Tuberculosis in Cattle, Bison, and Cervids; Payment of Indemnity

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

9 CFR Part 50

[Docket No. 94-133-1]

Tuberculosis in Cattle, Bison, and Cervids; Payment of Indemnity

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.

ACTION: Interim rule.

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SUMMARY: We are amending the tuberculosis indemnity regulations to

provide for the payment of indemnity for cervids destroyed because of

tuberculosis. We are also amending these regulations to provide for the

payment of indemnity for cattle, bison, and cervids found to have been

exposed to tuberculosis by reason of association with any tuberculous

livestock. We believe that these changes will encourage owners to

rapidly remove cattle, bison, and cervids affected with and exposed to

tuberculosis from their herds. Rapid removal of such cattle, bison, and

cervids will help protect other cattle, bison, and cervids from

[[Page 37805]]

tuberculosis and will facilitate tuberculosis eradication efforts in

the United States. We are also amending the regulations to deny claims

for indemnity for depopulation of cattle, bison, and cervid herds

unless other exposed livestock in the herd have been destroyed. This

action will help ensure that when cattle, bison, and cervids in a herd

are depopulated, other livestock do not remain as potential sources of

infection when the owner restocks the herd with healthy animals.

DATES: Interim rule effective July 24, 1995. Consideration will be

given only to comments received on or before September 22, 1995.

ADDRESSES: Please send an original and three copies of your comments to

Docket No. 94-133-1, Regulatory Analysis and Development, PPD, APHIS,

Suite 3C03, 4700 River Road Unit 118, Riverdale, MD 20737-1238. Please

state that your comments refer to Docket No. 94-133-1. Comments

received may be inspected at USDA, room 1141, South Building, 14th

Street and Independence Avenue SW., Washington, DC, between 8 a.m. and

4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, except holidays. Persons wishing to

inspect comments are requested to call ahead on (202) 690-2817 to

facilitate entry into the comment reading room.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Mitchell A. Essey, Senior Staff

Veterinarian, Cattle Diseases and Surveillance, VS, APHIS, Suite 3B08,

4700 River Road Unit 36, Riverdale, MD 20737-1231, (301) 734-8715.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

Bovine tuberculosis (referred to below as tuberculosis) is a

serious communicable disease of cattle, bison, and other species,

including humans, caused by Mycobacterium bovis. Tuberculosis causes

weight loss, general debilitation, and sometimes death. The regulations

in 9 CFR part 50 (referred to below as the regulations) provide for

payment of Federal indemnity to owners of certain cattle, bison, or

swine destroyed because of tuberculosis.

As part of our program to control and eradicate tuberculosis in

cattle and bison, the payment of indemnity is intended to provide

owners with an incentive for promptly destroying cattle or bison

affected with or exposed to tuberculosis. Because the continued

presence of tuberculosis in a herd seriously threatens the health of

animals in that herd and possibly other herds, the prompt destruction

of tuberculosis-affected animals is critical if tuberculosis

eradication efforts in the United States are to succeed. Payment of

Indemnity for Cervids Destroyed Because of Tuberculosis

Currently, the regulations do not provide for the payment of

indemnity for cervids destroyed because of tuberculosis. In the past,

the number of captive cervids in this country was not seen as large

enough to pose a significant health risk to other cervid herds or to

cattle and bison. However, the number of captive cervids has steadily

increased during the past decade, so that today there are almost 2,000

deer and elk owners in the United States, raising about 135,000

animals. In some cases, the cervids are pastured in the same fields as

cattle and bison.

Because of the growing number of herds of captive cervids, and

because cervids are frequently pastured with cattle and bison, captive

cervids affected with tuberculosis pose a significant health risk both

to other herds of cervids and to cattle and bison. Tuberculosis affects

cervids similarly to the way it affects cattle and bison. Cervids

infected with tuberculosis can and have been known to spread the

disease to cattle and bison. Since January 1991, tuberculosis has been

confirmed in 31 herds of elk and deer in the United States.

