As France Gets More Like the US, the US Gets More Like France Gail Heriot

Stand up for your right to a better (and more expensive!) guacamole.

I’m very pleased about the election of Nikolas Sarkozy.  Maybe there’s hope for France and its sclerotic, protectionist economy after all–and hope for French-U.S. relations. 

But evidently some believe that we need to meet France halfway.  While France is moving in the direction of free markets, a story in the San Diego Union-Tribune suggests that several members of Congress would like the United States to become more like Old France–rotten with special interest legislation designed to “protect” the consumer from lower prices.

The proposal concerns our nation’s vital avocado crop.  We’re used to hearing about France (and the EU) with their laughable regulations concerning what foodstuffs can and cannot to sold to consumers.  But it’s rare for the United States Congress to get into that business–at least until Rep. Lois Capps, Sen. Barbara Boxer and Rep. Darrell Issa came up with the Hass Avocado Quality Assurance Act. (I assume they cooked this up after they’d worked out the problems in Iraq.)

Evidently, California’s Department of Food And Agriculture already regulates the maturity, size and weight of avocados that can be sold in California.  Perhaps the bureaucrats there are deeply concerned about the plight of Californians having to eat small avocados.  But these regulations can only apply to avocados that are grown and sold in-state.  Out-of-state avocado growers can sell avocados that don’t comply.  (No doubt California consumers lose considerable sleep worrying about how they will manage to avoid buying avocados that are unripe or too small without the help of federal law.)

California growers don’t like this competition.  They want federal legislation that will require the out-of-state avocados to meet the same maturity requirements imposed by California law.  And that’s what the proposal does for them.

According to the Union Tribune’s Dana Wilkie:

Capps call it “common sense” legislation.  Boxer says the bill promotes “accountability.”  Issa want to ensure that “immature and low-quality imports don’t harm” the sought-after California Hass.

As you might imagine, the Hass Avocado Quality Assurance Act enjoys strong support from California avocado growers and the California Avocado Commission.  Now this is not–we repeat not–some protectionist measure cooked up by the California lawmakers to decrease competition for California growers.

That last tongue-in-cheek statement shows that Wilkie was not taken in.  I assume that Congress won’t be either.  But there really ought to be some penalty for sponsoring legislation like this.