DEER Act

To amend the Animal Health Protection Act to provide chronic wasting disease support for States and coordinated response efforts, and for other purposes. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Detection, Enhanced Education, and Response Act of 2019 DEER Act 2. Chronic wasting disease support for States and coordinated response efforts The Animal Health Protection Act is amended by inserting after section 10409A ( 7 U.S.C. 8308a 10409B. Chronic wasting disease support for States and coordinated response efforts (a) Definition of chronic wasting disease In this section, the term chronic wasting disease (1) is a transmissible disease of the nervous system resulting in distinctive lesions in the brain; and (2) belongs to the group of diseases known as transmissible spongiform encephalopathies, which includes scrapie, bovine spongiform encephalopathy, and Cruetzfeldt-Jakob disease. (b) Support for State efforts To manage and control chronic wasting disease (1) Availability of assistance The Secretary shall allocate funds made available under subsection (e) directly to State departments of wildlife and State departments of agriculture to further develop and implement chronic wasting disease surveillance, testing, management, and response activities. (2) Funding priorities In determining the amounts to be allocated to State departments of wildlife and agriculture, the Secretary shall give priority to States that— (A) have experienced a recent incidence of chronic wasting disease; (B) have a chronic wasting disease monitoring and surveillance program; and (C) have a diagnostic laboratory system certified for chronic wasting disease testing. (c) Chronic wasting disease multiagency task force (1) In general The Secretary shall establish a multiagency task force that shall— (A) establish a unified response framework to better position the Department of Agriculture to respond to the growing threat of chronic wasting disease; (B) provide a single Federal point of contact for Federal and State entities that work on chronic wasting disease issues; (C) determine funding priorities and allocation of resources; and (D) disseminate information to the public relating to chronic wasting disease. (2) Composition The multiagency task force established under paragraph (1) shall— (A) be led by the Administrator of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service; and (B) include 1 or more representatives from each of the following: (i) The Agricultural Research Service. (ii) The National Institute of Food and Agriculture. (iii) The Forest Service. (iv) The United States Fish and Wildlife Service. (v) State departments of wildlife. (vi) State departments of agriculture. (vii) Institutions of higher education. (d) Mid-South Center of Excellence in Wildlife Diseases (1) In general The Secretary shall award a grant to a land-grant college or university (as defined in section 1404 of the National Agricultural Research, Extension, and Teaching Policy Act of 1977 ( 7 U.S.C. 3103 7 U.S.C. 361a 7 U.S.C. 341 Mid-South Center of Excellence in Wildlife Diseases (2) Criteria The Secretary shall award the grant under paragraph (1) to a land-grant college or university that— (A) is located in a State— (i) in the Southeast area of the Agricultural Research Service; and (ii) that has confirmed cases of chronic wasting disease in the State; (B) has an established whitetail deer research program with significant research history in deer ecology, movements, genetics, and management; (C) has a college of veterinary medicine; and (D) has technical and scientific expertise relevant to chronic wasting disease through the university extension service and college of veterinary medicine. (3) Activities The Mid-South Center of Excellence in Wildlife Diseases established under paragraph (1) shall— (A) have a special research focus on chronic wasting disease in whitetail deer; (B) serve as the lead institution of higher education in collaborating with the multiagency task force established under subsection (c)(1); (C) establish partnerships with other universities with expertise relevant to chronic wasting disease research; (D) develop an epidemiological research program focused on chronic wasting disease; (E) expand chronic wasting disease surveillance and testing capacity; and (F) improve current chronic wasting disease ecology, movements, transmission, and management research. (e) Authorization of appropriations There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as are necessary to carry out this section. .

Summary: Detection, Enhanced Education, and Response Act of 2019 or the DEER Act This bill addresses chronic wasting disease, which is a transmissible disease that afflicts deer, elk, and moose populations. Specifically, the bill requires the Department of Agriculture (USDA) to support state efforts to develop and implement chronic wasting disease surveillance, testing, management, and response activities. In addition, USDA must (1) establish a multiagency task force to respond to the disease, and (2) award a grant to a land-grant college or university to establish a policy research center for wildlife diseases.