00                       HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 5                                                                     
01 Opposing the United States Food and Drug Administration's preliminary finding                                           
02 relating to genetically engineered salmon; urging further examination of genetically                                    
03 engineered salmon; opposing AquaBounty's petition to produce genetically engineered                                     
04 salmon; and proposing, if AquaBounty's petition is approved, that its product should be                                 
05 labeled as "genetically modified."                                                                                      
06 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA:                                                               
07       WHEREAS the United States Food and Drug Administration recently announced the                                   
08 release of a draft environmental assessment and preliminary finding of no significant impact                            
09 concerning genetically engineered AquaBounty AquAdvantage salmon; and                                                   
10       WHEREAS the state has bountiful fisheries that provide wild, natural, and sustainable                           
11 seafood; and                                                                                                            
12       WHEREAS Alaska seafood is naturally high in essential vitamins, including vitamins                              
13 E, C, D, and A, and minerals, including zinc, iron, calcium, and selenium; and                                          
14       WHEREAS fish habitat in the state is less polluted than fish habitat in other locations;                        
15 and                                                                                                                     

01       WHEREAS fisheries are a vital component of the state's economy; and                                             
02       WHEREAS the state's fisheries are managed to ensure that Alaska seafood continues                               
03 to be the finest in the world for future generations; and                                                               
04       WHEREAS, in 2009, 95 percent of pacific salmon landings in the United States                                    
05 occurred in the state; and                                                                                              
06       WHEREAS, in 2012, 124,000,000 salmon were harvested in the state, for a value of                                
07 $505,000,000; and                                                                                                       
08       WHEREAS Alaska ports consistently rank among the top ports in the United States                                 
09 based on volume and ex-vessel value for various fisheries including salmon; and                                         
10       WHEREAS the state's fishing industry provides over 70,000 jobs annually and is the                              
11 second largest source of private sector employment in the state; and                                                    
12       WHEREAS the United States Food and Drug Administration is accepting comments                                    
13 on the proposal to allow, for the first time, a genetically modified organism to be sold for                            
14 human consumption; and                                                                                                  
15       WHEREAS the inevitable accidental release of transgenic fish into the wild could                                
16 devastate native fish populations and ecosystems; and                                                                   
17       WHEREAS citizens and public interest groups overwhelmingly oppose genetically                                   
18 engineered food and have submitted over 400,000 public comments opposing genetically                                    
19 engineered salmon; and                                                                                                  
20       WHEREAS the United States Food and Drug Administration has not conducted                                        
21 adequate testing to determine the long-term safety of consuming genetically engineered                                  
22 salmon; and                                                                                                             
23       WHEREAS the sale of genetically engineered salmon could imperil the state's fishing                             
24 industry; and                                                                                                           
25       WHEREAS seven members of the United States Senate continue to have concerns                                     
26 about AquaBounty's proposal and the United States Food and Drug Administration's review                                 
27 of the proposal; and                                                                                                    
28       WHEREAS the United States Food and Drug Administration's review applies only to                                 
29 a limited set of production and rearing facilities and fails to consider the broader applications                       
30 of this technology that would assuredly occur should final approval be granted;                                         
31       BE IT RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature urges the United States Food                                   

01 and Drug Administration not to make a final decision regarding genetically engineered                                   
02 salmon until the United States Congress has fully examined the issue and the potential release                          
03 of genetically engineered fish into the waters of the United States; and be it                                          
04       FURTHER RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature opposes AquaBounty's                                         
05 petition to produce AquAdvantage Salmon, a genetically engineered salmon; and be it                                     
06       FURTHER RESOLVED that, if the petition is approved by the United States Food                                    
07 and Drug Administration, despite strong environmental and human health concerns, product                                
08 labeling requirements should include the words "Genetically Modified" prominently                                       
09 displayed on the front of the product's packaging.                                                                      
10       COPIES of this resolution shall be sent to the Honorable Barack Obama, President of                             
11 the United States; the Honorable Joseph R. Biden, Jr., Vice-President of the United States and                          
12 President of the U.S. Senate; the Honorable Tom Vilsack, United States Secretary of                                     
13 Agriculture; the Honorable Margaret Hamburg, M.D., Commissioner of Food and Drugs; and                                  
14 the Honorable Lisa Murkowski and the Honorable Mark Begich, U.S. Senators, and the                                      
15 Honorable Don Young, U.S. Representative, members of the Alaska delegation in Congress.