HB 253

Texas is facing increasing threats to animal health from rapidly spreading diseases and invasive parasitic insects such as the New World screwworm, which endangers the state's livestock industry, wildlife populations, public health, and rural economies that depend on animal agriculture. While the state currently relies on multiagency collaboration across the Texas Animal Health Commission (TAHC), the Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD), and academic partners to track and respond to disease events, no permanent centralized institute exists to coordinate research, field responses, and treatments focused specifically on animal disease outbreaks and invasive parasites, which may limit the state's ability to prepare for and respond to these emergencies. H.B. 253 seeks to address this issue by creating the Institute for Animal Health Research and