WASHINGTON — Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced Dec. 12 a new coordinated effort to contain and combat citrus greening, while calling on Congress to reauthorize the farm bill that pumps funds into urgently needed research programs.

A new, unified emergency response framework will bring together the Animal & Plant Health Inspection Service, Agricultural Research Service and National Institute of Food & Agriculture, along with state departments of agriculture and the citrus industry, to respond to Huanglongbing, also known as citrus greening, said Vilsack, who announced the new initiative during a short press conference.

Orange production has declined 9 percent in the last year due to citrus greening, and studies estimate it has resulted in 8,200 fewer jobs if the industry had been in full production, the top U.S. agricultural official said.

During recent weeks, Vilsack has been spotlighting research programs funded by the farm bill, and calling on Congress to hammer out an agreement. Congress is working on a framework agreement, and latest reports suggest votes on a final farm bill will be pushed back to January.

"[The U.S. Department of Agriculture] listened to the citrus industry's request for more urgency and greater coordination on the response to HLB and is implementing an emergency response structure," said Vilsack. "To jumpstart this initiative and affirm our commitment to industry, USDA is also providing $1 million to be used in support of research projects that can bring practical and short-term solutions to the growers in their efforts to combat this disease."

The new multi-agency coordinated group, which will serve as a single contact for all federal and state entities working on citrus issues, will help collaborate policies, allocate future funding and collect, analyze and disseminate information.

Through the Specialty Crop Research Initiative of the farm bill, USDA has provided $9 million in research toward blocking the ability of insects to spread of citrus greening to healthy trees, but the effort will need a new farm bill to continue funding research to protect a crop worth more than $3 billion in the last harvest, he said.

The $9 million helps the citrus industry, which is "hanging by its fingernails" in the wake of the economic damage caused by the disease, said Jack Payne, senior vice president for agriculture and natural resources at the University of Florida, who teamed up with Vilsack during the Dec. 12 press call.

University of Florida is leading the world in research on the plant disease, said Payne, who stressed the importance of farm bill research programs that can help the food industry feed a growing population, protect the environment and respond to climate changes.