Tom Harkin: “in May 1995, Larry Wayne Harris of Ohio ordered three vials of the bacterium that causes bubonic plague to be FedEx'ed…”

“in May 1995, Larry Wayne Harris of Ohio ordered three vials of the bacterium that causes bubonic plague to be FedEx'ed from a company in Rockville, MD. At the time, all he needed was a credit card and letterhead. He invented both the letterhead and the lab he claimed to be from. In fact he was a member of a white supremacist group who would later tell of plans to kill hundreds of thousands of Americans with the plague. But when he was arrested with the vials, he was only charged with mail fraud for misrepresenting himself. No Federal license, registration, or even notification was required to obtain, own, or work with the plague. Partly as a result of this incident, Congress in 1996 passed provisions in the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act to close the specific loophole. This bill required the Secretary of Health and Human Services to regulate transfer of a select list of biological agents. But it did not regulate possession or use of the agents. The subsequent regulations incorporated safety standards for labs receiving these agents, but set virtually no security standards to make sure these agents don't end in the wrong hands. They carved out broad exemptions, including all certified clinical laboratories. And they included little means of enforcement. I think most Americans would be shocked to learn that we still have no idea who has anthrax, plague, or other biological agents in their freezer.”