On Monday, the Destruction of Hazardous Imports Act, H.R. 2715, passed the U.S. House of Representatives. The legislation now moves to the Senate for consideration. If enacted, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) would be granted authority to order the destruction of foreign FDA-regulated merchandise that “presents a significant public health concern.”
History
The FDA has long sought the authority to order destruction of hazardous imports, making specific requests to Congress for authorizing legislation as part of its budget justification for each of the last five years, beginning in fiscal year 2023 and thereafter in fiscal year 2024, fiscal year 2025, fiscal year 2026, and, most recently, in fiscal year 2027.
In June 2024, Congressman Clay Higgins (R-LA) and Congressman Troy Carter (D-LA) introduced H.R. 6881, the Destruction of Hazardous Imports Act in the 118th Congress, proposing to give the FDA authority to destroy foreign articles that present a significant public health concern.
The legislation was reintroduced by Congressmen Higgins and Carter in the 119th Congress on April 8, 2025 as H.R. 2715, the Destruction of Hazardous Imports Act. After initial introduction, the legislation was joined by seventeen additional bipartisan co-sponsors. With input from the FDA, the bill was amended in the House Energy and Commerce Committee and, by a vote of 43 to 0, was reported favorably to the House floor on May 21, 2026.
Strong Support for the Legislation on the House Floor
On the House floor on Monday afternoon, the Chair of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, Congressman Brett Guthrie (R-KY), opened consideration of the Destruction of Hazardous Imports Act by highlighting the threat to the public health of Americans posed by port shopping of FDA-regulated products refused entry into the United States:
“I rise today in strong support of H.R. 2715, led by my colleagues Representatives Higgins and Carter of Louisiana, which updates FDA authorities to allow for requiring that an importer destroy any FDA-regulated product refused entry into the U.S. due to public health risk.
Currently, in cases where an FDA-refused product is not destroyed at the port of entry, FDA has observed some importers ‘port-shopping’ to reimport refused products back into the U.S. through an alternate port of entry.
‘Port-shopping’ has allowed foods and consumer products contaminated with pathogens like Salmonella and Listeria to enter our supply chains and put Americans at risk.
This legislation will strengthen FDA’s enforcement authority over counterfeit and illicit products and deter illegal tactics that pose significant public health threats to our fellow Americans.
I encourage my colleagues to support this bill.”
Following the Chair’s comments, the Ranking Member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, Congressman Frank Pallone (D-NJ) also expressed strong support for the legislation and likewise encouraged all House members to vote in favor of the bill:
“Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 2715, the Destruction of Hazardous Imports Act, led by Representatives Carter and Higgins of Louisiana. []
This bill would provide the Food and Drug Administration with the authority to require importers to destroy products that pose a significant public health concern, preventing them from being shipped to another port of entry. These products have, in fact, included food contaminated with salmonella, listeria, and carcinogenic, unapproved animal drugs as well as misbranded medical devices. It also includes illegal e-cigarette products that are flooding the market from places like China.
These are dangerous products, Mr. Speaker. Providing FDA with the authority to compel destruction and requiring the importer to pay for such destruction will provide a strong disincentive to those seeking to prioritize profits over product safety and we need to make sure that Americans are not unwittingly exposed to harmful products and in this authority [] is going to prevent that, so I encourage all my colleagues to vote yes on H.R. 2715.”
In his comments on the floor regarding the bill, Congressman Clay Higgins (R-LA) explained how the additional authority was needed by the FDA not just to prevent contaminated foreign seafood from reaching U.S. consumers, but also to safeguard American’s health against a wide array of dangerous products that fall within the scope of the FDA’s regulatory authority:
“H.R. 2715 ensures that contaminated imports ranging from radioactive seafood to illegal Chinese vapes, do not reach American consumers and cause harm.
Initially, this legislation began as an effort to target toxin-laced foreign seafood. However, my colleague and I, Representative Carter, quickly learned that the Department of Health and Human Services cannot destroy other articles, including food, devices, and specific drugs, even though they may pose serious health risks.
Without the authority granted within H.R. 2715, dangerous and poisonous imports can find their way to American markets. This legislation grants the Food and Drug Administration additional authority to destroy any articles that fail initial inspection, preventing foreign importers from port shopping or rebranding their products. This legislation introduced strict penalties for the reintroduction of destroyed items into interstate commerce, ensuring that harmful imported goods are permanently barred from entering our markets. Bad actors attempting to undermine these enforcement measures will face accountability.
