Pingree, Massie Introduce ‘People Over Poison Act’ to Protect Americans’ Right to Hold Big Chemical Companies Accountable

Today, Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) and Congressman Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) introduced the People Over Poison Act, legislation to protect Americans' right to hold pesticide manufacturers accountable under state law when they fail to warn consumers about the risks of their products. The bipartisan bill comes days after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in favor of Bayer-formerly Monsanto-in Monsanto v. Durnell, a case centered around Roundup, the company's widely used glyphosate-based herbicide. In its decision, the Court held that the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) preempts state-law failure-to-warn claims when those claims involve a warning not mandated by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

Pingree and Massie's People Over Poison Act would reverse the Monsanto v. Durnell ruling by explicitly stating that FIFRA does not block or limit state tort claims related to pesticide labeling or packaging-preserving the right of people harmed by pesticides to seek accountability in court.

"The Supreme Court just handed Big Chemical the legal immunity its lobbyists and millions of dollars couldn't buy in Congress," said Pingree. "Federal pesticide law was never supposed to be a liability waiver for corporations, and not a permission slip to hide behind insufficient labels while people get sick. For all the Trump Administration's talk about 'Making America Healthy Again,' it keeps siding with chemical companies in court, dragging its feet on long-overdue safety reviews, and even boosting glyphosate production. Enough with the empty slogans and broken promises. If this Administration won't put people's health over corporate profits, Congress must. The right to seek justice in court is one of our most foundational freedoms, ensuring that every American has a fair chance to be heard and hold powerful interests accountable."

"The Supreme Court just ruled that Monsanto/Bayer can't be sued for omitting a warning even if their herbicides do cause cancer," said Massie. "Even if the legal reasoning of the court is sound in this case, it's a blatant travesty of justice. Congress and the President can fix this and we absolutely should."

State tort law has served as a critical backstop when federal regulators fail to fully protect the public from dangerous products. The Supreme Court's ruling threatens to upend that balance by removing the ability to hold pesticide manufacturers accountable through state failure-to-warn claims.

The implications extend far beyond Roundup and glyphosate. The ruling could affect future claims involving other pesticides and chemical products, including cases where farmers, farmworkers, landscapers, groundskeepers, and consumers allege they were not adequately warned about serious health risks.

Pingree, a longtime farmer and member of the House Agriculture Committee, successfully removed a liability shield for Big Chemical from the FY2026 Interior and Environment Appropriations bill. After similar language appeared in the draft Farm Bill, Pingree led an amendment during Committee markup to strip the language. She and Rep. Massie introduced the same amendment when the Farm Bill came before the full House of Representatives. Rep. Anna Paulina Luna's (R-Fla.) identical amendment passed with strong bipartisan support. Earlier this month, Luna and Pingree introduced the Paraquat Prevention Act, legislation that would ban the herbicide paraquat.

In February, President Trump signed an Executive Order to increase domestic production of glyphosate-a widely used weedkiller that has been linked to multiple health issues, including non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. In response, Pingree and Massie introduced the No Immunity for Glyphosate Act, which would undo Trump's Executive Order.

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