Central and Eastern Kentucky
(2005-06-09)
LITTLE ROCK, AR
(KOSU) -
Congress is considering a bill to require farmers to register with their state departments of agriculture if they want to buy ammonium nitrate fertilizer.Ammonium nitrate is one of the most common fertilizers in the world and was the key ingredient in the truck bomb used by Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols in the Oklahoma City bombing.
Senator Mark Pryor of Arkansas is co-sponsoring the bill and says it gives the U.S. Department of Homeland Security access to the state records. Pryor calls the bill a common sense approach to making sure the fertilizer doesn't get into the hands of terrorists.
The Oklahoma Department of Agriculture earlier this year adopted rules to regulate ammonium nitrate sales in the state. The rules require retailers to get the name, address and telephone and driver's license number of people who buy the fertilizer and keep those records for at least two years. © Copyright 2012, KOSU
