Pesticide and GMO Companies Spend Big in Hawaiiselfnews Post These Big 6 pesticide and GMO firms are active on the islands in a big way, making use of the three to four annual growing seasons to develop new GMO seeds more quickly. The development of new GMOs by these pesticide and seed conglomerates goes hand-in-hand with heavy pesticide use in some of the islands experimental crop fields, new data show. Kauai County consisting primarily of the island of Kauai, known as Hawaiis Garden Isle and home to Waimea Canyon State Park passed alaw in November 2013 that requires disclosure of pesticide use and GMO crops sewn by growers and created buffer zones around schools, parks, medical facilities, and private residences. The law is set to go into effect in August 2014. Since experiencing these setbacks, the big agricultural firms have retaliated in a big way. Syngenta, DuPont Pioneer, Agrigenetics (doing business as Dow AgroSciences), and BASF have sued Kauai to block its law. Monsanto, Bayer, Syngenta, DuPont Pioneer, and several associated trade groups spent over $50,000 lobbying the state legislature from January through April 2014, as legislators considered bills to override the county laws, according to data from the Hawaii State Ethics Commission (as reported through June 6, 2014) analyzed by the Center for Media and Democracy/Progressive Inc. (CMD). Of these, the Hawaii Crop Improvement Association (whose members include Dow AgroScience, Monsanto, Pioneer Hi-Bred International, Syngenta, and BASF) had the highest expenditures at $10,800; the powerful national trade association the American Chemistry Council (whose members include BASF, Bayer, Dow, and DuPont) and Syngenta each spent $10,000; and Monsanto spent $8,982. Islanders will vote in a primary election for state legislators, governor, and U.S. Congressmembers August 9. Voters will also make initial choices between candidates for mayor and county council seats on Kauai and Maui as well as county council seats on Hawaii. The big agricultural corporations Monsanto, Syngenta, Dow, DuPont, and Bayer, associated trade groups, and their lobbyists and employees contributed over $700,000 to state and county candidates from November 2006 through December 2013, according to a new CMD analysis of Hawaii Campaign Spending Commission data. Initial campaign finance reports for what is shaping up to be an expensive political battle this year are not yet released. Monsanto was the top donor, with its PAC contributing $115,500. Lobbyists several of whom have multiple clients besides big ag. interests and their spouses contributed over $550,000. Top recipients of this special interest largesse include: Contributing lobbyists include: Big Ag Political Funders Have Ties to ALEC Of the Big 6 chemical and seed companies and their trade associations lobbying and/or contributing to political candidates in Hawaii, Bayer, Dow, CropLife America (a pesticide and agricultural chemical trade association), and the American Chemistry Council have ties to the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC). ALEC approved a model bill in 2013 for states to override the ability of counties and cities to democratically determine how they will regulate GMOs at the local and regional level, as CMD has reported. Bayer was listed as the ALEC corporate co-chair of the states of Massachusetts, Nevada, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, and Texas as of 2011; has sponsored several ALEC meetings; has been listed as a member of the Civil Justice and Health and Human Services task forces; and was a member of ALECs Private Enterprise Boardthrough 2012. Dow Chemical has been listed as a member of ALECs Energy, Environment, and Agriculture Task Force and has sponsored at least one ALEC meeting. CropLife America has been listed as a member of ALECs Energy, Environment, and Agriculture Task Force and co-chaired its Agriculture Subcommittee. This subcommittee adopted Oregons bill overriding local control over GMO regulation as an official model bill in 2013 while CropLifes Jeff Case was its co-chair, as CMD has reported. The American Chemistry Council has also been listed as a member of ALECs Energy, Environment, and Agriculture Task Force and has sponsored at least one ALEC meeting. Chemical Company Tactics Inspire More Democracy in Action Barbara Polk, Chair of Common Cause Hawaii a state branch of the non-partisan, grassroots organization that strives for open, honest, and accountable government told CMD, The influx of big money and threat of unlimited independent expenditures have resulted in politicians statewide increasingly placing the interests of corporations over the interests of citizens. Politicians are forced to consider the likelihood of facing well-funded opposition and attack ads in the next election if they dont toe the corporate line. Ashley Lukens, Program Director of the Hawaii Center for Food Safety a state office of the environmental advocacy organization that opposes the use of GMOs and harmful pesticides adds, The impact of this corporate cash on local politics is not just that representatives are pressured to vote based on donations to their campaigns. Rather this cash has been strategically spent to create a mirage of confusion and disagreement around very mainstream issues like pesticide disclosure and GMO labeling. According to a national poll by Consumer Reports released this week, 92 percent of U.S. consumers think that GMO food should be labeled before it is sold and meet long-term safety standards set by the government. Standing up for something as conservative as transparency around chemical use in Hawaii is treated as though it is radical, Lukens continued. This radicalizing of dissent simply serves to silence the majority of the public and keep them from participating publicly in the civic process. But despite this anti-democratic pressure, Kauai County Councilmember and former state legislator Gary Hooser (D), who co-authored the countys 2013 ordinance requiring disclosure of GMOs planted and pesticides used as well as buffer zones, calls Kauai ground zero not just for the testing of GMO crops, but also for democracy in action. Hooser, who is up for reelection himself this year, told CMD, A lot of people never involved in politics, activism, or advocacy are getting involved because the big money interests are so in your face. There are candidates running on our side who never thought theyd be running, inspired by the companies poisoning of our community and control of our government. This article is part of What The Fork!?! Corporations and Democracy, a collaborative media effort investigating corporate control of our democracy and our dinner plates. The articles and radio segments are the combined work of Making Contact, The Progressive, the Center for Media and Democracy (publisher of ALECexposed.org), andFood Democracy Now, along with reporting from Earth Island Journal, Grist, and Cascadia Times. 