Transmission of tuberculosis from captive cervids to cattle has been

confirmed in at least five instances. In addition to concerns over

livestock health, another issue of concern is the impact tuberculosis

would have on the nation's wild herds of cervids if the disease were to

spread. Captive cervids are maintained within fenced areas. However,

captive cervids have been known to escape from their enclosures and

mingle with wild herds of cervids. At present, there are two confirmed

incidences of tuberculosis in wild cervids (each involving only one

animal), and it has been determined that at least one of those

incidences resulted from contact with a captive cervid herd. We believe

that if a widespread outbreak were to occur in wild cervids, it would

be very costly to manage, would reduce the wild cervid population, and

would pose a serious human health risk.

A National Cooperative State-Federal Bovine Tuberculosis

Eradication Program for cattle and bison has been in place since 1917,

and is still being carried out. In 1993, the United States Animal

Health Association (USAHA) resolved to include captive cervids in this

eradication program. We believe preventing the spread of tuberculosis

in the cervid population is necessary to help protect the health of

cervids, cattle, and bison in the United States.

Because no indemnity is currently offered for cervids destroyed

because of tuberculosis, cervid owners can obtain at best only

slaughter value if they have the cervids destroyed. There is little or

no slaughter value for reactor cervids or for cervids that show

evidence of tuberculosis upon slaughter inspection. This makes it less

likely that owners will have tuberculous cervids destroyed, for even

though infected animals will eventually die, they can live for several

years and in that time can produce offspring and antlers for market.

To encourage owners to destroy captive cervids affected with or

exposed to tuberculosis, we are amending the regulations to provide for

the payment of indemnity for cervids destroyed because of tuberculosis.

This will supplement the salvage value an owner can obtain for captive

cervids destroyed because of tuberculosis. We are defining cervid in

Sec. 50.1 to include ``all species of deer, elk, and moose, raised or

maintained in captivity for the production of meat and other products,

for sport, or for exhibition.''

Section 50.3 concerns payment to owners for animals destroyed. We

are amending Sec. 50.3 (a), (b), and (c) to provide that the indemnity

rates will not exceed $750 for any reactor cervid and $450 for any

exposed cervid. These are the same rates that the regulations allow for

reactor and exposed cattle and bison. The herd owner will have the

option of destroying only reactor cervids in the herd, or of

depopulating the entire herd, the same options available for dealing

with affected herds of cattle and bison. The advantage to the owner, as

well as to the cervid industry, of whole herd depopulation would be the

assured elimination of tuberculosis from the herd. The herd owner could

then start anew with healthy stock. We are also amending the definition

for herd depopulation in Sec. 50.1 to include cervids.

Section 50.4 concerns the determination of existence of or exposure

to tuberculosis. We are amending paragraph (a) to provide that cervids

are to be classified as affected with tuberculosis in the same manner

as cattle and bison: on the basis of an intradermal tuberculin test

applied by a Federal, State, or accredited veterinarian, or by another

diagnostic procedure approved in advance by the Administrator. The

intradermal tuberculin tests approved to detect tuberculosis in cattle

and bison have also proven through research, surveys, and testing to be

effective in determining the tuberculosis disease status of cervids. We

are amending Sec. 50.4(b) to provide that the kinds of

[[Page 37806]]

associations which cause cattle or bison to be classified as exposed to

tuberculosis also apply to cervids.

We are amending Sec. 50.5, which concerns records of testing, to

require the same recordkeeping for cervids as for cattle and bison. We

are also making a nonsubstantive change to this section to specify the

form to be used for test records.

Section 50.6 contains requirements for the identification of

animals to be destroyed because of tuberculosis. We are amending this

section to require that reactor cervids be identified by branding the

letter ``T'' high on the left hip near the tailhead and at least 5 by 5

centimeters (2 by 2 inches) in size and by attaching to the left ear an

approved metal eartag bearing a serial number and the inscription

``U.S. Reactor'', or a similar State reactor tag. We are requiring that

exposed cervids be identified by branding the letter ``S'' high on the

left hip near the tailhead and at least 5 by 5 centimeters (2 by 2

inches) in size and by attaching to the left ear an approved metal

eartag bearing a serial number.1

\1\ A proposal to amend Sec. 50.6(a) to allow reactor cattle

and bison to be identified by a brand on the left hip and by

attaching an approved metal eartag to the left ear, and to amend

Sec. 50.6(b) to allow exposed cattle and bison to be identified by a

brand on the left hip and by attaching an approved metal eartag to

the left ear, was published in the Federal Register on May 17, 1995

(Docket No. 95-006-1, 60 FR 26377-26381).

