,i #aafth ,,congress #ast ,session ,h4 ,r4 #hcg ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,january #bi1 #bjai,mr4 ,abraham 7for himself1 ,mr4 ,thompson of ,pennsylvania1 ,mr4 ,gosar1 ,mr4 ,emmer1 ,mr4 ,veasey1 ,mr4 ,graves of ,louisiana1 ,mr4 ,kelly of ,mississippi1 ,mr4 ,gianforte1 ,mr4 ,kelly of ,pennsylvania1 ,mr4 ,king of ,iowa1 and ,mr4 ,duffy7 introduced the following bill2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,agriculture1 and in addition to the ,committee on ,natural ,resources1 for a period to be subsequently determined by the ,speaker1 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 ,cervidae1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,chronic ,wasting ,disease ,transmission in ,cervidae ,study ,act4 #b4 ,findings ,congress makes the following findings3 7#a7 ,chronic wasting disease continues to spread in wild1 free-ranging cervid herds and in captive cervid herds across the ,united ,states and ,canada1 and as of ,december #bjah1 is in #bf ,states and three ,canadian provinces4 7#b7 ,from ,december #bjag to ,december #bjah alone1 the disease was detected for the first time in free-ranging cervid herds in ,mississippi1 ,montana1 and ,tennessee1 and there were new positive detections of the disease in #ac captive cervid herds from ,illinois1 ,michigan1 ,minnesota1 ,ohio1 ,pennsylvania1 ,wisconsin and ,quebec1 ,canada4 7#c7 ,six of such herds are being monitored by the ,national ,chronic ,wasting ,disease ,herd ,certification ,program of the ,animal and ,plant ,health ,inspection ,service1 and therefore are considered to be at low-risk for chronic wasting disease4 7#d7 ,from ,june #bjag to ,september #bjah1 #aj ,states1 including ,arkansas1 ,illinois1 ,kansas1 ,minnesota1 ,missouri1 ,nebraska1 ,texas1 ,west ,virginia1 ,wisconsin1 and ,wyoming1 are already fighting to control the transmission and spread of chronic wasting disease and found positive detections for the disease in additional wild1 free-ranging cervid herds4 7#e7 ,new positive detections in captive cervid herds were found in ,illinois1 ,michigan1 ,minnesota1 ,ohio1 ,pennsylvania1 and ,wisconsin4 7#f7 ,there is no known cure for chronic wasting disease1 no reliable live animal test to detect the disease1 and only a post-mortem test that provides some measure of reliable detection of the disease4 7#g7 ,chronic wasting disease is #ajj percent fatal and is arguably the most important disease threatening ,north ,american cervid resources4 7#h7 ,the spread of chronic wasting disease continues to increasingly and adversely affect the economic well-being of rural communities1 the hunting public1 farmed cervid producers1 and ,state wildlife and agricultural agencies1 because the only known measure for reducing the spread of chronic wasting disease is the complete depopulation of herds that test positive for the disease1 a drastic measure which comes with great costs for all4 7#i7 ,the long-term environmental persistence of chronic wasting disease's causative agent means that ,state wildlife management agencies1 ,state departments of agriculture1 and private cervid farmers have relatively few options to mitigate the effects of such disease4 7#aj7 ,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 and ,canada4 #c4 ,chronic wasting disease transmission in cervidae resource study 7a7 ,study 7#a7 ,in general ,the ,secretaries shall enter into an arrangement with the ,academy under which the ,academy shall conduct1 and submit to the ,secretaries a report-- 7,a7 describing the findings of1 a special resource study to identify the predominant pathways and mechanisms of the transmission of chronic wasting disease in wild1 captive1 and farmed populations of cervids in the ,united ,states2 and 7,b7 which may include the potential impacts on the disease from transmissions from ,canada4 7#b7 ,requirements ,the arrangement under paragraph 7#a7 shall provide that the actual expenses incurred by the ,academy in conducting the study under paragraph 7#a7 shall be paid by the ,secretaries4 7b7 ,contents of the study ,within and between wild1 captive1 and farmed cervid populations1 the study-- 7#a7 may include1 to the extent the ,united ,states is affected on a continental scale1 the potential impacts on the disease from transmissions from ,canada2 and 7#b7 shall-- 7,a7 identify-- 7i7 the pathways and mechanisms for the transmission of chronic wasting disease in cervids and cervid products2 7ii7 the dosage and infection rates for each such pathway and mechanism2 and 7iii7 the relative frequency of each mode of such transmission2 7,b7 identify anthropogenic and environmental factors contributing to new chronic wasting disease emergence events1 the development of geographic areas with increased chronic wasting disease prevalence1 and overall geographic patterns of chronic wasting disease distribution2 7,c7 identify significant gaps in current scientific knowledge regarding the transmission pathways identified under subparagraph 7,a72 7,d7 identify and prioritize scientific research projects that will address the knowledge gaps referred to in subparagraph 7,c72 and 7,e7 review science-based best practices1 standards1 and guidance regarding the management of chronic wasting disease in wild1 captive1 and farmed cervid populations in the ,united ,states which have been developed by-- 7i7 the ,national ,chronic ,wasting ,disease ,herd ,certification ,program of the ,animal and ,plant ,health ,inspection ,service2 7ii7 the ,united ,states ,geological ,survey2 and 7iii7 ,state wildlife and agricultural agencies1 which provide practical1 science-based recommendations to ,state and ,federal agencies for minimizing or eliminating the risk of transmission of chronic wasting disease in the ,united ,states4 7c7 ,deadline ,not later than #f months after the date on which funds are first made available for the study under subsection 7a71 the ,secretaries shall submit to the ,committee on ,agriculture of the ,house of ,representatives1 the ,committee on ,natural ,resources of the ,house of ,representatives1 the ,committee on ,environment and ,public ,works of the ,senate1 and the ,committee on ,agriculture1 ,nutrition1 and ,forestry of the ,senate a report that describes-- 7#a7 the findings of the study2 and 7#b7 any conclusions and recommendations that the ,secretary determines to be appropriate4 7d7 ,data ,sharing ,the ,secretaries shall share with the entity conducting the study under subsection 7a7 data and access to databases on chronic wasting disease under the jurisdiction of-- 7#a7 the ,veterinary ,services ,program of the ,animal and ,plant ,health ,inspection ,service2 and 7#b7 the ,united ,states ,geological ,survey4 #d4 ,definitions ,in this ,act3 7#a7 ,chronic wasting disease ,the term chronic wasting disease means the animal disease afflicting deer1 elk1 reindeer1 and moose populations that-- 7,a7 is a transmissible disease of the nervous system resulting in distinctive lesions in the brain2 and 7,b7 belongs to the group of diseases known as transmissible spongiform encephalopathies1 which group includes scrapie1 bovine spongiform encephalopathy1 and ,creutzfeldt-,jakob disease4 7#b7 ,secretaries ,the term ,secretaries means-- 7,a7 the ,secretary of ,agriculture1 acting through the ,administrator of the ,animal and ,plant ,health ,inspection ,service2 and 7,b7 the ,secretary of the ,interior1 acting through the ,director of the ,united ,states ,geological ,survey4 7#c7 ,academy ,the term ,academy means the ,national ,academy of ,sciences4 7#d7 ,cervid ,the term cervid means any species within the family ,cervidae4