I 
116TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 837 
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 
JANUARY 29, 2019 
Mr. ABRAHAM (for himself, Mr. THOMPSON of Pennsylvania, Mr. GOSAR, Mr. 
EMMER, Mr. VEASEY, Mr. GRAVES of Louisiana, Mr. KELLY of Mis-
sissippi, Mr. GIANFORTE, Mr. KELLY of Pennsylvania, Mr. KING of Iowa, 
and Mr. DUFFY) 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 juris-
diction 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 Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Chronic Wasting Dis-
ease Transmission in Cervidae Study Act’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress makes the following findings: 
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(1) Chronic wasting disease continues to spread 
in wild, free-ranging cervid herds and in captive 
cervid herds across the United States and Canada, 
and as of December 2018, is in 26 States and three 
Canadian provinces. 
(2) From December 2017 to December 2018 
alone, the disease was detected for the first time in 
free-ranging cervid herds in Mississippi, Montana, 
and Tennessee, and there were new positive detec-
tions of the disease in 13 captive cervid herds from 
Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, 
Wisconsin and Quebec, Canada. 
(3) Six of such herds are being monitored by 
the National Chronic Wasting Disease Herd Certifi-
cation Program of the Animal and Plant Health In-
spection Service, and therefore are considered to be 
at low-risk for chronic wasting disease. 
(4) From June 2017 to September 2018, 10 
States, including Arkansas, Illinois, Kansas, Min-
nesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Texas, West Virginia, 
Wisconsin, and Wyoming, are already fighting to 
control the transmission and spread of chronic wast-
ing disease and found positive detections for the dis-
ease in additional wild, free-ranging cervid herds. 
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(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 dis-
ease, 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 threat-
ening North American cervid resources. 
(8) The spread of chronic wasting disease con-
tinues to increasingly and adversely affect the eco-
nomic 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 depart-
ments of agriculture, and private cervid farmers 
have relatively few options to mitigate the effects of 
such disease. 
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(10) There are ongoing debates about the pre-
dominant transmission pathways that are causing 
the new detections and continued spread of chronic 
wasting disease in cervids across the United States 
and Canada. 
SEC. 3. CHRONIC WASTING DISEASE TRANSMISSION IN 
CERVIDAE RESOURCE STUDY. 
(a) STUDY.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretaries shall enter 
into an arrangement with the Academy under which 
the Academy shall conduct, and submit to the Secre-
taries a report— 
(A) describing the findings of, a special re-
source study to identify the predominant path-
ways and mechanisms of the transmission of 
chronic wasting disease in wild, captive, and 
farmed populations of cervids in the United 
States; and 
(B) which may include the potential im-
pacts on the disease from transmissions from 
Canada. 
(2) REQUIREMENTS.—The arrangement under 
paragraph (1) shall provide that the actual expenses 
incurred by the Academy in conducting the study 
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under paragraph (1) shall be paid by the Secre-
taries. 
(b) CONTENTS OF THE STUDY.—Within and between 
wild, captive, and farmed cervid populations, the study— 
(1) may include, to the extent the United States 
is affected on a continental scale, the potential im-
pacts on the disease from transmissions from Can-
ada; and 
(2) shall— 
(A) identify— 
(i) the pathways and mechanisms for 
the transmission of chronic wasting disease 
in cervids and cervid products; 
(ii) the dosage and infection rates for 
each such pathway and mechanism; and 
(iii) the relative frequency of each 
mode of such transmission; 
(B) identify anthropogenic and environ-
mental factors contributing to new chronic 
wasting disease emergence events, the develop-
ment of geographic areas with increased chronic 
wasting disease prevalence, and overall geo-
graphic patterns of chronic wasting disease dis-
tribution; 
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(C) identify significant gaps in current sci-
entific knowledge regarding the transmission 
pathways identified under subparagraph (A); 
(D) identify and prioritize scientific re-
search projects that will address the knowledge 
gaps referred to in subparagraph (C); and 
(E) review science-based best practices, 
standards, and guidance regarding the manage-
ment of chronic wasting disease in wild, captive, 
and farmed cervid populations in the United 
States which have been developed by— 
(i) the National Chronic Wasting Dis-
ease Herd Certification Program of the 
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Serv-
ice; 
(ii) the United States Geological Sur-
vey; and 
(iii) State wildlife and agricultural 
agencies, which provide practical, science- 
based recommendations to State and Fed-
eral agencies for minimizing or eliminating 
the risk of transmission of chronic wasting 
disease in the United States. 
(c) DEADLINE.—Not later than 6 months after the 
date on which funds are first made available for the study 
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under subsection (a), the Secretaries shall submit to the 
Committee on Agriculture of the House of Representa-
tives, the Committee on Natural Resources of the House 
of Representatives, the Committee on Environment and 
Public Works of the Senate, and the Committee on Agri-
culture, 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. 
(d) DATA SHARING.—The Secretaries shall share 
with the entity conducting the study under subsection (a) 
data and access to databases on chronic wasting disease 
under the jurisdiction of— 
(1) the Veterinary Services Program of the Ani-
mal and Plant Health Inspection Service; and 
(2) the United States Geological Survey. 
SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act: 
(1) CHRONIC
WASTING
DISEASE.—The term 
‘‘chronic wasting disease’’ means the animal disease 
afflicting deer, elk, reindeer, and moose populations 
that— 
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(A) is a transmissible disease of the nerv-
ous 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) SECRETARIES.—The term ‘‘Secretaries’’ 
means— 
(A) the Secretary of Agriculture, acting 
through the Administrator of the Animal and 
Plant Health Inspection Service; and 
(B) the Secretary of the Interior, acting 
through the Director of the United States Geo-
logical Survey. 
(3) ACADEMY.—The term ‘‘Academy’’ means 
the National Academy of Sciences. 
(4) CERVID.—The term ‘‘cervid’’ means any 
species within the family Cervidae. 
Æ 
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