sleep disorders is another symptom which follows the parental alienation situation. Children frequently dream and often find it difficult to sleep due to their worries about the danger of the alienated parent and the guilt they may feel as a result of participating in the process of alienation.
  8. Eating disorders. A variety of eating disorders have been noted in children who are surrounded by parental alienation. This includes anorexia nervosa, obesity and bulimia.
  9. Educational problems. Children who are surrounded by the pressure of having to reject one parent having been less brain washed frequently suffer from school dysfunctions. They may become disruptive as well as aggressive within that system.
  10. Enuresis and Encopresis. A number of very young children due to the pressure and frustrations around them suffer from bed wetting and soiling. This is a response to the psychological disturbance of losing one parent and finding one parent inimical to the rejected parent.
  11. Drug abuse and self destructive behaviour frequently are present in children who have suffered from parental alienation. This tendency is due to a need to escape one’s feelings of the abuse they have suffered through the experience and the desire to escape from it. In the extreme such self destructive behaviour can lead to suicidal tendencies.
  12. Obsessive compulsive behaviour. This psychological reaction is frequently present in PAS children. Such children will seek to find security in their environment by adopting a variety of obsessive compulsive behaviour patterns.
  13. Anxiety and panic attacks are also frequently present in children who have been involved in PAS processes. This may be reflected through psycho-somatic disorders such as nightmares.
  14. Damaged sexual identity problems. As a result of the PAS syndrome children often develop identity problems especially as they may have failed to identify with one member of the originally secure relationship.
  15. Poor peer relationships may follow the PAS situation due to the fact that such children often are either very withdrawn in their behaviour or are aggressive.
  16. Excessive feelings of guilt. This may be due to the knowledge deep down that the ostracised parent who has been vilified has done nothing wrong to deserve the kind of treatment received by the child or children. When this view occurs the child especially when older begins to suffer from guilt feelings.
Children who are exposed to PAS suffer in a variety of general as well as specific ways from this experience. It will often have both temporary and lasting effects on their lives. This is obviously not the intention of the alienator but it is the result of such alienation procedures and programming which causes the child to show a negative attitude and behaviour towards one of the parents. To deal with this problem a variety of therapeutic techniques are required and these will be covered in another article.


http://www.parental-alienation.info/
Read More... Parental Alienation Syndrome

FBI Nigerian Letter!

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From:
"DIR. FBI. Robert S. Mueller III"  
Subject:
FBI:Attn read carefully and contact immediately
Date:
Sat, 16 Oct 2010 10:50:49 +0100
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Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)
Anti-Terrorist And Monitory Crime Division.
J.Edgar. Hoover Building Washington D.C.
Customers Service Hours / Monday To Saturday
For more information call during working period
Telephone number: 2033330996

Attn: Beneficiary,

This is to Officially inform you that it has come to our notice and we have
thoroughly Investigated with the help of our Intelligence Monitoring Network
System that you are having an illegal Transaction with Impostors claiming to be
Prof. Charles C. Soludo of the Central Bank Of Nigeria, Mr. Patrick Aziza, Mr
Frank Nweke, Dr. Philip Mogan, none officials of Zenith Banks, United Bank of
Africa(UBA)Barr. Derrick Smith, kelvin Young of HSBC, Ibrahim Sule,Larry
Johnson,Dr. Usman Shamsuddeen, Dr. Philip Mogan, Paul Adim,Mrs. Farida
Waziri,EFCC NIGERIA they are Puppy Scammers impostors claiming to be the ones in
charge of your payment. During our Investigation,we noticed that the reason why
you have not received your payment,is because you have not fulfilled your
Financial Obligation given to you in respect of your Contract/Inheritance
Payment and that you have been dealing with the wrong prople.

Therefore, we have contacted the Federal Ministry Of Finance on your behalf and
they have brought a solution to your problem by coordinating your payment in
total (USD$3.000.000.00) to be delivered to you in cash through a diplomatic
means with the help of an FBI agent.

You now have the lawful right to claim your fund. Since the Federal Bureau of
Investigation is involved in this transaction, you have to be rest assured for
this is 100% risk free it is our duty to protect the people of the world. All
you need to do is to contact the PAYMENT CENTER via email for their requirements
to proceed for the delivery of your funds, and it will cost you US$150 which is
for the APPROVAL SLIP only and note that without this payment your fund cannot
be delivered to your doorstep.

After your payment has been confirmed your funds will be shipped and accompanied
by an FBI AGENT and you will recieve your tracking number via email which you
can use to track you package and know when it will get to you.


Please note that your fund will be accompanied by an FBI agent who will make
sure it gets to your doorstep without any problem.

Below are few list of tracking numbers you can track them on the FedEx website
to confirm, some benificiaries like you who have received their ATM card
successfully.

Name : Donny Peterson: FedEx Tracking Number: 870456747216 
http://www.fedex.com/ng/
Name : Angela L. Johnson: FedEx Tracking Number: 870456750392
http://www.fedex.com/ng/

CONTACT INFORMATION

NAME:  Mr. Jim Brown
EMAIL: mrjimbrown1985@yahoo.cn
TEL:  +234 7060646140

Do contact Mr. Jim Brown with your correct details, to avoid mistake during
delivery:

FULL NAME:
HOME ADDRESS:
TELL:
CELL:
CURRENT OCCUPATION:
PLACE OF WORK:
GENDER/ AGE:
BANK NAME:

So your files would be updated after which he will send the payment information
which you will use in making payment of $150 via (WESTERN UNION TRANSFER) or
(MONEY GRAM TRANSFER) for the procurement of the APPROVAL SLIP after which the
delivery of your FUNDS will be effected to your designated home address without
any further delay.

Please if you know you cannot be able to afford the US$150 for the shipment of
your fund, then do not bother to contact Mr. Jim Brown for your funs.

Note: Do disregard any email you get from any impostors or offices claiming to
be in possession of your fund, you are hereby advise only to be in contact with
Mr. Jim Brown, who is the rightful person to deal with in regards to your fund
and forward any emails you get from impostors to him so we could act upon and
commence investigation.
Read More... FBI Nigerian Letter!

The Searl Effect

The Searl Effect: Large-Scale Antigravity
56:43 - 4 years ago



Filmed in 1994 at the IFNE Conference in Denver, this hour-long presentation by John Searl describes the inner-workings of the infamous Searl-Effect Generator and IGV Propulsion System with photos, schematics, construction details, and a concise summary of 1960's testing that you simply can't afford to miss! John Searl is one of the most controversial figures in Anti gravity research, but since beginning his work in the 1940's, he's arguably become "the father of modern Anti gravity". His claim is simple: that after a childhood dream showing a rotating set of rollers on a metallic ring, he constructed a device called the Searl Effect Generator (SEG) that seems to produce massive Anti gravitational thrust. Searl is one of the cultural icons in the Anti gravity
Read More... The Searl Effect

How Any BitTorrent User Can Collect Lawsuit Evidence | TorrentFreak

How Any BitTorrent User Can Collect Lawsuit Evidence

Written by Ben Jones on September 03, 2010

The RIAA may have given up on lawsuits targeting P2P users, but other companies have stepped into their shoes. There are many ways to detect P2P users and collect evidence of their behaviors for use in lawsuits. The simplest way needs nothing more than a BitTorrent client.

We’ve covered some of the more exotic ways people can be tracked or monitored in the past (including some that don’t work) but the lawsuits, abandoned by the record industry as bad for business, have been adopted by a group of lawyers who don’t let a little hypocrisy stand in their way.

There’s a lot of misinformation about which companies and agencies can do what, and how they do it. People claim industry groups or random companies can search and send out letters at random, whereas the reality is the investigator must be authorized or they could be deemed guilty of copyright infringement themselves.

There’s also a lot of confusion about exactly how evidence is collected, with people sometimes believing that it can only be collected from corporate networks, or that private trackers are safe because investigators can’t share and so would be banned for their ratio. Much of this is untrue and these beliefs can make it easier to collect evidence.

The easiest way of all is to simply collect information from trackers. It’s an easy and quick way to do it, although as was revealed 2 years ago, it’s often quite inaccurate.

The next simplest way, which provides lots of data, is just to join a swarm and monitor. Some people believe that clients doing this will stand out, as modified clients will behave differently. The reality is that clients don’t have to be monitored at all.

Researcher Andrew Norton produced this video explaining how a vanilla µTorrent client can be used to identify and log peers without any modification or abnormal behavior.

Read More... How Any BitTorrent User Can Collect Lawsuit Evidence | TorrentFreak

How Any BitTorrent User Can Collect Lawsuit Evidence | TorrentFreak

How Any BitTorrent User Can Collect Lawsuit Evidence

Written by Ben Jones on September 03, 2010

The RIAA may have given up on lawsuits targeting P2P users, but other companies have stepped into their shoes. There are many ways to detect P2P users and collect evidence of their behaviors for use in lawsuits. The simplest way needs nothing more than a BitTorrent client.

We’ve covered some of the more exotic ways people can be tracked or monitored in the past (including some that don’t work) but the lawsuits, abandoned by the record industry as bad for business, have been adopted by a group of lawyers who don’t let a little hypocrisy stand in their way.

There’s a lot of misinformation about which companies and agencies can do what, and how they do it. People claim industry groups or random companies can search and send out letters at random, whereas the reality is the investigator must be authorized or they could be deemed guilty of copyright infringement themselves.

There’s also a lot of confusion about exactly how evidence is collected, with people sometimes believing that it can only be collected from corporate networks, or that private trackers are safe because investigators can’t share and so would be banned for their ratio. Much of this is untrue and these beliefs can make it easier to collect evidence.

The easiest way of all is to simply collect information from trackers. It’s an easy and quick way to do it, although as was revealed 2 years ago, it’s often quite inaccurate.

The next simplest way, which provides lots of data, is just to join a swarm and monitor. Some people believe that clients doing this will stand out, as modified clients will behave differently. The reality is that clients don’t have to be monitored at all.

Researcher Andrew Norton produced this video explaining how a vanilla µTorrent client can be used to identify and log peers without any modification or abnormal behavior.

Read More... How Any BitTorrent User Can Collect Lawsuit Evidence | TorrentFreak

S. 510: FDA Food Safety Modernization Act

The government is out of their mind !!!

S 510 RS
Calendar No. 247
111th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 510
To amend the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act with respect to the safety of the food supply.
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
March 3, 2009
Mr. DURBIN (for himself, Mr. GREGG, Mr. KENNEDY, Mr. BURR, Mr. DODD, Mr. ALEXANDER, Mr. ISAKSON, Ms. KLOBUCHAR, Mr. CHAMBLISS, Mr. BURRIS, Mr. UDALL of New Mexico, Mrs. GILLIBRAND, Mr. HATCH, Mr. BINGAMAN, Mr. HARKIN, and Mr. ENZI) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
December 18, 2009
Reported by Mr. HARKIN, with an amendment
[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic]

