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The House Homeland Security Committee unanimously approved industry-supported legislation on June 14 that would regulate the sale of ammonium nitrate fertilizer, a potentially explosive material that has been used as a bomb component in several terrorist attacks.
The bill (H.R. 3197) would require sellers of ammonium nitrate to register with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Purchasers would be required to provide valid photo identification, as well as personal information, in order to obtain the chemical.
Producers and sellers would maintain records of all sales for at least three years. Sellers would have the right to refuse a sale and would be required to report any unexplained loss or theft of ammonium nitrate.
In an effort to avoid inconsistent state rules, industry leaders have called for a uniform set of federal regulations to govern the production, sale, and distribution of the chemical. U.S. farmers consumed 1.4 million tons of ammonium nitrate fertilizer last year.
"We strongly support this effort to create a commonsense system for ensuring that ammonium nitrate remains safe for its intended beneficial purpose as a plant nutrient," says Ford B. West, president of the Fertilizer Institute.
The bill was originally introduced by Reps. Curt Weldon (R-Pa.) and Bennie G. Thompson (D-Miss.) in June 2005. The push to pass the measure now comes several weeks after 17 Canadians were arrested and charged with plotting to attack targets with ammonium nitrate-based bombs.
The suspected terrorists had attempted to acquire three tons of the fertilizer—three times the amount used in the 1995 bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City that killed 168 people.
"Securing the handling and sale of ammonium nitrate is critical to protecting this country from future terror attacks," says Thompson. "However, it is disturbing that once again, Congress has taken the 'lights, camera, action' approach to homeland security, only tackling these serious issues once the whole world is watching."
The legislation directs DHS to establish a process for the periodic inspection and auditing of sales records "for the purpose of monitoring compliance or for the purpose of deterring or preventing the misappropriation or use of ammonium nitrate in an act of terrorism." Violators would be subject to a civil penalty of up to $50,000 per violation.
A companion bill has stalled in the Senate. However, Sen. Mark Pryor (D-Ark.) hopes to attach the measure to a chemical plant security bill that the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee is currently considering.
That legislation (S. 2145) would give DHS broad authority to establish and enforce a tiered, risk-based system of regulation, requiring chemical facilities to complete vulnerability assessments and implement security and emergency response plans.
During debate on the bill yesterday, June 14, the committee defeated a Democrat-led effort to require high risk facilities to use inherently safer technologies in place of toxic chemicals, such as chlorine gas. Chairman Susan M. Collins (R-Maine) said it would not be appropriate for the government "to dictate specific industrial processes."
Senators also rejected an amendment that would have denied states the right to set more stringent security standards for chemical plants than the federal government.
The committee plans to complete action on the bill today.
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