Farm Bill Language Could Limit Public Information About Farms; Open Government Groups Protest

[Purveyor]

By MARY CLARE JALONICK | ASSOCIATED PRESS | 2 hours, 3 minutes ago in Politics

Parts of the nation's $500 billion farm bill that Congress is considering would prohibit the government from disclosing some information about farmers or their employees, possibly preventing people from learning about nearby agricultural and large-scale livestock operations blamed for polluting water or soil.

The secrecy effort arose after the Environmental Protection Agency said it had mistakenly released names, email addresses, phone numbers and other personal information about some farmers and employees twice this year under the Freedom of Information Act. The EPA later determined it should not have released the information; in at least one case, an environmental group that received the data agreed to return it.

The provisions in the farm bill were intended to protect farmers who fear they would be targeted by animal advocacy groups.

The House version, now part of negotiations with the Senate, would prevent the EPA from disclosing the addresses, among other identifying information, of an owner, operator or employee of an agricultural operation. Other federal agencies could not release such information.

Democratic Sen. Patrick Leahy of Vermont, the Senate Judiciary Committee chairman, blocked a Senate amendment similar to the House proposal.

MORE...

http://www.newser.com/article/da9tvmc80/farm-bill-language-could-limit-public-information-about-farms-open-government-groups-protest.html

[Berlum]

1. Corporate OCCULTISM (RepubliWanker Syle)

Wankers hide all their evildoing from public view, including their gawforsaken occulted GMO mutant food-like crapola.

Ptoooey. I ain't swallowing it.