S. 4451 — Wildlife Health Coordination and Zoonotic Disease Prevention Act of 2026

This section finds that zoonotic diseases pose significant threats to human, livestock, domestic animal, and wildlife health, noting that more than 6 out of 10 known infectious diseases and 3 out of 4 new or emerging infectious diseases in humans originate in animals, that recent outbreaks such as highly pathogenic avian influenza have cost the Department of Agriculture over $2,500,000,000 in indemnity payments as of February 2025, and that increased coordination is needed among the Department of the Interior, Department of Agriculture, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Department of Homeland Security, and state and tribal agencies to improve surveillance, detection, and response.

This section defines terms used in the Act, including Indian Tribe (with the meaning given in section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act), livestock (with the meaning given in section 10403 of the Animal Health Protection Act), the Program (the Wildlife Health Coordination and Zoonotic Disease Program established by section 4(a)), wildlife health coordinator, wildlife disease (any infectious disease originating in wildlife that can be transmitted to non-human animals), and zoonotic disease (any disease transmissible between animals and humans, including wildlife diseases).

This section establishes the Wildlife Health Coordination and Zoonotic Disease Program within the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, to be jointly administered by the Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service and the Administrator of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, to serve as a liaison among the Departments of the Interior and Agriculture, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Department of Homeland Security, and other Federal, State, and Tribal agencies on wildlife health issues and diseases with zoonotic potential. The section also establishes one National Wildlife Health Coordinator (appointed by the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies), one Tribal Wildlife Health Coordinator (appointed by the Native American Fish and Wildlife Society), and four Regional Wildlife Health Coordinators (one each appointed by the Western, Midwest, Northeast, and Southeastern Associations of Fish and Wildlife Agencies) to facilitate information sharing, assist States and Indian Tribes with resources for disease surveillance and response, coordinate across agencies, develop best management practices, and report to Congress on interagency coordination and resource needs.