Council of Producers & Distributors of Agrotechnology

Terry Kippley, CPDA

June 25, 2025

Welcome New Member!

CPDA is pleased to welcome new member Agricen. 

Membership dues fund our advocacy efforts which include working with EPA on the PRIA and non-PRIA backlog and on the possibility of giving growers credit for the use of Drift Reduction Adjuvants as an ESA mitigation tool alternative to No-Spray buffers which would be difficult for growers and our members.

Agricen is an agricultural technology company developing and delivering biological and biostimulant technologies that sustainably and profitably enhance plant health, nutrition and performance.

CPDA Raises Concerns Over MAHA Commission Report and Process

CPDA, along with 256 food and agriculture organizations, sent a stakeholder letter raising concerns with the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) Commission’s May 22 report, which made sweeping, and in some cases, unsubstantiated claims about food, pesticides, and human health.

The joint letter underscored the coalition’s disappointment in the report’s lack of scientific rigor, transparency, stakeholder engagement and citation issues. The letter emphasized that American agriculture is making continuous progress to support public health, sustainability, and food security, and warned that the Commission’s flawed process risks undermining that progress by spreading misinformation and eroding public trust.

To reinforce this message, CPDA issued a press release urging a more credible and transparent process moving forward. The release highlighted that CPDA is a willing partner in health-focused solutions and called attention to the disconnect between the Commission’s conclusions and the science-based regulatory framework already in place.

In addition to multiple outlets reporting on the letter, CPDA’s press release was featured in AgroPages. Read the article here: AgroPages Coverage

Pesticide Program Dialogue Committee Meeting

On June 17, I attended the virtual meeting of the Pesticide Program Dialogue Committee (PPDC). The PPDC is designed to provide all industry stakeholders with a forum to discuss the activities and functioning of the Office of Pesticide Programs. I have been a member of the committee for the last two years.

OPP Director Ed Messina kicked off the meeting by outlining how OPP activities are aligning with the strategic pillars established by EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin. These pillars include clean air, land and water; permitting reform, cooperative federalism and cross-agency partnerships.

Messina also discussed OPP’s work to reduce both PRIA and non-PRIA registration backlogs, the new MyPEST platform which allows registrants to track their pending actions in real time and the ongoing digital and structured labeling efforts.



Messina also updated OPP’s performance metrics for pending registration actions (i.e., actions received by EPA but not yet completed), a key measure of the backlog. While pending PRIA actions have slowly increased, non-PRIA actions have dropped significantly, particularly in the “notifications and amendments” category. These metrics reflect progress on CPDA priorities.

Also during the meeting, Amy Blankenship of EFED highlighted adjuvant use as a future potential mitgation option, as part of the Agency’s recently released Insecticide Strategy for ESA compliance. CPDA continues to advocate for the responsible use of adjuvants as a key tool to help growers meet endangered species requirements.



The PPDC meeting reaffirmed the value of CPDA’s continued engagement with OPP leadership and reinforced the importance of advancing shared goals around backlog reduction, regulatory modernization, and ESA compliance.

WSSA Highlights AICP Conference & CPDA Collaboration

Two recent articles from Slice of Agriculture and CropLife Magazine highlighted the important role the Weed Science Society of America (WSSA) and its members played at CPDA’s 2025 Adjuvants, Inerts and Crop Protection Conference (AICP). WSSA members contributed significant technical expertise during the conference, particularly on the role of adjuvants in supporting compliance with the Endangered Species Act. These insights helped connect regulatory frameworks with real-world application. CPDA is especially appreciative of the WSSA-affiliated experts who are actively engaged in our working groups and committees.

WSSA’s coverage underscores CPDA’s leadership in advancing discussions around ESA compliance and adjuvant innovation, while reinforcing the value of collaboration between science, industry, and regulatory stakeholders.

Thank you WSSA for our continued partnership! We are proud to work alongside your experts and having individual WSSA members as part of the CPDA membership.



Related Coverage:

• Slice of Agriculture: WSSA Experts Help Advance ESA and Innovation at CPDA’s AICP Conference
• CropLife: WSSA Members Advance ESA Compliance, Adjuvant Innovation at 2025 CPDA AICP Conference

Dr. Stanley Culpepper, University of Georgia; Dr. Leah Duzy, Compliance Services; Dr. Bill Chism, Weed Science Society of America; Lara Sowinski, CropLife/Meister Media.

PRIA Coalition Update

The PRIA Coalition, of which CPDA is a member, met this week to discuss Fiscal Year 2026 federal appropriations strategy, planning for PRIA 6, and continued engagement with EPA on priority issues. Key highlights include:

FY 2026 Appropriations Update. The House Appropriations Committee has postponed advocating for strong funding levels to support EPA’s Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP).

