Senate Appropriations Committee nixes amendment that would have increased funding allotted to FSMA implementation.

• Congress has been considering the agriculture appropriations bill for fiscal year 2016.  Among the issues under discussion has been the adequacy of funding available to FDA to implement the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA).
• On July 16, 2015, the Senate Appropriations Committee approved the FY 2016 appropriations bill, rejecting a proposed amendment by Senator Dick Durbin (D-Illinois) that would have increased FSMA funding.  According to Durbin’s remarks, FDA requested an additional $276 million to support adequate FSMA implementation, but ultimately the Committee allotted only another $45 million to food safety.
• Particularly as the industry anticipates major final FSMA implementation rules in the next few months, it remains to be seen how FDA will allocate its lean budget to food safety regulation and enforcement in the year ahead.