By Dr. Michael Payne, UCD School of Vet Med and Director CDQAP
CDFA’s long-standing practice of maintaining the confidentiality of quarantined farms was upheld in a July 22 ruling by Sacramento Superior Court Judge Shelleyanne Chang. California Rural Legal Assistance, CRLA, a legal justice non-profit, had sought to force CDFA to release the names and locations of dairies quarantined during the state’s HPAI outbreak under California’s Public Records Act. CRLA asserted that knowing locations would allow targeted health education and outreach to at-risk dairy workers. The court however sided with CDFA that maintaining confidentiality of dairy operators was key to getting their cooperation, especially in reporting symptoms of sick cows.
Westen United Dairies, which provided the court with data on the efforts producers made to protect their employees during the outbreak, celebrated the victory in their newsletter: "This decision protects more than farm privacy. It protects California’s ability to respond to the next disease outbreak. When dairy farmers know they can work with animal health officials without exposing their operations to unnecessary risk, everyone benefits."
Written expert testimony submitted by CDQAP’s Dr. Michael Payne, explaining potential threats to critical biosecurity, were extensively cited in judge’s decision.