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We are requiring that reactor and exposed cervids be branded on the

hip, and not on the jaw, for two reasons. First, branding on the jaw

would be physically very difficult for most cervids. The skin on the

jaws of most cervids is much thinner than that of cattle or bison,

making it possible that the brand could penetrate the skin and injure

muscle tissue. Also, the size of the jaw area varies widely among

cervid species, with some having a head no larger than that of a

medium-sized dog. Such cervid species would not have a jaw large enough

to accommodate a brand. Second, there has been increasing concern from

the public, and specifically from animal rights groups, that branding

on the jaw may cause undue distress to livestock. In response to their

concerns, we published a proposal (see footnote 1) to remove branding

on the jaw from our regulatory programs for cattle and bison. In

keeping with that effort, and the other reasons enumerated, we have

chosen not to allow branding on the jaw in our regulatory programs for

cervids.

The brands required for cattle and bison in Sec. 50.6, and the

brands called for in this interim rule for cervids, are applied with a

hot-iron. We considered allowing identification options such as freeze

branding, by requiring that cervids be identified by a brand or by

another distinct, permanent, and legible mark. We chose not to allow

these options. A limitation of freeze branding is that the brand takes

a minimum of 18 to 21 days to become visible. In order that we may

continue to prevent the spread of tuberculosis, it is imperative that

exposed and affected animals be instantly recognizable from the time of

their identification until they are slaughtered, so that they are not

commingled with healthy animals. In most cases, an exposed or affected

cervid would be identified, shipped, and slaughtered before the freeze

brand becomes visible. To date, an acceptable alternative to hot-iron

branding has not been found for marking exposed or affected animals

that satisfies the criteria of being instantly visible upon

application, as well as distinct, permanent, and legible. Until an

acceptable alternative is developed, we have chosen to require that the

cervids be identified with a brand.

We are, however, including in Sec. 50.6 an alternative to branding

exposed and reactor cervids. We will allow exposed cervids to be moved

interstate to slaughter without branding if they are either accompanied

directly to slaughter by an APHIS or State representative or moved

directly to slaughter in vehicles closed with official seals. Such

official seals must be applied and removed by an APHIS representative,

State representative, accredited veterinarian, or an individual

authorized for this purpose by an APHIS representative. For reactor

cervids, we will allow the same movement without branding as for

exposed cervids, but we are requiring that the reactors be identified

by a ``TB'' tattooed on the left ear, and by spraying the left ear with

yellow paint.2 Carcasses of tuberculosis reactor animals can be

sold for consumption only if the meat is cooked. We are unaware of any

slaughtering facilities in the United States that will handle cervid

carcasses that are to be cooked before sale, so this option would not

be available to cervid owners. Consequently, reactor cervids sent to

slaughter would constitute a total monetary loss to the owner. Such

monetary loss could provide an incentive to substitute less valuable

cervids that have tested negative for tuberculosis for more valuable

reactor cervids, or to otherwise divert valuable tuberculosis reactor

cervids from slaughter channels, impeding tuberculosis eradication

efforts in the United States. We believe that requiring reactors to

have their left ear tattooed with a ``TB'' and spray painted yellow

will make it difficult for these reactors to be diverted.

\2\ A proposal to make the same provisions apply to reactor and

exposed cattle and bison was published in the Federal Register on

May 17, 1995 (Docket No. 95-006-1, 60 FR 26377-26381).

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We are also amending Secs. 50.7, 50.8, 50.9, 50.10, 50.11, 50.12,

50.13, 50.14, and 50.15 to make the provisions that apply to cattle and

bison apply to cervids. These sections concern the destruction and

disposal of animals, payment of expenses for transportation and

disposal of carcasses, appraisals, reports of salvage proceedings,

procedures for claiming indemnity, disinfection of premises and other

articles, and claims not allowed.