A BILL
To amend the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act with respect to the safety of the food supply.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; REFERENCES; TABLE OF CONTENTS.
(a) Short Title- This Act may be cited as the ‘FDA Food Safety Modernization Act’.
(b) References- Except as otherwise specified, whenever in this Act an amendment is expressed in terms of an amendment to a section or other provision, the reference shall be considered to be made to a section or other provision of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 301 et seq.).
(c) Table of Contents- The table of contents for this Act is as follows:
TITLE I--IMPROVING CAPACITY TO PREVENT FOOD SAFETY PROBLEMS
SEC. 101. INSPECTIONS OF RECORDS.
(a) In General- Section 414(a) (21 U.S.C. 350c(a)) is amended--
(1) by striking the heading and all that follows through ‘of food is’ and inserting the following: ‘Records Inspection-
‘(1) ADULTERATED FOOD- If the Secretary has a reasonable belief that an article of food, and any other article of food that the Secretary reasonably believes is likely to be affected in a similar manner, is’;
(2) by inserting ‘, and to any other article of food that the Secretary reasonably believes is likely to be affected in a similar manner,’ after ‘relating to such article’;
(3) by striking the last sentence; and
(4) by inserting at the end the following:
‘(2) USE OF OR EXPOSURE TO FOOD OF CONCERN- If the Secretary believes that there is a reasonable probability that the use of or exposure to an article of food, and any other article of food that the Secretary reasonably believes is likely to be affected in a similar manner, will cause serious adverse health consequences or death to humans or animals, each person (excluding farms and restaurants) who manufactures, processes, packs, distributes, receives, holds, or imports such article shall, at the request of an officer or employee duly designated by the Secretary, permit such officer or employee, upon presentation of appropriate credentials and a written notice to such person, at reasonable times and within reasonable limits and in a reasonable manner, to have access to and copy all records relating to such article and to any other article of food that the Secretary reasonably believes is likely to be affected in a similar manner, that are needed to assist the Secretary in determining whether there is a reasonable probability that the use of or exposure to the food will cause serious adverse health consequences or death to humans or animals.
‘(3) APPLICATION- The requirement under paragraphs (1) and (2) applies to all records relating to the manufacture, processing, packing, distribution, receipt, holding, or importation of such article maintained by or on behalf of such person in any format (including paper and electronic formats) and at any location.’.
(b) Conforming Amendment- Section 704(a)(1)(B) (21 U.S.C. 374(a)(1)(B)) is amended by striking ‘section 414 when’ and all that follows through ‘subject to’ and inserting ‘section 414, when the standard for records inspection under paragraph (1) or (2) of section 414(a) applies, subject to’.
SEC. 102. REGISTRATION OF FOOD FACILITIES.
(a) Updating of Food Category Regulations; Biennial Registration Renewal- Section 415(a) (21 U.S.C. 350d(a)) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (2), by--
(A) striking ‘conducts business and’ and inserting ‘conducts business, the e-mail address for the contact person of the facility or, in the case of a foreign facility, the United States agent for the facility, and’; and
(B) inserting ‘, or any other food categories as determined appropriate by the Secretary, including by guidance’ after ‘Code of Federal Regulations’;
(2) by redesignating paragraphs (3) and (4) as paragraphs (4) and (5), respectively; and
(3) by inserting after paragraph (2) the following:
‘(3) BIENNIAL REGISTRATION RENEWAL- During the period beginning on October 1 and ending on December 31 of each even-numbered year, a registrant that has submitted a registration under paragraph (1) shall submit to the Secretary a renewal registration containing the information described in paragraph (2). The Secretary shall provide for an abbreviated registration renewal process for any registrant that has not had any changes to such information since the registrant submitted the preceding registration or registration renewal for the facility involved.’.
(b) Suspension of Registration-
(1) IN GENERAL- Section 415 (21 U.S.C. 350d) is amended--
(A) in subsection (a)(2), by inserting after the first sentence the following: ‘The registration shall contain an assurance that the Secretary will be permitted to inspect such facility at the times and in the manner permitted by this Act.’;
(B) by redesignating subsections (b) and (c) as subsections (c) and (d), respectively; and
(C) by inserting after subsection (a) the following:
‘(b) Suspension of Registration-
‘(1) IN GENERAL- If the Secretary determines that food manufactured, processed, packed, or held by a facility registered under this section has a reasonable probability of causing serious adverse health consequences or death to humans or animals, the Secretary may by order suspend the registration of the facility under this section in accordance with this subsection.
‘(2) HEARING ON SUSPENSION- The Secretary shall provide the registrant subject to an order under paragraph (1) with an opportunity for an informal hearing, to be held as soon as possible but not later than 2 business days after the issuance of the order or such other time period, as agreed upon by the Secretary and the registrant, on the actions required for reinstatement of registration and why the registration that is subject to suspension should be reinstated. The Secretary shall reinstate a registration if the Secretary determines, based on evidence presented, that adequate grounds do not exist to continue the suspension of the registration.
‘(3) POST-HEARING CORRECTIVE ACTION PLAN; VACATING OF ORDER-
‘(A) CORRECTIVE ACTION PLAN- If, after providing opportunity for an informal hearing under paragraph (2), the Secretary determines that the suspension of registration remains necessary, the Secretary shall require the registrant to submit a corrective action plan to demonstrate how the registrant plans to correct the conditions found by the Secretary. The Secretary shall review such plan in a timely manner.
‘(B) VACATING OF ORDER- Upon a determination by the Secretary that adequate grounds do not exist to continue the suspension actions required by the order, or that such actions should be modified, the Secretary shall vacate the order or modify the order.
‘(4) EFFECT OF SUSPENSION- If the registration of a facility is suspended under this subsection, such facility shall not import food or offer to import food into the United States, or otherwise introduce food into interstate or intrastate commerce in the United States.
‘(5) REGULATIONS- The Secretary shall promulgate regulations that describe the standards the Commissioner will use in making a determination to suspend a registration, and the format the Commissioner will use to explain to the registrant the conditions found at the facility. The Secretary may promulgate such regulations on an interim final basis.
‘(6) APPLICATION DATE- Facilities shall be subject to the requirements of this subsection beginning on the earlier of--
‘(A) the date on which the Secretary issues regulations under paragraph (5); or
‘(B) 180 days after the date of enactment of the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act.
‘(7) NO DELEGATION- The authority conferred by this subsection to issue an order to suspend a registration or vacate an order of suspension shall not be delegated to any officer or employee other than the Commissioner.’.
(2) IMPORTED FOOD- Section 801(l) (21 U.S.C. 381(l)) is amended by inserting ‘(or for which a registration has been suspended under such section)’ after ‘section 415’.
(c) Conforming Amendments-
(1) Section 301(d) (21 U.S.C. 331(d)) is amended by inserting ‘415,’ after ‘404,’.
(2) Section 415(d), as redesignated by subsection (b), is amended by adding at the end before the period ‘for a facility to be registered, except with respect to the reinstatement of a registration that is suspended under subsection (b)’.
SEC. 103. HAZARD ANALYSIS AND RISK-BASED PREVENTIVE CONTROLS.
(a) In General- Chapter IV (21 U.S.C. 341 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:
‘SEC. 418. HAZARD ANALYSIS AND RISK-BASED PREVENTIVE CONTROLS.
‘(a) In General- The owner, operator, or agent in charge of a facility shall, in accordance with this section, evaluate the hazards that could affect food manufactured, processed, packed, or held by such facility, identify and implement preventive controls to significantly minimize or prevent the occurrence of such hazards and provide assurances that such food is not adulterated under section 402 or misbranded under section 403(w), monitor the performance of those controls, and maintain records of this monitoring as a matter of routine practice.
‘(b) Hazard Analysis- The owner, operator, or agent in charge of a facility shall--
‘(1) identify and evaluate known or reasonably foreseeable hazards that may be associated with the facility, including--
‘(A) biological, chemical, physical, and radiological hazards, natural toxins, pesticides, drug residues, decomposition, parasites, allergens, and unapproved food and color additives; and
‘(B) hazards that occur naturally, may be unintentionally introduced, or may be intentionally introduced, including by acts of terrorism; and
‘(2) develop a written analysis of the hazards.
‘(c) Preventive Controls- The owner, operator, or agent in charge of a facility shall identify and implement preventive controls, including at critical control points, if any, to provide assurances that--
‘(1) hazards identified in the hazard analysis conducted under subsection (b) will be significantly minimized or prevented; and
‘(2) the food manufactured, processed, packed, or held by such facility will not be adulterated under section 402 or misbranded under section 403(w).
‘(d) Monitoring of Effectiveness- The owner, operator, or agent in charge of a facility shall monitor the effectiveness of the preventive controls implemented under subsection (c) to provide assurances that the outcomes described in subsection (c) shall be achieved.
‘(e) Corrective Actions- The owner, operator, or agent in charge of a facility shall establish procedures that a facility will implement if the preventive controls implemented under subsection (c) are found to be ineffective through monitoring under subsection (d).
‘(f) Verification- The owner, operator, or agent in charge of a facility shall verify that--
‘(1) the preventive controls implemented under subsection (c) are adequate to control the hazards identified under subsection (b);
‘(2) the owner, operator, or agent is conducting monitoring in accordance with subsection (d);
‘(3) the owner, operator, or agent is making appropriate decisions about corrective actions taken under subsection (e);
‘(4) the preventive controls implemented under subsection (c) are effectively and significantly minimizing or preventing the occurrence of identified hazards, including through the use of environmental and product testing programs and other appropriate means; and
‘(5) there is documented, periodic reanalysis of the plan under subsection (i) to ensure that the plan is still relevant to the raw materials, conditions and processes in the facility, and new and emerging threats.
‘(g) Recordkeeping- The owner, operator, or agent in charge of a facility shall maintain, for not less than 2 years, records documenting the monitoring of the preventive controls implemented under subsection (c), instances of nonconformance material to food safety, the results of testing and other appropriate means of verification under subsection (f)(4), instances when corrective actions were implemented, and the efficacy of preventive controls and corrective actions.
‘(h) Written Plan and Documentation- The owner, operator, or agent in charge of a facility shall prepare a written plan that documents and describes the procedures used by the facility to comply with the requirements of this section, including analyzing the hazards under subsection (b) and identifying the preventive controls adopted under subsection (c) to address those hazards. Such written plan, together with the documentation described in subsection (g), shall be made promptly available to a duly authorized representative of the Secretary upon oral or written request.
‘(i) Requirement To Reanalyze- The owner, operator, or agent in charge of a facility shall conduct a reanalysis under subsection (b) whenever a significant change is made in the activities conducted at a facility operated by such owner, operator, or agent if the change creates a reasonable potential for a new hazard or a significant increase in a previously identified hazard or not less frequently than once every 3 years, whichever is earlier. Such reanalysis shall be completed and additional preventive controls needed to address the hazard identified, if any, shall be implemented before the change in activities at the facility is operative. Such owner, operator, or agent shall revise the written plan required under subsection (h) if such a significant change is made or document the basis for the conclusion that no additional or revised preventive controls are needed. The Secretary may require a reanalysis under this section to respond to new hazards and developments in scientific understanding.
‘(j) Deemed Compliance of Seafood, Juice, and Low-acid Canned Food Facilities Subject to HACCP- The owner, operator, or agent in charge of a facility required to comply with 1 of the following standards and regulations with respect to such facility shall be deemed to be in compliance with this section, with respect to such facility:
‘(1) The Seafood Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points Program of the Food and Drug Administration.
‘(2) The Juice Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points Program of the Food and Drug Administration.
‘(3) The Thermally Processed Low-Acid Foods Packaged in Hermetically Sealed Containers standards of the Food and Drug Administration (or any successor standards).
‘(k) Exception for Facilities Subject to Section 419- This section shall not apply to a facility that is subject to section 419.
‘(l) Authority With Respect to Certain Facilities- The Secretary may, by regulation, exempt or modify the requirements for compliance under this section with respect to facilities that are solely engaged in the production of food for animals other than man, the storage of raw agricultural commodities (other than fruits and vegetables) intended for further distribution or processing, or the storage of packaged foods that are not exposed to the environment.
‘(m) Definitions- For purposes of this section:
‘(1) CRITICAL CONTROL POINT- The term ‘critical control point’ means a point, step, or procedure in a food process at which control can be applied and is essential to prevent or eliminate a food safety hazard or reduce such hazard to an acceptable level.
‘(2) FACILITY- The term ‘facility’ means a domestic facility or a foreign facility that is required to register under section 415.
‘(3) PREVENTIVE CONTROLS- The term ‘preventive controls’ means those risk-based, reasonably appropriate procedures, practices, and processes that a person knowledgeable about the safe manufacturing, processing, packing, or holding of food would employ to significantly minimize or prevent the hazards identified under the hazard analysis conducted under subsection (a) and that are consistent with the current scientific understanding of safe food manufacturing, processing, packing, or holding at the time of the analysis. Those procedures, practices, and processes may include the following:
‘(A) Sanitation procedures for food contact surfaces and utensils and food-contact surfaces of equipment.
‘(B) Supervisor, manager, and employee hygiene training.
‘(C) An environmental monitoring program to verify the effectiveness of pathogen controls in processes where a food is exposed to a potential contaminant in the environment.
‘(D) A food allergen control program.
‘(E) A recall plan.
‘(F) Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs).
‘(G) Supplier verification activities.’.
(b) Regulations-
(1) IN GENERAL- Not later than 18 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Health and Human Services (referred to in this Act as the ‘Secretary’) shall promulgate regulations to establish science-based minimum standards for conducting a hazard analysis, documenting hazards, implementing preventive controls, and documenting the implementation of the preventive controls under section 418 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (as added by subsection (a)).
(2) CONTENT- The regulations promulgated under paragraph (1) shall provide sufficient flexibility to be applicable in all situations, including in the operations of small businesses.
(3) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION- Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to provide the Secretary with the authority to apply specific technologies, practices, or critical controls to an individual facility.
(4) REVIEW- In promulgating the regulations under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall review regulatory hazard analysis and preventive control programs in existence on the date of enactment of this Act to ensure that the program under such section 418 is consistent, to the extent practicable, with applicable domestic and internationally-recognized standards in existence on such date.
(c) Guidance Document- The Secretary shall issue a guidance document related to hazard analysis and preventive controls related to the regulations promulgated under section 418 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (as added by subsection (a)).
(d) Prohibited Acts- Section 301 (21 U.S.C. 331) is amended by adding at the end the following:
‘(uu) The operation of a facility that manufacturers, processes, packs, or holds food for sale in the United States if the owner, operator, or agent in charge of such facility is not in compliance with section 418.’.
(e) No Effect on HACCP Authorities- Nothing in the amendments made by this section limits the authority of the Secretary under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 301 et seq.) or the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 201 et seq.) to revise, issue, or enforce product and category-specific regulations, such as the Seafood Hazard Analysis Critical Controls Points Program, the Juice Hazard Analysis Critical Control Program, and the Thermally Processed Low-Acid Foods Packaged in Hermetically Sealed Containers standards.
(f) Dietary Supplements- Nothing in the amendments made by this section shall apply to any dietary supplement that is in compliance with the requirements of sections 402(g)(2) and 761 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 342(g)(2), 379aa-1).
(g) No Effect on Alcohol-related Facilities-
(1) IN GENERAL- Nothing in the amendments made by this section shall apply to a facility that--
(A) under the Federal Alcohol Administration Act (27 U.S.C. 201 et seq.) or chapter 51 of subtitle E of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (26 U.S.C. 5291 et seq.) is required to obtain a permit or to register with the Secretary of the Treasury as a condition of doing business in the United States; and
(B) is required to register as a facility under section 415 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 350d) because such facility is engaged in manufacturing, processing, packing, or holding 1 or more alcoholic beverages,
with respect to the activities of such facility that relate to the manufacturing, processing, packing, or holding of alcoholic beverages.
(2) LIMITED RECEIPT AND DISTRIBUTION OF NON-ALCOHOL FOOD- Paragraph (1) shall not apply to a facility engaged in the receipt or distribution of any non-alcohol food, except that such paragraph shall apply to a facility described in such paragraph that receives and distributes non-alcohol food, provided such food is received and distributed--
(A) in a prepackaged form that prevents any direct human contact with such food; and
(B) in amounts that constitute not more than 5 percent of the overall sales of such facility, as determined by the Secretary of the Treasury.
(3) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION- Except as provided in paragraphs (1) and (2), this subsection shall not be construed to exempt any food, other than distilled spirits, wine, and malt beverages, as defined in section 211 of the Federal Alcohol Administration Act (27 U.S.C. 211), from the requirements of this Act (including the amendments made by this Act).
(h) Effective Date-
(1) GENERAL RULE- The amendments made by this section shall take effect 18 months after the date of enactment of this Act.
(2) EXCEPTIONS- Notwithstanding paragraph (1)--
(A) the amendments made by this section shall apply to a small business (as defined by the Secretary for purposes of this section, not later than 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act) after the date that is 2 years after the date of enactment of this Act; and
(B) the amendments made by this section shall apply to a very small business (as defined by the Secretary for purposes of this section, not later than 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act) after the date that is 3 years after the date of enactment of this Act.
SEC. 104. PERFORMANCE STANDARDS.
The Secretary shall, not less frequently than every 2 years, review and evaluate relevant health data and other relevant information, including from toxicological and epidemiological studies and analyses, to determine the most significant foodborne contaminants. Based on such review and evaluation, and when appropriate to reduce the risk of serious illness or death to humans or animals or to prevent adulteration of the food under section 402 of the Federal Food, Drug, or Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 342) or to prevent the spread of communicable disease under section 361 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 264), the Secretary shall issue contaminant-specific and science-based guidance documents, action levels, or regulations. Such guidance, action levels, or regulations shall apply to products or product classes and shall not be written to be facility-specific.
