Officials with the Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory at Iowa State University are asking the state Legislature for an additional $1.5 million to keep up with animal disease testing.
Dan Grooms, dean of the College of Veterinary Medicine, spoke during the House Agriculture and Natural Resources Appropriations Subcommittee Monday.
“The importance of the work that we do in the College of Veterinary Medicine and in the diagnostic lab really has never been more important, as we think about what's going on around us in the world, with respect to infectious diseases, animal diseases and even human diseases.”
The lab’s executive director, Pat Halbur, says the bulk of the funding comes from fees paid by users, such as livestock producers who send in samples to test for diseases, like bird flu. He says support from the state helps keep those fees low.
State funding for the Veterinary Diagnostic Lab last year was $4.6 million, which covered less than 20% of the lab’s budget. On average, veterinary diagnostic labs in the U.S. receive 48% of their funding from state legislatures.