Payment of Indemnity for Tuberculosis-Exposed Cattle, Bison, and

Cervids

Before the effective date of this interim rule, Sec. 50.3(c)

authorized the payment of Federal indemnity, under certain conditions,

for cattle and bison found to have been exposed to tuberculosis by

reason of association with tuberculous cattle or bison. As explained

above, we are amending Sec. 50.3(c) to also provide for the payment of

indemnity for cervids found to have been exposed to tuberculosis. We

are further amending this paragraph to provide that the exposure of

cattle, bison, or cervids may be by reason of association with any

tuberculous livestock, not just cattle and bison. Llamas, alpacas,

antelope, and other hoofed livestock, in addition to cervids, can be

reservoirs of tuberculosis and can spread the disease to cattle, bison,

or cervids. The rapidly increasing number of exotic livestock herds has

increased the amount of commingling between such animals and cattle or

bison. This, in turn, has increased the risk that cattle or bison, and

now cervids, will be exposed to tuberculosis by other livestock, a

circumstance unforeseen when the regulations were promulgated.

We are adding a definition of livestock to Sec. 50.1 to include

cattle, bison, cervids, swine, goats, sheep, and other hoofed animals

(such as llamas, alpacas, and antelope) raised or maintained in

captivity for the production of meat and other products, for sport, or

for exhibition. We are also amending Sec. 50.14, ``Claims not

allowed,'' to add a new paragraph to stipulate that compensation for

tuberculosis-exposed cattle, bison, or cervids destroyed during herd

depopulation will not be allowed if a designated epidemiologist has

determined that exotic bovidae (such as antelope) or other livestock

species in

[[Page 37807]]

the herd have been exposed to tuberculosis by reason of association

with tuberculous livestock, and those exotic bovidae or other species

have not been destroyed. We are adding this paragraph to ensure that,

when a cattle, bison, or cervid herd is depopulated, other exposed

species do not remain to infect cattle, bison, or cervids with which

the owner restocks the herd. We are including the provision that a

designated epidemiologist must determine whether exposure had occurred,

because there are situations where cattle, bison, cervids, antelope,

and other livestock are maintained under common ownership, but the

different species may be sufficiently separated so that they do not

necessarily commingle. We are adding a definition for designated

epidemiologist to Sec. 50.1 to mean ``an epidemiologist appointed by a

cooperating State animal health official and the Veterinarian in Charge

to perform functions specified by the `Uniform Methods and Rules--

Bovine Tuberculosis Eradication.' ''

We are making several necessary changes to Sec. 50.1,

``Definitions,'' to make the definitions consistent with the other

changes made in this rule. First, we are revising the definition of

herd. According to the current definition, a herd consists of animals

of like kind, or two or more groups of cattle or bison together. We are

removing the ``like kind'' and ``cattle and bison'' provisions, and

will state instead that a herd consists of any group of livestock

maintained on common ground, or two or more groups of livestock under

common ownership or supervision, geographically separated but that have

an interchange or movement of livestock without regard to health

status, as determined by the Administrator.

We are removing the definition for animals from Sec. 50.1, because

adding the term livestock will eliminate the need to use the term and

define animals. Throughout the regulations, we are removing the word

``animal'' wherever its meaning is not clear and replacing it with the

specific kind of livestock (i.e. cattle, bison, cervid, or swine) that

is appropriate to that section.

In the definitions for approved herd plan and quarantined feedlot,

we are replacing ``animals'' with the term ``livestock.'' In the

definition for owner, we are replacing ``cattle, bison, or swine'' with

the term ``livestock.'' We are also including cervids in the

definitions for permit, reactor cattle and bison, and registered cattle

and bison. (The current definition for reactor cattle and bison states

that cattle and bison are classified as reactors in accordance with the

``Uniform Methods and Rules--Bovine Tuberculosis Eradication,'' based

on a positive response to an official tuberculosis test. As stated

earlier in this document, the tuberculin tests approved in the Uniform

Methods and Rules to detect TB in cattle and bison have also proven

effective in determining the tuberculosis status of cervids.

