Chronic Wasting Disease Transmission in Cervidae Study Act
This bill requires the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service to study the predominant pathways and mechanisms of the transmission of chronic wasting disease in wild, captive, and farmed populations of deer, elk, reindeer, and moose populations in the United States.
[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6272 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
115th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 6272
To authorize a special resource study on the spread vectors of chronic
wasting disease in Cervidae, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
June 28, 2018
Mr. Abraham (for himself, Mr. Thompson of Pennsylvania, Mr. Costello of
Pennsylvania, Mr. Marino, and Mr. Gosar) introduced the following bill;
which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture, and in addition to
the Committee on Natural Resources, for a period to be subsequently
determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such
provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To authorize a special resource study on the spread vectors of chronic
wasting disease in Cervidae, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Chronic Wasting Disease Transmission
in Cervidae Study Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress makes the following findings:
(1) Chronic wasting disease continues to spread in wild,
free-ranging cervid herds and in captive cervid herds across
the United States, and as of June 2018, is in 25 States.
(2) From June 2017 to June 2018 alone, the disease was
detected for the first time in free-ranging cervid herds in
Mississippi and Montana and there were new positive detections
of the disease in 13 captive cervid herds from Illinois,
Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin.
(3) Five of such herds are being monitored by the National
Chronic Wasting Disease Herd Certification Program of the
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, and therefore are
considered to be at low-risk for chronic wasting disease.
(4) From June 2017 to June 2018, 10 States, including
Arkansas, Illinois, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska,
Texas, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming, are already
fighting to control the transmission and spread of chronic
wasting disease and found positive detections for the disease
in additional wild, free-ranging cervid herds.
(5) New positive detections in captive cervid herds were
found in Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and
Wisconsin.
(6) There is no known cure for chronic wasting disease, no
reliable live animal test to detect the disease, and only a
post-mortem test that provides some measure of reliable
detection of the disease.
(7) Chronic wasting disease is 100 percent fatal and is
arguably the most important disease threatening North American
cervid resources.
(8) The spread of chronic wasting disease continues to
increasingly and adversely affect the economic well-being of
rural communities, the hunting public, farmed cervid producers,
and State wildlife and agricultural agencies, because the only
known measure for reducing the spread of chronic wasting
disease is the complete depopulation of herds that test
positive for the disease, a drastic measure which comes with
great costs for all.
(9) The long-term environmental persistence of chronic
wasting disease's causative agent means that State wildlife
management agencies, State departments of agriculture, and
private cervid farmers have relatively few options to mitigate
the effects of such disease.
(10) There are ongoing debates about the predominant
transmission pathways that are causing the new detections and
continued spread of chronic wasting disease in cervids across
the United States.
SEC. 3. CHRONIC WASTING DISEASE TRANSMISSION IN CERVIDAE RESOURCE
STUDY.
(a) Study.--The Secretary shall conduct a special resource study to
identify the predominant pathways and mechanisms of the transmission of
chronic wasting disease in wild, captive, and farmed populations of
species of the family Cervidae in the United States.
(b) Conducting the Study.--
(1) In general.--In conducting the study under subsection
(a), the Secretary shall request the National Academy of
Sciences to conduct such study under an arrangement under which
the actual expenses incurred by such Academy in conducting such
study will be paid by the Secretary. If the National Academy of
Sciences is willing to do so, the Secretary shall enter into
such an arrangement with such Academy for the conduct of such
study.
(2) Other entities.--If the National Academy of Sciences is
unwilling to conduct such study under such an arrangement, then
the Secretary shall enter into a similar arrangement with an
appropriate research institute or institute of higher education
under which such institute will conduct such study and prepare
and submit the reports thereon.
(3) Data sharing.--For integration into the study, the
Secretary shall share with the National Academy of Sciences or
the institute referred to in paragraph (2) (as the case may
be), data and databases on chronic wasting disease under the
jurisdiction of Veterinary Services Program within the United
States Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health
Inspection Service of the Department of Agriculture.
(c) Contents of the Study.--Within and between wild, captive, and
farmed cervid populations, the study shall--
(1) identify--
(A) the pathways and mechanisms for the
transmission of chronic wasting disease in cervids in
the United States;
(B) the dosage and infection rates for each such
pathway and mechanism; and
(C) the relative frequency of each mode of such
transmission;
(2) identify anthropogenic and environmental factors
contributing to new chronic wasting disease emergence events,
the development of geographic areas with increased chronic
wasting disease prevalence, and overall geographic patterns of
chronic wasting disease distribution;
(3) identify significant gaps in current scientific
knowledge regarding the transmission pathways identified under
paragraph (1);
(4) identify and prioritize scientific research projects
that will address the knowledge gaps referred to in paragraph
(3); and
(5) review science-based best practices, standards, and
guidance regarding the management of chronic wasting disease in
wild, captive, and farmed cervid populations in the United
States which have been developed by--
(A) the National Chronic Wasting Disease Herd
Certification Program referred to in section 2(3); and
(B) State wildlife and agricultural agencies, which
provide practical, science-based recommendations to
State and Federal agencies for minimizing or
eliminating the risk of transmission of chronic wasting
disease in the United States.
(d) Report.--Not later than 6 months after the date on which funds
are first made available for the study under subsection (a), the
Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Agriculture of the House of
Representatives and the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and
Forestry of the Senate a report that describes--
(1) the findings of the study; and
(2) any conclusions and recommendations that the Secretary
determines to be appropriate.
SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Chronic wasting disease.--The term ``chronic wasting
disease'' means the animal disease afflicting deer, elk, and
moose populations that--
(A) is a transmissible disease of the nervous
system resulting in distinctive lesions in the brain;
and
(B) belongs to the group of diseases known as
transmissible spongiform encephalopathies, which group
includes scrapie, bovine spongiform encephalopathy, and
Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.
(2) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary
of Agriculture, acting through the Animal and Plant Health
Inspection Service.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the Committee on Agriculture, and in addition to the Committee on Natural Resources, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
Referred to the Committee on Agriculture, and in addition to the Committee on Natural Resources, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
Referred to the Subcommittee on Federal Lands.
Referred to the Subcommittee on Livestock and Foreign Agriculture.
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