New, or newly detected, plant diseases are reported regularly in scientific literature. The lag time between initial disease development and reporting may be months to years, depending on various factors. There is no requirement in the U.S. for reporting plant diseases as there is for human diseases; thus some serious plant diseases may go unreported. Satellite imagery is becoming increasingly sophisticated and the potential exists for the detection of plant diseases by this means, but at present, ground surveillance is required to identify the particular disease(s) responsible for the damage. Molecular as well as traditional diagnostic techniques are used routinely in many cases. Staffing in government and at colleges of agriculture in the U.S. has been reduced significantly due to budget constraints, and positions with extension or applied research responsibilities have been deemphasized. The U.S. is vulnerable to acts of bioterrorism due in part to a declining number of plant pathologists who can identify agents of plant disease. Greater emphasis on disease identification and a formal procedure for surveying and reporting serious new plant diseases in the U.S. would help to minimize their destructive effects.