Additionally, the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service is in the

process of adding cervids to the provisions in the Uniform Methods and

Rules.)

Immediate Action

The Administrator of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

has determined that there is good cause for publishing this interim

rule without prior opportunity for public comment. Immediate action is

necessary to help prevent the spread of tuberculosis in cattle, bison,

and cervid herds. We are currently aware of three herds of cattle and

bison exposed to tuberculous cervids and six herds of cervids affected

with bovine tuberculosis. The lack of Federal compensation for the

destruction of these animals has resulted in these herds not being

depopulated, allowing the tuberculosis to persist. These herds could

spread the disease to healthy herds. Providing indemnity payments

immediately will encourage owners to depopulate the tuberculous herds,

thereby helping prevent the spread of tuberculosis to healthy herds and

reducing the time required to achieve the eradication of bovine

tuberculosis from the United States. Immediate action will, we believe,

substantially advance our eradication efforts and enhance our ability

to achieve the program's objectives.

Because prior notice and other public procedures with respect to

this action are impracticable and contrary to the public interest under

these conditions, we find good cause under 5 U.S.C. 553 to make it

effective upon publication in the Federal Register. We will consider

comments that are received within 60 days of publication of this rule

in the Federal Register. After the comment period closes, we will

publish another document in the Federal Register. It will include a

discussion of any comments we receive and any amendments we are making

to the rule as a result of the comments.

Executive Order 12866 and Regulatory Flexibility Act

This rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12866. The rule

has been determined to be not significant for the purposes of Executive

Order 12866 and, therefore, has not been reviewed by the Office of

Management and Budget.

In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 603, we have performed an Initial

Regulatory Flexibility Analysis, which is set out below, regarding the

impact of this interim rule on small entities. However, we do not

currently have all the data necessary for a comprehensive analysis of

the effects of this rule on small entities. Therefore, we are inviting

comments concerning potential effects. In particular, we are interested

in determining the number and kind of small entities that may incur

benefits or costs from implementation of this rule.

In accordance with 21 U.S.C. 114a, as amended, the Secretary of

Agriculture is authorized to promulgate regulations to provide for the

payment of claims for compensation for animals destroyed because of

tuberculosis. This rule provides for the payment of indemnity for the

destruction of tuberculosis reactor cervids, and for the destruction of

cattle, bison, and cervids found to have been exposed to tuberculosis

by reason of association with any tuberculous livestock. This rule is

necessary to encourage owners to rapidly remove cattle, bison, and

cervids affected with and exposed to tuberculosis from their herds,

thereby facilitating tuberculosis eradication efforts in the United

States.

Cervid producers affected by this rule would be primarily producers

of deer and elk. There are approximately 1,000 deer producers and 950

elk producers in the United States, raising about 100,000 deer and

35,000 elk under controlled farm conditions. Holdings vary in size and

degree of commercialization, but almost all deer and elk producers can

be classified as small businesses (defined by the Small Business

Administration as having less than $0.5 million annual gross receipts).

However, many producers rely on other sources of income (such as dairy

farming or beef cattle ranching) for their livelihoods.

In general, elk producers concentrate on building up their herds,

with most newborns retained as breeding stock. However, a fair market

value for a heifer elk is between $4,000 and $5,000. Annual income is

earned from the sale of antlers cut in the velvet stage of growth. The

antlers sell for about $65 per pound, and a single bull elk can produce

an average of 18 pounds of antlers per year, for more than 10 years.

Thus, a gross income of $1,000 or more can be derived per year from a

bull elk.

The value per animal is lower for deer than for elk, and varies by

species. Currently, at private sales, prices for good quality fallow

does and bucks range between $500 and $1,000. Young

[[Page 37808]]

deer command only $300 to $500 per head. Slightly lower prices prevail

at public auctions.

Destruction of cervid herds affected with tuberculosis will be

voluntary on the part of the owners. At present, there are six cervid

herds (four elk herds and two deer herds) affected with tuberculosis,

totalling about 700 cervids. The indemnity payments of up to $750 per

head for reactor cervids and up to $450 per head for exposed cervids

will partially compensate cervid producers for lost income incurred by

the destruction of the animals. These indemnity payments could provide

a significant incentive for the owners of these herds to destroy the

tuberculous animals. Although the indemnity payments will not

completely cover the monetary losses resulting from whole herd

depopulation, the payments will significantly reduce losses for deer

and elk producers.

