The House Appropriations Subcommittee has completed its fiscal 2011 budget and has cut all funding for the voluntary National Animal Identification System. The subcommittee is charged with budgeting for USDA and the Food and Drug Administration programs.
"We have spent over $147 million on this program since 2004; and six years later, we still have not seen a clear plan from USDA on successful implementation, even after they shifted to a more fragmented system in 2010," said Subcommittee Chairman Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.).
NAIS faced tremendous obstacles lately as USDA abruptly changed course earlier this year by handing NAIS responsibilities to individual states and tribal nations, who are already overly strapped for money. In some circles this step was the first sign that the program ultimately would fail. An organized and vocal opposition has worked hard to see that NAIS would not come to fruition.
For the fiscal 2011 budget, USDA had asked for $14.2 million for NAIS to assist with transitioning the program to the states and tribal nations.
"We do not feel it is a good use of resources to fund NAIS until the agency develops a clear plan for a mandatory system with measurable goals, long-term funding levels, and a plan for successful implementation," DeLauro added. Of course, given previous attempts to move toward a mandatory system, such implementation is a long way off, if ever.
Specific to USDA, the subcommittee funded it at $20.26 billion, just $18.7 million less than the Obama administration had requested. FDA was allocated $2.57 billion, which was $55 million above the budget request.
The subcommittee cut $13 million from USDA’s APHIS Avian Influenza Program compared to fiscal 2010.
[ Full text of the subcommittee chair’s statement: http://www.porkmag.com/directories.asp?pgID=675&ed_id=9578
Source: Pork Magazine, July 1, 2010