Gov. Jerry Brown “is widely expected to sign” a bill making California the first state in the nation to regulate antibiotic use in food animals, says news organization FairWarning, pointing to Brown’s role in toughening SB 27 earlier this month. “The legislation in California, which would surpass federal recommendations and requirements, effectively would stop ranchers from regularly giving antibiotics to healthy animals.” Brown vetoed an antibiotics bill last year on grounds it did not go far enough to curb excessive use of antimicrobials.
Unnecessary use of antibiotics, in humans or animals, is believed to encourage development of bacteria that are resistant to the drugs. The FDA is overseeing a phase-out of the use of medically important antibiotics to promote weight gain in livestock. When that is completed, the drugs will be available only for treatment or prevention of disease, and under the supervision of a veterinarian.
The California legislation, which would take effect on Jan. 1, 2018, would be more stringent. Along with provisions similar to the FDA rules, it would limit the use of medically important antibiotics on an ongoing basis for disease prevention, penalize veterinarians and livestock producers for violations, require the state Department of Food and Agriculture to gather information on sale and usage of medically important antibiotics, and order state agencies to write stewardship guidelines for antibiotic use.
Consumers Union urged Brown to sign the bill, saying, “This new law should go a long way in reducing the amount of antibiotics used in meat production in California, and should lessen the number of antibiotic-resistance superbugs contributing to the ineffectiveness of human medicines.”
On Sept. 11, the state Senate passed the bill, sponsored by Sen. Jerry Hill, on a 37-1 vote, and the state Assembly passed it on a 71-6 roll call vote. FairWarning quoted the California Cattlemen’s Association as saying SB 27 “puts a framework around” antibiotics “in a way that promotes judicious use within the industry.”