Wildlife VET Act

I 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 2099 To expand the workforce of veterinarians specialized in the care and conserva- tion of wild animals and their ecosystems, and to develop educational programs focused on wildlife and zoological veterinary medicine. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES APRIL 4, 2019 Mr. HASTINGS (for himself, Ms. KAPTUR, Mr. CICILLINE, Mr. COHEN, Mr. SCHRADER, Mr. VELA, Ms. NORTON, Ms. BARRAGA´N, Mr. SOTO, Mr. LYNCH, Mr. RASKIN, and Mr. SERRANO) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture, and in addition to the Committee on Natural Resources, for a period to be subsequently de- termined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned A BILL To expand the workforce of veterinarians specialized in the care and conservation of wild animals and their eco- systems, and to develop educational programs focused on wildlife and zoological veterinary medicine. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 3 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be referred to as 4 the ‘‘Wildlife Veterinarians Employment and Training 5 Act’’ or the ‘‘Wildlife VET Act’’. 6 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:26 Apr 16, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2099.IH H2099 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 2099 IH (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents of 1 this Act is as follows: 2 Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. Sec. 2. Findings. Sec. 3. Purposes. Sec. 4. Definitions. Sec. 5. Implementing authority and cooperation between departments and agen- cies. TITLE I—WILDLIFE AND ZOOLOGICAL VETERINARY MEDICINE WORKFORCE EXPANSION Sec. 101. Grants to create positions for wildlife and zoological veterinarians. Sec. 102. Loan repayment program for veterinary students and veterinarians specializing in wildlife and zoological populations. Sec. 103. Scholarship program for veterinary students specializing in wildlife and zoological populations. TITLE II—WILDLIFE AND ZOOLOGICAL VETERINARY MEDICINE EDUCATIONAL DEVELOPMENT Sec. 201. Grants to accredited schools and colleges of veterinary medicine for curricula in wildlife and zoological veterinary medicine. Sec. 202. Grants to develop training programs in wildlife and zoological veteri- nary medicine. SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 3 Congress makes the following findings: 4 (1) Fish and wildlife are important natural re- 5 sources of the United States. They belong to all citi- 6 zens, and are managed in perpetuity by State and 7 Federal conservation agencies, often with significant 8 assistance from universities, zoos, aquariums, and 9 nonprofit and nongovernmental organizations. 10 (2) Wildlife and zoological veterinarians are the 11 primary source of essential health care for wild ani- 12 mals in their natural habitat and in captivity in fa- 13 cilities such as zoos, wildlife refuges, breeding re- 14 serves, and aquariums. 15 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:26 Apr 16, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2099.IH H2099 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 2099 IH (3) Wildlife and zoological veterinarians have 1 the resources and expertise necessary to help re- 2 spond to environmental disasters and address short- 3 term and long-term impacts on wildlife and their 4 habitats. Wildlife and zoological veterinarians have 5 proven to be essential to the rescue and rehabilita- 6 tion efforts in the Gulf of Mexico region following 7 the Deepwater Horizon oil spill that began on April 8 20, 2010. 9 (4) According to the Department of the Inte- 10 rior, wildlife disease expertise and resources are crit- 11 ical to protecting both human and animal life. 12 (5) Wildlife veterinarians have been actively in- 13 volved in preventing, detecting, and responding to 14 such important exotic, dangerous, and zoonotic dis- 15 eases as anthrax, avian influenza, brucellosis, tuber- 16 culosis, West Nile virus, SARS, chronic wasting dis- 17 ease, and foot and mouth disease. 18 (6) Globalization, climate change, and wildlife 19 habitat loss and alteration, along with a growing 20 interface among humans, livestock, and wildlife have 21 increased the threat posed by emerging infectious 22 diseases to humans, domestic animals, and wildlife. 23 (7) According to the February 2009 report by 24 the Government Accountability Office entitled ‘‘Vet- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:26 Apr 16, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2099.IH H2099 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 2099 IH erinarian Workforce: Actions Are Needed to Ensure 1 Sufficient Capacity for Protecting Public and Ani- 2 mal Health’’, the Nation is facing a growing short- 3 age of veterinarians, and the Federal Government 4 may not have the necessary veterinarian workforce 5 to control pandemic and large-scale outbreaks of dis- 6 ease. 7 (8) There is a shortage of positions for wildlife 8 and zoological veterinarians at the State, Federal, 9 nonprofit, and university levels due to inadequate 10 funding. According to the American Veterinary Med- 11 ical Association (‘‘AVMA’’), less than one percent of 12 AVMA members identify themselves as wildlife or 13 zoological veterinarians. 14 (9) According to the AVMA, a growing number 15 of students enter veterinary schools with an interest 16 in wildlife or zoological veterinary medicine, but 17 choose different fields of study and practice due to 18 the small number of positions available for wildlife 19 and zoological veterinarians upon graduation. 20 (10) Veterinary students face large educational 21 debt upon graduation. According to the AVMA, 22 graduating student loan debt averaged $143,757 in 23 2016. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:26 Apr 16, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2099.IH H2099 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 2099 IH (11) According to the American Association of 1 Wildlife Veterinarians (‘‘AAWV’’) and National As- 2 sociation of Federal Veterinarians (‘‘NAFV’’), sala- 3 ries for wildlife and zoological veterinarians are rel- 4 atively low, the second-to-lowest specialty, compared 5 to the average salaries of veterinarians in companion 6 animal medicine. Lower salaries, combined with high 7 educational debt and the small number of positions 8 available in wildlife and zoological veterinary medi- 9 cine, discourage students from pursuing careers in 10 wildlife or zoological veterinary medicine. 11 (12) According to the AAWV and NAFV, most 12 schools and colleges of veterinary medicine lack both 13 a comprehensive curriculum and sufficient numbers 14 of formal educational programs and internships spe- 15 cializing in wildlife or zoological veterinary medicine 16 to adequately prepare graduates for a competitive 17 workplace. 18 (13) According to the AVMA, while some train- 19 ing opportunities exist for aspiring wildlife and zoo- 20 logical veterinarians, such opportunities are not 21 available each year, pay low salaries or stipends, if 22 any, and are highly competitive. 23 SEC. 3. PURPOSES. 24 The purposes of this Act are— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:26 Apr 16, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2099.IH H2099 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 2099 IH (1) to create new funded positions for wildlife 1 and zoological veterinarians; 2 (2) to limit the amount of educational debt for 3 veterinary medicine students while providing incen- 4 tives to study and practice wildlife or zoological vet- 5 erinary medicine; 6 (3) to help schools and colleges of veterinary 7 medicine develop or improve pilot curricula special- 8 izing in wildlife and zoological veterinary medicine; 9 and 10 (4) to expand the number of training programs 11 in wildlife or zoological veterinary medicine for vet- 12 erinary students. 13 SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS. 14 For purposes of this Act, the following definitions 15 apply: 16 (1) ACCREDITED SCHOOL OR COLLEGE OF VET- 17 ERINARY MEDICINE.—The term ‘‘accredited school 18 or college of veterinary medicine’’ means an institu- 19 tion of higher education (as defined in section 101 20 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 21 1001)) that provides an educational program for 22 which the institution awards a doctoral degree in 23 veterinary medicine. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:26 Apr 16, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2099.IH H2099 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 2099 IH (2) DOCTORAL DEGREE IN VETERINARY MEDI- 1 CINE.—The term ‘‘doctoral degree in veterinary 2 medicine’’ means a doctor of veterinary medicine or 3 veterinary medical doctor from an accredited school 4 or college of veterinary medicine. 5 (3) GRADUATE DEGREE IN VETERINARY MEDI- 6 CINE.—The term ‘‘graduate degree in veterinary 7 medicine’’ means a master’s degree or Ph.D. in vet- 8 erinary medicine or wildlife health management from 9 an accredited school or college of veterinary medicine 10 or a public or nonprofit department or school de- 11 scribed in paragraph (8)(E). 12 (4) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 13 the Secretary of the Interior. 14 (5) STATE OR TERRITORY.—The term ‘‘State 15 or Territory’’ means each of the several States, the 16 District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto 17 Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the United States 18 Virgin Islands, and the Commonwealth of the North- 19 ern Mariana Islands, and each federally recognized 20 Indian tribe. 21 (6) VETERINARY MEDICINE.