madam chairman , i yield myself such time as i may consume . 
madam chairman , i rise in support of h.r. 554 , the personal responsibility in food consumption act of 2005 . 
the food service industry employs some 12 million people , making it the nation 's largest private sector employer . 
this vital sector of our economy has recently come under attack by lawsuits alleging it should pay monetary damages based upon legal theories holding it liable for the overconsumption of its products . 
h.r. 554 , the personal responsibility in food consumption act , would correct this disturbing trend . 
introduced by the gentleman from florida ( mr. keller ) xz4002120 , this legislation would generally prohibit frivolous obesity- or weight gain-related claims against the food industry . 
it would , however , allow obesity-related claims to go forward in several circumstances , including cases in which a state or federal law was broken and as a result a person suffered harm . 
under h.r. 554 , cases could go forward in which a company violates an expressed contract or warranty . 
also , because h.r. 554 applies only to claims based on weight gain or obesity , lawsuits could still proceed if , for example , someone gets sick from consuming tainted food . 
this legislation passed the house of representatives during the 108th congress in the form of h.r. 339 with a large bipartisan vote of 276 to 139 . 
according to a recent gallup poll , `` nearly nine in 10 americans oppose holding the fast-food industry legally responsible for diet-related health problems of people who eat that kind of food on a regular basis ... .. 
those who describe themselves as overweight are no more likely than others to blame the fast-food industry for obesity-related health problems or to favor lawsuits against the industry. '' as one judge put it : `` if a person knows or should know that eating copious orders of supersized mcdonald 's products is unhealthy and may result in weight gain , it is not the place of the law to protect them from their own excesses. '' even the los angeles times has editorialized against such lawsuits , stating : `` if kids are chowing down to excess on junk food , are n't their parents responsible for cracking down ? 
and if parents or other grown-ups overindulge , is n't it their fault , not that of the purveyors of fast food ? 
... .. 
why boost their food bills just because of legal jousting ? 
people should n't get stuffed , but this line of litigation should. '' the threat posed to our national economy is clear . 
personal injury attorney and obesity lawsuit litigator john banzhaf said recently , `` you may not like it ... .. 
but we 'll find a judge . 
and then we 'll find a jury '' that will find restaurants liable for their customers ' overeating . 
according to news reports of a recent legal conference , a panel of four lawyers argued that the overweight lawsuit movement `` would need to extend beyond the obvious targets like restaurants , fast-food chains , and food manufacturers to bring about substantial policy changes ... .. 
`` dr . 
gerald musante , a clinical psychologist who trained at duke university medical center , has worked for more than 30 years with thousands of obese patients . 
he is the founder of the structure house , a residential weight loss facility in durham , north carolina . 
dr . 
musante said the following at a hearing in the other body on this legislation : `` through working with obese patients , i have learned that the worst thing one can do is to blame an outside force to get themselves `off the hook , ' to say it 's not their fault and that they are a victim ... .. 
congress has rightly recognized the danger of allowing americans to continue blaming others for the obesity epidemic . 
it is imperative that we prevent lawsuits from being filed against any industry for answering consumer demands. '' even the chairman of the american council for fitness and nutrition , susan finn , has written that `` if you 're obese , you do n't need a lawyer ; you need to see your doctor , a nutritionist , and a physical trainer . 
playing the courtroom blame game wo n't make anyone thinner or healthier ... .. 
`` besides threatening to erode values of personal responsibility , the lawsuit campaign against the food industry threatens the separation of powers . 
nationally coordinated lawsuits seek to accomplish through litigation what has not been achieved by legislation and the democratic process . 
as one mastermind behind the lawsuits against the food industry has stated , `` if the legislatures wo n't legislate , then the trial lawyers will litigate. '' madam chairman , the personal responsibility in food consumption act will help preserve the separation of powers , support the principle of personal responsibility , and help protect the largest private sector employer in the united states . 
i urge all my colleagues to support this important legislation . 
madam chairman , i reserve the balance of my time . 
