(February 20, 2008)--Texas A&M University will pay the federal government $1 million as part of its effort to restart a biodefense program suspended for multiple security violations.

The agreement with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services was announced Wednesday.

The A&M biodefense program remains shut down by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

CDC inspections repeatedly found problems with A&M's program but failed to discover that one worker was infected with Brucella and others were exposed to Q fever.

Both diseases, highly contagious in animals, are rarely fatal in humans but can cause high fever and flu-like symptoms.

Reports of the inspections, obtained by The Dallas Morning News last fall, found various problems, including unauthorized workers with access to infectious diseases; improper storage of dangerous agents and infected animals, and inadequate security plans, training procedures and record keeping.

An Austin-based bioweapons watchdog group called The Sunshine Project first disclosed earlier last year that workers were exposed to some toxic agents.

As a result, two A&M research officials resigned and CDC officials halted the university's federally funded "select agent" research.

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