This rule also provides for the payment of indemnity for cattle and

bison that are destroyed because of tuberculosis after being exposed to

any tuberculous livestock, at the rate of up to $450 per head. This is

the same rate currently provided in the regulations for cattle and

bison exposed to tuberculous cattle and bison. Depopulation of the

cattle and bison herds will be voluntary.

This rule contains paperwork and recordkeeping requirements. Under

this rule, cattle, bison, and cervid owners are required to have a

permit for movement of affected or exposed animals to slaughter,

records of tests, and reports of appraisals and salvage proceedings.

Further, claims for indemnity must be submitted on forms furnished by

APHIS, and cervids to be destroyed must be identified with brands and

eartags. However, since the provisions regarding exposed animals are

voluntary, none of the paperwork or recordkeeping would be required if

an owner chooses not to claim indemnity for destroying exposed animals.

The alternative to this rule would be to take no action. We do not

consider taking no action a reasonable alternative because, without the

economic incentive of Federal compensation for destroyed animals,

owners would be more likely to allow tuberculosis infection to persist

in their herds. The indemnity payments offered in this rule are the

same as those currently offered for affected and exposed cattle and

bison.

Executive Order 12372

This program/activity is listed in the Catalog of Federal Domestic

Assistance under No. 10.025 and is subject to Executive Order 12372,

which requires intergovernmental consultation with State and local

officials. (See 7 CFR part 3015, subpart V.)

Executive Order 12778

This rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12778, Civil

Justice Reform. This rule: (1) Preempts all State and local laws and

regulations that are in conflict with this rule; (2) has no retroactive

effect; and (3) does not require administrative proceedings before

parties may file suit in court challenging this rule.

Paperwork Reduction Act

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1980 (44 U.S.C.

3501 et seq.), the information collection or recordkeeping requirements

included in this rule will be submitted for approval to the Office of

Management and Budget. Please send written comments to the Office of

Information and Regulatory Affairs, OMB, Attention: Desk Officer for

APHIS, Washington, DC 20503. Please send a copy of your comments to:

(1) Docket No. 94-133-1, Regulatory Analysis and Development, PPD,

APHIS, suite 3C03, 4700 River Road, Unit 118, Riverdale, MD 20737-1238,

and (2) Clearance Officer, OIRM, USDA, room 404-W, 14th Street and

Independence Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20250.

List of Subjects in 9 CFR Part 50

Animal diseases, Bison, Cattle, Hogs, Indemnity payments, Reporting

and recordkeeping requirements, Tuberculosis.

Accordingly, 9 CFR part 50 is amended as follows:

PART 50--ANIMALS DESTROYED BECAUSE OF TUBERCULOSIS

1. The authority citation for part 50 continues to read as follows:

Authority: 21 U.S.C. 111-113, 114, 114a, 114a-1, 120, 121, 125,

and 134b; 7 CFR 2.17, 2.51, and 371.2(d).

Sec. 50.1 [Amended]

2. Section 50.1 is amended as follows:

a. The definitions for animals, reactor cattle and bison, and

registered cattle and bison are removed.

b. In the definition for approved herd plan, the word ``animals''

is removed and the word ``livestock'' is added in its place.

c. Definitions for cervid, designated epidemiologist, livestock,

reactor cattle, bison, and cervids, and registered cattle, bison, and

cervids are added in alphabetical order to read as set forth below.

d. The definitions for herd and herd depopulation are revised to

read as set forth below.

e. In the definition for owner, the words ``cattle, bison, or

swine'' are removed and the word ``livestock'' is added in their place.

f. In the definition for permit, the word ``cervids,'' is added

immediately before ``or swine''.

g. In the definition for quarantined feedlot, the word ``animals''

is removed and the word ``livestock'' is added in its place each time

it appears.

Sec. 50.1 Definitions.

* * * * *

Cervid. All species of deer, elk, and moose raised or maintained in

captivity for the production of meat and other products, for sport, or

for exhibition.