SEC. 105. STANDARDS FOR PRODUCE SAFETY.
(a) In General- Chapter IV (21 U.S.C. 341 et seq.), as amended by section 103, is amended by adding at the end the following:
‘SEC. 419. STANDARDS FOR PRODUCE SAFETY.
‘(a) Proposed Rulemaking-
‘(1) IN GENERAL- Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act, the Secretary, in coordination with the Secretary of Agriculture and representatives of State departments of agriculture (including with regard to the national organic program established under the Organic Foods Production Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C. 6501 et seq.)), shall publish a notice of proposed rulemaking to establish science-based minimum standards for the safe production and harvesting of those types of fruits and vegetables that are raw agricultural commodities for which the Secretary has determined that such standards minimize the risk of serious adverse health consequences or death.
‘(2) PUBLIC INPUT- During the comment period on the notice of proposed rulemaking under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall conduct not less than 3 public meetings in diverse geographical areas of the United States to provide persons in different regions an opportunity to comment.
‘(3) CONTENT- The proposed rulemaking under paragraph (1) shall--
‘(A) provide sufficient flexibility to be applicable to various types of entities engaged in the production and harvesting of raw agricultural commodities, including small businesses and entities that sell directly to consumers, and be appropriate to the scale and diversity of the production and harvesting of such commodities;
‘(B) include, with respect to growing, harvesting, sorting, packing, and storage operations, minimum standards related to soil amendments, hygiene, packaging, temperature controls, animal encroachment, and water;
‘(C) consider hazards that occur naturally, may be unintentionally introduced, or may be intentionally introduced, including by acts of terrorism;
‘(D) take into consideration, consistent with ensuring enforceable public health protection, conservation and environmental practice standards and policies established by Federal natural resource conservation, wildlife conservation, and environmental agencies; and
‘(E) in the case of production that is certified organic, not include any requirements that conflict with or duplicate the requirements of the national organic program established under the Organic Foods Production Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C. 6501 et seq.), while providing for public health protection consistent with the requirements of this Act.
‘(4) PRIORITIZATION- The Secretary shall prioritize the implementation of the regulations for specific fruits and vegetables that are raw agricultural commodities that have been associated with foodborne illness outbreaks.
‘(b) Final Regulation-
‘(1) IN GENERAL- Not later than 1 year after the close of the comment period for the proposed rulemaking under subsection (a), the Secretary shall adopt a final regulation to provide for minimum standards for those types of fruits and vegetables that are raw agricultural commodities for which the Secretary has determined that such standards minimize the risk of serious adverse health consequences or death.
‘(2) FINAL REGULATION- The final regulation shall--
‘(A) provide a reasonable period of time for compliance, taking into account the needs of small businesses for additional time to comply;
‘(B) provide for coordination of education and enforcement activities by State and local officials, as designated by the Governors of the respective States; and
‘(C) include a description of the variance process under subsection (c) and the types of permissible variances the Secretary may grant.
‘(c) Criteria-
‘(1) IN GENERAL- The regulations adopted under subsection (b) shall--
‘(A) set forth those procedures, processes, and practices as the Secretary determines to be reasonably necessary to prevent the introduction of known or reasonably foreseeable biological, chemical, and physical hazards, including hazards that occur naturally, may be unintentionally introduced, or may be intentionally introduced, including by acts of terrorism, into fruits and vegetables that are raw agricultural commodities and to provide reasonable assurances that the produce is not adulterated under section 402; and
‘(B) permit States and foreign countries from which food is imported into the United States, subject to paragraph (2), to request from the Secretary variances from the requirements of the regulations, where upon approval of the Secretary, the variance is considered permissible under the requirements of the regulations adopted under subsection (b)(2)(C) and where the State or foreign country determines that the variance is necessary in light of local growing conditions and that the procedures, processes, and practices to be followed under the variance are reasonably likely to ensure that the produce is not adulterated under section 402 to the same extent as the requirements of the regulation adopted under subsection (b).
‘(2) APPROVAL OF VARIANCES- A State or foreign country from which food is imported into the United States shall request a variance from the Secretary in writing. The Secretary may deny such a request as not reasonably likely to ensure that the produce is not adulterated under section 402 to the same extent as the requirements of the regulation adopted under subsection (b).
‘(d) Enforcement- The Secretary may coordinate with the Secretary of Agriculture and, as appropriate, shall contract and coordinate with the agency or department designated by the Governor of each State to perform activities to ensure compliance with this section.
‘(e) Guidance-
‘(1) IN GENERAL- Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act, the Secretary shall publish, after consultation with the Secretary of Agriculture, representatives of State departments of agriculture, farmer representatives, and various types of entities engaged in the production and harvesting of fruits and vegetables that are raw agricultural commodities, including small businesses, updated good agricultural practices and guidance for the safe production and harvesting of specific types of fresh produce.
‘(2) PUBLIC MEETINGS- The Secretary shall conduct not fewer than 3 public meetings in diverse geographical areas of the United States as part of an effort to conduct education and outreach regarding the guidance described in paragraph (1) for persons in different regions who are involved in the production and harvesting of fruits and vegetables that are raw agricultural commodities, including persons that sell directly to consumers and farmer representatives.
‘(f) Exception for Facilities Subject to Section 418- This section shall not apply to a facility that is subject to section 418.’.
(b) Prohibited Acts- Section 301 (21 U.S.C. 331), as amended by section 103, is amended by adding at the end the following:
‘(vv) The failure to comply with the requirements under section 419.’.
(c) No Effect on HACCP Authorities- Nothing in the amendments made by this section limits the authority of the Secretary under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 301 et seq.) or the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 201 et seq.) to revise, issue, or enforce product and category-specific regulations, such as the Seafood Hazard Analysis Critical Controls Points Program, the Juice Hazard Analysis Critical Control Program, and the Thermally Processed Low-Acid Foods Packaged in Hermetically Sealed Containers standards.
SEC. 106. PROTECTION AGAINST INTENTIONAL ADULTERATION.
(a) In General- Chapter IV (21 U.S.C. 341 et seq.), as amended by section 105, is amended by adding at the end the following:
‘SEC. 420. PROTECTION AGAINST INTENTIONAL ADULTERATION.
‘(a) In General- Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act, the Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary of Homeland Security and the Secretary of Agriculture, shall promulgate regulations to protect against the intentional adulteration of food subject to this Act.
‘(b) Applicability- Regulations under subsection (a) shall apply only to food--
‘(1) for which the Secretary has identified clear vulnerabilities (including short shelf-life or susceptibility to intentional contamination at critical control points);
‘(2) in bulk or batch form, prior to being packaged for the final consumer; and
‘(3) for which there is a high risk of intentional contamination, as determined by the Secretary, that could cause serious adverse health consequences or death to humans or animals.
‘(c) Determinations- In making the determination under subsection (b)(3), the Secretary shall--
‘(1) conduct vulnerability assessments of the food system;
‘(2) consider the best available understanding of uncertainties, risks, costs, and benefits associated with guarding against intentional adulteration at vulnerable points; and
‘(3) determine the types of science-based mitigation strategies or measures that are necessary to protect against the intentional adulteration of food.
‘(d) Content of Regulations- Regulations under subsection (a) shall--
‘(1) specify how a person shall assess whether the person is required to implement mitigation strategies or measures intended to protect against the intentional adulteration of food; and
‘(2) specify appropriate science-based mitigation strategies or measures to prepare and protect the food supply chain at specific vulnerable points, as appropriate.
‘(e) Exception- This section shall not apply to farms, except for those that produce milk.
‘(f) Definition- For purposes of this section, the term ‘farm’ has the meaning given that term in section 1.227 of title 21, Code of Federal Regulations (or any successor regulation).’.
(b) Guidance Documents-
(1) IN GENERAL- Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, in consultation with the Secretary of Homeland Security and the Secretary of Agriculture, shall issue guidance documents related to protection against the intentional adulteration of food, including mitigation strategies or measures to guard against such adulteration as required under section 420 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, as added by subsection (a).
(2) CONTENT- The guidance documents issued under paragraph (1) shall--
(A) include a model assessment for a person to use under subsection (d)(1) of section 420 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, as added by subsection (a);
(B) include examples of mitigation strategies or measures described in subsection (d)(2) of such section; and
(C) specify situations in which the examples of mitigation strategies or measures described in subsection (d)(2) of such section are appropriate.
(3) LIMITED DISTRIBUTION- In the interest of national security, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, in consultation with the Secretary of Homeland Security, may determine the time and manner in which the guidance documents issued under paragraph (1) are made public, including by releasing such documents to targeted audiences.
(c) Periodic Review- The Secretary of Health and Human Services shall periodically review and, as appropriate, update the regulations under subsection (a) and the guidance documents under subsection (b).
(d) Prohibited Acts- Section 301 (21 U.S.C. 331 et seq.), as amended by section 105, is amended by adding at the end the following:
‘(ww) The failure to comply with section 420.’.
SEC. 107. AUTHORITY TO COLLECT FEES.
(a) Fees for Reinspection, Recall, and Importation Activities- Subchapter C of chapter VII (21 U.S.C. 379f et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:
‘PART 6--FEES RELATED TO FOOD
‘SEC. 743. AUTHORITY TO COLLECT AND USE FEES.
‘(a) In General-
‘(1) PURPOSE AND AUTHORITY- For fiscal year 2010 and each subsequent fiscal year, the Secretary shall, in accordance with this section, assess and collect fees from--
‘(A) the responsible party for each domestic facility (as defined in section 415(b)) and the United States agent for each foreign facility subject to a reinspection in such fiscal year, to cover reinspection-related costs for such year;
‘(B) the responsible party for a domestic facility (as defined in section 415(b)) and an importer who does not comply with a recall order under section 423 or under section 412(f) in such fiscal year, to cover food recall activities associated with such order performed by the Secretary, including technical assistance, follow-up effectiveness checks, and public notifications, for such year;
‘(C) each importer participating in the voluntary qualified importer program under section 806 in such year, to cover the administrative costs of such program for such year; and
‘(D) each importer subject to a reinspection in such fiscal year, to cover reinspection-related costs for such year.
‘(2) DEFINITIONS- For purposes of this section--
‘(A) the term ‘reinspection’ means--
‘(i) with respect to domestic facilities (as defined in section 415(b)), 1 or more inspections conducted under section 704 subsequent to an inspection conducted under such provision which identified noncompliance materially related to a food safety requirement of this Act, specifically to determine whether compliance has been achieved to the Secretary’s satisfaction; and
‘(ii) with respect to importers, 1 or more examinations conducted under section 801 subsequent to an examination conducted under such provision which identified noncompliance materially related to a food safety requirement of this Act, specifically to determine whether compliance has been achieved to the Secretary’s satisfaction;
‘(B) the term ‘reinspection-related costs’ means all expenses, including administrative expenses, incurred in connection with--
‘(i) arranging, conducting, and evaluating the results of reinspections; and
‘(ii) assessing and collecting reinspection fees under this section; and
‘(C) the term ‘responsible party’ has the meaning given such term in section 417(a)(1).
‘(b) Establishment of Fees-
‘(1) IN GENERAL- Subject to subsections (c) and (d), the Secretary shall establish the fees to be collected under this section for each fiscal year specified in subsection (a)(1), based on the methodology described under paragraph (2), and shall publish such fees in a Federal Register notice not later than 60 days before the start of each such year.
‘(2) FEE METHODOLOGY-
‘(A) FEES- Fees amounts established for collection--
‘(i) under subparagraph (A) of subsection (a)(1) for a fiscal year shall be based on the Secretary’s estimate of 100 percent of the costs of the reinspection-related activities (including by type or level of reinspection activity, as the Secretary determines applicable) described in such subparagraph (A) for such year;
‘(ii) under subparagraph (B) of subsection (a)(1) for a fiscal year shall be based on the Secretary’s estimate of 100 percent of the costs of the activities described in such subparagraph (B) for such year;
‘(iii) under subparagraph (C) of subsection (a)(1) for a fiscal year shall be based on the Secretary’s estimate of 100 percent of the costs of the activities described in such subparagraph (C) for such year; and
‘(iv) under subparagraph (D) of subsection (a)(1) for a fiscal year shall be based on the Secretary’s estimate of 100 percent of the costs of the activities described in such subparagraph (D) for such year.
‘(B) OTHER CONSIDERATIONS-
‘(i) VOLUNTARY QUALIFIED IMPORTER PROGRAM-
‘(I) PARTICIPATION- In establishing the fee amounts under subparagraph (A)(iii) for a fiscal year, the Secretary shall provide for the number of importers who have submitted to the Secretary a notice under section 806(e) informing the Secretary of the intent of such importer to participate in the program under section 806 in such fiscal year.
‘(II) RECOUPMENT- In establishing the fee amounts under subparagraph (A)(iii) for the first 5 fiscal years after the date of enactment of this section, the Secretary shall include in such fee a reasonable surcharge that provides a recoupment of the costs expended by the Secretary to establish and implement the first year of the program under section 806.
‘(ii) CREDITING OF FEES- In establishing the fee amounts under subparagraph (A) for a fiscal year, the Secretary shall provide for the crediting of fees from the previous year to the next year if the Secretary overestimated the amount of fees needed to carry out such activities, and consider the need to account for any adjustment of fees and such other factors as the Secretary determines appropriate.
‘(iii) PUBLISHED GUIDELINES- Not later than June 30, 2010, the Secretary shall publish in the Federal Register a proposed set of guidelines in consideration of the burden of fee amounts on small business. Such consideration may include reduced fee amounts for small businesses. The Secretary shall provide for a period of public comment on such guidelines. The Secretary shall adjust the fee schedule for small businesses subject to such fees only through notice and comment rulemaking.
‘(3) USE OF FEES- The Secretary shall make all of the fees collected pursuant to clause (i), (ii), (iii), and (iv) of paragraph (2)(A) available solely to pay for the costs referred to in such clause (i), (ii), (iii), and (iv) of paragraph (2)(A), respectively.
‘(c) Limitations-
‘(1) IN GENERAL- Fees under subsection (a) shall be refunded for a fiscal year beginning after fiscal year 2010 unless the amount of the total appropriations for food safety activities at the Food and Drug Administration for such fiscal year (excluding the amount of fees appropriated for such fiscal year) is equal to or greater than the amount of appropriations for food safety activities at the Food and Drug Administration for fiscal year 2009 (excluding the amount of fees appropriated for such fiscal year), multiplied by the adjustment factor under paragraph (3).
‘(2) AUTHORITY- If--
‘(A) the Secretary does not assess fees under subsection (a) for a portion of a fiscal year because paragraph (1) applies; and
‘(B) at a later date in such fiscal year, such paragraph (1) ceases to apply,
the Secretary may assess and collect such fees under subsection (a), without any modification to the rate of such fees, notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (a) relating to the date fees are to be paid.
‘(3) ADJUSTMENT FACTOR-
‘(A) IN GENERAL- The adjustment factor described in paragraph (1) shall be the total percentage change that occurred in the Consumer Price Index for all urban consumers (all items; United States city average) for the 12-month period ending June 30 preceding the fiscal year, but in no case shall such adjustment factor be negative.
‘(B) COMPOUNDED BASIS- The adjustment under subparagraph (A) made each fiscal year shall be added on a compounded basis to the sum of all adjustments made each fiscal year after fiscal year 2009.
‘(4) LIMITATION ON AMOUNT OF CERTAIN FEES-
‘(A) IN GENERAL- Notwithstanding any other provision of this section and subject to subparagraph (B), the Secretary may not collect fees in a fiscal year such that the amount collected--
‘(i) under subparagraph (B) of subsection (a)(1) exceeds $20,000,000; and
‘(ii) under subparagraphs (A) and (D) of subsection (a)(1) exceeds $25,000,000 combined.
‘(B) EXCEPTION- If a domestic facility (as defined in section 415(b)) or an importer becomes subject to a fee described in subparagraph (A), (B), or (D) of subsection (a)(1) after the maximum amount of fees has been collected by the Secretary under subparagraph (A), the Secretary may collect a fee from such facility or importer.
‘(d) Crediting and Availability of Fees- Fees authorized under subsection (a) shall be collected and available for obligation only to the extent and in the amount provided in appropriations Acts. Such fees are authorized to remain available until expended. Such sums as may be necessary may be transferred from the Food and Drug Administration salaries and expenses account without fiscal year limitation to such appropriation account for salaries and expenses with such fiscal year limitation. The sums transferred shall be available solely for the purpose of paying the operating expenses of the Food and Drug Administration employees and contractors performing activities associated with these food safety fees.
‘(e) Collection of Fees-
‘(1) IN GENERAL- The Secretary shall specify in the Federal Register notice described in subsection (b)(1) the time and manner in which fees assessed under this section shall be collected.
‘(2) COLLECTION OF UNPAID FEES- In any case where the Secretary does not receive payment of a fee assessed under this section within 30 days after it is due, such fee shall be treated as a claim of the United States Government subject to provisions of subchapter II of chapter 37 of title 31, United States Code.
‘(f) Annual Report to Congress- Not later than 120 days after each fiscal year for which fees are assessed under this section, the Secretary shall submit a report to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate and the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House of Representatives, to include a description of fees assessed and collected for each such year and a summary description of the entities paying such fees and the types of business in which such entities engage.
‘(g) Authorization of Appropriations- For fiscal year 2010 and each fiscal year thereafter, there is authorized to be appropriated for fees under this section an amount equal to the total revenue amount determined under subsection (b) for the fiscal year, as adjusted or otherwise affected under the other provisions of this section.’.
(b) Export Certification Fees for Foods and Animal Feed-
(1) AUTHORITY FOR EXPORT CERTIFICATIONS FOR FOOD, INCLUDING ANIMAL FEED- Section 801(e)(4)(A) (21 U.S.C. 381(e)(4)(A)) is amended--
