Overhaul | featured news

The proposal comes just days before a bipartisan group of eight senators is expected to present its own blueprint.

The bill still needs to be reconciled with legislation passed by the House in July 2009, but the Senate action was hailed by advocates as a sign that the nation's food-safety laws will receive their first major overhaul in decades. After languishing for more than a year, a food-safety bill that has enjoyed strong bipartisan support passed the Senate on Tuesday, raising prospects for tougher and more extensive federal inspections and other safeguards.