H.R. 4757 — Pigs and Public Health Act

This section prohibits any use of beta-adrenergic agonist drugs, including ractopamine, zilpaterol, and lubabegron, in pigs in the absence of disease, including for growth promotion or feed efficiency.

This section amends the Animal Welfare Act to establish requirements for transporting pigs by a covered provider of transportation (i.e., any entity transporting livestock) on behalf of a covered entity (i.e., a stockyard, market agency, packer as defined in 7 U.S.C. 191, dealer as defined in 7 U.S.C. 201, slaughter facility, or establishment inspected under the Federal Meat Inspection Act). Specifically, it requires that such transport (1) protect pigs from high winds, rain, and snow; (2) provide appropriate bedding to prevent slipping, ensure comfort based on pigs' needs, number transported, duration, and weather, and absorb urine and feces; (3) avoid overcrowding; (4) include a functional water supply accessible to each pig; (5) use appropriately designed and positioned watering devices; (6) provide space for pigs to turn around, lie down, and fully extend limbs; and (7) maintain temperatures between 50 and 75 degrees Fahrenheit. It further requires covered providers to maintain and produce records of transported pigs upon request by the Secretary of Agriculture and directs the Secretary to promulgate final enforcement regulations within one year of enactment.

This section amends the Humane Methods of Slaughter Act of 1958 by adding a new section 7 to direct the Secretary of Agriculture to promulgate regulations requiring covered entities (i.e., stockyards, market agencies, packers, dealers, slaughter facilities, and establishments subject to the Federal Meat Inspection Act) to humanely euthanize nonambulatory pigs (i.e., swine that cannot stand or walk unassisted), maintain written policies and records on their handling and disposition, electronically submit such documents to the Food Safety and Inspection Service, and test nonambulatory pigs for specified diseases (e.g., swine influenza viruses H1N1 and H3N2, Salmonella); prohibiting such entities from buying, selling, processing, or slaughtering nonambulatory pigs; establishing requirements for handling injured pigs (e.g., immediate treatment or euthanasia for lame pigs, uterine prolapses, certain hernias) and diseased pigs (i.e., those not responding to care); and prohibiting covered individuals (i.e., employees or contractors of covered entities) from committing willful acts of abuse (e.g., beating, excessive electric prod use). This section also amends section 6 of the Federal Meat Inspection Act (21 U.S.C. 606) by adding subsection (c) to make it unlawful for inspectors to pass nonambulatory pigs or their carcasses (including parts) and to require labeling such carcasses as "inspected and condemned." (As background, the Humane Methods of Slaughter Act of 1958 generally requires humane handling and slaughter of livestock; thus, these provisions extend such protections specifically to pigs throughout the supply chain and reinforce meat inspection standards.)

This section directs the Secretary of Labor to promulgate, pursuant to the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, (1) a proposed standard for handling nonambulatory pigs not later than one year after enactment of this Act, requiring employee training on handling such pigs and use of mechanical lifting aids; and (2) a final standard not later than two years after enactment, based on the proposed standard and enforceable like any standard under section 6(b) of such Act (29 U.S.C. 655(b)). This section further requires covered entities to hire and train additional employees as necessary to comply with the Act, its amendments, and the final standard.

This section directs the Secretary of Agriculture, in consultation with the Secretary of Labor, to establish within 90 days of enactment an online portal on the Department of Agriculture website through which individuals may submit confidential complaints regarding alleged violations by a covered entity of this Act and its amendments (including specified provisions of the Animal Health Protection Act, Animal Welfare Act, Humane Methods of Slaughter Act of 1958, and Federal Meat Inspection Act), the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, or the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938. Upon establishment, the Secretary must issue public notice of the portal and its confidentiality protections (i.e., withholding personally identifiable information absent complainant permission or legal requirement with advance warning; extending protections to any nongovernmental entity receiving the case). The section further requires annual public reports on aggregate portal data, beginning one year after enactment.

This section establishes whistleblower protections prohibiting a covered entity from discharging, demoting, suspending, threatening, harassing, or otherwise discriminating against a covered individual for providing information or assisting in investigations of reasonably believed illegal conduct or violations of the Act or its amendments, participating in related proceedings, or refusing to violate any law, rule, or regulation. Enforcement requires complaints to be filed with the Department of Agriculture Office of Inspector General for investigation, governed by procedures in the food safety whistleblower provision (21 U.S.C. 399d(i.e., protections for food industry employees reporting Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act violations)) but resolved within 21 days; prevailing individuals receive remedies equivalent to those under 21 U.S.C. 399d(b)(4)(B)(i.e., reinstatement, back pay, and compensatory damages). (Thus, unlike the 399d process administered by the Secretary of Labor with a 180-day complaint filing deadline and 60-day investigation period, complaints here allow de novo federal district court review if unresolved after 210 days.) The section preserves other federal, state, and collective bargaining rights or remedies; prohibits waiver of these protections, including by predispute arbitration agreements; and renders such arbitration agreements unenforceable for disputes under this section.

This section directs the Under Secretary of Agriculture for Food Safety, in coordination with the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, to conduct a study on the public health threat of nonambulatory pigs entering the food system and to submit a report to Congress—and make it publicly available—within one year of enactment. The report must describe the public health impacts of specified pathogens associated with nonambulatory pigs, including swine influenza viruses H1N1 and H3N2, Salmonella, Yersinia enterocolitica, Campylobacter, and Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus.