Sen. Cory Booker introduces Pesticide Injury Accountability Act to hold chemical companies liable for health harms

07/21/2025 / By Laura Harris

Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) has introduced the Pesticide Injury Accountability Act of 2025 to hold agrochemical companies liable for health harms caused by their products, challenging industry-backed state laws that limit legal recourse.
The bill amends the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) to allow individuals to sue pesticide manufacturers in federal court if state laws prevent such lawsuits, while explicitly preserving the right to sue in state courts.
The legislation specifically cites Bayer (maker of Roundup) and Syngenta (maker of paraquat) as companies that have used lobbying and legal tactics to avoid accountability for health risks, including links to cancer and Parkinson’s disease.
A coalition of 17 public health, environmental and consumer groups, including Moms Across America, Children’s Health Defense and the Center for Food Safety, have endorsed the bill, calling it essential for protecting public health.
Supporters argue the bill is necessary to stop corporations from manipulating laws to prioritize profits over safety and to prevent blanket immunity for industries with known health risks.

U.S. Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ) has introduced new legislation that aims to hold agrochemical manufacturers accountable for the health consequences of their products, directly challenging a wave of state-level efforts seeking to limit corporate liability.

The proposed bill, titled the Pesticide Injury Accountability Act of 2025, would amend the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) to explicitly preserve individuals’ rights to sue pesticide manufacturers in federal court, even when state-level protections are eroded.

The bill, introduced on July 17, counteracts industry-supported legislation pushed by Republican lawmakers, which would grant liability shields to companies like Bayer and Syngenta. Such shields would block lawsuits by individuals who allege they were harmed by exposure to products such as glyphosate or paraquat, a widely used herbicide linked to Parkinson’s disease. A summary of the legislation specifically names Bayer, the maker of Roundup, and Syngenta, which manufactures paraquat, as examples of corporations that have evaded accountability through aggressive legal and lobbying tactics.

Crucially, the bill states that it does not preempt state law. Meaning, it affirms individuals’ rights to sue in state courts when permitted. However, if state-level avenues are blocked due to liability shields, the bill grants an alternative path by allowing plaintiffs to bring cases in federal court. (Related: Controversial Georgia bill grants immunity to pesticide makers as cancer lawsuits mount.)

“Rather than providing a liability shield so that foreign corporations are allowed to poison the American people, Congress should instead pass the Pesticide Injury Accountability Act to ensure that these chemical companies can be held accountable in federal court for the harm caused by their toxic products,” Booker said during the announcement of the bill.

Growing coalition of public health rallies behind Booker’s pesticide accountability bill

A coalition of 17 public health, environmental and consumer advocacy organizations announced their endorsement shortly after Booker announced the bill.

Supporters include prominent voices in the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) movement, who claimed the legislation is urgently needed to protect Americans from harmful agrochemicals and ensure that pesticide manufacturers can be held legally accountable for health damage caused by their products.

Zen Honeycutt, Founding Executive Director of Moms Across America, called the corporate efforts to avoid legal responsibility “unconscionable.”

“It is unconscionable that corporations are pushing our elected officials to manipulate laws so that they can avoid accountability for safety and protect their profits over the health and safety of Americans. We must protect the American people from harm, especially from products that are proven to cause infertility, cancer, liver disease and many other negative health effects,” Honeycutt said.

Mary Holland, CEO of Children’s Health Defense (CHD), also echoed a similar stance.

“CHD opposes any liability shield for any industry that has a direct impact on the health of the American people. Granting blanket immunity to corporations who have a fiscal responsibility to their shareholders, and not a responsibility to consumer safety, is one of the most dangerous propositions imaginable. CHD sincerely thanks Senator Booker for his leadership in sponsoring this critical piece of legislation to protect the American people over corporations,” Holland said.

Other organizations, including the Center for Food Safety, the American Association for Justice, the National Family Farm Coalition, the Environmental Working Group and the American Regeneration also declared their strong backing of the bill.

For more on environmental and human health protection, visit EPA.News.

Watch Episode 426 of The HighWire with Del Bigtree discussing about pesticides, pills and politics.

This video is from The HighWire with Del Bigtree channel on Brighteon.com.