SAFE CATTLE Act

Federal screwworm prevention and response

This bill would require the Agriculture and Interior Secretaries to sign an interagency agreement within 180 days. The agreement would set joint surveillance, early-detection, eradication, and outbreak response procedures and coordinate with State wildlife and livestock officers as appropriate. It would direct science- and risk-based rules to help non-infected animals and non-contaminated areas continue business. Covered lands would be lands managed by the Park Service, Fish and Wildlife Service, Bureau of Land Management, Bureau of Reclamation, and the Forest Service. The Agriculture and Interior Secretaries would also send a joint report within one year, and annually after, to the House Agriculture and Natural Resources Committees and the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry and Energy and Natural Resources Committees. Reports would describe interagency coordination, surveillance progress, any U.S. infestations and federal response activities, and recommendations until the Agriculture Secretary certifies the screwworm is quarantined south of the Darien Gap in Panama.