(A) in the matter preceding clause (i), by striking ‘a drug’ and inserting ‘a food, drug’;
(B) in clause (i) by striking ‘exported drug’ and inserting ‘exported food, drug’; and
(C) in clause (ii) by striking ‘the drug’ each place it appears and inserting ‘the food, drug’.
(2) CLARIFICATION OF CERTIFICATION- Section 801(e)(4) (21 U.S.C. 381(e)(4)) is amended by inserting after subparagraph (B) the following new subparagraph:
‘(C) For purposes of this paragraph, a certification by the Secretary shall be made on such basis, and in such form (including a publicly available listing) as the Secretary determines appropriate.’.
SEC. 108. NATIONAL AGRICULTURE AND FOOD DEFENSE STRATEGY.
(a) Development and Submission of Strategy-
(1) IN GENERAL- Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Health and Human Services and the Secretary of Agriculture, in coordination with the Secretary of Homeland Security, shall prepare and submit to the relevant committees of Congress, and make publicly available on the Internet Web sites of the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Agriculture, the National Agriculture and Food Defense Strategy.
(2) IMPLEMENTATION PLAN- The strategy shall include an implementation plan for use by the Secretaries described under paragraph (1) in carrying out the strategy.
(3) RESEARCH- The strategy shall include a coordinated research agenda for use by the Secretaries described under paragraph (1) in conducting research to support the goals and activities described in paragraphs (1) and (2) of subsection (b).
(4) REVISIONS- Not later than 4 years after the date on which the strategy is submitted to the relevant committees of Congress under paragraph (1), and not less frequently than every 4 years thereafter, the Secretary of Health and Human Services and the Secretary of Agriculture, in coordination with the Secretary of Homeland Security, shall revise and submit to the relevant committees of Congress the strategy.
(5) CONSISTENCY WITH EXISTING PLANS- The strategy described in paragraph (1) shall be consistent with--
(A) the National Incident Management System;
(B) the National Response Framework;
(C) the National Infrastructure Protection Plan;
(D) the National Preparedness Goals; and
(E) other relevant national strategies.
(b) Components-
(1) IN GENERAL- The strategy shall include a description of the process to be used by the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Agriculture, and the Department of Homeland Security--
(A) to achieve each goal described in paragraph (2); and
(B) to evaluate the progress made by Federal, State, local, and tribal governments towards the achievement of each goal described in paragraph (2).
(2) GOALS- The strategy shall include a description of the process to be used by the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Agriculture, and the Department of Homeland Security to achieve the following goals:
(A) PREPAREDNESS GOAL- Enhance the preparedness of the agriculture and food system by--
(i) conducting vulnerability assessments of the agriculture and food system;
(ii) mitigating vulnerabilities of the system;
(iii) improving communication and training relating to the system;
(iv) developing and conducting exercises to test decontamination and disposal plans;
(v) developing modeling tools to improve event consequence assessment and decision support; and
(vi) preparing risk communication tools and enhancing public awareness through outreach.
(B) DETECTION GOAL- Improve agriculture and food system detection capabilities by--
(i) identifying contamination in food products at the earliest possible time; and
(ii) conducting surveillance to prevent the spread of diseases.
(C) EMERGENCY RESPONSE GOAL- Ensure an efficient response to agriculture and food emergencies by--
(i) immediately investigating animal disease outbreaks and suspected food contamination;
(ii) preventing additional human illnesses;
(iii) organizing, training, and equipping animal, plant, and food emergency response teams of--
(I) the Federal Government; and
(II) State, local, and tribal governments;
(iv) designing, developing, and evaluating training and exercises carried out under agriculture and food defense plans; and
(v) ensuring consistent and organized risk communication to the public by--
(I) the Federal Government;
(II) State, local, and tribal governments; and
(III) the private sector.
(D) RECOVERY GOAL- Secure agriculture and food production after an agriculture or food emergency by--
(i) working with the private sector to develop business recovery plans to rapidly resume agriculture, food production, and international trade;
(ii) conducting exercises of the plans described in subparagraph (C) with the goal of long-term recovery results;
(iii) rapidly removing, and effectively disposing of--
(I) contaminated agriculture and food products; and
(II) infected plants and animals; and
(iv) decontaminating and restoring areas affected by an agriculture or food emergency.
(c) Limited Distribution- In the interest of national security, the Secretary of Health and Human Services and the Secretary of Agriculture, in coordination with the Secretary of Homeland Security, may determine the manner and format in which the National Agriculture and Food Defense strategy established under this section is made publicly available on the Internet Web sites of the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Homeland Security, and the Department of Agriculture, as described in subsection (a)(1).
SEC. 109. FOOD AND AGRICULTURE COORDINATING COUNCILS.
The Secretary of Homeland Security, in coordination with the Secretary of Health and Human Services and the Secretary of Agriculture, shall within 180 days of enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, submit to the relevant committees of Congress, and make publicly available on the Internet Web site of the Department of Homeland Security, a report on the activities of the Food and Agriculture Government Coordinating Council and the Food and Agriculture Sector Coordinating Council, including the progress of such Councils on--
(1) facilitating partnerships between public and private entities to help coordinate and enhance the protection of the agriculture and food system of the United States;
(2) providing for the regular and timely interchange of information between each council relating to the security of the agriculture and food system (including intelligence information);
(3) identifying best practices and methods for improving the coordination among Federal, State, local, and private sector preparedness and response plans for agriculture and food defense; and
(4) recommending methods by which to protect the economy and the public health of the United States from the effects of--
(A) animal or plant disease outbreaks;
(B) food contamination; and
(C) natural disasters affecting agriculture and food.
SEC. 110. BUILDING DOMESTIC CAPACITY.
(a) In General-
(1) INITIAL REPORT- The Secretary shall, not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of this Act, submit to Congress a comprehensive report that identifies programs and practices that are intended to promote the safety and supply chain security of food and to prevent outbreaks of foodborne illness and other food-related hazards that can be addressed through preventive activities. Such report shall include a description of the following:
(A) Analysis of the need for further regulations or guidance to industry.
(B) Outreach to food industry sectors, including through the Food and Agriculture Coordinating Councils referred to in section 109, to identify potential sources of emerging threats to the safety and security of the food supply and preventive strategies to address those threats.
(C) Systems to ensure the prompt distribution to the food industry of information and technical assistance concerning preventive strategies.
(D) Communication systems to ensure that information about specific threats to the safety and security of the food supply are rapidly and effectively disseminated.
(E) Surveillance systems and laboratory networks to rapidly detect and respond to foodborne illness outbreaks and other food-related hazards, including how such systems and networks are integrated.
(F) Outreach, education, and training provided to States and local governments to build State and local food safety and food defense capabilities, including progress implementing strategies developed under sections 108 and 206.
(G) The estimated resources needed to effectively implement the programs and practices identified in the report developed in this section over a 5-year period.
(H) The impact of requirements under this Act (including amendments made by this Act) on certified organic farms and facilities (as defined in section 415 (21 U.S.C. 350d).
(2) BIENNIAL REPORTS- On a biennial basis following the submission of the report under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall submit to Congress a report that--
(A) reviews previous food safety programs and practices;
(B) outlines the success of those programs and practices;
(C) identifies future programs and practices; and
(D) includes information related to any matter described in subparagraphs (A) through (H) of paragraph (1), as necessary.
(b) Risk-based Activities- The report developed under subsection (a)(1) shall describe methods that seek to ensure that resources available to the Secretary for food safety-related activities are directed at those actions most likely to reduce risks from food, including the use of preventive strategies and allocation of inspection resources. The Secretary shall promptly undertake those risk-based actions that are identified during the development of the report as likely to contribute to the safety and security of the food supply.
(c) Capability for Laboratory Analyses; Research- The report developed under subsection (a)(1) shall provide a description of methods to increase capacity to undertake analyses of food samples promptly after collection, to identify new and rapid analytical techniques, including commercially-available techniques that can be employed at ports of entry and by Food Emergency Response Network laboratories, and to provide for well-equipped and staffed laboratory facilities.
(d) Information Technology- The report developed under subsection (a)(1) shall include a description of such information technology systems as may be needed to identify risks and receive data from multiple sources, including foreign governments, State, local, and tribal governments, other Federal agencies, the food industry, laboratories, laboratory networks, and consumers. The information technology systems that the Secretary describes shall also provide for the integration of the facility registration system under section 415 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 350d), and the prior notice system under section 801(m) of such Act (21 U.S.C. 381(m)) with other information technology systems that are used by the Federal Government for the processing of food offered for import into the United States.
(e) Automated Risk Assessment- The report developed under subsection (a)(1) shall include a description of progress toward developing and improving an automated risk assessment system for food safety surveillance and allocation of resources.
(f) Traceback and Surveillance Report- The Secretary shall include in the report developed under subsection (a)(1) an analysis of the Food and Drug Administration’s performance in foodborne illness outbreaks during the 5-year period preceding the date of enactment of this Act involving fruits and vegetables that are raw agricultural commodities (as defined in section 201(r) (21 U.S.C. 321(r)) and recommendations for enhanced surveillance, outbreak response, and traceability. Such findings and recommendations shall address communication and coordination with the public, industry, and State and local governments, as such communication and coordination relates to outbreak identification and traceback.
(g) Biennial Food Safety and Food Defense Research Plan- The Secretary and the Secretary of Agriculture shall, on a biennial basis, submit to Congress a joint food safety and food defense research plan which may include studying the long-term health effects of foodborne illness. Such biennial plan shall include a list and description of projects conducted during the previous 2-year period and the plan for projects to be conducted during the subsequent 2-year period.
SEC. 111. SANITARY TRANSPORTATION OF FOOD.
Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall promulgate regulations described in section 416(b) of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 350e(b)).
SEC. 112. FOOD ALLERGY AND ANAPHYLAXIS MANAGEMENT.
(a) Definitions- In this section:
(1) EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION PROGRAM- The term ‘early childhood education program’ means--
(A) a Head Start program or an Early Head Start program carried out under the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9831 et seq.);
(B) a State licensed or regulated child care program or school; or
(C) a State prekindergarten program that serves children from birth through kindergarten.
(2) ESEA DEFINITIONS- The terms ‘local educational agency’, ‘secondary school’, ‘elementary school’, and ‘parent’ have the meanings given the terms in section 9101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801).
(3) SCHOOL- The term ‘school’ includes public--
(A) kindergartens;
(B) elementary schools; and
(C) secondary schools.
(4) SECRETARY- The term ‘Secretary’ means the Secretary of Health and Human Services.
(b) Establishment of Voluntary Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Management Guidelines-
(1) ESTABLISHMENT-
(A) IN GENERAL- Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary of Education, shall--
(i) develop guidelines to be used on a voluntary basis to develop plans for individuals to manage the risk of food allergy and anaphylaxis in schools and early childhood education programs; and
(ii) make such guidelines available to local educational agencies, schools, early childhood education programs, and other interested entities and individuals to be implemented on a voluntary basis only.
(B) APPLICABILITY OF FERPA- Each plan described in subparagraph (A) that is developed for an individual shall be considered an education record for the purpose of section 444 of the General Education Provisions Act (commonly referred to as the ‘Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974’) (20 U.S.C. 1232g).
(2) CONTENTS- The voluntary guidelines developed by the Secretary under paragraph (1) shall address each of the following and may be updated as the Secretary determines necessary:
(A) Parental obligation to provide the school or early childhood education program, prior to the start of every school year, with--
(i) documentation from their child’s physician or nurse--
(I) supporting a diagnosis of food allergy, and any risk of anaphylaxis, if applicable;
(II) identifying any food to which the child is allergic;
(III) describing, if appropriate, any prior history of anaphylaxis;
(IV) listing any medication prescribed for the child for the treatment of anaphylaxis;
(V) detailing emergency treatment procedures in the event of a reaction;
(VI) listing the signs and symptoms of a reaction; and
(VII) assessing the child’s readiness for self-administration of prescription medication; and
(ii) a list of substitute meals that may be offered to the child by school or early childhood education program food service personnel.
(B) The creation and maintenance of an individual plan for food allergy management, in consultation with the parent, tailored to the needs of each child with a documented risk for anaphylaxis, including any procedures for the self-administration of medication by such children in instances where--
(i) the children are capable of self-administering medication; and
(ii) such administration is not prohibited by State law.
(C) Communication strategies between individual schools or early childhood education programs and providers of emergency medical services, including appropriate instructions for emergency medical response.
(D) Strategies to reduce the risk of exposure to anaphylactic causative agents in classrooms and common school or early childhood education program areas such as cafeterias.
(E) The dissemination of general information on life-threatening food allergies to school or early childhood education program staff, parents, and children.
(F) Food allergy management training of school or early childhood education program personnel who regularly come into contact with children with life-threatening food allergies.
(G) The authorization and training of school or early childhood education program personnel to administer epinephrine when the nurse is not immediately available.
(H) The timely accessibility of epinephrine by school or early childhood education program personnel when the nurse is not immediately available.
(I) The creation of a plan contained in each individual plan for food allergy management that addresses the appropriate response to an incident of anaphylaxis of a child while such child is engaged in extracurricular programs of a school or early childhood education program, such as non-academic outings and field trips, before- and after-school programs or before- and after-early child education program programs, and school-sponsored or early childhood education program-sponsored programs held on weekends.
(J) Maintenance of information for each administration of epinephrine to a child at risk for anaphylaxis and prompt notification to parents.
(K) Other elements the Secretary determines necessary for the management of food allergies and anaphylaxis in schools and early childhood education programs.
(3) RELATION TO STATE LAW- Nothing in this section or the guidelines developed by the Secretary under paragraph (1) shall be construed to preempt State law, including any State law regarding whether students at risk for anaphylaxis may self-administer medication.
(c) School-based Food Allergy Management Grants-
(1) IN GENERAL- The Secretary may award grants to local educational agencies to assist such agencies with implementing voluntary food allergy and anaphylaxis management guidelines described in subsection (b).
(2) APPLICATION-
(A) IN GENERAL- To be eligible to receive a grant under this subsection, a local educational agency shall submit an application to the Secretary at such time, in such manner, and including such information as the Secretary may reasonably require.
(B) CONTENTS- Each application submitted under subparagraph (A) shall include--
(i) an assurance that the local educational agency has developed plans in accordance with the food allergy and anaphylaxis management guidelines described in subsection (b);
(ii) a description of the activities to be funded by the grant in carrying out the food allergy and anaphylaxis management guidelines, including--
(I) how the guidelines will be carried out at individual schools served by the local educational agency;
(II) how the local educational agency will inform parents and students of the guidelines in place;
(III) how school nurses, teachers, administrators, and other school-based staff will be made aware of, and given training on, when applicable, the guidelines in place; and
(IV) any other activities that the Secretary determines appropriate;
(iii) an itemization of how grant funds received under this subsection will be expended;
(iv) a description of how adoption of the guidelines and implementation of grant activities will be monitored; and
(v) an agreement by the local educational agency to report information required by the Secretary to conduct evaluations under this subsection.
(3) USE OF FUNDS- Each local educational agency that receives a grant under this subsection may use the grant funds for the following:
(A) Purchase of materials and supplies, including limited medical supplies such as epinephrine and disposable wet wipes, to support carrying out the food allergy and anaphylaxis management guidelines described in subsection (b).
(B) In partnership with local health departments, school nurse, teacher, and personnel training for food allergy management.
(C) Programs that educate students as to the presence of, and policies and procedures in place related to, food allergies and anaphylactic shock.
(D) Outreach to parents.
(E) Any other activities consistent with the guidelines described in subsection (b).
(4) DURATION OF AWARDS- The Secretary may award grants under this subsection for a period of not more than 2 years. In the event the Secretary conducts a program evaluation under this subsection, funding in the second year of the grant, where applicable, shall be contingent on a successful program evaluation by the Secretary after the first year.
(5) LIMITATION ON GRANT FUNDING- The Secretary may not provide grant funding to a local educational agency under this subsection after such local educational agency has received 2 years of grant funding under this subsection.
(6) MAXIMUM AMOUNT OF ANNUAL AWARDS- A grant awarded under this subsection may not be made in an amount that is more than $50,000 annually.
(7) PRIORITY- In awarding grants under this subsection, the Secretary shall give priority to local educational agencies with the highest percentages of children who are counted under section 1124(c) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6333(c)).
(8) MATCHING FUNDS-
(A) IN GENERAL- The Secretary may not award a grant under this subsection unless the local educational agency agrees that, with respect to the costs to be incurred by such local educational agency in carrying out the grant activities, the local educational agency shall make available (directly or through donations from public or private entities) non-Federal funds toward such costs in an amount equal to not less than 25 percent of the amount of the grant.
(B) DETERMINATION OF AMOUNT OF NON-FEDERAL CONTRIBUTION- Non-Federal funds required under subparagraph (A) may be cash or in kind, including plant, equipment, or services. Amounts provided by the Federal Government, and any portion of any service subsidized by the Federal Government, may not be included in determining the amount of such non-Federal funds.
