Foodborne Illness Rapid Response Act

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 9981 Introduced in House (IH)]

<DOC>

119th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 9981

   To prohibit reductions in force or other staffing reductions for
 certain Centers of Disease Control and Prevention divisions, and for
                            other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 30, 2026

  Mr. Gottheimer (for himself and Mr. Bacon) introduced the following
    bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

   To prohibit reductions in force or other staffing reductions for
 certain Centers of Disease Control and Prevention divisions, and for
                            other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Foodborne Illness Rapid Response
Act''.

SEC. 2. PROHIBITION ON REDUCTIONS IN FORCE OR OTHER STAFFING REDUCTIONS
              FOR CERTAIN CENTERS OF DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION
              DIVISIONS.

    Section 205 of the Food Safety Modernization Act (21 U.S.C. 2224)
is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(d) Prohibition on Reductions in Force or Other Staffing
Reductions.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Secretary may not, during the 1-year
        period following a multi-state or nationally significant
        foodborne illness outbreak, carry out a covered staffing
        reduction effort with respect to the divisions of the Centers
        for Disease Control and Prevention responsible for surveillance
        of foodborne diseases and foodborne illness outbreak response.
            ``(2) Covered staffing reduction effort.--In this
        subsection, the term `staffing reduction effort' means any
        agency action (including a reduction in force conducted
        pursuant to subchapter I of chapter 35 of title 5, United
        States Code, or any agency reorganization) that provides for
        the removal of 1 percent or more of the total number of
        employees at each of the divisions of the Centers for Disease
        Control and Prevention responsible for surveillance of
        foodborne diseases and foodborne illness outbreak response
        within a 60-day period.''.
                                 <all>