The U.S. House of Representatives is moving forward on more of the bills funding various federal departments, and we are happy to report there are additional boosts for priority animal protection goals. Last week, the House Appropriations Committee approved bills covering the Departments of Health and Human Services, Homeland Security, Commerce, and Justice, among others.

By Sara Amundson and Kitty Block

A bad reputation can mean the difference between life and death for animals, and nowhere is this clearer than for sharks. Sharks may be depicted as terrifying animals in films like “Jaws,” but the true tale of horror is how humans have treated shark species for centuries across the world.

For the first time in more than a decade, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has released an internal audit of its Animal Care program that licenses and inspects puppy mills that sell to pet stores and online. And the most significant finding is a disturbing one: the auditors found that the program “did not consistently address or adequately document 145 of the 322 complaints we reviewed,” indicating that almost half of the complaints about dog breeders were handled inappropriately, if at all.

One of our primary responsibilities as a leading voice for animals in the nation’s capital is to influence congressional deliberations concerning the annual budgets for federal agencies where animal welfare is in play. We’re off to an outstanding start for 2022! This week, the House Appropriations Committee approved a number of our priority requests in its Fiscal Year 2022 bills covering the U.S. Departments of Agriculture, State, Interior and other agencies.

By Sara Amundson and Kitty Block

Update 7/1/2021: The INVEST in America Act (H.R. 3684) has passed out of the U.S. House of Representatives by a vote of 221 to 201. We urge the Senate to include the House amendments in their version of the bill and pass it swiftly in order to make these historic wins for animals law!

The surface transportation bill—the INVEST in America Act (H.R. 3684)—which is part of Congress’ infrastructure package is set to include a number of good animal protection measures. Two of the most important focus on the welfare of horses and wildlife whose fate are shaped by our transportation systems and practices. Amendment #187 would outlaw the transport of America’s equines to slaughter for human consumption, while amendment #41 would authorize a national wildlife corridors system to mitigate habitat fragmentation and wildlife-vehicle collisions.

By Sara Amundson and Kitty Block

Update 10/1/2021: The PAST Act has now been reintroduced in the House of Representatives with 213 cosponsors. We hope that this is finally the beginning of the end of the extremely cruel practice of horse soring. 

By Sara Amundson and Kitty Block

Today the U.S. Senate rejected the continuation of the shark fin trade by passing the Shark Fin Sales Elimination Act (SFSEA) as part of a broader legislative package, the U.S. Innovation and Competition Act, S. 1260. This victory for sharks is overdue, as the international fin trade is forcing many of these apex species toward extinction.