(9) ADMINISTRATIVE FUNDS- A local educational agency that receives a grant under this subsection may use not more than 2 percent of the grant amount for administrative costs related to carrying out this subsection.
(10) PROGRESS AND EVALUATIONS- At the completion of the grant period referred to in paragraph (4), a local educational agency shall provide the Secretary with information on how grant funds were spent and the status of implementation of the food allergy and anaphylaxis management guidelines described in subsection (b).
(11) SUPPLEMENT, NOT SUPPLANT- Grant funds received under this subsection shall be used to supplement, and not supplant, non-Federal funds and any other Federal funds available to carry out the activities described in this subsection.
(12) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS- There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this subsection $30,000,000 for fiscal year 2010 and such sums as may be necessary for each of the 4 succeeding fiscal years.
(d) Voluntary Nature of Guidelines-
(1) IN GENERAL- The food allergy and anaphylaxis management guidelines developed by the Secretary under subsection (b) are voluntary. Nothing in this section or the guidelines developed by the Secretary under subsection (b) shall be construed to require a local educational agency to implement such guidelines.
(2) EXCEPTION- Notwithstanding paragraph (1), the Secretary may enforce an agreement by a local educational agency to implement food allergy and anaphylaxis management guidelines as a condition of the receipt of a grant under subsection (c).
TITLE II--IMPROVING CAPACITY TO DETECT AND RESPOND TO FOOD SAFETY PROBLEMS
SEC. 201. TARGETING OF INSPECTION RESOURCES FOR DOMESTIC FACILITIES, FOREIGN FACILITIES, AND PORTS OF ENTRY; ANNUAL REPORT.
(a) Targeting of Inspection Resources for Domestic Facilities, Foreign Facilities, and Ports of Entry- Chapter IV (21 U.S.C. 341 et seq.), as amended by section 106, is amended by adding at the end the following:
‘SEC. 421. TARGETING OF INSPECTION RESOURCES FOR DOMESTIC FACILITIES, FOREIGN FACILITIES, AND PORTS OF ENTRY; ANNUAL REPORT.
‘(a) Identification and Inspection of Facilities-
‘(1) IDENTIFICATION- The Secretary shall allocate resources to inspect facilities according to the risk profile of the facilities, which shall be based on the following factors:
‘(A) The risk profile of the food manufactured, processed, packed, or held at the facility.
‘(B) The facility’s compliance history, including with regard to food recalls, outbreaks, and violations of food safety standards.
‘(C) The rigor and effectiveness of the facility’s hazard analysis and risk-based preventive controls.
‘(D) Whether the food manufactured, processed, packed, handled, prepared, treated, distributed, or stored at the facility meets the criteria for priority under section 801(h)(1).
‘(E) Whether the facility has received a certificate as described in section 809(b).
‘(F) Any other criteria deemed necessary and appropriate by the Secretary for purposes of allocating inspection resources.
‘(2) INSPECTIONS-
‘(A) IN GENERAL- Beginning on the date of enactment of the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act, the Secretary shall increase the frequency of inspection of all facilities.
‘(B) HIGH-RISK FACILITIES- The Secretary shall increase the frequency of inspection of facilities identified under paragraph (1) as high-risk facilities such that--
‘(i) for the first 2 years after the date of enactment of the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act, each high-risk facility is inspected not less often than once every 2 years; and
‘(ii) for each succeeding year, each high-risk facility is inspected not less often than once each year.
‘(C) NON-HIGH-RISK FACILITIES- The Secretary shall ensure that each facility that is not identified under paragraph (1) as a high-risk facility is inspected not less often than once every 4 years.
‘(b) Identification and Inspection at Ports of Entry- The Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary of Homeland Security, shall allocate resources to inspect articles of food imported into the United States according to the risk profile of the article of food, which shall be based on the following factors:
‘(1) The risk profile of the food imported.
‘(2) The risk profile of the countries or regions of origin and countries of transport of the food imported.
‘(3) The compliance history of the importer, including with regard to food recalls, outbreaks, and violations of food safety standards.
‘(4) The rigor and effectiveness of the foreign supplier verification program under section 805.
‘(5) Whether the food importer participates in the voluntary qualified importer program under section 806.
‘(6) Whether the food meets the criteria for priority under section 801(h)(1).
‘(7) Whether the food is from a facility that has received a certificate as described in section 809(b).
‘(8) Any other criteria deemed appropriate by the Secretary for purposes of allocating inspection resources.
‘(c) Coordination- The Secretary shall improve coordination and cooperation with the Secretary of Agriculture to target food inspection resources.
‘(d) Facility- For purposes of this section, the term ‘facility’ means a domestic facility or a foreign facility that is required to register under section 415.’.
(b) Annual Report- Section 1003 (21 U.S.C. 393) is amended by adding at the end the following:
‘(h) Annual Report Regarding Food- Not later than February 1 of each year, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a report regarding--
‘(1) information about food facilities including--
‘(A) the appropriations used to inspect facilities registered pursuant to section 415 in the previous fiscal year;
‘(B) the average cost of both a non-high-risk food facility inspection and a high-risk food facility inspection, if such a difference exists, in the previous fiscal year;
‘(C) the number of domestic facilities and the number of foreign facilities registered pursuant to section 415 that the Secretary inspected in the previous fiscal year;
‘(D) the number of domestic facilities and the number of foreign facilities registered pursuant to section 415 that were scheduled for inspection in the previous fiscal year and which the Secretary did not inspect in such year;
‘(E) the number of high-risk facilities identified pursuant to section 421 that the Secretary inspected in the previous fiscal year; and
‘(F) the number of high-risk facilities identified pursuant to section 421 that were scheduled for inspection in the previous fiscal year and which the Secretary did not inspect in such year.
‘(2) information about food imports including--
‘(A) the number of lines of food imported into the United States that the Secretary physically inspected or sampled in the previous fiscal year;
‘(B) the number of lines of food imported into the United States that the Secretary did not physically inspect or sample in the previous fiscal year; and
‘(C) the average cost of physically inspecting or sampling a food line subject to this Act that is imported or offered for import into the United States; and
‘(3) information on the foreign offices of the Food and Drug Administration including--
‘(A) the number of foreign offices established; and
‘(B) the number of personnel permanently stationed in each foreign office.
‘(i) Public Availability of Annual Food Reports- The Secretary shall make the reports required under subsection (h) available to the public on the Internet Web site of the Food and Drug Administration.’.
SEC. 202. RECOGNITION OF LABORATORY ACCREDITATION FOR ANALYSES OF FOODS.
(a) In General- Chapter IV (21 U.S.C. 341 et seq.), as amended by section 201, is amended by adding at the end the following:
‘SEC. 422. RECOGNITION OF LABORATORY ACCREDITATION FOR ANALYSES OF FOODS.
‘(a) Recognition of Laboratory Accreditation-
‘(1) IN GENERAL- Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act, the Secretary shall--
‘(A) provide for the recognition of accreditation bodies that accredit laboratories, including laboratories run and operated by a State or locality, with a demonstrated capability to conduct sampling and analytical testing of food products; and
‘(B) establish a publicly available registry of accreditation bodies, including the name of, contact information for, and other information deemed necessary by the Secretary about such bodies.
‘(2) FOREIGN LABORATORIES- Accreditation bodies recognized by the Secretary under paragraph (1) may accredit laboratories that operate outside the United States, so long as such laboratories meet the accreditation standards applicable to domestic laboratories accredited under this section.
‘(3) MODEL ACCREDITATION STANDARDS- The Secretary shall develop model standards that an accreditation body shall require laboratories to meet in order to be included in the registry provided for under paragraph (1). In developing the model standards, the Secretary shall look to existing standards for guidance. The model standards shall include methods to ensure that--
‘(A) appropriate sampling and rapid analytical procedures and commercially available techniques are followed and reports of analyses are certified as true and accurate;
‘(B) internal quality systems are established and maintained;
‘(C) procedures exist to evaluate and respond promptly to complaints regarding analyses and other activities for which the laboratory is recognized;
‘(D) individuals who conduct the sampling and analyses are qualified by training and experience to do so; and
‘(E) any other criteria determined appropriate by the Secretary.
‘(4) REVIEW OF ACCREDITATION- To ensure compliance with the requirements of this section, the Secretary shall--
‘(A) periodically, or at least every 5 years, reevaluate accreditation bodies recognized under paragraph (1); and
‘(B) promptly revoke the recognition of any accreditation body found not to be in compliance with the requirements of this section, specifying, as appropriate, any terms and conditions necessary for laboratories accredited by such body to continue to perform testing as described in this section.
‘(b) Testing Procedures-
‘(1) IN GENERAL- Food testing shall be conducted by Federal laboratories or non-Federal laboratories that have been accredited by an accreditation body on the registry established by the Secretary under subsection (a)(1)(B) whenever such testing is conducted--
‘(A) by or on behalf of an owner or consignee--
‘(i) in response to a specific testing requirement under this Act or implementing regulations, when applied to address an identified or suspected food safety problem; and
‘(ii) as required by the Secretary, as the Secretary deems appropriate, to address an identified or suspected food safety problem; and
‘(B) on behalf of an owner or consignee--
‘(i) in support of admission of an article of food under section 801(a); and
‘(ii) under an Import Alert that requires successful consecutive tests.
‘(2) RESULTS OF TESTING- The results of any such testing shall be sent directly to the Food and Drug Administration, except the Secretary may by regulation exempt test results that do not have to be so submitted if the Secretary determines that such results do not contribute to the protection of public health. Test results required to be submitted may be submitted to the Food and Drug Administration through electronic means.
‘(c) Review by Secretary- If food sampling and testing performed by a laboratory run and operated by a State or locality that is accredited by an accreditation body on the registry established by the Secretary under subsection (a) result in a State recalling a food, the Secretary shall review the sampling and testing results for the purpose of determining the need for a national recall or other compliance and enforcement activities.
‘(d) No Limit on Secretarial Authority- Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit the ability of the Secretary to review and act upon information from food testing, including determining the sufficiency of such information and testing.’.
(b) Food Emergency Response Network- The Secretary, in coordination with the Secretary of Agriculture, the Secretary of Homeland Security, and State, local, and tribal governments shall, not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, and biennially thereafter, submit to the relevant committees of Congress, and make publicly available on the Internet Web site of the Department of Health and Human Services, a report on the progress in implementing a national food emergency response laboratory network that--
(1) provides ongoing surveillance, rapid detection, and surge capacity for large-scale food-related emergencies, including intentional adulteration of the food supply;
(2) coordinates the food laboratory capacities of State, local, and private food laboratories, including the sharing of data between State laboratories to develop national situational awareness;
(3) provides accessible, timely, accurate, and consistent food laboratory services throughout the United States;
(4) develops and implements a methods repository for use by Federal, State, and local officials;
(5) responds to food-related emergencies; and
(6) is integrated with relevant laboratory networks administered by other Federal agencies.
SEC. 203. INTEGRATED CONSORTIUM OF LABORATORY NETWORKS.
(a) In General- The Secretary of Homeland Security, in coordination with the Secretary of Health and Human Services, the Secretary of Agriculture, and the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, shall maintain an agreement through which relevant laboratory network members, as determined by the Secretary of Homeland Security, shall--
(1) agree on common laboratory methods in order to facilitate the sharing of knowledge and information relating to animal health, agriculture, and human health;
(2) identify means by which each laboratory network member could work cooperatively--
(A) to optimize national laboratory preparedness; and
(B) to provide surge capacity during emergencies; and
(3) engage in ongoing dialogue and build relationships that will support a more effective and integrated response during emergencies.
(b) Reporting Requirement- The Secretary of Homeland Security shall, on a biennial basis, submit to the relevant committees of Congress, and make publicly available on the Internet Web site of the Department of Homeland Security, a report on the progress of the integrated consortium of laboratory networks, as established under subsection (a), in carrying out this section.
SEC. 204. ENHANCING TRACEBACK AND RECORDKEEPING.
(a) In General- The Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary of Agriculture and representatives of State departments of health and agriculture, shall improve the capacity of the Secretary to effectively and rapidly track and trace, in the event of an outbreak, fruits and vegetables that are raw agricultural commodities.
(b) Pilot Projects-
(1) IN GENERAL- Not later than 9 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall establish at least 3 pilot projects in coordination with the produce industry to explore and evaluate methods for rapidly and effectively tracking and tracing fruits and vegetables that are raw agricultural commodities so that, if an outbreak occurs involving such a fruit or vegetable, the Secretary may quickly identify, as soon as practicable, the source of the outbreak and the recipients of the contaminated food.
(2) CONTENT- The Secretary shall select participants from the produce industry to run projects which overall shall include at least 3 different types of fruits or vegetables that have been the subject of outbreaks during the 5-year period preceding the date of enactment of this Act, and shall be selected in order to develop and demonstrate--
(A) methods that are applicable and appropriate for small businesses; and
(B) technologies, including existing technologies, that enhance traceback and trace forward.
(c) Report- Not later than 18 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall report to Congress on the findings of the pilot projects under subsection (b) together with recommendations for establishing more effective traceback and trace forward procedures for fruits and vegetables that are raw agricultural commodities.
(d) Traceback Performance Requirements-
(1) IN GENERAL- Not later than 3 years after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall publish a notice of proposed rulemaking to establish standards for the type of information, format, and timeframe for persons to submit records to aid the Secretary in effectively and rapidly tracking and tracing, in the event of a foodborne illness outbreak, fruits and vegetables that are raw agricultural commodities. In promulgating the regulations under this paragraph, the Secretary shall consider--
(A) the impact of such regulations on farms and small businesses;
(B) the findings in the report submitted under subsection (c); and
(C) existing international trade obligations.
(2) LIMITATIONS-
(A) TYPE OF RECORDS- The Secretary shall not require an entity that is subject to the requirements of section 419 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (as added by section 105), but which is not a facility (as such term is defined by section 415 of such Act), to submit to the Secretary distribution records under this section other than distribution records that are kept in the normal course of business and that show the immediate subsequent recipient, other than a consumer.
(B) MAINTENANCE OF RECORDS- Nothing in this section shall be construed as giving the Secretary the authority to prescribe specific technologies for the maintenance of records.
(e) Public Input- During the comment period in the notice of proposed rulemaking under subsection (d), the Secretary shall conduct not less than 3 public meetings in diverse geographical areas of the United States to provide persons in different regions an opportunity to comment.
(f) Raw Agricultural Commodity- In this section, the term ‘raw agricultural commodity’ has the meaning given that term in section 201(r) of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 321(r)).
SEC. 205. PILOT PROJECT TO ENHANCE TRACEBACK AND RECORDKEEPING WITH RESPECT TO PROCESSED FOOD.
(a) In General- As soon as practicable after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall establish a pilot project to explore and evaluate methods for rapidly and effectively tracking and tracing processed food so that, if an outbreak occurs involving such a processed food, the Secretary may quickly identify the source of the outbreak and the recipients of the contaminated food.
(b) Consultation- In establishing the pilot project under subsection (a), the Secretary shall consult with food processors and relevant businesses of varying size.
(c) Content- The Secretary shall select participants from the processed food industry to run a project which overall shall include 1 or more different types of processed food that have been the subject of outbreaks during the 5-year period preceding the date of enactment of this Act and shall be selected in order to develop and demonstrate--
(1) methods that are applicable and appropriate for small businesses; and
(2) technologies, including existing technologies, that enhance traceback and trace forward.
(d) Report- The Secretary shall report to Congress on the findings of the pilot project under this section, together with recommendations for establishing more effective traceback and trace forward procedures for processed food.
(e) Processed Food- In this section, the term ‘processed food’ has the meaning given such term in section 201(gg) of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 321(gg)).
SEC. 206. SURVEILLANCE.
(a) Definition of Foodborne Illness Outbreak- In this section, the term ‘foodborne illness outbreak’ means the occurrence of 2 or more cases of a similar illness resulting from the ingestion of a food.
(b) Foodborne Illness Surveillance Systems-
(1) IN GENERAL- The Secretary, acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, shall enhance foodborne illness surveillance systems to improve the collection, analysis, reporting, and usefulness of data on foodborne illnesses by--
(A) coordinating Federal, State and local foodborne illness surveillance systems, including complaint systems, and increasing participation in national networks of public health and food regulatory agencies and laboratories;
(B) facilitating sharing of findings on a more timely basis among governmental agencies, including the Food and Drug Administration, the Department of Agriculture, and State and local agencies, and with the public;
(C) developing improved epidemiological tools for obtaining quality exposure data and microbiological methods for classifying cases;
(D) augmenting such systems to improve attribution of a foodborne illness outbreak to a specific food;
(E) expanding capacity of such systems, including working toward automatic electronic searches, for implementation of identification practices, including fingerprinting strategies, for foodborne infectious agents, in order to identify new or rarely documented causes of foodborne illness and submit standardized information to a centralized database;
(F) allowing timely public access to aggregated, de-identified surveillance data;
(G) at least annually, publishing current reports on findings from such systems;
(H) establishing a flexible mechanism for rapidly initiating scientific research by academic institutions;
(I) integrating foodborne illness surveillance systems and data with other biosurveillance and public health situational awareness capabilities at the Federal, State, and local levels; and
(J) other activities as determined appropriate by the Secretary.
(2) PARTNERSHIPS- The Secretary shall support and maintain a diverse working group of experts and stakeholders from Federal, State, and local food safety and health agencies, the food and food testing industries, consumer organizations, and academia. Such working group shall provide the Secretary, through at least annual meetings of the working group and an annual public report, advice and recommendations on an ongoing and regular basis regarding the improvement of foodborne illness surveillance and implementation of this section, including advice and recommendations on--
