(Continued from page 2)

Charitable Trusts personal producer information for 80,000 livestock farms around the country, including farms right here in South Dakota. While the records released by the EPA cover properties in more than 30 states, the information included more than 500 livestock operations in South Dakota. These records include the name of the operation, permit number, numbers and type of animals, and county of residence. In other states, the information released went so far as to give addresses, geographic coordinates, phone numbers, names and address of employees, and even listed deceased family members. All this information was turned directly over to groups that do not have agriculture's best interest in mind.
• What's next? The EPA intends to create a national database of all livestock operations across the country, which reportedly will be made available through its website. Despite objections from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Department of Homeland Security over bio-security concerns, the EPA continues to pursue this dangerous effort. Nowhere in law is the EPA required to obtain and display such personal information; on the contrary, the federal government should be protecting its citizens from unwarranted attacks. Instead, the EPA has threatened the health and safety of South Dakota's ag producers and their families, and has decreased the security of our food system.
• I will continue working with our agriculture producers to get the answers they deserve and ensure that their privacy is protected in the future.