[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 132 (Monday, July 12, 1999)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Page 37395]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-17612]



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  Federal Register / Vol. 64, No. 132 / Monday, July 12, 1999 / Rules 
and Regulations  

[[Page 37395]]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

9 CFR Part 52

[Docket No. 98-123-4]
RIN 0579-AB10


Pseudorabies in Swine; Extension of Indemnity Program

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of extension of indemnity program.

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SUMMARY: In an interim rule published in the Federal Register on 
January 15, 1999, and effective as of January 12, 1999, we established 
animal health regulations to provide for the payment of indemnity by 
the United States Department of Agriculture for the voluntary 
depopulation of herds of swine known to be infected with pseudorabies. 
In that interim rule, we announced that the indemnity program would end 
no later than 6 months after publication of the interim rule. We are 
giving notice that we are extending the indemnity program to continue 
until further notice.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Arnold Taft, Senior Staff 
Veterinarian, VS, APHIS, USDA, 4700 River Road Unit 43, Riverdale, MD 
20737-1231; (301) 734-7708.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service's regulations in 9 
CFR part 52 govern the payment of indemnity to owners of herds of swine 
that are slaughtered because they are infected with pseudorabies. 
Pseudorabies is a contagious, infectious, and communicable disease of 
livestock, primarily swine. The disease, also known as Aujesky's 
disease, mad itch, and infectious bulbar paralysis, is caused by a 
herpes virus and is known to cause reproductive problems, including 
abortion and stillborn death in neonatal pigs, and, occasionally, death 
in breeding and finishing hogs.
    A Federal eradication program for pseudorabies was implemented in 
the United States in 1989. The program is cooperative in nature and 
involves Federal, State, and industry participation. Industry/State/
Federal pseudorabies eradication efforts have been markedly successful. 
In 1992, for instance, approximately 8,000 herds of swine nationwide 
were known to be infected with the disease. At the end of 1998, 
approximately 1,000 herds were known to be infected. This represented 
slightly less than 1 percent of the herds of swine in the United 
States. The goal of the cooperative pseudorabies eradication program is 
the elimination of pseudorabies in the United States in the year 2000.
    However, in the past year, market conditions in the swine industry 
jeopardized the progress of the pseudorabies eradication program. 
Depressed market conditions caused some producers to eliminate the 
costs they had been incurring to participate in the eradication 
program. Continued cessation of eradication efforts, particularly the 
elimination of herd vaccination, would likely have resulted in an 
increase in the number of herds infected with pseudorabies. This growth 
in pseudorabies-infected herds would likely have extended the amount of 
time necessary to eradicate pseudorabies, and would ultimately have 
cost both the industry and the Federal and State governments additional 
time and monies in eradication efforts.
    In response to this threat to the progress of the pseudorabies 
eradication program, we published an interim rule in the Federal 
Register (64 FR 2545-2550, Docket No. 98-123-2) on January 15, 1999 to 
establish an accelerated pseudorabies eradication program. In order to 
carry out the accelerated pseudorabies eradication program, the 
Secretary of Agriculture authorized the transfer of $80 million in 
funds from the Commodity Credit Corporation.
    Under the accelerated program, we began payment of fair market 
value to owners who depopulated infected herds. In addition to 
indemnity for the value of the animals, we have been providing funding 
for trucking costs to disposal, for euthanasia and disposal costs, and 
for cleaning and disinfection of conveyances used for transporting the 
swine to disposal.
    In our January 15, 1999, interim rule, we stated that the indemnity 
program would extend 6 months from the date of publication of the 
interim rule (until July 15, 1999), or until funds allocated for the 
program were depleted, whichever came first. Based on the time we 
estimated to be necessary to depopulate all known infected herds should 
all owners take part, we projected that 6 months would be long enough 
to complete the program, but short enough to encourage rapid 
depopulation of infected herds.
    To date, the accelerated pseudorabies eradication program has 
significantly reduced the number of known infected herds in the United 
States. (As of late-June of this year, 424 infected herds had been 
depopulated.) All States have eliminated or virtually eliminated their 
pseudorabies-infected herds, except for Indiana, Iowa, and Minnesota, 
which are still in the midst of substantial eradication programs. 
Because some States are still conducting their eradication programs, we 
consider it important to the pseudorabies eradication effort in the 
United States to continue our accelerated pseudorabies eradication 
program beyond July 15, 1999. Therefore, we will continue the 
accelerated eradication program until further notice.

    Authority: 21 U.S.C. 111-113, 114, 114a, 114a-1, 120, 121, 125, 
and 134b; 7 CFR 2.22, 2.80, and 371.2(d).

    Done in Washington, DC, this 6th day of July 1999.
Craig A. Reed,
Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 99-17612 Filed 7-9-99; 8:45 am]
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