(A) the priority needs of regulatory agencies, the food industry, and consumers for information and analysis on foodborne illness and its causes;
(B) opportunities to improve the effectiveness of initiatives at the Federal, State, and local levels, including coordination and integration of activities among Federal agencies, and between the Federal, State, and local levels of government;
(C) improvement in the timeliness and depth of access by regulatory and health agencies, the food industry, academic researchers, and consumers to foodborne illness aggregated, de-identified surveillance data collected by government agencies at all levels, including data compiled by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention;
(D) key barriers to improvement in foodborne illness surveillance and its utility for preventing foodborne illness at Federal, State, and local levels;
(E) the capabilities needed for establishing automatic electronic searches of surveillance data; and
(F) specific actions to reduce barriers to improvement, implement the working group’s recommendations, and achieve the purposes of this section, with measurable objectives and timelines, and identification of resource and staffing needs.
(c) Improving Food Safety and Defense Capacity at the State and Local Level-
(1) IN GENERAL- The Secretary shall develop and implement strategies to leverage and enhance the food safety and defense capacities of State and local agencies in order to achieve the following goals:
(A) Improve foodborne illness outbreak response and containment.
(B) Accelerate foodborne illness surveillance and outbreak investigation, including rapid shipment of clinical isolates from clinical laboratories to appropriate State laboratories, and conducting more standardized illness outbreak interviews.
(C) Strengthen the capacity of State and local agencies to carry out inspections and enforce safety standards.
(D) Improve the effectiveness of Federal, State, and local partnerships to coordinate food safety and defense resources and reduce the incidence of foodborne illness.
(E) Share information on a timely basis among public health and food regulatory agencies, with the food industry, with health care providers, and with the public.
(F) Strengthen the capacity of State and local agencies to achieve the goals described in section 108.
(2) REVIEW- In developing of the strategies required by paragraph (1), the Secretary shall, not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act, complete a review of State and local capacities, and needs for enhancement, which may include a survey with respect to--
(A) staffing levels and expertise available to perform food safety and defense functions;
(B) laboratory capacity to support surveillance, outbreak response, inspection, and enforcement activities;
(C) information systems to support data management and sharing of food safety and defense information among State and local agencies and with counterparts at the Federal level; and
(D) other State and local activities and needs as determined appropriate by the Secretary.
(d) Food Safety Capacity Building Grants- Section 317R(b) of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 247b-20(b)) is amended--
(1) by striking ‘2002’ and inserting ‘2010’; and
(2) by striking ‘2003 through 2006’ and inserting ‘2011 through 2014’.
SEC. 207. MANDATORY RECALL AUTHORITY.
(a) In General- Chapter IV (21 U.S.C. 341 et seq.), as amended by section 202, is amended by adding at the end the following:
‘SEC. 423. MANDATORY RECALL AUTHORITY.
‘(a) Voluntary Procedures- If the Secretary determines, based on information gathered through the reportable food registry under section 417 or through any other means, that there is a reasonable probability that an article of food (other than infant formula) is adulterated under section 402 or misbranded under section 403(w) and the use of or exposure to such article will cause serious adverse health consequences or death to humans or animals, the Secretary shall provide the responsible party (as defined in section 417) with an opportunity to cease distribution and recall such article.
‘(b) Prehearing Order To Cease Distribution and Give Notice- If the responsible party refuses to or does not voluntarily cease distribution or recall such article within the time and in the manner prescribed by the Secretary (if so prescribed), the Secretary may, by order require, as the Secretary deems necessary, such person to--
‘(1) immediately cease distribution of such article; and
‘(2) as applicable, immediately notify all persons--
‘(A) manufacturing, processing, packing, transporting, distributing, receiving, holding, or importing and selling such article; and
‘(B) to which such article has been distributed, transported, or sold, to immediately cease distribution of such article.
‘(c) Hearing on Order- The Secretary shall provide the responsible party subject to an order under subsection (b) with an opportunity for an informal hearing, to be held as soon as possible, but not later than 2 days after the issuance of the order, on the actions required by the order and on why the article that is the subject of the order should not be recalled.
‘(d) Post-hearing Recall Order and Modification of Order-
‘(1) AMENDMENT OF ORDER- If, after providing opportunity for an informal hearing under subsection (c), the Secretary determines that removal of the article from commerce is necessary, the Secretary shall, as appropriate--
‘(A) amend the order to require recall of such article or other appropriate action;
‘(B) specify a timetable in which the recall shall occur;
‘(C) require periodic reports to the Secretary describing the progress of the recall; and
‘(D) provide notice to consumers to whom such article was, or may have been, distributed.
‘(2) VACATING OF ORDER- If, after such hearing, the Secretary determines that adequate grounds do not exist to continue the actions required by the order, or that such actions should be modified, the Secretary shall vacate the order or modify the order.
‘(e) Cooperation and Consultation- The Secretary shall work with State and local public health officials in carrying out this section, as appropriate.
‘(f) Public Notification- In conducting a recall under this section, the Secretary shall--
‘(1) ensure that a press release is published regarding the recall, as well as alerts and public notices, as appropriate, in order to provide notification--
‘(A) of the recall to consumers and retailers to whom such article was, or may have been, distributed; and
‘(B) that includes, at a minimum--
‘(i) the name of the article of food subject to the recall; and
‘(ii) a description of the risk associated with such article;
‘(2) consult the policies of the Department of Agriculture regarding providing to the public a list of retail consignees receiving products involved in a Class I recall and shall consider providing such a list to the public, as determined appropriate by the Secretary; and
‘(3) if available, publish on the Internet Web site of the Food and Drug Administration an image of the article that is the subject of the press release described in (1).
‘(g) No Delegation- The authority conferred by this section to order a recall or vacate a recall order shall not be delegated to any officer or employee other than the Commissioner.
‘(h) Effect- Nothing in this section shall affect the authority of the Secretary to request or participate in a voluntary recall.’.
(b) Search Engine- Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall modify the Internet Web site of the Food and Drug Administration to include a search engine that--
(1) is consumer-friendly, as determined by the Secretary; and
(2) provides a means by which an individual may locate relevant information regarding each article of food subject to a recall under section 420 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act and the status of such recall (such as whether a recall is ongoing or has been completed).
(c) Civil Penalty- Section 303(f)(2)(A) (21 U.S.C. 333(f)(2)(A)) is amended by inserting ‘or any person who does not comply with a recall order under section 423’ after ‘section 402(a)(2)(B)’.
(d) Prohibited Acts- Section 301 (21 U.S.C. 331 et seq.), as amended by section 106, is amended by adding at the end the following:
‘(xx) The refusal or failure to follow an order under section 423.’.
SEC. 208. ADMINISTRATIVE DETENTION OF FOOD.
(a) In General- Section 304(h)(1)(A) (21 U.S.C. 334(h)(1)(A)) is amended by--
(1) striking ‘credible evidence or information indicating’ and inserting ‘reason to believe’; and
(2) striking ‘presents a threat of serious adverse health consequences or death to humans or animals’ and inserting ‘is adulterated or misbranded’.
(b) Regulations- Not later than 120 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall issue an interim final rule amending subpart K of part 1 of title 21, Code of Federal Regulations, to implement the amendment made by this section.
(c) Effective Date- The amendment made by this section shall take effect 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act.
SEC. 209. DECONTAMINATION AND DISPOSAL STANDARDS AND PLANS.
(a) In General- The Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (referred to in this section as the ‘Administrator’), in coordination with the Secretary of Health and Human Services, Secretary of Homeland Security, and Secretary of Agriculture, shall provide support for, and technical assistance to, State, local, and tribal governments in preparing for, assessing, decontaminating, and recovering from an agriculture or food emergency.
(b) Development of Standards- In carrying out subsection (a), the Administrator, in coordination with the Secretary of Health and Human Services, Secretary of Homeland Security, Secretary of Agriculture, and State, local, and tribal governments, shall develop and disseminate specific standards and protocols to undertake clean-up, clearance, and recovery activities following the decontamination and disposal of specific threat agents and foreign animal diseases.
(c) Development of Model Plans- In carrying out subsection (a), the Administrator, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, and the Secretary of Agriculture shall jointly develop and disseminate model plans for--
(1) the decontamination of individuals, equipment, and facilities following an intentional contamination of agriculture or food; and
(2) the disposal of large quantities of animals, plants, or food products that have been infected or contaminated by specific threat agents and foreign animal diseases.
(d) Exercises- In carrying out subsection (a), the Administrator, in coordination with the entities described under subsection (b), shall conduct exercises at least annually to evaluate and identify weaknesses in the decontamination and disposal model plans described in subsection (c). Such exercises shall be carried out, to the maximum extent practicable, as part of the national exercise program under section 648(b)(1) of the Post-Katrina Emergency Management Reform Act of 2006 (6 U.S.C. 748(b)(1)).
(e) Modifications- Based on the exercises described in subsection (d), the Administrator, in coordination with the entities described in subsection (b), shall review and modify as necessary the plans described in subsection (c) not less frequently than biennially.
(f) Prioritization- The Administrator, in coordination with the entities described in subsection (b), shall develop standards and plans under subsections (b) and (c) in an identified order of priority that takes into account--
(1) highest-risk biological, chemical, and radiological threat agents;
(2) agents that could cause the greatest economic devastation to the agriculture and food system; and
(3) agents that are most difficult to clean or remediate.
SEC. 210. IMPROVING THE TRAINING OF STATE, LOCAL, TERRITORIAL, AND TRIBAL FOOD SAFETY OFFICIALS.
Chapter X (21 U.S.C.391 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:
‘SEC. 1011. IMPROVING THE TRAINING OF STATE, LOCAL, TERRITORIAL, AND TRIBAL FOOD SAFETY OFFICIALS.
‘(a) Training- The Secretary shall set standards and administer training and education programs for the employees of State, local, territorial, and tribal food safety officials relating to the regulatory responsibilities and policies established by this Act, including programs for--
‘(1) scientific training;
‘(2) training to improve the skill of officers and employees authorized to conduct inspections under sections 702 and 704;
‘(3) training to achieve advanced product or process specialization in such inspections;
‘(4) training that addresses best practices;
‘(5) training in administrative process and procedure and integrity issues;
‘(6) training in appropriate sampling and laboratory analysis methodology; and
‘(7) training in building enforcement actions following inspections, examinations, testing, and investigations.
‘(b) Partnerships With State and Local Officials-
‘(1) IN GENERAL- The Secretary, pursuant to a contract or memorandum of understanding between the Secretary and the head of a State, local, territorial, or tribal department or agency, is authorized and encouraged to conduct examinations, testing, and investigations for the purposes of determining compliance with the food safety provisions of this Act through the officers and employees of such State, local, territorial, or tribal department or agency.
‘(2) CONTENT- A contract or memorandum described under paragraph (1) shall include provisions to ensure adequate training of such officers and employees to conduct such examinations, testing, and investigations. The contract or memorandum shall contain provisions regarding reimbursement. Such provisions may, at the sole discretion of the head of the other department or agency, require reimbursement, in whole or in part, from the Secretary for the examinations, testing, or investigations performed pursuant to this section by the officers or employees of the State, territorial, or tribal department or agency.
‘(3) EFFECT- Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to limit the authority of the Secretary under section 702.
‘(c) Extension Service- The Secretary shall ensure coordination with the extension activities of the National Institute of Food and Agriculture of the Department of Agriculture in advising producers and small processors transitioning into new practices required as a result of the enactment of the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act and assisting regulated industry with compliance with such Act.
‘(d) Authorization of Appropriations- There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary to carry out this section for fiscal years 2011 through 2015.’.
SEC. 211. GRANTS TO ENHANCE FOOD SAFETY.
Section 1009 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 399) is amended to read as follows:
‘SEC. 1009. GRANTS TO ENHANCE FOOD SAFETY.
‘(a) In General- The Secretary is authorized to make grants to States, localities, territories, and Indian tribes (as defined in section 4(e) of the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 450b(e))) to--
‘(1) undertake examinations, inspections, and investigations, and related food safety activities under section 702;
‘(2) train to the standards of the Secretary for the examination, inspection, and investigation of food manufacturing, processing, packing, holding, distribution, and importation, including as such examination, inspection, and investigation relate to retail food establishments;
‘(3) build the capacity of the laboratories of such State, locality, territory, or Indian tribe for food safety;
‘(4) build the infrastructure and capacity of the food safety programs of such State, locality, territory, or Indian tribe to meet the standards as outlined in the grant application; and
‘(5) take appropriate action to protect the public health in response to--
‘(A) a notification under section 1008, including planning and otherwise preparing to take such action; or
‘(B) a recall of food under this Act.
‘(b) Application-
‘(1) IN GENERAL- To be eligible to receive a grant under this section, a State, locality, territory, or Indian tribe shall submit an application to the Secretary at such time, in such manner, and including such information as the Secretary may reasonably require.
‘(2) CONTENTS- Each application submitted under paragraph (1) shall include--
‘(A) an assurance that the State, locality, territory, or Indian tribe has developed plans to engage in the types of activities described in subsection (a);
‘(B) a description of the types of activities to be funded by the grant;
‘(C) an itemization of how grant funds received under this section will be expended;
‘(D) a description of how grant activities will be monitored; and
‘(E) an agreement by the State, locality, territory, or Indian tribe to report information required by the Secretary to conduct evaluations under this section.
‘(c) Limitations- The funds provided under subsection (a) shall be available to a State, locality, territory, or Indian tribe only to the extent such State, locality, territory, or Indian tribe funds its food safety programs independently of any grant under this section in each year of the grant at a level equal to the level of such funding in the previous year, increased by the Consumer Price Index.
‘(d) Additional Authority- The Secretary may--
‘(1) award a grant under this section in each subsequent fiscal year without reapplication for a period of not more than 3 years, provided the requirements of subsection (c) are met for the previous fiscal year; and
‘(2) award a grant under this section in a fiscal year for which the requirement of subsection (c) has not been met only if such requirement was not met because such funding was diverted for response to 1 or more natural disasters or in other extenuating circumstances that the Secretary may determine appropriate.
‘(e) Duration of Awards- The Secretary may award grants to an individual grant recipient under this section for a period of not more than 3 years. In the event the Secretary conducts a program evaluation, funding in the second year or third year of the grant, where applicable, shall be contingent on a successful program evaluation by the Secretary after the first year.
‘(f) Progress and Evaluation- A grant recipient shall at the end of each year provide the Secretary with information on how grant funds were spent and the status of the efforts by such recipient to enhance food safety.
‘(g) Supplement Not Supplant- Grant funds received under this section shall be used to supplement, and not supplant, non-Federal funds and any other Federal funds available to carry out the activities described in this section.
‘(h) Authorization of Appropriations- For the purpose of making grants under this section, there are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary for fiscal years 2011 through 2015.’.
TITLE III--IMPROVING THE SAFETY OF IMPORTED FOOD
SEC. 301. FOREIGN SUPPLIER VERIFICATION PROGRAM.
(a) In General- Chapter VIII (21 U.S.C. 381 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:
‘SEC. 805. FOREIGN SUPPLIER VERIFICATION PROGRAM.
‘(a) In General-
‘(1) VERIFICATION REQUIREMENT- Each importer shall perform risk-based foreign supplier verification activities for the purpose of verifying that the food imported by the importer or its agent is--
‘(A) produced in compliance with the requirements of section 418 or 419, as appropriate; and
‘(B) is not adulterated under section 402 or misbranded under section 403(w).
‘(2) IMPORTER DEFINED- For purposes of this section, the term ‘importer’ means, with respect to an article of food--
‘(A) the United States owner or consignee of the article of food at the time of entry of such article into the United States; or
‘(B) in the case when there is no United States owner or consignee as described in subparagraph (A), the United States agent or representative of a foreign owner or consignee of the article of food at the time of entry of such article into the United States.
‘(b) Guidance- Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act, the Secretary shall issue guidance to assist importers in developing foreign supplier verification programs.
‘(c) Regulations-
‘(1) IN GENERAL- Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act, the Secretary shall promulgate regulations to provide for the content of the foreign supplier verification program established under subsection (a). Such regulations shall, as appropriate, include a process for verification by an importer, with respect to each foreign supplier from which it obtains food, that the imported food is produced in compliance with the requirements of section 418 or 419, as appropriate, and is not adulterated under section 402 or misbranded under section 403(w).
‘(2) VERIFICATION- The regulations under paragraph (1) shall require that the foreign supplier verification program of each importer be adequate to provide assurances that each foreign supplier to the importer produces the imported food employing processes and procedures, including risk-based reasonably appropriate preventive controls, equivalent in preventing adulteration and reducing hazards to those required by section 418 or section 419, as appropriate.
‘(3) ACTIVITIES- Verification activities under a foreign supplier verification program under this section may include monitoring records for shipments, lot-by-lot certification of compliance, annual on-site inspections, checking the hazard analysis and risk-based preventive control plan of the foreign supplier, and periodically testing and sampling shipments.
‘(d) Record Maintenance and Access- Records of an importer related to a foreign supplier verification program shall be maintained for a period of not less than 2 years and shall be made available promptly to a duly authorized representative of the Secretary upon request.
‘(e) Deemed Compliance of Seafood, Juice, and Low-acid Canned Food Facilities in Compliance With HACCP- The owner, operator, or agent in charge of a facility required to comply with 1 of the following standards and regulations with respect to such facility shall be deemed to be in compliance with this section with respect to such facility:
