[Senate Report 112-214]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]


                                                       Calendar No. 515
112th Congress                                                   Report
                                 SENATE
 2d Session                                                     112-214

======================================================================



 
                 WILDLIFE DISEASE EMERGENCY ACT OF 2011

                                _______
                                

               September 19, 2012.--Ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

    Mrs. Boxer, from the Committee on Environment and Public Works, 
                        submitted the following

                              R E P O R T

                         [To accompany S. 357]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

    The Committee on Environment and Public Works, to which was 
referred a bill (S. 357) to authorize the Secretary of the 
Interior to identify and declare wildlife disease emergencies 
and to coordinate rapid response to those emergencies, and for 
other purposes, having considered the same, reports favorably 
thereon and recommends that the bill, as amended, do pass.

                    General Statement and Background

    Wildlife diseases present a threat to threatened and 
endangered species in the United States. One particularly 
devastating disease is white-nose syndrome (WNS), which affects 
hibernating bats and has spread rapidly across the U.S. in 
recent years. WNS has killed more than 5.5 million bats in the 
Northeast and Canada. Eleven species of cave-hibernating bats, 
including four endangered species and subspecies, are already 
affected by or are potentially at risk from WNS.
    The disease was first documented in New York in the winter 
of 2006-2007 and has spread rapidly across the eastern United 
States and Canada. It has now been detected as far west as 
Oklahoma. At the end of the 2010-2011 hibernating season, WNS 
had been documented in 19 states.
    The Wildlife Disease Emergency Act of 2011 seeks to respond 
to the threat of wildlife disease, such as WNS, by authorizing 
the Secretary of the Interior to declare a wildlife disease 
emergency in one or more states. The bill directs the 
Secretary, upon making such a declaration, to lead a 
coordinated response to the emergency. The bill also authorizes 
the Secretary to implement a grant program to provide grants to 
state wildlife agencies and Indian tribes to coordinate the 
response to and address such declared emergencies.
    S. 357 directs the Secretary to establish a Wildlife 
Disease Committee to assist the Secretary in increasing the 
level of preparedness needed to address emerging wildlife 
diseases and authorizes the Secretary to convene rapid response 
teams to address any wildlife disease emergency.

                     Objectives of the Legislation

    The Wildlife Disease Emergency Act of 2011 (S. 357) 
authorizes the Secretary of Interior to identify and declare 
wildlife disease emergencies and to coordinate rapid response 
to such emergencies.

                      Section-by-Section Analysis


Section 1. Short title

    Section 1 provides that this Act may be cited as the 
`Wildlife Disease Emergency Act of 2011'.

Section 2. Purposes

    Section 2 describes the purposes of the legislation.

Section 3. Definitions

    Section 3 provides definitions of several terms used in the 
Act.

Section 4. Declaration of wildlife disease emergency

    Section 4 authorizes the Secretary of the Interior 
(Secretary), in consultation with the Governor of a potentially 
affected State, to declare a wildlife disease emergency. This 
section outlines criteria the Secretary must consider in making 
a declaration.
    Section 4 directs the Secretary to lead a coordinated 
response upon declaring a wildlife disease emergency. This 
section also authorizes the Secretary to develop and implement 
a grant program to provide grants to State wildlife agencies 
and Indian tribes to coordinate the response to and address a 
declared wildlife disease emergency.

Section 5. Wildlife Disease Emergency Fund

    Section 5 establishes in the Treasury of the United States 
a Wildlife Disease Emergency Fund. The fund shall consist of 
such amounts as are appropriated to the Fund and such amounts 
as are received by the Secretary as donations, gifts, or 
contributions for addressing wildlife disease emergencies.
    Amounts in the fund may only be used to respond to a 
wildlife disease emergency declared under Section 4.
    This section requires the Secretary to submit annual 
reports to Congress on the use of the Fund.

Section 6. Wildlife Disease Committee

    Section 6 establishes a Wildlife Disease Committee to 
assist the Secretary in increasing the level of preparedness of 
the United States to address emerging wildlife diseases and 
outlines the duties of the Committee. This section also 
includes criteria for the selection of members of the Committee 
by the Secretary.

Section 7. Rapid response teams

    Section 7 authorizes the Secretary to convene rapid 
response teams to address any wildlife disease emergency.