* * * * *

Designated epidemiologist. An epidemiologist appointed by a

cooperating State animal health official and the Veterinarian in Charge

to perform functions specified by the ``Uniform Methods and Rules--

Bovine Tuberculosis Eradication.''

* * * * *

Herd. Any group of livestock maintained on common ground for any

purpose, or two or more groups of livestock under common ownership or

supervision, geographically separated but that have an interchange or

movement of livestock without regard to health status, as determined by

the Administrator.

Herd depopulation. Removal by slaughter or other means of

destruction of all cattle, bison, and cervids in a herd prior to

restocking with new cattle, bison, or cervids.

Livestock. Cattle, bison, cervids, swine, dairy goats, and other

hoofed animals (such as llamas, alpacas, and antelope) raised or

maintained in captivity for the production of meat and other products,

for sport, or for exhibition.

* * * * *

Reactor cattle, bison, and cervids. Cattle and bison are classified

as reactors for tuberculosis in accordance with the ``Uniform Methods

and Rules--Bovine Tuberculosis Eradication,'' based on a positive

response to an official tuberculin test. Cervids are classified as

reactors for tuberculosis in the same manner as cattle and bison.

Registered cattle, bison, or cervids. Cattle, bison, or cervids for

which individual records of ancestry are maintained, and for which

individual registration certificates are issued and recorded by a

recognized breed

[[Page 37809]]

association whose purpose is the improvement of the breed.

* * * * *

Sec. 50.2 [Amended]

3. In Sec. 50.2, the word ``cervids,'' is added immediately before

``or swine''.

4. Section 50.3 is amended as follows:

a. In paragraph (a), in the paragraph heading and the regulatory

text, the words ``and bison'' are removed and the words ``, bison, and

cervids'' are added in their place.

b. In paragraph (b), in the paragraph heading and the regulatory

text, the words ``and bison'' are removed each time they appear and the

words ``, bison, and cervids'' are added in their place.

c. Paragraph (c) is revised to read as set forth below.

Sec. 50.3 Payment to owners for animals destroyed.

* * * * *

(c) Exposed cattle, bison, and cervids. The Administrator may

authorize the payment of Federal indemnity to owners of cattle, bison,

and cervids destroyed because of tuberculosis not to exceed $450 for

any animal which has been classified as exposed to tuberculosis in

accordance with Sec. 50.4(b) when it has been determined by the

Administrator that the destruction of the exposed cattle, bison, or

cervids will contribute to the Tuberculosis Eradication Program; but,

the joint State-Federal indemnity payments, plus salvage, must not

exceed the appraised value of each animal.

* * * * *

Sec. 50.4 [Amended]

5. In Sec. 50.4, paragraph (a), the words ``and bison'' are removed

and the words ``, bison, and cervids'' are added in their place.

6. In Sec. 50.4, paragraph (b), the words ``and bison'' are removed

and the words ``, bison, and cervids'' are added in their place; and

the word ``animals'' is removed and the words ``cattle, bison, or

cervids'' are added in its place.

Sec. 50.5 [Amended]

7. In Sec. 50.5, in the first sentence, the words `` or bison'' are

removed and the words ``, bison, or cervid'' are added in their place

and the words ``of cattle'' are removed; and in the second sentence the

words ``A form acceptable to an APHIS'' are removed and the words ``VS

Form 6-22 or an equivalent State form'' are added in their place.

8. In Sec. 50.6, the introductory text, the word ``Animals'' is

removed and the words ``Cattle, bison, cervids, or swine'' are added in

its place; and new paragraphs (d) and (e) are added to read as follows:

Sec. 50.6 Identification of animals to be destroyed because of

tuberculosis.

* * * * *

(d) Reactor cervids. Reactor cervids shall be identified by

branding the letter ``T'' high on the left hip near the tailhead and at

least 5 by 5 centimeters (2 by 2 inches) in size and by attaching to

the left ear an approved metal eartag bearing a serial number and the

inscription ``U.S. Reactor'', or a similar State reactor tag. Reactor

cervids may be moved interstate to slaughter without branding if they

are permanently identified by the letters ``TB'' tattooed legibly on

the left ear, they are sprayed on the left ear with yellow paint, and

they are either accompanied by an APHIS or State representative or

moved directly to slaughter in vehicles closed with official seals.

