[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 129 (Monday, July 6, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 40184-40185]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-14463]
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Notices
Federal Register
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This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains documents other than rules
or proposed rules that are applicable to the public. Notices of hearings
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Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 129 / Monday, July 6, 2020 /
Notices
[[Page 40184]]
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
[Docket No. APHIS-2020-0022]
Use of Radio Frequency Identification Tags as Official
Identification in Cattle and Bison
AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Agriculture (USDA).
ACTION: Notice and request for comments.
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SUMMARY: In accordance with Executive Order 13892, Promoting the Rule
of Law Through Transparency and Fairness in Civil Administrative
Enforcement and Adjudication, the Animal and Plant Health Inspection
Service (APHIS) is soliciting public comments on a proposal wherein
APHIS would only approve radio frequency identification tags as
official eartags for use in interstate movement of cattle and bison
that are covered under certain regulations.
DATES: We will consider all comments that we receive on or before
October 5, 2020.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by either of the following methods:
Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=APHIS-2020-0022.
Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery: Send your comment to
Docket No. APHIS-2020-0022, Regulatory Analysis and Development, PPD,
APHIS, Station 3A-03.8, 4700 River Road Unit 118, Riverdale, MD 20737-
1238.
Supporting documents and any comments we receive on this docket may
be viewed at http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=APHIS-2020-
0022 or in our reading room, which is located in room 1141 of the USDA
South Building, 14th Street and Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC.
Normal reading room hours are 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through
Friday, except holidays. To be sure someone is there to help you,
please call (202) 799-7039 before coming.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Aaron Scott, Director, National
Animal Disease Traceability and Veterinary Accreditation Center,
Strategy & Policy, Veterinary Services, APHIS, 2150 Centre Ave, Fort
Collins, CO 80526; (970) 494-7249.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The Animal Plant Health Inspection Service's (APHIS') Animal
Disease Traceability framework was established to improve the ability
to trace animals back from slaughter and forward from premises where
animals are officially identified in addition to tracing animals'
interstate movements. Although 9 CFR part 86 (referred to below as
``the regulations'') provides requirements for official identification
and movement documentation for multiple species, the scope of this
notice is limited to official eartags for cattle and bison. Knowing
where diseased and at-risk exposed animals are, as well as where they
have been and when, is indispensable to emergency response and ongoing
disease control and eradication programs. The ability to accurately and
rapidly trace animals does not prevent disease epidemics but does allow
State and Federal veterinarians to contain potentially devastating
disease outbreaks early before they can do substantial damage to the
U.S. cattle industry.
APHIS has primary regulatory responsibility to control and
eradicate communicable diseases of livestock and to prevent the
introduction and dissemination of any pest or disease of livestock into
the United States. The regulations provide the requirements for
identification and documentation for certain classes of cattle and
bison to move interstate. These regulations establish minimum national
official identification and documentation requirements for the
traceability of livestock moving interstate. The species covered in the
regulations include cattle and bison (sexually intact and 18 months of
age or older, all female dairy cattle of any age and male dairy animals
born after March 11, 2013, cattle and bison of any age used for rodeo
or recreational events, and cattle or bison of any age used for shows
or exhibitions), sheep and goats, swine, horses and other equines,
captive cervids (e.g., deer and elk), and poultry.
Official identification devices or methods are determined by the
APHIS Administrator. An ``official identification device or method'' is
defined in Sec. 86.1 of the regulations as ``[a] means approved by the
Administrator of applying an official identification number to an
animal of a specific species or associating an official identification
number with an animal or group of animals of a specific species or
otherwise officially identifying an animal or group of animals.''
One of the approved identification methods for cattle and bison
covered by part 86 is an official eartag. An ``official eartag'' is
defined in Sec. 86.1 of the regulations as ``[a]n identification tag
approved by APHIS that bears an official identification number for
individual animals. . .. The design, size, shape, color, and other
characteristics of the official eartag will depend on the needs of the
users, subject to the approval of the Administrator. The official
eartag must be tamper-resistant and have a high retention rate in the
animal.''
As of the publication of this notice, APHIS has used visual (metal)
tags for animal identification in disease programs for many decades and
has approved both visual and radio frequency identification (RFID) tags
for use as official identification devices in cattle and bison since
the implementation of the regulations in part 86 in 2013.
A comprehensive animal disease traceability system is the best
protection against a devastating disease outbreak. The U.S. Department
of Agriculture (USDA) is committed to a modern disease traceability
system that tracks animals from birth to slaughter using affordable
technology that allows for quick tracing of sick and exposed animals to
stop disease spread. In September 2018, USDA established four
overarching goals to increase traceability. These goals are: (1)
Advance the electronic sharing of data among Federal and State animal
health officials, veterinarians, and industry; including sharing basic
animal disease traceability data with the Federal animal health events
repository; (2) use
[[Page 40185]]
electronic identification tags for animals requiring individual
identification in order to make the transmission of data more
efficient; (3) enhance the ability to track animals from birth to
slaughter through a system that allows tracking data points to be
connected; and (4) elevate the discussion with States and industry to
work toward a system where animal health certificates are
electronically transmitted from private veterinarians to State animal
health officials.
