2024 Annual Report of the Federal Select Agent Program:
Infographic of Findings

Federal Select Agent Program 2024 Annual Report: Key Statistics

The 2024 Annual Report of the Federal Select Agent Program (FSAP) provides insight into the program’s regulatory activities and includes a look at compliance with the select agent and toxin regulations at laboratories across the nation. The report also highlights FSAP’s efforts to engage with the regulated community throughout the year to enhance regulatory compliance.

The content underscores that overall, laboratories registered with the program are compliant with the regulations, and none of the small number of reported incidents during the year resulted in a significant risk to public health or agriculture. The publication, now in its tenth year, reflects the program’s ongoing commitment to transparency.

Background

FSAP is managed jointly by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service. The program regulates the possession, use, and transfer of biological select agents and toxins – which are materials that have the potential to pose a severe threat to public, animal or plant health, or to animal or plant products – so that important work with dangerous and deadly pathogens can be conducted as safely and securely as possible.

230 Entities Were Registered With FSAP

• 36% Academic
• 29% Non-Federal Government
• 17% Commercial
• 13% Federal Government
• 5% Private

52% of entities were registered for Tier 1* select agents and toxins

Lab Biosafety Levels (BSL)

Entities May Have Multiple Types

• 28% had BSL-2 and/or ABSL-2 labs
• 77% had BSL-3 and/or ABSL-3 labs
• 3% had BSL-4 and/or ABSL-4 labs

Top Registered Agents by Agency

Some positions have multiple agents tied.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

1. Brucella melitensis
2. Brucella suis
3. Brucella abortus
4. Bacillus anthracis (Pasteur strain)
5. Francisella tularensis*

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

1. Avian influenza virus
2. Newcastle disease virus
3. Ralstonia solanacearum
4. Xanthomonas oryzae
5. African swine fever virus
   Bacillus anthracis*

Some positions have multiple agents tied.

Compliance & Enforcement

• 2 entities participated in a corrective action plan (with 1 entity newly participating in 2024)
• 0 entities had their registrations revoked
• 0 entities had suspended registrations
• 14 security-related matters were shared with the Federal Bureau of Investigation for potential investigation
• 1 entity was referred to APHIS Investigative and Enforcement Services (with 0 entities referred to the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General)

Theft, Loss, or Release

• 0 thefts reported
• 9 reports of losses; 1 loss was recovered by the entity and the other 8 were determined to be related to record keeping issues and not the actual loss of material
• 0 releases resulted in illness, death, or transmission among workers or to the outside of a laboratory into the surrounding environment or community (out of 273 reports)

196 Total Inspections Conducted by FSAP

• 119 by CDC
• 24 by APHIS
• 53 joint CDC & APHIS

8,902 Active Individual Security Risk Assessments

• Denied access for 18 individuals

Outreach

• 4 events held for the regulated community (3 webinars/1 multi-day workshop) on in-depth select agent and toxin topics – estimated 1,093 total attendees
• 26 entities contacted as a result of emergency management activities during which FSAP offered assistance due to events such as severe weather, natural disasters, or other situations with potential impacts to safety or security (8 events, 0 entities required assistance)

Key Abbreviations:

• FSAP: Federal Select Agent Program
• ABSL: Animal biosafety level
• CDC: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
• APHIS: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

*Tier 1 agent: those that pose the greatest risk through misuse

Source: 2024 Annual Report of the Federal Select Agent Program, September 2025 [PDF – 2 MB]