—The term ‘‘veteri- 22 nary medicine’’ means all branches of, and special- 23 ties included within, the practice of veterinary medi- 24 cine, including— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:26 Apr 16, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2099.IH H2099 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 2099 IH (A) the diagnosis, treatment, correction, 1 change, alleviation, prevention, management of, 2 or research on animal disease, illness, pain, de- 3 formity, defect, injury, or other physical, dental, 4 or mental conditions; and 5 (B) the management of ecosystems on 6 which wildlife and zoological populations de- 7 pend. 8 (7) WILDLIFE.—The term ‘‘wildlife’’ means any 9 member of the animal kingdom and includes mam- 10 mals, fish, birds, amphibians, reptiles, mollusks, or 11 arthropods. Such term does not include plant or 12 plant matter or any other member of another king- 13 dom. 14 (8) WILDLIFE OR VETERINARY INSTITUTION.— 15 The term ‘‘wildlife or veterinary institution’’ 16 means— 17 (A) any agency or department of a State 18 or Territory or of the Federal Government that 19 employs wildlife or zoological veterinarians, in- 20 cluding a wildlife conservation or natural re- 21 source management agency; 22 (B) a nonprofit wildlife conservation orga- 23 nization; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:26 Apr 16, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2099.IH H2099 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 2099 IH (C) an accredited zoo or aquarium receiv- 1 ing peer-reviewed accreditation from a commis- 2 sioned organization that heeds rigorous publicly 3 available standards, utilizes notable experts in 4 the field to conduct comprehensive inspection 5 and review, and provides opportunity for public 6 input; 7 (D) an accredited school or college of vet- 8 erinary medicine; 9 (E) a public or nonprofit department of 10 comparative medicine, department of veterinary 11 science, department of the environment and 12 natural resources, school of public health, or 13 school of medicine that is accredited by a na- 14 tionally recognized accrediting agency or asso- 15 ciation recognized by the Secretary of Edu- 16 cation; 17 (F) a State or Territory, national, allied, 18 or regional veterinary organization or specialty 19 board recognized by the American Veterinary 20 Medical Association; or 21 (G) a university research foundation or 22 veterinary medical foundation. 23 (9) WILDLIFE OR ZOOLOGICAL VETERI- 24 NARIAN.—The term ‘‘wildlife or zoological veteri- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:26 Apr 16, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2099.IH H2099 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 2099 IH narian’’ means an individual who has received a doc- 1 toral degree in veterinary medicine from an accred- 2 ited school or college of veterinary medicine and 3 practices veterinary medicine as applied to wildlife 4 populations— 5 (A) in their natural habitat; or 6 (B) in captivity in conservation centers in- 7 cluding zoos, aquariums, wildlife refuges, and 8 breeding reserves. 9 SEC. 5. IMPLEMENTING AUTHORITY AND COOPERATION 10 BETWEEN DEPARTMENTS AND AGENCIES. 11 The Secretary of the Interior shall carry out this Act. 12 In carrying out this Act, the Secretary shall cooperate 13 with the heads of such other departments and agencies 14 of the Federal Government as the Secretary determines 15 necessary. 16 TITLE I—WILDLIFE AND ZOO- 17 LOGICAL VETERINARY MEDI- 18 CINE WORKFORCE EXPAN- 19 SION 20 SEC. 101. GRANTS TO CREATE POSITIONS FOR WILDLIFE 21 AND ZOOLOGICAL VETERINARIANS. 22 (a) IN GENERAL.—To create additional clinical and 23 research positions for wildlife and zoological veterinarians, 24 the Secretary may award grants to wildlife or veterinary 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:26 Apr 16, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2099.IH H2099 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 2099 IH institutions that submit to the Secretary a proposal de- 1 signed to create such positions. A proposal— 2 (1) shall be submitted at such time, and in such 3 form and manner, as the Secretary may require; and 4 (2) shall contain such information as the Sec- 5 retary may require, including a description of— 6 (A) each such position; 7 (B) the need of the wildlife or veterinary 8 institution for each such position; 9 (C) how each such position will advance 10 the conservation and management of wildlife or 11 zoological populations; and 12 (D) how the wildlife or veterinary institu- 13 tion will use funds awarded under a grant. 14 (b) AWARD.—The Secretary shall establish proce- 15 dures to ensure that, under this section, proposals are rig- 16 orously reviewed and grants are competitively awarded 17 based on such considerations as the Secretary may deter- 18 mine necessary. Such considerations shall include— 19 (1) the ability of a wildlife or veterinary institu- 20 tion to describe and justify the need for each posi- 21 tion in its proposal under subsection (a)(2); and 22 (2) the ability of the wildlife or veterinary insti- 23 tution to create such positions. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:26 Apr 16, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BIL [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]