Effective animal traceability is important for slow-moving diseases
of cattle, such as bovine tuberculosis. Failure to correctly identify
the infected animal can result in prolonged exposure to the disease
within a herd, increasing the likelihood of spread. Conversely,
incorrect identification can lead to incomplete trace backs or trace
forwards with resulting costs to both government and livestock
producers for quarantines and testing of animals to find the ones
actually exposed.
For fast-moving diseases with short incubation periods, the time to
trace animals and contain an outbreak is essential to protect the
economic viability and competitive advantage of the U.S. cattle
industry. For diseases such as foot-and-mouth disease that could
devastate the U.S. cattle industry, emergency response exercises
demonstrate that every hour counts towards the successful containment
of an outbreak.
While APHIS focuses on interstate movements of livestock, States
and Tribal Nations remain responsible for the traceability of livestock
within their jurisdictions. APHIS partners with State veterinary
officials each year to test the performance of States' animal disease
traceability systems. Results of these test exercises currently show
that when State veterinary officials are provided an identification
number from an animal that has been identified with an official
identification tag, either metal or RFID, that has been entered
accurately into a data system, over half of States can trace animals
through any one of four types of movements in less than 1 hour (these
four types of movements are: Finding the State where an animal was
tagged, the location in-State where an animal was tagged, the State
from which an animal was shipped out of, and the location in-State that
an animal was shipped out-of-State from). However, lengthy times in the
trace test exercises resulted when numbers from visual (metal) tags
were transcribed inaccurately, movement records were not readily
available, or information was only retrievable from labor-intensive
paper filing systems. RFID tags and electronic record systems provide
significant advantage over metal tags to rapidly and accurately read
and record tag numbers and retrieve traceability information.
In support of greater efficiency in traceability and in furtherance
of the above-listed program goals, in 2020, APHIS started taking steps
to enhance capability to rapidly trace and contain diseased and exposed
cattle. We have done so by providing RFID ear tags as a no-cost
alternative to the metal clip tags currently available from APHIS free
of charge to States and accredited veterinarians. The RFID tags are
intended for application in replacement heifers that are vaccinated for
brucellosis, as well as those in States and herds that do not vaccinate
for brucellosis. We believe the increased use of RFID tags is an
important step to support the efforts of the cattle industry and State
and Federal veterinarians to more accurately and rapidly trace
potentially infected and exposed animals.
Executive Order 13892 provides that, in order to avoid unfair
surprise, or lack of warning about what a legal standard administered
by an Agency requires, Agencies shall publicly state the standards of
conduct expected by regulated parties in advance of the enforcement of
those standards. In accordance with this Executive Order, and in
furtherance of the stated program goals and pursuant to part 86, APHIS
is seeking comment from the public on a proposal wherein APHIS would
only approve RFID tags as the official eartag for use in interstate
movement of cattle and bison that are covered under part 86.
We recognize that, in addition to whether to transition to RFID
identification devices, the timeline for such a transition is also
important. Accordingly, we also request specific public comment on the
following timeline, if, based on the comments received, USDA were to
engage in such a transition:
Beginning January 1, 2022, USDA would no longer approve
vendors to use the official USDA shield in production of metal ear tags
or other ear tags that do not have RFID components.
On January 1, 2023, RFID tags would become the only
identification devices approved as an official eartag for cattle and
bison pursuant to Sec. 86.4(a)(1)(i).
For cattle and bison that have official USDA metal clip
tags in place before January 1, 2023, APHIS would recognize the metal
tag as an official identification device for the life of the animal.
This proposed change in what is considered an official eartag would
not alter the current regulations in part 86 and would not amend the
classes of cattle required to have official identification under the
regulations. Likewise, this notice does not change part 86; for
example, the State veterinary officials in States sending and receiving
cattle could agree to accept alternate forms of identification such as
registered brands, tattoos and other identification methods acceptable
to breed associations in lieu of an official eartag. The policy for
approving tags as official identification would continue to require
that tags meet safety, quality, and retention criteria. However, all
approved tags applied on or after January 1, 2023 would require an RFID
component for the number that could be read visually as well as
electronically.
This change would allow rapid and accurate reading and electronic
transcription of identification numbers used for interstate health
certificates or testing for regulated diseases such as tuberculosis or
brucellosis. Implementing RFID as the official eartag in cattle would
enhance the ability of State, Federal, and private veterinarians as
well as livestock producers to quickly respond to high-impact diseases
currently existing in the United States, as well as foreign animal
diseases that threaten the viability of the U.S. cattle industry.
We will publish a follow-up notice in the Federal Register after
reviewing any comments we receive. This notice will respond to any such
comments, announce our decision on official eartags for cattle and
bison, and, if necessary, provide a timeline for a transition if there
is a change to what is an official eartag.
Authority: 7 U.S.C. 8301-8317; 7 CFR 2.22, 2.80, and 371.4.
Done in Washington, DC, this 30th day of June 2020.
Michael Watson,
Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 2020-14463 Filed 7-2-20; 8:45 am]
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