Strengthening this legislative framework will protect public safety and reinforce our commitment to stringent oversight of imported goods [] to mirror the American safety standards that American producers must live with.
In January, the FDA released its legislative proposals for fiscal year 2026. This included a request for the authority to require importers to destroy any FDA-related products that’s refused entry into the United States and that presents a significant public health concern. H.R. 2715 supports the Administration and follows through by adding [to] the FDA’s already existing authority to destroy imported medical devices and medications with any article that poses a health risk to the public.
As we work to improve our nation’s health and reverse the lingering effects of unfair trade policies, it is essential that the FDA has the authority to eliminate toxic foods and drugs from our country. The Destruction of Hazardous Imports Act protects American’s health and prioritizes our domestic industry.”
In his comments on the House Floor in support of the bill, Congressman Troy Carter (D-LA) observed that the Destruction of Hazardous Imports Act closes a loophole in the law, prevents port shopping, and disincentivizes the shipment of contaminated seafood to the United States. Representative Carter also emphasized how contaminated seafood imports directly harmed U.S. seafood producers:
“Congressman Higgins and I have worked hand in hand with our domestic fishing industry on this legislation, including the Southern Shrimp Alliance.
American fishermen perform back breaking work and operate under strict U.S. food safety, labor, and environmental rules that raise their costs significantly. Meanwhile, some foreign producers cut corners and still get multiple chances to dump noncompliant and often dangerous products into the American marketplace.
Seafood imports continue to pour into the United States, increasing the volume each year, undercutting domestic fishermen. Last year, the U.S. imported 6.4 billion pounds of foreign seafood, a 10 percent increase from 2019.
As imports have increased, American commercial fishermen[‘s] landing[s] have declined. In 2024, the U.S. commercial landings totaled 7.7 billion pounds. For the first time, landings have been below 8 [b]illion pounds since 1988.
Louisiana’s commercial fishing industry has particularly been hit hard by this flood of foreign imports. Since 2021, Louisiana shrimpers have seen the value of their catch dropped by more than 50 percent, falling from $131 million in 2021 to just $61 million 2024.
As you can see, this is, in fact, a real threat. Passing this bill would deter bad actors from the flooding the market with unsafe products and provide American fishermen with a fair playing field, allowing them to sustainably harvest millions of additional pounds of shrimp and other seafood each year.
This is a real issue and I’m proud to be working in a bipartisan way to address an issue that will impact not just Louisiana, not just America, but our country.”
Grassroots Efforts
While consideration of the Destruction of Hazardous Imports Act is not complete and requires Senate passage in order to become law, the House’s adoption of the legislation on Monday by voice vote is the culmination of years of grassroots advocacy efforts by public health organizations and domestic seafood producers.
In particular, commercial shrimpers from the Gulf of America and South Atlantic have demanded that this loophole in U.S. law be closed after millions of pounds of contaminated Chinese-origin shrimp forced its way into the U.S. market under fraudulent pretenses. Through local and state organizations, including the Port Arthur Area Shrimpers Association, the Louisiana Shrimp Association, the Texas Shrimp Association, Mississippi Commercial Fisheries United, the North Carolina Fisheries Association, and the South Carolina Shrimpers Association, commercial fishermen met with their Congressional representatives to explain why this legislation is a major priority for the U.S. shrimp industry.
“On behalf of the U.S. shrimp industry, the Southern Shrimp Alliance thanks Congressmen Clay Higgins and Troy Carter for tirelessly working to get the Destruction of Hazardous Imports Act passed in the House,” said Blake Price, executive director of the Southern Shrimp Alliance. “Thousands of commercial fishermen working in the coastal south have made their voices heard in the halls of Congress and we hope that the Senate will follow suit, enacting common-sense, practical legislation that eliminates an undisputed vulnerability in our existing food safety laws.”
Read Congressman Clay Higgins’ (R-LA) July 21, 2026 press release, “Higgins’ Legislation Cracking Down on Toxic Foreign Imports Passes House,” here: https://clayhiggins.house.gov/2026/07/21/higgins-legislation-cracking-down-on-toxic-foreign-imports-passes-house/