	Introduction

		Overview

Bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE or "mad cow disease") is a fatal degenerative neurological disease of cattle. United States:
December 23, 2003 , USDA announced the first U.S. case of BSE, a Holstein dairy cow in Washington state that was born in Alberta, Canada in April 1997; June 24, 2005, USDA confirmed the second (first native-born) U.S. BSE case, a 12-year-old Brahma cross cow from a Texas ranch. Some critics, nonetheless, have questioned whether these safeguards are providing adequate protection against BSE. Also at issue have been whether their costs to taxpayers and industry are justified; whether such steps are defensible scientifically and will fully restore foreign markets' confidence in the safety of U.S. cattle and beef; and whether other types of regulatory and/or legislative actions should be considered, among other questions. Safeguards in Place Prior to December 2003

In the wake of the far more extensive BSE outbreaks in the United Kingdom and other countries starting in 1986, U.S. officials had, by the late 1980s, begun erecting what they and beef industry leaders had termed the "three firewalls" to keep the disease out of the United States and to contain it immediately if it should occur here:
Restrictions on imports of ruminants and their products from countries with BSE; A ban on feeding most mammalian proteins to cattle and other ruminants; and A targeted domestic surveillance program. The new actions included:
Holding carcasses of tested animals until BSE-negative results are obtained (notice, January 12, 2004, Federal Register ); Banning nonambulatory ("downer") cattle from entering facilities that slaughter them for human food (interim final rule, January 12, 2004, Federal Register ); Keeping additional animal parts considered to be at higher risk—such as central nervous system and several other tissues of older animals—from the human food supply (interim final rule, January 12, 2004, Federal Register ); Prohibiting certain meat plant practices such as air injection stunning and some types of mechanical deboning operations (interim final rule, January 12, 2004, Federal Register ); Working on a national system to identify and track individual animals from their place of birth to slaughter; and Naming an international scientific panel to review the government's BSE response and recommend any needed improvements (the panel's findings are discussed below). On January 26, 2004, FDA announced it would publish changes to its own BSE safeguards, such as banning a number of bovine materials from the human foods and cosmetics it regulates; banning poultry litter, restaurant plate waste, and ruminant blood products from ruminant feed; and tightening feed manufacturing procedures and oversight. On October 6, 2005, FDA published its long awaited proposed rule to tighten feed restrictions, by banning, from all animal feeds, some higher-risk cattle parts (i.e., some SRM). A final rule had not been issued as of mid-May 2007. (For details on these developments, see later sections of this report). As the UK was coping with a then-rising number of BSE discoveries, USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), the lead agency for controlling animal diseases, began to impose a series of import restrictions here. Congressional Role

USDA and FDA so far have not recommended any statutory changes in import safeguards. The "Downer" Ban and Impact on Surveillance

Following the first finding of a cow with BSE, USDA announced, on December 30, 2003, a ban on downer cattle in the human food supply. Creekstone sued USDA in March 2006. These or other proposals aimed at addressing the food safety and animal welfare aspects of the BSE issue could re-emerge in the 110 th Congress. Most of these CCC funds were used to pay for the enhanced surveillance program. Various raw agricultural products have been exempt.
Through mid-May 2007, the United States had confirmed three cases of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE, or "mad cow disease"): the first in December 2003 in a Canadian-born cow found in Washington state, the second in June 2005 in cow in Texas, and the third in March 2006 in a cow in Alabama.
Shortly after the first case, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and other officials announced measures to improve existing safeguards against the introduction and spread of BSE. Previously, the major safeguards were: (1) USDA restrictions on imports of ruminants and their products from countries with BSE; (2) a ban on feeding most mammalian proteins to cattle and other ruminants, issued by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA); and (3) a targeted domestic surveillance program by USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), the agency responsible for animal health monitoring and disease control.
Some argued that these safeguards were inadequate, as evidenced by findings of BSE here and subsequent federal efforts to bolster protections. Most new actions announced by USDA on December 30, 2003, were under the purview of USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), responsible for the safety of most U.S. meat and poultry. These actions took effect in January 2004 and included (1) holding tested carcasses until BSE-negative results are obtained; (2) banning nonambulatory ("downer") cattle from human food; and (3) banning certain additional animal parts from human food. USDA also increased work and spending on a national animal identification and tracking system, and undertook an enhanced BSE surveillance program, among other activities. On January 26, 2004, FDA announced planned changes to its safeguards, including additional bovine materials banned from the human foods and cosmetics it regulates; a ban on poultry litter, restaurant waste, and ruminant blood products from ruminant feed; and stricter oversight of feed manufacturing. In lieu of these changes, FDA on October 6, 2005, proposed a ban, in all types of animal feed, of some higher-risk cattle parts. A final rule is pending.
Many Members of the 110th Congress continue to closely follow these BSE developments; hearings and legislative proposals on various aspects of the issue are possible. Among the policy questions have been whether expanded agency actions have provided further protections against BSE, whether they are scientifically sound, and what costs they may have imposed on consumers, taxpayers, and industry. Also at issue have been whether USDA and FDA have effectively implemented and enforced the current safeguards; whether these safeguards will be sufficient to rebuild foreign markets' confidence in the safety of U.S. beef; and whether other types of actions should be considered, among other questions. Additional U.S. BSE cases could affect these policy deliberations.
This report will be updated if significant developments occur.