00Enrolled HJR 12                                                                                                         
01 Opposing the United States Food and Drug Administration's approval of AquaBounty                                        
02 AquAdvantage genetically engineered salmon; and urging the United States Congress to enact                              
03 legislation that requires prominently labeling genetically engineered salmon and salmon                                 
04 products with the words "Genetically Modified" on the product's packaging.                                              
05                                         _______________                                                                 
06 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA:                                                             
07      WHEREAS, on November 19, 2015, the United States Food and Drug Administration                                      
08 approved AquaBounty AquAdvantage genetically engineered salmon as safe for human                                        
09 consumption; and                                                                                                        
10      WHEREAS the approval is the first time in history that the United States Food and                                  
11 Drug Administration has approved a genetically engineered animal for human consumption;                                 
12 and                                                                                                                     
13      WHEREAS a large majority of state residents oppose the approval of genetically                                     
14 engineered salmon by the United States Food and Drug Administration; and                                                
15      WHEREAS more than 2,000,000 Americans opposed the United States Food and                                           
16 Drug Administration's approval of genetically engineered salmon in the largest number of                                
17 comments the United States Food and Drug Administration has ever received on an action;                                 

01 and                                                                                                                     
02      WHEREAS more than 65 retailers, including Costco, Safeway, and Target, have                                        
03 announced that they have no plans to sell genetically modified salmon; and                                              
04      WHEREAS more than 40 members of the United States Congress have expressed                                          
05 opposition to the approval of AquaBounty AquAdvantage genetically engineered salmon; and                                
06      WHEREAS the state has bountiful fisheries that provide wild, natural, and sustainable                              
07 seafood; and                                                                                                            
08      WHEREAS the accidental release of transgenic fish into the wild could devastate                                    
09 native fish populations and ecosystems; and                                                                             
10      WHEREAS a May 2013 McGill University research report detailed findings                                             
11 demonstrating interbreeding between genetically modified salmon and brown trout could                                   
12 occur, suggesting that the potential for similar hybridization between other closely related                            
13 species could pose risks for wild populations, including wild salmon; and                                               
14      WHEREAS the research demonstrated that transgenic hybrid salmon can outcompete                                     
15 with both wild salmon and genetically modified salmon, making hybridization relevant to risk                            
16 assessments; and                                                                                                        
17      WHEREAS, each year, thousands of salmon escape from open water net pens into the                                   
18 Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, demonstrating that escapement is a serious threat to wild fish                             
19 populations; and                                                                                                        
20      WHEREAS the AquaBounty facility on Prince Edward Island is producing                                               
21 genetically engineered fish eggs and sits adjacent to a water body that is directly connected to                        
22 the Saint Lawrence Seaway and the Atlantic Ocean; and                                                                   
23      WHEREAS the proximity of the AquaBounty facility to the Saint Lawrence Seaway                                      
24 and the Atlantic Ocean puts wild Atlantic salmon, which are listed under the Endangered                                 
25 Species Act, at risk; and                                                                                               
26      WHEREAS the long-term human health effects of consuming genetically engineered                                     
27 salmon are unknown;                                                                                                     
28      BE IT RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature opposes the United States Food                                    
29 and Drug Administration's approval of AquaBounty AquAdvantage genetically engineered                                    
30 salmon; and be it                                                                                                       
31      FURTHER RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature urges the United States                                         

01 Congress to enact legislation that requires prominently labeling genetically engineered salmon                          
02 or salmon products, including AquaBounty AquAdvantage genetically engineered salmon,                                    
03 with the words "Genetically Modified" on the product's packaging, as required by state law.                             
04      COPIES of this resolution shall be sent to the Honorable Donald J. Trump, President                                
05 of the United States; the Honorable Michael R. Pence, Vice President of the United States and                           
06 President of the U.S. Senate; the Honorable Sonny Perdue, United States Secretary of                                    
07 Agriculture; the Honorable Scott Gottlieb, M.D., United States Commissioner of Food and                                 
08 Drugs; and the Honorable Lisa Murkowski and the Honorable Dan Sullivan, U.S. Senators,                                  
09 and the Honorable Don Young, U.S. Representative, members of the Alaska delegation in                                   
10 Congress.