Big Problem with Farm to Consumer Legal Defense Fund

Oh boy. We have pinned some hopes on the FTCLDF to stop NAIS, but now they have messed up again and in a huge way. Follows is what I understand the situation is.

#1: FTCLDF said they filed the suit against the USDA, when they actually hadn't filed it but rather simply mailed it without having an attorney admitted to the bar in the district, District of Columbia, in which they were filing. They made a big press release and request for donations, and then went about getting their ducks in a row so they could actually file the suit. That resulted in about two months delay in getting the suit filed.

#2: When the expected motion for dismissal was sent by the USDA, they requested an extension for filing, including the date they wanted to have to file response against the motion to dismiss. They requested January 2nd, and were awarded that date. However, somehow, they totally blanked on it, and then on January 10th, effectively told the court that the 'dog ate their homework' and they misread the date as January 12th, so they would like it very much if the court would
allow them to amend their original suit so that they can continue against the USDA and Michigan Dept of Agriculture.

I am not an attorney and I do not know anything about legal procedure. That's WHY anyone hires an attorney in the first place. If it were simply a matter of standing up and arguing your case, there would be little to no need for attorneys at all. Procedure and filings are what they are supposed to know and why they can put the title 'esquire' behind their names. I do know that when you cite a date for an extension of time and are granted it, you look pretty stupid for missing it.

So we are still in the very early stages of this suit, and the FTCLDF has screwed it up tremendously on basic procedure. Right now it is entirely up to the judge if she allows them to file the motion to amend the suit. It could be a done deal and need to start over from square one because of all the screw ups.

Basically, they are throwing up a Hail Mary pass and hoping the judge will let them proceed to amend the original suit.

Also, it doesn't look very good to amend the suit after the first motion to dismiss. It's like when you are playing chess and see that your first move put you in immediate jeopardy of getting in check.

The bottom line is this; FTCLDF has made two mistakes and they both make us, the anti-NAIS folks, look like total blooming idiots. The first impressions having to do with the competence of the lawyers will stick in the judge's mind. Procedural errors so early on in the process make us look like what they described us in the NAIS How-To Handbook, as having no more than a 6th grade education.

If you'd like to see pdf copies of the documents that have to do with the suit, the extension request, or more aptly, the excuse, let me know.


Don't forget to read an excerpt from my novel, First They Came for the Cows. I am taking pre-orders for signed copies.

What's that? A rainbow?

Donate, donate, donate! This is what we have been dreaming about. You can't afford to NOT donate some money to the defense fund.

Hen

http://www.ftcldf.org/press-15May2008.html

Press

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Legal Defense Fund Moves to Stop Animal ID Program;
Files Intent to Sue Letter with USDA and Michigan Department of Agriculture

Falls Church, Virginia, (May 15, 2008) -- Attorneys for the Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund today sent a Notice of Intent to Sue letter to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Michigan Department of Agriculture (MDA) over implementation of the National Animal Identification System (NAIS), a plan to electronically track every livestock animal in the country.

The Notice asks the USDA and MDA to "immediately suspend the funding and implementation of NAIS," and "fully and fairly examine" whether there is even a need for such a program.

Taaron Meikle, Fund president, said that contrary to USDA's claim, NAIS will do nothing to protect the health of livestock and poultry. "At a time when food safety and costs are a concern, the USDA has spent over $118 million to promote a program that will burden everyone from pleasure horse owners to ranchers and small farmers to individuals who raise a few chickens or steers on their own land for their own use."

Once fully implemented, the NAIS program would require every person who owns even one livestock or poultry animal (a single chicken or a pet pony) to register their property with the state and federal government, to tag each animal, and to report "events" to a database within 24 hours. Reportable events would include such things as a private sale, a state fair, or a horse show.

The Notice charges that USDA has never published rules regarding NAIS, in violation of the Federal Administrative Procedures Act; has never performed an Environmental Impact Statement or an Environmental Assessment as required by the National Environmental Policy Act; is in violation of the Regulatory Flexibility Act that requires them to analyze proposed rules for their impact on small entities and local governments; and violates religious freedoms guaranteed by the Religious Freedom Restoration Act.

"We also think there are constitutional issues at stake here," Meikle noted. "The requirement to use electronic ear tags or RFID chips violates the religious beliefs of some farmers, such as the Amish, and provisions in a memorandum of understanding between the USDA and the MDA could violate the Fourth and Fifth Amendments to the Constitution by requiring the state to stop and inspect vehicles carrying livestock without a warrant or probable cause."

The MDA has implemented the first two stages of NAIS –property registration and animal identification – for all cattle and farmers across the state as part of its mandatory bovine tuberculosis disease control program, which is mandated by a grant from the USDA.

"While touted as a disease control program, the NAIS will drive many small farmers out of business" Meikle noted, "and burden every person who owns even one horse, chicken, cow, goat, sheep, pig, llama, alpaca, or other livestock animal with expensive and intrusive government regulations."

Joe Golimbieski, a farmer from Standish, Michigan and Fund member, explains: "The cost of the tags is just the start. We're at the mercy of whatever price the stockyards charge to do the tagging. And our farm doesn't have extra employees to deal with paperwork. NAIS is likely to put us out of business."

Gary Cox, General Counsel for the Fund, states that "USDA and MDA have exceeded their authority and they have completely failed to follow the proper procedures. We are calling on the agencies to immediately halt implementation of the program or face appropriate action."

About The Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund: The Fund's mission is to defend the freedoms and to broaden the rights of sustainable farmers and their consumers to produce and consume local, nutrient-dense foods. Concerned citizens can support the Fund by joining at www.farmtoconsumer.org or by contacting the Fund at 703-208-FARM. The Fund's sister organization, the Farm-to-Consumer Foundation (www.farmtoconsumerfoundation.org), works to support farmers engaged in sustainable farm stewardship and promote consumer access to local, nutrient-dense food.

Editor's Note: The Notice of Intent to Sue the (USDA) and (MDA) is available at www.farmtoconsumer.org

###

Contacts:

Taaron G. Meikle
President, Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund and Farm-to-Consumer Foundation
703-537-8372
tgmeikle@aol.com

Brian Cummings
Cummings & Company LLC
214-295-7463
brian@cummingspr.com

The Press Release
Notice of Intent to Sue
Excerpts from the Notice of Intent to Sue

To learn more about NAIS and our lawsuit, attend the teleseminar -

Stop NAIS NOW!
May 28, 2008
8:00 p.m. – 9:30 p.m.
$15/phone line
Click here to learn more.