I
117th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 9552
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
December 14, 2022
Ms. Jayapal introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture
A BILL
To amend the Animal Health Protection Act to increase transparency with respect to livestock and poultry depopulation, and for other purposes.
Short title
This Act may be cited as the Transparency in Depopulation Act
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Increasing transparency with respect to livestock and poultry depopulation
The Animal Health Protection Act (7 U.S.C. 8301 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 10407 (7 U.S.C. 8306) the following:
Increasing transparency with respect to livestock and poultry depopulation
In general
A covered person who has performed depopulation shall submit to the Secretary a report within 2 business days of carrying out such a depopulation. The report shall specify—
the reason depopulation was performed;
the date on which depopulation and disposal occurred;
the location at which the depopulation occurred and the location at which the animal carcasses were ultimately disposed of;
the office of jurisdiction within the Department of Agriculture for the location of depopulation and disposal;
the depopulation and disposal methods utilized;
the number, species, and breed of depopulated animals;
the efficacy of the depopulation, measured by the percentage of animal mortality reached after the depopulation is complete;
the intended product of depopulated animals;
the total cost of depopulation;
the total cost of disposal;
in the case of a covered person who is the recipient of relief funds under any program administered by the Secretary of Agriculture, the name of such person; and
a detailed summary of all relief funds received.
Public database of depopulation and disposal records
The Secretary, acting through the Administrator of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Services, shall create and publish an online database of the information reported pursuant to subsection (a) that is accessible to the public. Such database shall be updated within 5 business days of receipt of information with respect to each instance of depopulation.
Prohibition on funding ventilation shutdown
No Federal relief funds may be used—
to facilitate the use of the ventilation shutdown method or ventilation shutdown plus as a method of depopulation for animals; or
to compensate covered persons for animals killed using any such method as a method of depopulation for animals.
Penalty
Any person that violates the prohibition specified in subsection (c) may be assessed a civil penalty of up to $10,000 per violation. Each instance of the use of a method of depopulation prohibited under subsection (c) shall be considered a violation.
Definitions
In this section:
The term covered person means a person who—
owns or operates an animal feeding operation or owns animals confined in an animal feeding operation;
is the recipient of Federal relief funds; and
has engaged in, ordered, or allowed for the depopulation of animals.
The term depopulation means the rapid destruction of a population of animals in response to urgent circumstances with as much consideration given to the welfare of the animals as practicable.
The term relief funds means funds received through an emergency loan or other form of support, whether provided directly from the Federal Government, or indirectly through third parties (including State or local entities), including any indemnification payments, subsidies, advice, or assets from the National Veterinary Stockpile.
The term ventilation shutdown method means a method of animal depopulation that involves sealing the building in which animals are confined, shutting the inlets, and turning off the fans in order to raise the temperature in the building until the animals die from hyperthermia and hypoxia.
The term ventilation shutdown plus method means the ventilation shutdown method that involves the use of additional heat sources or CO2.
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