Planning for PRIA 6. The Coalition began refining its strategy and goals in preparation for PRIA 6 reauthorization. Key priorities under consideration include:

• Securing a clean reauthorization free from extraneous policy riders
• Ensuring EPA has adequate resources to meet statutory deadlines for both PRIA and non-PRIA actions
• Improving predictability and accountability in EPA’s review timelines
• Advancing process improvements and internal consistency across divisions
• Preserving user-fee funded operations during potential government shutdowns

OPP Engagement. The Coalition is working to schedule follow-up meetings with OPP leadership and division directors to revisit topics discussed in prior meetings, including checklist standardization and the potential use of registrant-developed Data Evaluation Reports. Additional engagement will focus on EPA’s early thoughts regarding fee chart simplification and developing a process for stakeholder input.

PR 98-1 and CSF Coordination. Work is underway to develop coordinated industry feedback on PR Notice 98-1, building on recent efforts around PRN 98-10 and CSF format improvements. A working group meeting will be scheduled in the coming weeks.

CPDA Supports House Clean Water Act Permitting Reform Package

On June 18, CPDA submitted a letter of support to the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee in favor of the Clean Water Act Permitting Reform Package, with specific emphasis on H.R. 3824, the Reducing Regulatory Burdens Act, introduced by Rep. David Rouzer (R-NC). The letter was submitted ahead of the Committee’s expected markup, which is anticipated to take place this week.



The Reducing Regulatory Burdens Act addresses longstanding concerns around the duplicative and unnecessary NPDES permitting requirements for pesticide applications already regulated under FIFRA. CPDA’s letter reaffirmed that these redundant permits impose legal risk, compliance costs, and delays without delivering meaningful environmental benefit especially during emergencies or time-sensitive pest control scenarios.

California DPR Proposed Groundwater Regulation

California’s Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) has proposed a regulation that would revise how pesticides are evaluated for potential groundwater contamination. The updated methodology would create a unique-to-California approach that allows DPR to list active ingredients based on potential degradants, not just the AIs themselves.

While the proposal includes removing some pesticides currently deemed unlikely to contaminate groundwater, it would also add more than 50 active ingredients under the new criteria. This marks a significant expansion from earlier DPR communications, which framed the effort primarily as a cleanup of misclassified products.



CPDA is reviewing the proposal closely and coordinating with stakeholders. Comments are due by July 15th.

CPDA Urges Congress for OPP Funding in Response to the President’s Budget Proposal

Last week, CPDA joined the PRIA Coalition in submitting a letter to House appropriators in response to the President’s FY26 Budget in Brief. The letter urges Congress to fund EPA’s Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP) at the $166 million level authorized in PRIA 5. It highlights that the current budget proposal falls short of statutory requirements and warns that underfunding will prolong the existing backlog of pesticide reviews, which already affects more than $500 million in CPDA member products.

The Coalition acknowledged EPA’s proposed $10 million for internal reforms and supported the reorganization of the Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention but emphasized that operational changes must be paired with full funding to restore predictability and improve timelines.

In a corresponding press release, CPDA reinforced the importance of timely, science-based regulatory decisions and expressed appreciation for Administrator Zeldin’s leadership in prioritizing the backlog. CPDA continues to work through the PRIA Coalition to advocate for resources and reforms needed to restore efficiency and predictability to the pesticide registration process.

CPDA Engages with EPA on ESA Spray Drift Calculator

CPDA continues its engagement EFED regarding updates to the agency’s Spray Drift Calculator. Dr. Eric Spandl, Chair of CPDA’s ESA Technical Committee, is leading conversations with EPA to improve the functionality and scientific grounding of the tool.



CPDA is in ongoing discussions with EPA about potential enhancements to the Calculator that would better reflect the performance of certified drift reduction adjuvants (DRAs). One concept under consideration is the use of a default buffer zone, with the option for reduced buffers when a CPDA-approved DRA is used.

EPA CDX Portal Work Group

OPP has announced that they will launch a CDX Pesticide Submission Program (PSP) improvement project. This is another positive development thanks to CPDA’s continuing dialogue with OPP. Ideally, OPP would structure the PSP as they did with the MyPest project, where they had iterative feedback through the development process.

OPP is looking to make small changes/enhancements to PSP with significant Return on Investment to submitters and OPP staff that will:

• Make it EASIER to submit;
• Make it FASTER to submit;
• Ensure GREAT SUBMISSIONS every time; and
• Ensure EPA STAFF gets what it needs in a useful way.

Representing CPDA on this work group will be Glenda Gordon, Amvac; Meshea Brodie, UPL; and Lisa Mathias, WinField United.

CPDA Social Media Committee Update

The Social Media Committee met this week to review engagement trends, industry mentions, and best practices for B2B visibility. Over the past two months, CPDA's LinkedIn page saw a 77% increase in impressions and gained more than 200 new followers. CPDA was also featured in Agri-Pulse, CropLife Magazine, and several global trade outlets.

The committee discussed content strategy, upcoming promotions for the Annual Meeting, and how credibility continues to drive engagement.

The next meeting is August 19, 2025, at 10:00 am PT. Please reach out to Cara Strazzo, cstrazzo@cpda.com for more information.

Upcoming Industry Events

Until next time….