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Tell Your Kentucky House Representative to Vote NO on SB 199
Do not give pesticide manufacturers a liability shield in Kentucky courts.
SB 199 has already passed the Senate and the House Agriculture Committee and the Senate floor and may be brought to the Kentucky House floor as early as tomorrow. This means every member of the Kentucky House will soon have the opportunity to vote on this bill.
It is critical that representatives hear directly from constituents before the floor vote. Lawmakers need to know that Kentuckians do not support giving pesticide manufacturers legal immunity.
SB 199 is being presented as a labeling measure, but it is in fact a sweeping liability shield for pesticide manufacturers. The bill would declare that if a pesticide has an EPA-approved label, that label automatically qualifies as a “sufficient warning” under Kentucky law. This would block Kentucky citizens from bringing failure-to-warn claims in state court, even if companies knew about additional health risks that were not properly disclosed.
Kentucky should not voluntarily surrender its authority to protect its own citizens, farmers, and property owners.
ACTION TO TAKE
1. Call the Kentucky Legislative Message Line and leave a message for your House Representative asking that they vote no on SB 199. Find your State Rep. at
Call 800-372-7181
The operator will ask for your name and address. You can say:
“My name is [Your Name] and I live at [Your Address]. Please leave a message for my House Representative. Please vote NO on SB 199.”
If you are a farmer, landowner, or pesticide applicator, please mention that when leaving your message. Legislators are hearing primarily from industry lobbyists and need to hear from Kentucky citizens who oppose this legislation.
TALKING POINTS
1. SB 199 creates automatic legal protection for pesticide companies. If a pesticide has an EPA-approved label, the company is automatically considered to have provided a sufficient warning under Kentucky law.
2. This shifts responsibility away from manufacturers and onto a federal agency. Even if a company knew about additional risks, it would still be shielded unless the EPA formally finds fraud, which almost never happens.
3. The fraud exception is ineffective. The bill only removes the shield if the EPA formally determines that a company knowingly concealed or misrepresented material information. Such findings are extremely rare.
4. Kentucky would be voluntarily limiting its own courts. This bill prevents Kentucky juries from holding companies accountable under state law and hands that authority to a federal regulatory agency.
5. It weakens market accountability. When companies are immune from liability, they have less incentive to fully disclose risks and act responsibly.
6. SB 199 protects manufacturers, not Kentucky families, farmers, or property owners. It removes a longstanding state-level safeguard and limits the rights of Kentucky citizens to seek justice in their own courts.
LINKS
Bill page:
https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/record/26RS/sb199.html
Find your Legislator map:
https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/findyourlegislator/findyourlegislator.html
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