By RICK A. RICHARDS
Indiana Correspondent

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Under any circumstance, a 15 percent budget cut would have a major impact on an organization, but when it follows cuts of 6 and 4 percent the previous two years, it can be devastating.

That’s how Dr. Steve Hooser, a veterinarian and director of the Indiana Animal Disease Diagnostic Lab (ADDL), described the situation facing his office this year. Because of state budgetary concerns, Gov. Mitch Daniels has ordered all state agencies and departments to slice 15 percent from their budget.
Hooser said that would cut the ADDL’s current $3.4 million annual budget to $2.9 million and result in the loss of jobs. “If this goes through, it’s going to change the way we operate,” he said.

Though the ADDL is based at Purdue University and uses its veterinary science professors to help staff its lab, he explained that the ADDL provides services statewide. “We do testing of livestock and animal disease surveillance for the state. It’s our job to be on the lookout for foreign diseases,” said Hooser.
The ADDL is set up to prevent, control and eradicate animal diseases in the state, and to provide prompt and accurate diagnostic service to clients. It works with local, state, federal and international partners to protect Indiana animals and people, said Hooser.

It’s the only veterinary lab in Indiana that diagnoses diseases in livestock, poultry, pets and wildlife. Hooser said in 2009, the ADDL analyzed 27,000 samples and ran 250,000 tests and examinations on livestock, companion animals, fish and poultry to diagnose disease.

But with cuts in its budget the last two years, Hooser said he wonders if the ADDL will be able to meet the requirements of its state mandate. He said the lab can barely keep up with the daily demands of its mandate because of cuts made the past two years.

“If there’s an emergency where we need to test a lot of samples because of an outbreak of disease, we won’t be able to do it,” said Hooser.

With a staff of 50 veterinarians, lab technicians and administrative staff at Purdue and the Heeke ADDL satellite laboratory near Jasper in DuBois County, in southern Indiana, Hooser sees no alternative except to cut staff.

“The Heeke Lab will probably be closed if this goes through,” he said. Five employees work there. “That lab is important because there is a huge poultry industry in the southern part of the state and it is always looking out for and testing for diseases of consequence to that industry.”

Denise Derrer, a spokeswoman for the Indiana Board of Animal Health in Indianapolis, wouldn’t comment on the specifics of the proposed budget cuts for ADDL.

“The value of that lab to the state, it’s hard to put a dollar amount on it. There is a lot going on right now with concerns over PRRS (porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome) in swine and Bovine TB. A lot of producers and veterinarians depend on the lab,” she said.

Hooser said the budget process for ADDL is further muddled because even though it is an independent agency set up for the state, it operates through the Department of Agriculture Science at Purdue and its budget shows up as a line item in the school’s budget.

He praised Purdue for lobbying vigorously since the beginning of the year to rollback or eliminate the cuts. For some programs, such as the extension service, the cuts have been reduced from 15 to 7.5 percent – but that hasn’t happened with the ADDL, said Hooser.

“If the cut goes through, yes, we’ll have to cut staff,” he said. “Compounding the problem is that over the last 10 years, state appropriations have not kept up with our needs. We’ve already reduced our staff by 18 people over the last 10 years. That’s 20 percent of our staff.

“We’re at bare bones now, and if there’s an outbreak, we simply don’t have the capacity to handle it. Any cuts mean we’re going to lose people.”

Hooser, who has been director since 2008, said recent years have been difficult. While the Indiana General Assembly in 2009 changed legislation that allows the ADDL to use its fee income to pay salaries, that hasn’t happened. He said when the law was changed, the recession hit and the income from fees – some $1.5 million – was used to buy needed lab supplies.

The amount of money coming in from testing and lab fees had declined, but Hooser said he’s starting to notice a slight increase. He’s hopeful things will improve. “There is a glimmer of hope for the future,” he said. “I know that everyone has to bite the bullet in these times, but there are some things we’re supposed to do that we simply can’t do anymore.”

He said tests for equine piroplasmosis, a wasting disease in horses, and salmonella testing in poultry have to be sent to labs out of state. “We simply don’t have enough people to do the testing, especially if the poultry people ask us to come and do a large test, say on 10,000 eggs.

“It’s frustrating because that’s what we were created for. We all want to do those tests, but we can’t. It’s gotten to the point where we don’t have enough people now – and that’s before this proposed 15 percent cut.”