‘(1) The Seafood Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points Program of the Food and Drug Administration.
‘(2) The Juice Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points Program of the Food and Drug Administration.
‘(3) The Thermally Processed Low-Acid Foods Packaged in Hermetically Sealed Containers standards of the Food and Drug Administration (or any successor standards).
‘(f) Publication of List of Participants- The Secretary shall publish and maintain on the Internet Web site of the Food and Drug Administration a current list that includes the name of, location of, and other information deemed necessary by the Secretary about, importers participating under this section.’.
(b) Prohibited Act- Section 301 (21 U.S.C. 331), as amended by section 207, is amended by adding at the end the following:
‘(yy) The importation or offering for importation of a food if the importer (as defined in section 805) does not have in place a foreign supplier verification program in compliance with such section 805.’.
(c) Imports- Section 801(a) (21 U.S.C. 381(a)) is amended by adding ‘or the importer (as defined in section 805) is in violation of such section 805’ after ‘or in violation of section 505’.
(d) Effective Date- The amendments made by this section shall take effect 2 years after the date of enactment of this Act.
SEC. 302. VOLUNTARY QUALIFIED IMPORTER PROGRAM.
Chapter VIII (21 U.S.C. 381 et seq.), as amended by section 301, is amended by adding at the end the following:
‘SEC. 806. VOLUNTARY QUALIFIED IMPORTER PROGRAM.
‘(a) In General- Beginning not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act, the Secretary shall--
‘(1) establish a program, in consultation with the Secretary of Homeland Security, to provide for the expedited review and importation of food offered for importation by importers who have voluntarily agreed to participate in such program; and
‘(2) issue a guidance document related to participation and compliance with such program.
‘(b) Voluntary Participation- An importer may request the Secretary to provide for the expedited review and importation of designated foods in accordance with the program procedures established by the Secretary.
‘(c) Eligibility- Eligibility shall be limited to an importer offering food for importation from a facility that has a certification described in section 809(b). In reviewing the applications and making determinations on such requests, the Secretary shall consider the risk of the food to be imported based on factors, such as the following:
‘(1) The nature of the food to be imported.
‘(2) The compliance history of the foreign supplier.
‘(3) The capability of the regulatory system of the country of export to ensure compliance with United States food safety standards.
‘(4) The compliance of the importer with the requirements of section 805.
‘(5) The recordkeeping, testing, inspections and audits of facilities, traceability of articles of food, temperature controls, and sourcing practices of the importer.
‘(6) The potential risk for intentional adulteration of the food.
‘(7) Any other factor that the Secretary determines appropriate.
‘(d) Review and Revocation- Any importer qualified by the Secretary in accordance with the eligibility criteria set forth in this section shall be reevaluated not less often than once every 3 years and the Secretary shall promptly revoke the qualified importer status of any importer found not to be in compliance with such criteria.
‘(e) Notice of Intent To Participate- An importer that intends to participate in the program under this section in a fiscal year shall submit a notice to the Secretary of such intent at time and in a manner established by the Secretary.
‘(f) False Statements- Any statement or representation made by an importer to the Secretary shall be subject to section 1001 of title 18, United States Code.
‘(g) Definition- For purposes of this section, the term ‘importer’ means the person that brings food, or causes food to be brought, from a foreign country into the customs territory of the United States.’.
SEC. 303. AUTHORITY TO REQUIRE IMPORT CERTIFICATIONS FOR FOOD.
(a) In General- Section 801(a) (21 U.S.C. 381(a)) is amended by inserting after the third sentence the following: ‘With respect to an article of food, if importation of such food is subject to, but not compliant with, the requirement under subsection (q) that such food be accompanied by a certification or other assurance that the food meets some or all applicable requirements of this Act, then such article shall be refused admission.’.
(b) Addition of Certification Requirement- Section 801 (21 U.S.C. 381) is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:
‘(q) Certifications Concerning Imported Foods-
‘(1) IN GENERAL- The Secretary, based on public health considerations, including risks associated with the food or its place of origin, may require as a condition of granting admission to an article of food imported or offered for import into the United States, that an entity specified in paragraph (2) provide a certification or such other assurances as the Secretary determines appropriate that the article of food complies with some or all applicable requirements of this Act, as specified by the Secretary. Such certification or assurances may be provided in the form of shipment-specific certificates, a listing of certified entities, or in such other form as the Secretary may specify. Such certification shall be used for designated food imported from countries with which the Food and Drug Administration has an agreement to establish a certification program.
‘(2) CERTIFYING ENTITIES- For purposes of paragraph (1), entities that shall provide the certification or assurances described in such paragraph are--
‘(A) an agency or a representative of the government of the country from which the article of food at issue originated, as designated by such government or the Secretary; or
‘(B) such other persons or entities accredited pursuant to section 809 to provide such certification or assurance.
‘(3) RENEWAL AND REFUSAL OF CERTIFICATIONS- The Secretary may--
‘(A) require that any certification or other assurance provided by an entity specified in paragraph (2) be renewed by such entity at such times as the Secretary determines appropriate; and
‘(B) refuse to accept any certification or assurance if the Secretary determines that such certification or assurance is not valid or reliable.
‘(4) ELECTRONIC SUBMISSION- The Secretary shall provide for the electronic submission of certifications under this subsection.
‘(5) FALSE STATEMENTS- Any statement or representation made by an entity described in paragraph (2) to the Secretary shall be subject to section 1001 of title 18, United States Code.’.
(c) Conforming Technical Amendment- Section 801(b) (21 U.S.C. 381(b)) is amended in the second sentence by striking ‘with respect to an article included within the provision of the fourth sentence of subsection (a)’ and inserting ‘with respect to an article described in subsection (a) relating to the requirements of sections 760 or 761,’.
(d) No Limit on Authority- Nothing in the amendments made by this section shall limit the authority of the Secretary to conduct inspections of imported food or to take such other steps as the Secretary deems appropriate to determine the admissibility of imported food.
SEC. 304. PRIOR NOTICE OF IMPORTED FOOD SHIPMENTS.
(a) In General- Section 801(m)(1) (21 U.S.C. 381(m)(1)) is amended by inserting ‘any country to which the article has been refused entry;’ after ‘the country from which the article is shipped;’.
(b) Regulations- Not later than 120 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall issue an interim final rule amending subpart I of part 1 of title 21, Code of Federal Regulations, to implement the amendment made by this section.
(c) Effective Date- The amendment made by this section shall take effect 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act.
SEC. 305. REVIEW OF A REGULATORY AUTHORITY OF A FOREIGN COUNTRY.
Chapter VIII (21 U.S.C. 381 et seq.), as amended by section 302, is amended by adding at the end the following:
‘SEC. 807. REVIEW OF A REGULATORY AUTHORITY OF A FOREIGN COUNTRY.
‘The Secretary may review information from a country outlining the statutes, regulations, standards, and controls of such country, and conduct on-site audits in such country to verify the implementation of those statutes, regulations, standards, and controls. Based on such review, the Secretary shall determine whether such country can provide reasonable assurances that the food supply of the country meets or exceeds the safety of food manufactured, processed, packed, or held in the United States.’.
SEC. 306. BUILDING CAPACITY OF FOREIGN GOVERNMENTS WITH RESPECT TO FOOD.
(a) In General- The Secretary shall, not later than 2 years of the date of enactment of this Act, develop a comprehensive plan to expand the technical, scientific, and regulatory capacity of foreign governments, and their respective food industries, from which foods are exported to the United States.
(b) Consultation- In developing the plan under subsection (a), the Secretary shall consult with the Secretary of Agriculture, Secretary of State, Secretary of the Treasury, the United States Trade Representative, and the Secretary of Commerce, representatives of the food industry, appropriate foreign government officials, nongovernmental organizations that represent the interests of consumers, and other stakeholders.
(c) Plan- The plan developed under subsection (a) shall include, as appropriate, the following:
(1) Recommendations for bilateral and multilateral arrangements and agreements, including provisions to provide for responsibility of exporting countries to ensure the safety of food.
(2) Provisions for secure electronic data sharing.
(3) Provisions for mutual recognition of inspection reports.
(4) Training of foreign governments and food producers on United States requirements for safe food.
(5) Recommendations on whether and how to harmonize requirements under the Codex Alimentarius.
(6) Provisions for the multilateral acceptance of laboratory methods and detection techniques.
(d) Rule of Construction- Nothing in this section shall be construed to affect the regulation of dietary supplements under the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994 (Public Law 103-417).
SEC. 307. INSPECTION OF FOREIGN FOOD FACILITIES.
Chapter VIII (21 U.S.C. 381 et seq.), as amended by section 305, is amended by inserting at the end the following:
‘SEC. 808. INSPECTION OF FOREIGN FOOD FACILITIES.
‘(a) Inspection- The Secretary--
‘(1) may enter into arrangements and agreements with foreign governments to facilitate the inspection of foreign facilities registered under section 415; and
‘(2) shall direct resources to inspections of foreign facilities, suppliers, and food types, especially such facilities, suppliers, and food types that present a high risk (as identified by the Secretary), to help ensure the safety and security of the food supply of the United States.
‘(b) Effect of Inability To Inspect- Notwithstanding any other provision of law, food shall be refused admission into the United States if it is from a foreign facility registered under section 415 of which the owner, operator, or agent in charge of the facility, or the government of the foreign country, refuses to permit entry of United States inspectors, upon request, to inspect such facility. For purposes of this subsection, such an owner, operator, or agent in charge shall be considered to have refused an inspection if such owner, operator, or agent in charge refuses such a request to inspect a facility more than 2 business days after such request is submitted.’.
SEC. 308. ACCREDITATION OF THIRD-PARTY AUDITORS AND AUDIT AGENTS.
Chapter VIII (21 U.S.C. 381 et seq.), as amended by section 307, is amended by adding at the end the following:
‘SEC. 809. ACCREDITATION OF THIRD-PARTY AUDITORS AND AUDIT AGENTS.
‘(a) Definitions- In this section:
‘(1) ACCREDITED AUDIT AGENT- The term ‘accredited audit agent’ means an audit agent accredited by an accreditation body under this section.
‘(2) AUDIT AGENT- The term ‘audit agent’ means an individual who is qualified to conduct food safety audits, and who may be an employee or an agent of a third-party auditor.
‘(3) ACCREDITATION BODY- The term ‘accreditation body’ means a recognized authority that performs accreditation of third-party auditors and audit agents.
‘(4) ACCREDITED THIRD-PARTY AUDITOR- The term ‘accredited third-party auditor’ means a third-party auditor accredited by an accreditation body under this section.
‘(5) CONSULTATIVE AUDIT- The term ‘consultative audit’ means an audit of an eligible entity--
‘(A) to determine whether such entity is in compliance with the provisions of this Act and with applicable industry standards and practices; and
‘(B) the results of which are for internal facility purposes only.
‘(6) ELIGIBLE ENTITY- The term ‘eligible entity’ means a foreign entity, including a foreign facility registered under section 415, in the food import supply chain that chooses to be audited by an accredited third-party auditor or audit agent.
‘(7) REGULATORY AUDIT- The term ‘regulatory audit’ means an audit of an eligible entity--
‘(A) to determine whether such entity is in compliance with the provisions of this Act; and
‘(B) the results of which determine--
‘(i) whether an entity is eligible to receive a certification under section 801(q); and
‘(ii) whether the entity is eligible to participate in the voluntary qualified importer program under section 806.
‘(8) THIRD-PARTY AUDITOR- The term ‘third-party auditor’ means a foreign government, foreign cooperative, or any other qualified third party, as the Secretary determines appropriate, that conducts audits of eligible entities to certify that such eligible entities meet the applicable requirements of this section.
‘(b) Accreditation System-
‘(1) ACCREDITATION BODIES-
‘(A) RECOGNITION OF ACCREDITATION BODIES-
‘(i) IN GENERAL- Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act, the Secretary shall establish a system for the recognition of accreditation bodies that accredit third-party auditors and audit agents to certify that eligible entities meet the applicable requirements of this Act.
‘(ii) DIRECT ACCREDITATION- If, by the date that is 1 year after the date of establishment of the system described in clause (i), the Secretary has not identified and recognized an accreditation body to meet the requirements of this section, the Secretary may directly accredit third-party auditors and audit agents.
‘(B) NOTIFICATION- Each accreditation body recognized by the Secretary shall submit to the Secretary a list of all accredited third-party auditors and audit agents accredited by such body.
‘(C) REVOCATION OF RECOGNITION AS AN ACCREDITATION BODY- The Secretary shall promptly revoke the recognition of any accreditation body found not to be in compliance with the requirements of this section.
‘(2) MODEL ACCREDITATION STANDARDS- The Secretary shall develop model standards, including audit report requirements, and each recognized accreditation body shall ensure that third-party auditors and audit agents meet such standards in order to qualify as an accredited third-party auditor or audit agent under this section. In developing the model standards, the Secretary shall look to standards in place on the date of the enactment of this section for guidance, to avoid unnecessary duplication of efforts and costs.
‘(c) Third-party Auditors and Audit Agencies-
‘(1) REQUIREMENTS FOR ACCREDITATION AS A THIRD-PARTY AUDITOR OR AUDIT AGENT-
‘(A) FOREIGN GOVERNMENTS- Prior to accrediting a foreign government as an accredited third-party auditor, the accreditation body (or, in the case of direct accreditation under subsection (b)(1)(A)(ii), the Secretary) shall perform such reviews and audits of food safety programs, systems, and standards of the government as the Secretary deems necessary to determine that the foreign government is capable of adequately ensuring that eligible entities certified by such government meet the requirements of this Act with respect to food manufactured, processed, packed, or held for import into the United States.
‘(B) FOREIGN COOPERATIVES AND OTHER THIRD PARTIES- Prior to accrediting a foreign cooperative that aggregates the products of growers or processors, or any other third party that the Secretary determines appropriate to be an accredited third-party auditor or audit agent, the accreditation body (or, in the case of direct accreditation under subsection (b)(1)(A)(ii), the Secretary) shall perform such reviews and audits of the training and qualifications of auditors used by that cooperative or party and conduct such reviews of internal systems and such other investigation of the cooperative or party as the Secretary deems necessary to determine that each eligible entity certified by the cooperative or party has systems and standards in use to ensure that such entity meets the requirements of this Act.
‘(2) REQUIREMENT TO ISSUE CERTIFICATION OF ELIGIBLE ENTITIES-
‘(A) IN GENERAL- An accreditation body (or, in the case of direct accreditation under subsection (b)(1)(A)(ii), the Secretary) may not accredit a third-party auditor or audit agent unless such third-party auditor or audit agent agrees to issue a written and electronic certification to accompany each food shipment for import into the United States from an eligible entity certified by the third-party auditor or audit agent, subject to requirements set forth by the Secretary. Such written certification may be included with other documentation regarding such food shipment. The Secretary shall consider such certificates when targeting inspection resources under section 421.
‘(B) PURPOSE OF CERTIFICATION- The Secretary shall use evidence of certification provided by accredited third-party auditors and audit agents to--
‘(i) determine the eligibility of an importer to receive a certification under section 801(q); and
‘(ii) determine the eligibility of an importer to participate in the voluntary qualified importer program under section 806.
‘(3) AUDIT REPORT REQUIREMENTS-
‘(A) REQUIREMENTS IN GENERAL- As a condition of accreditation, an accredited third-party auditor or audit agent shall prepare the audit report for an audit, in a form and manner designated by the Secretary, which shall include--
‘(i) the identity of the persons at the audited eligible entity responsible for compliance with food safety requirements;
‘(ii) the dates of the audit;
‘(iii) the scope of the audit; and
‘(iv) any other information required by the Secretary that relate to or may influence an assessment of compliance with this Act.
‘(B) SUBMISSION OF REPORTS TO THE SECRETARY-
‘(i) IN GENERAL- Following any accreditation of a third-party auditor or audit agent, the Secretary may, at any time, require the accredited third-party auditor or audit agent to submit to the Secretary an onsite audit report and such other reports or documents required as part of the audit process, for any eligible entity certified by the third-party auditor or audit agent. Such report may include documentation that the eligible entity is in compliance with any applicable registration requirements.
‘(ii) LIMITATION- The requirement under clause (i) shall not include any report or other documents resulting from a consultative audit by the accredited third-party auditor or audit agent, except that the Secretary may access the results of a consultative audit in accordance with section 414.
‘(4) REQUIREMENTS OF AUDIT AGENTS-
‘(A) RISKS TO PUBLIC HEALTH- If, at any time during an audit, an accredited audit agent discovers a condition that could cause or contribute to a serious risk to the public health, the audit agent shall immediately notify the Secretary of--
‘(i) the identification of the eligible entity subject to the audit; and
‘(ii) such condition.
‘(B) TYPES OF AUDITS- An accredited audit agent may perform consultative and regulatory audits of eligible entities.
‘(C) LIMITATIONS- An accredited audit agent may not perform a regulatory audit of an eligible entity if such agent has performed a consultative audit or a regulatory audit of such eligible entity during the previous 24-month period.
‘(5) CONFLICTS OF INTEREST-
‘(A) THIRD-PARTY AUDITORS- An accredited third-party auditor shall--
‘(i) not be owned, managed, or controlled by any person that owns or operates an eligible entity to be certified by such auditor;
‘(ii) in carrying out audits of eligible entities under this section, have procedures to ensure against the use of any officer or employee of such auditor that has a financial conflict of interest regarding an eligible entity to be certified by such auditor; and
‘(iii) annually make available to the Secretary disclosures of the extent to which such auditor and the officers and employees of such auditor have maintained compliance with clauses (i) and (ii) relating to financial conflicts of interest.
‘(B) AUDIT AGENTS- An accredited audit agent shall--
‘(i) not own or operate an eligible entity to be certified by such agent;
‘(ii) in carrying out audits of eligible entities under this section, have procedures to ensure that such agent does not have a financial conflict of interest regarding an eligible entity to be certified by such agent; and
‘(iii) annually make available to the Secretary disclosures of the extent to which such agent has maintained compliance with clauses (i) and (ii) relating to financial conflicts of interest.
‘(C) REGULATIONS- The Secretary shall promulgate regulations not later than 18 months after the date of enactment of the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act to ensure that there are protections against conflicts of interest between an accredited third-party auditor or audit agent and the eligible entity to be certified by such auditor or audit agent. Such regulations shall include--
‘(i) requiring that audits performed under this section be unannounced;
