Develop estimates of the personnel and time required to review and issue movement permits in a F OOT-and-mouth disease outbreak

Movement control of live animals through permitting during a foreign animal disease outbreak is an important tool for limiting disease transmission risk while supporting animal welfare and business continuity. Although secure food supply permitting plans have been developed, these do not include estimates for the time required to review and issue permits nor for the number of personnel required to implement the plans. Further, states' permitting plans differ with respect to which movements require permits. Some plans call for permitting all movements, while others only require permits to move out of control zones. Resource requirements depend on both the number and type of movements to be permitted. This project will enhance and improve information and processes to support animal movement decisions by defining the perm itting processes at a more granular level and quantifying the resources required for their mplementation. To accomplish this objective, we will create a detailed process map of the permitting process, to include both the types of personnel required and time estima TES for each step. These will be coupled with simulated movement data representing the volume, timing, and daily variability in permit requests. A discrete event simulation model will be developed, which we will then utilize to examine multiple scenarios representing different permitting policies, resource levels, and process time targets. The project's intended beneficiaries are state and federal animal health officials and policy decision makers, as well as cattle veterinarians. The anticipated outcome is that these stakeholders will have access to improved estimates of the personnel and time required to review and issue movement permits, supporting future planning and operations with respect to disease control and biosecurity. This outcome will be achieved through the project's primary deliverables, which include presentations to decision makers, practicing veterinarians, and scientific audiences through presentations and refereed journal publications.