April 16, 2025

Political Action Committee Event with Chairman Thompson

Thanks to your generous support of the CPDA Political Action Committee (PAC), Andrew Walmsley and I were able to spend the weekend of April 5 and 6 in Florida with House Agriculture Committee Chairman GT Thompson, his wife Penny, and many of our valued industry partners.

Darryl Blakey, BASF; Terry Kippley, CPDA; Chairman Thompson; Andrew Walmsley, CPDA; Ed Thomas, The Fertilizer Institute; John Torres, BIO; Jason Ortega, National Wooden Pallet and Container Association.

This was a great opportunity to engage the Chairman in a more relaxed and less formal atmosphere we often find in Washington DC. With so many CPDA priority issues in front of Chairman Thompson’s committee, this was time well spent to drill down on EPA funding, Farm Bill incentives for adjuvants and the critical role Drift Reduction Adjuvants will play in allowing farmers to navigate the complexity of upcoming Endangered Species Act pesticide restrictions.

We discussed these issues and many others during this year’s CPDA Fly-In. Here’s what Chairman Thompson had to say to this year’s Fly-In attendees.

CPDA Agri-Pulse Opinion Piece

Last week, Agri-Pulse published an opinion piece by me, highlighting the critical need for Congress to fully fund EPA’s Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP), so they can complete both PRIA and non-PRIA regulatory submissions in a timely and predictable manner.

With both chambers of Congress in full budget mode, the Agri-Pulse piece couldn’t have come at a better time.

The promise of PRIA V was to end the current and long-running backlog of OPP actions. Unfortunately, PRIA V created the framework to make that happen, but Congress did not allocate the funding to complete the deal. With Congressional budget discussions well underway, CPDA is looking at every opportunity to move the needle.

Thank you Agri-Pulse for allowing CPDA to share its message.

Trump, Trade, Tariffs and China: What’s Next

On April 9, President Trump announced a 125% reciprocal tariff on Chinese goods. In response, China imposed a 125% retaliatory tariff on all U.S. goods, effective April 12. Over the weekend, President Trump announced that some Chinese imports would be exempt from the new tariffs, notably smart phones, laptops, and other electronics.

Given the fact that over 50% of crop protection products in the U.S. contain active ingredients or intermediates sourced internationally – many from China – CPDA is watching this issue closely for advocacy opportunities.

With this in mind, CPDA was featured in a Scoop article titled "Tariff Uncertainty Likely to Bring Higher Prices, Not Seismic Shifts to Sourcing, for Ag Inputs.”

Jim DeLisi of Fanwood Chemical, a CPDA member, and a speaker at our upcoming Adjuvants, Inerts and Crop Protection conference is quoted in the article saying,

"Sourcing from international markets has become mandatory. It’s more likely that things will get expensive than change."

EPA’s MyPest Update

Please join the PRIA Coalition for a webinar on April 17, at 12:00 p.m. EDT to hear the latest update to EPA’s MyPest, the customer experience that allows registrants to track their registration submissions, enhancing post-submission functionality. This webinar will highlight additional MyPest functions that will be deployed on April 18 including a new correspondence feature.

Webinar registration link

PPDC Cross-Sector Priorities Workgroup

Last week, I took part in the kick-off meeting of the Pesticide Program Dialogue Committee (PPDC) Cross-Sector Priorities Workgroup. Established in 1995, the PPDC serves as a platform for diverse stakeholders to provide input to EPA’s Office of Pesticide Programs on key pesticide regulatory issues.

We discussed a range of issues at the meeting, with the most critical related to OPP resources and capacity. For example, what staffing, contracting, and grant resources are necessary for OPP to fulfill its statutory duties, including pesticide registration and review timelines?

CPDA’s Capitol Connection

At CPDA, our commitment to advocacy and member support remains at the core of everything we do. CPDA’s Capitol Connection is your go-to source for quick, essential updates on policies and regulations impacting your business—in just two minutes. Each week, we will break down the most pressing issues affecting our industry, offering valuable insights into both state and federal initiatives.

The latest Capitol Connection can found on our website and LinkedIn page .