By Sara Amundson and Kitty Block

In the U.S., the State of the Union address gives the president an opportunity to speak to a joint session of Congress about the nation’s condition, sharing legislative and regulatory proposals and communicating and reinforcing priorities. In recent years, we’ve used this time to spell out our own priorities and to reflect upon the U.S. government’s performance on animal protection issues.

By Sara Amundson and Kitty Block

The U.S. Department of Agriculture just proposed increasing or altogether eliminating speed limits for slaughter lines, which puts animals, workers and the public at risk. Accelerated slaughter line speeds are nothing less than a recipe for cruelty and chaos. Faster speeds risk horrific cruelty to animals and put workers at higher risk of debilitating injuries, all while compromising food safety.

It’s my privilege to share our Humane Scorecard for the first session of the 119th Congress. The scorecard tracks key co-sponsorships, votes and other animal-friendly actions by federal lawmakers. It’s an accountability tool we use to cultivate greater awareness among legislators as well as incentives for their future commitment. Please look to see how your senators and congressional representative scored; the scorecard is something you can share with others who care about animals, too.

By Sara Amundson and Kitty Block

Last month, the U.S. Department of Justice sued the state of Michigan over cage-free eggs. The lawsuit is an attempt to gut a 2019 law requiring that eggs produced and sold in the state come from hens kept in cage-free environments. The move tries to reverse a trend that goes well beyond Michigan, the broad public rejection of the obvious cruelty of intensively confining farmed animals in cages so small they can hardly move.

By Sara Amundson and Kitty Block

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s announcement last week that it will suspend until December 31, 2026, the implementation of regulatory reforms designed to protect horses from soring conceals a bitter truth. In further stalling its enforcement of a final rule to prevent a stone-cold cruelty, the agency has abdicated its responsibility to protect horses under the Horse Protection Act, as directed by Congress. The announcement itself is proof.

By Sara Amundson and Kitty Block

For years, successive UK governments, including the current one, have promised to ban trophy hunting imports from certain kinds of imperiled wild animals, such as the severed heads and feet from elephants, lions and rhinos. In recent years, three bills have been introduced to stop British hunters from bringing home trophy souvenirs, two of which came close to becoming law.

By Sara Amundson and Kitty Block

There’s some good news for animals in the funding packages for the U.S. Department of Interior and the U.S. Department of Justice that passed the Senate last week and were just signed into law.

These wins are the result of animal advocates—both us and our allies—who never wavered in the view that the protection of animals matters, and that it’s something that the American people want. Here are the animal welfare wins in the FY2026 funding packages:

Gray wolves and grizzly bears saved

Subscribe to Blog