‘(ii) a structure to decrease the potential for conflicts of interest, including timing and public disclosure, for fees paid by eligible entities to accredited third-party auditors or audit agents; and
‘(iii) appropriate limits on financial affiliations between an accredited third-party auditor or audit agent and any person that owns or operates an eligible entity to be certified by such auditor or audit agent.
‘(6) WITHDRAWAL OF ACCREDITATION- The Secretary shall withdraw accreditation from an accredited third-party auditor or audit agent--
‘(A) if food from an eligible entity certified by such third-party auditor or audit agent is linked to an outbreak of human or animal illness;
‘(B) following a performance audit and finding by the Secretary that the third-party auditor or audit agent no longer meets the requirements for accreditation; or
‘(C) following a refusal to allow United States officials to conduct such audits and investigations as may be necessary to ensure continued compliance with the requirements set forth in this section.
‘(7) NEUTRALIZING COSTS- The Secretary shall establish a method, similar to the method used by the Department of Agriculture, by which accredited third-party auditors and audit agents reimburse the Food and Drug Administration for the work performed to establish and administer the accreditation system under this section. The Secretary shall make operating this program revenue-neutral and shall not generate surplus revenue from such a reimbursement mechanism.
‘(d) Recertification of Eligible Entities- An eligible entity shall apply for annual recertification by an accredited third-party auditor or audit agent if such entity--
‘(1) intends to participate in voluntary qualified importer program under section 806; or
‘(2) must provide to the Secretary a certification under section 801(q) for any food from such entity.
‘(e) False Statements- Any statement or representation made--
‘(1) by an employee or agent of an eligible entity to an accredited third-party auditor or audit agent; or
‘(2) by an accredited third-party auditor or an audit agent to the Secretary,
‘(f) Monitoring- To ensure compliance with the requirements of this section, the Secretary shall--
‘(1) periodically, or at least once every 4 years, reevaluate the accreditation bodies described in subsection (b)(1);
‘(2) periodically, or at least once every 4 years, audit the performance of each accredited third-party auditor and audit agent, through the review of audit reports by such auditors and audit agents, the compliance history as available of eligible entities certified by such auditors and audit agents, and any other measures deemed necessary by the Secretary;
‘(3) at any time, conduct an onsite audit of any eligible entity certified by an accredited third-party auditor or audit agent, with or without the auditor or audit agent present; and
‘(4) take any other measures deemed necessary by the Secretary.
‘(g) Publicly Available Registry- The Secretary shall establish a publicly available registry of accreditation bodies and of accredited third-party auditors and audit agents, including the name of, contact information for, and other information deemed necessary by the Secretary about such bodies, auditors, and agents.
‘(h) Limitations-
‘(1) NO EFFECT ON SECTION 704 INSPECTIONS- The audits performed under this section shall not be considered inspections under section 704.
‘(2) NO EFFECT ON INSPECTION AUTHORITY- Nothing in this section affects the authority of the Secretary to inspect any eligible entity pursuant to this Act.’.
SEC. 309. FOREIGN OFFICES OF THE FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION.
(a) In General- The Secretary shall establish offices of the Food and Drug Administration in foreign countries selected by the Secretary, to provide assistance to the appropriate governmental entities of such countries with respect to measures to provide for the safety of articles of food and other products regulated by the Food and Drug Administration exported by such country to the United States, including by directly conducting risk-based inspections of such articles and supporting such inspections by such governmental entity.
(b) Consultation- In establishing the foreign offices described in subsection (a), the Secretary shall consult with the Secretary of State and the United States Trade Representative.
(c) Report- Not later than October 1, 2011, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a report on the basis for the selection by the Secretary of the foreign countries in which the Secretary established offices, the progress which such offices have made with respect to assisting the governments of such countries in providing for the safety of articles of food and other products regulated by the Food and Drug Administration exported to the United States, and the plans of the Secretary for establishing additional foreign offices of the Food and Drug Administration, as appropriate.
SEC. 310. SMUGGLED FOOD.
(a) In General- Not later than 180 days after the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall, in consultation with the Secretary of Homeland Security, the Commissioner of Customs and Border Patrol, and the Assistant Secretary for Immigration and Customs Enforcement, develop and implement a strategy to better identify smuggled food and prevent entry of such food into the United States.
(b) Notification to Homeland Security- Not later than 10 days after the Secretary identifies a smuggled food that the Secretary believes would cause serious adverse health consequences or death to humans or animals, the Secretary shall provide to the Secretary of Homeland Security a notification under section 417(k) of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 350f(k)) describing the smuggled food and, if available, the names of the individuals or entities that attempted to import such food into the United States.
(c) Public Notification- If the Secretary--
(1) identifies a smuggled food;
(2) reasonably believes exposure to the food would cause serious adverse health consequences or death to humans or animals; and
(3) reasonably believes that the food has entered domestic commerce and is likely to be consumed,
the Secretary shall promptly issue a press release describing that food and shall use other emergency communication or recall networks, as appropriate, to warn consumers and vendors about the potential threat.
(d) Definition- In this subsection, the term ‘smuggled food’ means any food that a person introduces into the United States through fraudulent means or with the intent to defraud or mislead.
TITLE IV--MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS
SEC. 401. FUNDING FOR FOOD SAFETY.
(a) In General- There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out the activities of the Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, the Center for Veterinary Medicine, and related field activities in the Office of Regulatory Affairs of the Food and Drug Administration--
(1) $825,000,000 for fiscal year 2010; and
(2) such sums as may be necessary for fiscal years 2011 through 2014.
(b) Increased Number of Field Staff-
(1) IN GENERAL- To carry out the activities of the Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, the Center for Veterinary Medicine, and related field activities of the Office of Regulatory Affairs of the Food and Drug Administration, the Secretary of Health and Human Services shall increase the field staff of such Centers and Office with a goal of not fewer than--
(A) 3,800 staff members in fiscal year 2010;
(B) 4,000 staff members in fiscal year 2011;
(C) 4,200 staff members in fiscal year 2012;
(D) 4,600 staff members in fiscal year 2013; and
(E) 5,000 staff members in fiscal year 2014.
(2) FIELD STAFF FOR FOOD DEFENSE- The goal under paragraph (1) shall include an increase of 150 employees by fiscal year 2011 to--
(A) provide additional detection of and response to food defense threats; and
(B) detect, track, and remove smuggled food (as defined in section 310) from commerce.
SEC. 402. WHISTLEBLOWER PROTECTIONS.
Chapter X of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 391 et seq.), as amended by section 210, is further amended by adding at the end the following:
‘SEC. 1012. WHISTLEBLOWER PROTECTIONS.
‘(a) In General- No entity engaged in the manufacture, processing, packing, transporting, distribution, reception, holding, or importation of food may discharge an employee or otherwise discriminate against an employee with respect to compensation, terms, conditions, or privileges of employment because the employee, whether at the employee’s initiative or in the ordinary course of the employee’s duties (or any person acting pursuant to a request of the employee)--
‘(1) provided, caused to be provided, or is about to provide or cause to be provided to the employer, the Federal Government, or the attorney general of a State information relating to any violation of, or any act or omission the employee reasonably believes to be a violation of any provision of this Act or any order, rule, regulation, standard, or ban under this Act, or any order, rule, regulation, standard, or ban under this Act;
‘(2) testified or is about to testify in a proceeding concerning such violation;
‘(3) assisted or participated or is about to assist or participate in such a proceeding; or
‘(4) objected to, or refused to participate in, any activity, policy, practice, or assigned task that the employee (or other such person) reasonably believed to be in violation of any provision of this Act, or any order, rule, regulation, standard, or ban under this Act.
‘(b) Process-
‘(1) IN GENERAL- A person who believes that he or she has been discharged or otherwise discriminated against by any person in violation of subsection (a) may, not later than 180 days after the date on which such violation occurs, file (or have any person file on his or her behalf) a complaint with the Secretary of Labor (referred to in this section as the ‘Secretary’) alleging such discharge or discrimination and identifying the person responsible for such act. Upon receipt of such a complaint, the Secretary shall notify, in writing, the person named in the complaint of the filing of the complaint, of the allegations contained in the complaint, of the substance of evidence supporting the complaint, and of the opportunities that will be afforded to such person under paragraph (2).
‘(2) INVESTIGATION-
‘(A) IN GENERAL- Not later than 60 days after the date of receipt of a complaint filed under paragraph (1) and after affording the complainant and the person named in the complaint an opportunity to submit to the Secretary a written response to the complaint and an opportunity to meet with a representative of the Secretary to present statements from witnesses, the Secretary shall initiate an investigation and determine whether there is reasonable cause to believe that the complaint has merit and notify, in writing, the complainant and the person alleged to have committed a violation of subsection (a) of the Secretary’s findings.
‘(B) REASONABLE CAUSE FOUND; PRELIMINARY ORDER- If the Secretary concludes that there is reasonable cause to believe that a violation of subsection (a) has occurred, the Secretary shall accompany the Secretary’s findings with a preliminary order providing the relief prescribed by paragraph (3)(B). Not later than 30 days after the date of notification of findings under this paragraph, the person alleged to have committed the violation or the complainant may file objections to the findings or preliminary order, or both, and request a hearing on the record. The filing of such objections shall not operate to stay any reinstatement remedy contained in the preliminary order. Any such hearing shall be conducted expeditiously. If a hearing is not requested in such 30-day period, the preliminary order shall be deemed a final order that is not subject to judicial review.
‘(C) DISMISSAL OF COMPLAINT-
‘(i) STANDARD FOR COMPLAINANT- The Secretary shall dismiss a complaint filed under this subsection and shall not conduct an investigation otherwise required under subparagraph (A) unless the complainant makes a prima facie showing that any behavior described in paragraphs (1) through (4) of subsection (a) was a contributing factor in the unfavorable personnel action alleged in the complaint.
‘(ii) STANDARD FOR EMPLOYER- Notwithstanding a finding by the Secretary that the complainant has made the showing required under clause (i), no investigation otherwise required under subparagraph (A) shall be conducted if the employer demonstrates, by clear and convincing evidence, that the employer would have taken the same unfavorable personnel action in the absence of that behavior.
‘(iii) VIOLATION STANDARD- The Secretary may determine that a violation of subsection (a) has occurred only if the complainant demonstrates that any behavior described in paragraphs (1) through (4) of subsection (a) was a contributing factor in the unfavorable personnel action alleged in the complaint.
‘(iv) RELIEF STANDARD- Relief may not be ordered under subparagraph (A) if the employer demonstrates by clear and convincing evidence that the employer would have taken the same unfavorable personnel action in the absence of that behavior.
‘(3) FINAL ORDER-
‘(A) IN GENERAL- Not later than 120 days after the date of conclusion of any hearing under paragraph (2), the Secretary shall issue a final order providing the relief prescribed by this paragraph or denying the complaint. At any time before issuance of a final order, a proceeding under this subsection may be terminated on the basis of a settlement agreement entered into by the Secretary, the complainant, and the person alleged to have committed the violation.
‘(B) CONTENT OF ORDER- If, in response to a complaint filed under paragraph (1), the Secretary determines that a violation of subsection (a) has occurred, the Secretary shall order the person who committed such violation--
‘(i) to take affirmative action to abate the violation;
‘(ii) to reinstate the complainant to his or her former position together with compensation (including back pay) and restore the terms, conditions, and privileges associated with his or her employment; and
‘(iii) to provide compensatory damages to the complainant.
‘(C) PENALTY- If such an order is issued under this paragraph, the Secretary, at the request of the complainant, shall assess against the person against whom the order is issued a sum equal to the aggregate amount of all costs and expenses (including attorneys’ and expert witness fees) reasonably incurred, as determined by the Secretary, by the complainant for, or in connection with, the bringing of the complaint upon which the order was issued.
‘(D) BAD FAITH CLAIM- If the Secretary finds that a complaint under paragraph (1) is frivolous or has been brought in bad faith, the Secretary may award to the prevailing employer a reasonable attorneys’ fee, not exceeding $1,000, to be paid by the complainant.
‘(4) ACTION IN COURT-
‘(A) IN GENERAL- If the Secretary has not issued a final decision within 210 days after the filing of the complaint, or within 90 days after receiving a written determination, the complainant may bring an action at law or equity for de novo review in the appropriate district court of the United States with jurisdiction, which shall have jurisdiction over such an action without regard to the amount in controversy, and which action shall, at the request of either party to such action, be tried by the court with a jury. The proceedings shall be governed by the same legal burdens of proof specified in paragraph (2)(C).
‘(B) RELIEF- The court shall have jurisdiction to grant all relief necessary to make the employee whole, including injunctive relief and compensatory damages, including--
‘(i) reinstatement with the same seniority status that the employee would have had, but for the discharge or discrimination;
‘(ii) the amount of back pay, with interest; and
‘(iii) compensation for any special damages sustained as a result of the discharge or discrimination, including litigation costs, expert witness fees, and reasonable attorney’s fees.
‘(5) REVIEW-
‘(A) IN GENERAL- Unless the complainant brings an action under paragraph (4), any person adversely affected or aggrieved by a final order issued under paragraph (3) may obtain review of the order in the United States Court of Appeals for the circuit in which the violation, with respect to which the order was issued, allegedly occurred or the circuit in which the complainant resided on the date of such violation. The petition for review must be filed not later than 60 days after the date of the issuance of the final order of the Secretary. Review shall conform to chapter 7 of title 5, United States Code. The commencement of proceedings under this subparagraph shall not, unless ordered by the court, operate as a stay of the order.
‘(B) NO JUDICIAL REVIEW- An order of the Secretary with respect to which review could have been obtained under subparagraph (A) shall not be subject to judicial review in any criminal or other civil proceeding.
‘(6) FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH ORDER- Whenever any person has failed to comply with an order issued under paragraph (3), the Secretary may file a civil action in the United States district court for the district in which the violation was found to occur, or in the United States district court for the District of Columbia, to enforce such order. In actions brought under this paragraph, the district courts shall have jurisdiction to grant all appropriate relief including, but not limited to, injunctive relief and compensatory damages.
‘(7) CIVIL ACTION TO REQUIRE COMPLIANCE-
‘(A) IN GENERAL- A person on whose behalf an order was issued under paragraph (3) may commence a civil action against the person to whom such order was issued to require compliance with such order. The appropriate United States district court shall have jurisdiction, without regard to the amount in controversy or the citizenship of the parties, to enforce such order.
‘(B) AWARD- The court, in issuing any final order under this paragraph, may award costs of litigation (including reasonable attorneys’ and expert witness fees) to any party whenever the court determines such award is appropriate.
‘(c) Effect of Section-
‘(1) OTHER LAWS- Nothing in this section preempts or diminishes any other safeguards against discrimination, demotion, discharge, suspension, threats, harassment, reprimand, retaliation, or any other manner of discrimination provided by Federal or State law.
‘(2) RIGHTS OF EMPLOYEES- Nothing in this section shall be construed to diminish the rights, privileges, or remedies of any employee under any Federal or State law or under any collective bargaining agreement. The rights and remedies in this section may not be waived by any agreement, policy, form, or condition of employment.
‘(d) Enforcement- Any nondiscretionary duty imposed by this section shall be enforceable in a mandamus proceeding brought under section 1361 of title 28, United States Code.
‘(e) Limitation- Subsection (a) shall not apply with respect to an employee of an entity engaged in the manufacture, processing, packing, transporting, distribution, reception, holding, or importation of food who, acting without direction from such entity (or such entity’s agent), deliberately causes a violation of any requirement relating to any violation or alleged violation of any order, rule, regulation, standard, or ban under this Act.’.
SEC. 403. JURISDICTION; AUTHORITIES.
Nothing in this Act, or an amendment made by this Act, shall be construed to--
(1) alter the jurisdiction between the Secretary of Agriculture and the Secretary of Health and Human Services, under applicable statutes, regulations, or agreements regarding products eligible for voluntary inspection under the Agricultural Marketing Act (7 U.S.C. 1621 et seq.);
(2) alter the jurisdiction between the Administration of the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau and the Secretary of Health and Human Services, under applicable statutes and regulations;
(3) limit the authority of the Secretary of Health and Human Services to issue regulations related to the safety of food under--
(A) the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 301 et seq.) as in effect on the day before the date of enactment of this Act; or
(B) the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 301 et seq.) as in effect on the day before the date of enactment of this Act; or
(4) impede, minimize, or affect the authority of the Secretary of Agriculture to prevent, control, or mitigate a plant or animal health emergency, or a food emergency or foodborne illness outbreak involving products regulated under the Federal Meat Inspection Act, the Poultry Products Inspection Act, the Egg Products Inspection Act, or agreements regarding voluntary inspection under the Agricultural Marketing Act (7 U.S.C. 1621 et seq.).
SEC. 404. COMPLIANCE WITH INTERNATIONAL AGREEMENTS.
Nothing in this Act (or an amendment made by this Act) shall be construed in a manner inconsistent with the agreement establishing the World Trade Organization or any other treaty or international agreement to which the United States is a party.
SEC. 405. UPDATING GUIDANCE RELATING TO FISH AND FISHERIES PRODUCTS HAZARDS AND CONTROLS.
The Secretary shall, not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, update the Fish and Fisheries Products Hazards and Control Guidance to take into account advances in technology that have occurred since the previous publication of such Guidance by the Secretary.
SEC. 406. FOOD TRANSPORTATION STUDY.
The Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Commissioner of Food and Drugs, shall conduct a study of the transportation of food for consumption in the United States, including transportation by air, that includes an examination of the unique needs of rural and frontier areas with regard to the delivery of safe food.
Calendar No. 247
111th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 510
A BILL
To amend the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act with respect to the safety of the food supply.
Read More... S. 510: FDA Food Safety Modernization Act

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