SAFE Act of 2025 would amend the Animal Health Protection Act to empower U.S. officials to negotiate with other countries on how to manage animal disease outbreaks in ways that help protect U.S. livestock and animal-product exports. Specifically, it authorizes the Secretary, via APHIS, with input from the Under Secretary for Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs, FSIS, and in consultation with the U.S. Trade Representative, to pursue regionalization, zoning, compartmentalization, and other agreements with governments of countries that buy U.S. livestock or animal products. The negotiations must consider current global research advances. The bill also clarifies that these new authorities do not limit trade negotiations or force inclusion of this language in other trade agreements. The overall goal is to reduce the economic impact of disease outbreaks on exports while maintaining sound animal health protections.
Key Points
- 1Creates a new subsection (d) under Section 10405 of the Animal Health Protection Act titled “Engagement With Export Markets,” authorizing international negotiations on regionalization, zoning, compartmentalization, and other trade-related disease management concepts with countries that import U.S. livestock or animal products.
- 2The negotiations would be conducted by the Secretary (through APHIS), the Under Secretary for Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs, and the Administrator of FSIS, in consultation with the United States Trade Representative.
- 3Requires that negotiations take into account accepted global research advances.
- 4Includes a rule of construction stating that this authority does not limit the USTR’s ability to negotiate other trade agreements, nor does it require those agreements to include language about reducing export impact from animal disease outbreaks.
- 5The amendment involves redesignating subsection (d) as (e) and inserting the new subsection (d) after (c).