Section 8. Administration

    Section 8 clarifies that nothing in this Act--(1) limits 
the authority of the Secretary to respond to wildlife disease 
events that are not declared wildlife disease emergencies; (2) 
affects the authority, jurisdiction or responsibility of any 
State to manage, control, or regulate fish or resident wildlife 
under any State law; (3) grants authority to any public agency 
to acquire private property or conservation easements or 
otherwise infringes on private property rights; or (4) limits, 
repeals, supersedes, or modifies any provision of Federal, 
State, local, or tribal law (including regulations).

                          Legislative History

    S. 357 was introduced by Senators Lautenberg, Leahy, 
Sanders, and Bingaman on February 15, 2011. The bill was 
received, read twice, and referred to the Committee on 
Environment and Public Works. On July 25, 2012, the full 
Committee on Environment and Public Works met to consider the 
bill. The bill was ordered reported favorably, as amended, by 
voice vote.

                                Hearings

    On April 24, 2012, the Water and Wildlife Subcommittee of 
the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee held a 
legislative hearing on multiple bills, including S. 357.

                             Rollcall Votes

    The Committee on Environment and Public Works met to 
consider S. 357 on July 25, 2012. An amendment offered by Sen. 
Lautenberg was adopted by voice vote. The bill, as amended, was 
ordered reported favorably by voice vote.

                      Regulatory Impact Statement

    In compliance with section 11(b) of rule XXVI of the 
Standing Rules of the Senate, the committee finds that S. 357 
does not create any additional regulatory burdens, nor will it 
cause any adverse impact on the personal privacy of 
individuals.

                          Mandates Assessment

    In compliance with the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 
(Public Law 104-4), the committee noted that the Congressional 
Budget Office has found, ``S. 357 contains no intergovernmental 
or private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates 
Reform Act and would impose no costs on state, local, or tribal 
governments.''
                                                   August 14, 2012.
Hon. Barbara Boxer,
Chairman, Committee on Environment and Public Works,
U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.
    Dear Madam Chairman: As you requested, the Congressional 
Budget Office has prepared the enclosed cost estimate for S. 
357, the Wildlife Disease Emergency Act of 2011.
    If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be 
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Jeff LaFave.
            Sincerely,
                                              Douglas W. Elmendorf.
    Enclosure.

S. 357--Wildlife Disease Emergency Act of 2011

    S. 357 would authorize the Secretary of the Interior to 
declare wildlife disease emergencies and to spend certain 
appropriated funds to address the effects of those diseases. 
The bill also would authorize the Secretary to establish a 
committee to assist the Department of the Interior (DOI) in 
preparing federal agencies to respond to such diseases.
    Based on information provided by DOI, CBO expects that the 
agency would apply the emergency designation established under 
the bill to newly discovered diseases rather than known 
diseases. Based on information regarding the historical costs 
of mitigating the effects of severe outbreaks of wildlife 
diseases, such as white nose syndrome (which affects bats), CBO 
estimates that implementing the legislation would cost $2 
million a year over the 2012-2017 period, assuming 
appropriation of the necessary amounts. Enacting S. 357 would 
not affect direct spending or revenues; therefore, pay-as-you-
go procedures do not apply.
    S. 357 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector 
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and 
would impose no costs on state, local, or tribal governments.
    The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Jeff LaFave. The 
estimate was approved by Theresa Gullo, Deputy Assistant 
Director for Budget Analysis.

                        Changes in Existing Law

    In compliance with section 12 of rule XXVI of the Standing 
Rules of the Senate, changes in existing law made by the bill 
as reported are shown as follows: Existing law proposed to be 
omitted is enclosed in [black brackets], new matter is printed 
in italic, existing law in which no change is proposed is shown 
in roman:

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


               Chapter 11 of Title 31, United States Code


Sec. 1101. Definitions

  In this chapter--
          (1) ``agency'' includes the District of Columbia 
        government but does not include the legislative branch 
        or the Supreme Court.
          (2) * * *

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Sec. 1105. Budget contents and submission to Congress

  (a) On or after the first Monday in January but not later 
than the first Monday in February of each year, the President 
shall submit a budget of the United States Government for the 
following fiscal year. Each budget shall include a budget 
message and summary and supporting information. The President 
shall include in each budget the following:
          (1) information on activities and functions of the 
        Government.
          (2) * * *

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

          (39) a separate statement for the Wildlife Disease 
        Emergency Fund established under section 5 of the 
        Wildlife Disease Emergency Act of 2011, which shall 
        include the estimated amount of deposits into the Fund, 
        obligations, and outlays from the Fund

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


                                  
