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PNS - Tuesday, January 28, 2025 - President Donald Trump considers dismantling FEMA. Scott Bessent becomes the next Treasury Secretary, and the North Carolina Supreme Court ballot saga continues.
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PNS - Tuesday, January 28, 2025 - DOJ fires officials involved in Trump prosecutions by special counsel Jack Smith; U.S. Supreme Court declines MT voting rights case; IN lawmakers back $45K minimum teacher pay; Work requirements could be coming for AR Medicaid recipients.
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PNS - Monday, January 27, 2025 - Trump expected to sign executive orders to reshape military including ban on transgender troops; New Michigan laws tackle disparities in maternal health care; Report highlights how Alabama can unlock rural infrastructure, broadband; Ohio communities look to update water systems.
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By Kathleen Shannon - Producer, Contact - News
Big Sky Connection - A Montana Senate bill would create a panel on food safety to study and regulate foods that contain certain toxic chemicals, which research shows have been categorically bypassed by the federal Food and Drug Administration, through a loophole. Comments by state Sen. Daniel Emrich [EMM-ritch], R-Great Falls.
Click on the image above for the audio. In 2022, 393 people were hospitalized after consuming baked goods containing tara flour, which the U.S. Food and Drug Administration declared unsafe in 2024, according to the Center for Science in the Public Interest. (Adobe Stock)
Kathleen Shannon
January 27, 2025 - Research shows toxic additives have been overlooked in the U.S. food supply, though the federal Food and Drug Administration is charged with regulating them.
Legislation in Montana could start new state-level rules. Senate Bill 155 would create a state panel on food safety and give it the authority to make and enforce rules limiting the availability of foods that contain certain toxic additives, like food coloring.
Sen. Daniel Emrich, R-Great Falls, sponsored the bill and said it will help the state understand the cumulative health effects of consuming toxins.
"First, it's a study process," Emrich explained. "We have to study the issue, see how extensive it is and see if there's regulations that need to be instituted to deal with the issue."
A 2024 study showed toxic chemicals have entered Americans' food supply by being put into a category called "generally recognized as safe." It was meant for common ingredients, like oil and baking soda, which the FDA exempts from a thorough approval process.
The Environmental Working Group in 2022 found 98.7% of the new chemicals introduced to the food supply since 2000 were not FDA approved, amounting to more than 750 chemicals. Emrich pointed out the state could more closely regulate what is being sold inside its boundaries.
"The Food and Drug Administration, they recognize the toxic cumulative effect of these additives, but they don't regulate it," Emrich noted.
He added regulation could improve Montanans' health and save the state "billions of dollars in health care." The bill was referred last week to the Senate Committee on Public Health, Welfare and Safety.
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