Such official seals must be applied and removed by an APHIS

representative, State representative, accredited veterinarian, or an

individual authorized for this purpose by an APHIS representative.

(e) Exposed cervids. Exposed cervids shall be identified by

branding the letter ``S'' high on the left hip near the tailhead and at

least 5 by 5 centimeters (2 by 2 inches) in size and by attaching to

the left ear an approved metal eartag bearing a serial number. Exposed

cervids may be moved interstate to slaughter without branding if they

are either accompanied by an APHIS or State representative or moved

directly to slaughter in vehicles closed with official seals. Such

official seals must be applied and removed by an APHIS representative,

State representative, accredited veterinarian, or an individual

authorized for this purpose by an APHIS representative.

Sec. 50.7 [Amended]

9. In Sec. 50.7, paragraphs (a) and (b) are amended by removing the

first word of the regulatory text in each paragraph, ``Animals'', and

adding the words ``Cattle, bison, cervids, or swine'' in its place.

Sec. 50.8 [Amended]

10. In Sec. 50.8, the words ``and bison'' are removed each time

they appear and the words ``, bison, and cervids'' are added in their

place.

Sec. 50.9 [Amended]

11. In Sec. 50.9, in the first and the fourth sentences, the word

``Animals'' is removed and the words ``Cattle, bison, cervids, or

swine'' are added in its place; in the third and the sixth sentences,

the word ``animals'' is removed and the words ``cattle, bison, cervids,

or swine'' are added in its place; and in the fifth sentence the words

``or bison'' are removed and the words ``, bison, cervids, or swine''

are added in their place.

Sec. 50.10 [Amended]

12. In Sec. 50.10, the words ``and bison'' are removed and the

words ``, bison, cervids, and swine'' are added in their place.

Sec. 50.11 [Amended]

13. In Sec. 50.11, the words ``or bison'' are removed each time

they appear and the words ``, bison, cervids, or swine'' are added in

their place; and the word ``animals'' is removed from the ninth

sentence immediately following ``Destruction of'' and the words ``

cattle, bison, cervids, and swine'' are added in its place.

Sec. 50.12 [Amended]

14. In Sec. 50.12, the words ``or bison'' are removed each time

they appear and the words ``, bison, cervids, or swine'' are added in

their place.

Sec. 50.13 [Amended]

15. In Sec. 50.13, the words ``cattle or bison'' are removed and

the word ``livestock'' is added in their place.

16. Section 50.14 is amended as follows:

a. In the introductory text, the words ``or bison'' are removed and

the words ``, bison, or cervids'' are added in their place.

b. In paragraph (b), the words ``, bison, and cervids'' are added

immediately before the phrase ``2 years of age or over''.

c. In paragraph (b), the words ``and bison'' are removed each time

they appear and the words ``, bison, and cervids'' are added in their

place.

d. In paragraph (d), the words ``or bison'' are removed each time

they appear and the words ``, bison, or cervids'' are added in their

place.

e. In paragraph (d), the words ``and bison'' are removed and the

words ``, bison, and cervids'' are added in their place.

f. In paragraphs (e), (e)(2)(i), and (e)(2)(ii), the words ``or

bison'' are removed each time they appear and the words ``, bison, or

cervids'' are added in their place.

g. A new paragraph (f) is added to read as set forth below.

Sec. 50.14 Claims not allowed.

* * * * *

(f) For exposed cattle, bison, or cervids destroyed during herd

depopulation, if a designated epidemiologist has determined that exotic

bovidae (such as antelope) or

[[Page 37810]]

other species of livestock in the herd have been exposed to

tuberculosis by reason of association with tuberculous livestock, and

those exotic bovidae or other species determined to have been exposed

to tuberculosis have not been destroyed.

Done in Washington, DC, this 17th day of July 1995.

Lonnie J. King,

Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.

[FR Doc. 95-18072 Filed 7-21-95; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410-34-P