BILL ANALYSIS

H.B. 4006

By: Hardcastle

Agriculture & Livestock

Committee Report (Unamended)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

The Agriculture Code contains outdated language regarding requirements to report diseases to the Texas Animal Health Commission.  The current statute authorizes the commission to adopt rules requiring the reporting of diseases to the commission if the disease is named on "List A" of the Office International Des Epizooties (OIE). However, the OIE no longer maintains "List A."

H.B. 4006 removes the reference to "List A" from the statute and specifies, in its place, a disease reportable to the OIE. The bill adds three diseases to the list of diseases that must be reported to the commission.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution.

ANALYSIS

H.B. 4006 amends the Agriculture Code to add bovine trichomoniasis, equine herpes virus-1, and equine viral arteritis to the list of diseases which must be reported to the Texas Animal Health Commission by a veterinarian, a veterinary diagnostic laboratory, or a person having care, custody, or control of an animal within 24 hours after diagnosis of the disease among livestock, exotic livestock, bison, domestic fowl, or exotic fowl.  The bill authorizes the commission to adopt rules that require a veterinarian, a veterinary diagnostic laboratory, or a person having care, custody, or control of an animal to report the existence of a disease other than bluetongue in an animal to the commission within 24 hours after diagnosis if the disease is a disease reportable to, rather than named on "List A" of, the Office International Des Epizooties.

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2009.