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“AGRICULTURAL BIOTERRORISM COUNTERMEASURES ACT OF 2001” mentioning the U.S. Dept of Agriculture was published in the House of Representatives section on pages H8230-H8231 on Nov. 15, 2001.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
AGRICULTURAL BIOTERRORISM COUNTERMEASURES ACT OF 2001
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the gentleman from Oklahoma (Mr. Lucas) is recognized for 5 minutes.
Mr. LUCAS of Oklahoma. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to ask for Members' support for the Agricultural Bioterrorism Countermeasures Act of 2001, H.R. 3293.
The tragic events of September 11 have made all Americans appreciate our freedom and democracy more than ever. As we continue to get our lives back to normal, we must also realize how much this has changed.
Terrorism does not have to be directed towards people; it can be directed at our modes of transportation, our communications infrastructure, or even our food supply.
The United States Department of Agriculture, along with the Food and Drug Administration, is in charge of ensuring that Americans have a safe and abundant food supply.
I would like to make it absolutely clear that because of USDA and FDA Americans enjoy the benefit of the safest food supply in the world. However, USDA and FDA have not had to clearly focus on how to prevent terrorism, bioterrorism, agriterrorism, or whatever term one prefers to use in describing the threats to America's food supply.
Prevention is the key and long-term planning should be the goal to continued food safety. Congress needs to take positive steps to help USDA perform what we ask of it.
Today, I am dropping a bill to help with prevention and long-term planning. H.R. 3293 authorizes money to be spent on USDA's agricultural research laboratories so that there is adequate plant and animal research being performed to combat bioterrorism. Some of USDA's most important research facilities need to be modernized in order for the U.S. to stand ready for our new fight.
The bill also provides money for the Oklahoma City National Memorial Institute for the Prevention of Terrorism, for research to make sure that USDA, the Department of Agriculture, and other law enforcement and emergency preparedness organizations cooperate and have the proper techniques in place in the event of bioterrorism events.
Further, Oklahoma State is authorized to receive a grant to establish a food safety research center. OSU is the ideal location for a food safety center that is needed in our new struggle. This proposed food safety center will utilize state-of-the-art detection methods to determine the critical points in the food chain, from production, harvest, processing, and distribution, to consumption, where interventions could be applied to eliminate the known hazards for humans.
The Secretary of Agriculture will develop rapid response field test kits that can quickly be deployed to State and local agencies to determine if an act of bioterrorism has occurred. These are intended for quick discovery and to confirm outbreaks of plant or animal diseases, pathogens, or other bioterrorism agents.
The intramural agricultural bioterrorism research and development section of this bill will make USDA's ARS programs focus on enhancing regulatory agencies' response time, encouraging academic and private sector partners to work together to maximize research benefits, strengthening the links with the intelligence community to learn what research needs are most important, and encouraging ARS to work with international operations to control the spread of plant and animal diseases.
The consortium for countermeasures against agricultural bioterrorism is truly valuable. Those colleges and universities that turn out animal and plant doctors will coordinate with the Federal agencies, such as USDA, to develop the long-term program needed to combat bioterrorism.
Furthermore, competitive grants will be provided through USDA which are directed towards the protection of the domestic food supply. The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, APHIS, will be authorized to receive more funds to increase inspections at points of origin and to improve surveillance at points of entry. They will also be required to develop new and better techniques of working with State and local agencies to control the outbreaks of plant and animal diseases.
The Food Safety Inspection Service, FSIS, will be charged with enhancing its ability to inspect the safety of meat and poultry products. Like APHIS, FSIS will be expected to work with State and local agencies to create the best possible means of sharing information and technology in order to reach the best results possible.
This legislation is designed for the long-term benefit of producers and consumers alike. Please support H.R. 3293.
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