Prevention of Equine Cruelty Act Placed on "Hold"

By Dr. Angela Demaree, Assistant Director of the GRD

Animal Welfare issues and legislation are anything but routine inside the beltway. Most bills go through a routine process before being signed into law. In general the process is: (1) introduction into the House and/or Senate, (2) referral to relevant committee(s) and subcommittee(s), (3) hearings are held to hear arguments for and against legislation, (4) subcommittee and full committee markups are held to amend the legislation as needed, (5) passage in the House and Senate, (6) the bill language is reconciled if it is not identical between both Chambers, and finally (7) signed into law by the President of the United States.

This process however, often becomes complicated by political maneuvering. A few weeks ago, I found myself fielding phone calls one evening from Senate staff inquiring about and confirming the AVMA's position on S. 727, the Prevention of Equine Cruelty Act as introduced by Senator Mary Landrieu (D-La.). It turned out that there was an attempt to circumvent due process by bringing the bill to the Senate Floor for a vote before Hearings or Committee debate had occurred-otherwise known as "hot-lining" a bill. S. 727 did not go for a vote on the Senate floor because several Senators objected by placing a "hold" on the bill. This means that the bill will not move forward until the Senators' objections are reconciled.

As a reminder, the AVMA OPPOSES the Prevention of Equine Cruelty Act because it does nothing to improve the welfare of the horses it intends to protect. It is our belief that passage of this bill will create a series of unintended consequences that negatively impact the health and welfare of the horse. You have to look no further than national magazines and your own local newspapers to see evidence of the negative impact on the unwanted horse population:

From The New York Times, February 2009: "Hard Time for Horses" —

"This is definitely a very bad time to be a horse," Ms. Kanciper said, confirming the negative development — driven by panicky, cash-strapped owners and an unforgiving economy — that has uprooted Maple and an as-yet-unknown number of his species."

Take Action today to remind your Members of Congress that with passage of the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act for FY2010, Congress directed the Governmental Accountability Office to study the issue of Horse Welfare and report back by March of 2010.

The AVMA is dedicated to improving the welfare of ALL animals and believes that it is important to get the information back from the GAO study before taking legislative action on this multifaceted issue.

For more information, please contact Dr. Angela Demaree at ademaree@avma.org.