the proposed regulations created some ambiguity with respect to 

 what facilities and what activities come within the scope of the 

 regulations. The Commission recommended that the Service clarify 

 the definition and suggested that the substantive requirements of 

 the regulations should apply to all "federally funded research on 

 marine mammals and other animals or any research which involves 

 the purchase or transport of live animals in commerce." The 

 Commission further recommended that field research, not of a 

 biomedical nature and involving little or no pain or distress in 

 the subject animals, be exempted from the regulatory provisions. 



The final rules revising parts 1 and 2 of the Animal Welfare 

 Act regulations were published in the Federal Register on 31 

 August 1989 and became effective on 30 October 1989. Among other 

 things, the regulations: 



require a semi-annual review of each research facility's 

 program for humane care and use of animals (including review of 

 provisions requiring that pain and distress are minimized) by the 

 facility's Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee. In 

 addition, a semi-annual inspection of the research facility's 

 animal facilities must be conducted by the Committee. 



exempt Federal research facilities from the requirement 

 to register with the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, 

 but require such facilities to meet the same standards as non- 

 federal research facilities. Deficiencies must be reported to 

 the head of the Federal agency conducting the research who shall 

 be responsible for corrective action. 



exempt field studies (defined in the final rule as "any 

 study conducted on free-living wild animals in their natural 

 habitat, which does not involve an invasive procedure, and which 

 does not harm or materially alter the behavior of the animals 

 under study,") from Committee review and inspection. 



require each research facility to establish and maintain 

 a program of adequate veterinary care including: appointment of 

 an attending veterinarian; availability of appropriate 

 facilities, personnel, and services; the use of appropriate 

 methods to prevent, control, diagnose, and treat diseases and 

 injuries; availability of emergency, weekend, and holiday care; 

 daily observation of all animals to assess their health and well- 

 being; guidance to principal investigators and other personnel 

 concerning the care and use of animals, particularly with respect 

 to handling, immobilization, anesthesia, analgesia, tranquil- 

 izinq, and euthanasia; and pre-procedural and post-procedural 

 care in accordance with established veterinary practice; and 



direct the principal investigator to provide written 

 assurance to the Committee that the proposed research activities 

 do not unnecessarily duplicate previous experiments. 



198 



