To authorize the establishment of a Center for Plant Disease Control in the Department of Agriculture.

Amends the Plant Protection Act to direct the Secretary of Agriculture to evaluate the need for establishing a Center for Plant Disease Control in the Department of Agriculture that: (1) would facilitate the compiling of information and the conducting of investigations respecting plant pests; and (2) could act as a first responder in the event of an accidental or deliberate use of a plant pest.

Authorizes the Secretary, if the evaluation supports such need, to establish the Center. Sets forth Center functions, including: (1) development of tools for disease detection and diagnosis, (2) expansion of genomics and plant biotechnology research; and (3) development of foreign and domestic pathogen databases. Provides for Center coordination with Federal and State agencies, in particular the Office of Homeland Security.

[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3965 Introduced in House (IH)]







107th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 3965

To authorize the establishment of a Center for Plant Disease Control in 
                     the Department of Agriculture.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 14, 2002

Mr. Smith of Michigan introduced the following bill; which was referred 
                    to the Committee on Agriculture

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To authorize the establishment of a Center for Plant Disease Control in 
                     the Department of Agriculture.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. CENTER FOR PLANT DISEASE CONTROL.

    Section 422 of the Plant Protection Act (7 U.S.C. 7732) is amended 
to read as follows:

``SEC. 422. INFORMATION COLLECTION AND CENTER FOR PLANT DISEASE 
              CONTROL.

    ``(a) Information Collection and Investigative Authority.--The 
Secretary may gather and compile information and conduct any 
investigations the Secretary considers necessary for the administration 
and enforcement of this title.
    ``(b) Evaluation of Need for Center.--The Secretary shall evaluate 
the feasibility and desirability of establishing a Center for Plant 
Disease Control in the Department of Agriculture that--
            ``(1) would facilitate the gathering and compiling of 
        information and the conducting of investigations, as authorized 
        by subsection (a), related to plant pests that can directly or 
        indirectly injure, cause damage to, or cause disease in plants 
        or plant products; and
            ``(2) could act as a first responder in the event of an 
        accidental or deliberate introduction or use of a plant pest.
    ``(c) Establishment of Center.--If the results of the evaluation 
conducted under subsection (b) support the need for a Center for Plant 
Disease Control in the Department, the Secretary may establish the 
Center and assign to it the specific functions referred to subsections 
(b) and (d) and such other duties as the Secretary considers 
appropriate.
    ``(d) Center Functions.--The Center for Plant Disease Control, if 
established by the Secretary, may be used to perform and support the 
following activities:
            ``(1) Development of new tools for rapid detection and 
        diagnosis of plant diseases, including by remote sensing.
            ``(2) Expansion of research on genomics and plant 
        biotechnology as the foundation for more rapid and effective 
        development of crop plants with resistance to pathogens that 
        are potential threat agents.
            ``(3) Expansion of research on genomics and plant 
        biotechnology that can be used for detection of, forensics 
        related to, or recovery from a bioterrorist attack on plants or 
        plant products.
            ``(4) Ongoing identification, risk assessment, and updating 
        of threat agents to plants.
            ``(5) Development of a database and new or acquired 
        collections of foreign and domestic pathogens, and methods for 
        their rapid diagnosis.
    ``(e) Coordination.--The Secretary shall coordinate the activities 
of the Center for Plant Disease Control with other Federal and State 
agencies, in particular the Office of Homeland Security, and 
appropriate experts in the area of plant pest control at public and 
private research institutions.
    ``(f) Funding.--Of the funds appropriated for a fiscal year 
pursuant to the authorization of appropriations in section 441, the 
Secretary may use up to $5,000,000 to support the activities of the 
Center for Plant Disease Control.''.
                                 <all>