In United States law, select agents are biological agents or biological toxins which have been declared by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services or by the U.S. Department of Agriculture to have the "potential to pose a severe threat to public health and safety". The Centers for Disease Control administers the Select Agent Program (SAP), which regulates the laboratories which may possess, use, or transfer select agents within the United States. The SAP was established to satisfy requirements of the USA PATRIOT Act and the Public Health Security and Bioterrorism Preparedness and Response Act of 2002, which were enacted in the wake of the September 11, 2001 attacks and the subsequent 2001 anthrax attacks. Each agency has developed and will maintain a list of Select Agents, including human, animal and plant pathogens, high-risk toxins of biological origin, and prions. The current list of Select Agents can be accessed at the CDC and USDA websites.

In an effort to comply with the regulations, the university has developed very stringent policies to be followed when investigators plan to use select agents. Please go the Biosafety Committee website to read the university’s Select Agent Policy and Procedure Manual.