PAST Act

II 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. 1007 To amend the Horse Protection Act to designate additional unlawful acts under the Act, strengthen penalties for violations of the Act, improve Department of Agriculture enforcement of the Act, and for other pur- poses. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES APRIL 3, 2019 Mr. CRAPO (for himself, Mr. WARNER, Ms. COLLINS, Mr. BLUMENTHAL, Mr. MARKEY, Mr. MORAN, Mrs. FEINSTEIN, Mr. CASEY, Mr. WYDEN, Mr. DAINES, and Mr. TOOMEY) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Trans- portation A BILL To amend the Horse Protection Act to designate additional unlawful acts under the Act, strengthen penalties for violations of the Act, improve Department of Agriculture enforcement of the Act, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Prevent All Soring 4 Tactics Act of 2019’’ or the ‘‘PAST Act’’. 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:37 Apr 09, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1007.IS S1007 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •S 1007 IS SEC. 2. INCREASED ENFORCEMENT UNDER HORSE PRO- 1 TECTION ACT. 2 (a) DEFINITIONS.—Section 2 of the Horse Protection 3 Act (15 U.S.C. 1821) is amended— 4 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (1), (2), (3), 5 and (4) as paragraphs (2), (3), (4), and (5), respec- 6 tively; 7 (2) by inserting before paragraph (2) (as so re- 8 designated) the following new paragraph: 9 ‘‘(1)(A) The term ‘action device’ means any 10 boot, collar, chain, roller, or other device that encir- 11 cles or is placed upon the lower extremity of the leg 12 of a horse in such a manner that it can— 13 ‘‘(i) rotate around the leg or slide up and 14 down the leg, so as to cause friction; or 15 ‘‘(ii) strike the hoof, coronet band, fetlock 16 joint, or pastern of the horse. 17 ‘‘(B) Such term does not include soft rubber or 18 soft leather bell boots or quarter boots that are used 19 as protective devices.’’; and 20 (3) by adding at the end the following new 21 paragraph: 22 ‘‘(6)(A) The term ‘participate’ means engaging 23 in any activity with respect to a horse show, horse 24 exhibition, or horse sale or auction, including— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:37 Apr 09, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1007.IS S1007 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •S 1007 IS ‘‘(i) transporting or arranging for the 1 transportation of a horse to or from a horse 2 show, horse exhibition, or horse sale or auction; 3 ‘‘(ii) personally giving instructions to an 4 exhibitor; or 5 ‘‘(iii) being knowingly present in a warm- 6 up area, inspection area, or other area at a 7 horse show, horse exhibition, or horse sale or 8 auction that spectators are not permitted to 9 enter. 10 ‘‘(B) Such term does not include spectating.’’. 11 (b) FINDINGS.—Section 3 of the Horse Protection 12 Act (15 U.S.C. 1822) is amended— 13 (1) in paragraph (3)— 14 (A) by inserting ‘‘and soring horses for 15 such purposes’’ after ‘‘horses in intrastate com- 16 merce’’; and 17 (B) by inserting ‘‘in many ways, including 18 by creating unfair competition, by deceiving the 19 spectating public and horse buyers, and by neg- 20 atively impacting horse sales’’ before the semi- 21 colon; 22 (2) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 23 end; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:37 Apr 09, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1007.IS S1007 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •S 1007 IS (3) in paragraph (5), by striking the period at 1 the end and inserting a semicolon; and 2 (4) by adding at the end the following new 3 paragraphs: 4 ‘‘(6) the Inspector General of the Department 5 of Agriculture has determined that the program 6 through which the Secretary inspects horses is inad- 7 equate for preventing soring; 8 ‘‘(7) historically, Tennessee Walking Horses, 9 Racking Horses, and Spotted Saddle Horses have 10 been subjected to soring; and 11 ‘‘(8) despite regulations in effect related to in- 12 spection for purposes of ensuring that horses are not 13 sore, violations of this Act continue to be prevalent 14 in the Tennessee Walking Horse, Racking Horse, 15 and Spotted Saddle Horse breeds.’’. 16 (c) HORSE SHOWS AND EXHIBITIONS.—Section 4 of 17 the Horse Protection Act (15 U.S.C. 1823) is amended— 18 (1) in subsection (a)— 19 (A) by striking ‘‘appointed’’ and inserting 20 ‘‘licensed’’; and 21 (B) by adding at the end the following new 22 sentences: ‘‘In the first instance in which the 23 Secretary determines that a horse is sore, the 24 Secretary shall disqualify the horse from being 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:37 Apr 09, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1007.IS S1007 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 5 •S 1007 IS shown or exhibited for a period of not less than 1 180 days. In the second instance in which the 2 Secretary determines that such horse is sore, 3 the Secretary shall disqualify the horse for a 4 period of not less than one year. In the third 5 instance in which the Secretary determines that 6 such horse is sore, the Secretary shall disqualify 7 the horse for a period of not less than three 8 years.’’; 9 (2) in subsection (b) by striking ‘‘appointed’’ 10 and inserting ‘‘licensed’’; 11 (3) by striking subsection (c) and inserting the 12 following new subsection: 13 ‘‘(c)(1)(A) The Secretary shall prescribe by regula- 14 tion requirements for the Department of Agriculture to 15 license, train, assign, and oversee persons qualified to de- 16 tect and diagnose a horse which is sore or to otherwise 17 inspect horses at horse shows, horse exhibitions, or horse 18 sales or auctions, for hire by the management of such 19 events, for the purposes of enforcing this Act. 20 ‘‘(B) No person shall be issued a license under this 21 subsection unless such person is free from conflicts of in- 22 terest, as defined by the Secretary in the regulations 23 issued under subparagraph (A). 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:37 Apr 09, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1007.IS S1007 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 6 •S 1007 IS ‘‘(C) If the Secretary determines that the perform- 1 ance of a person licensed in accordance with subparagraph 2 (A) is unsatisfactory, the Secretary may, after notice and 3 an opportunity for a hearing, revoke the license issued to 4 such person. 5 ‘‘(D) In issuing licenses under this subsection, the 6 Secretary shall give a preference to persons who are li- 7 censed or accredited veterinarians. 8 ‘‘(E) Licensure of a person in accordance with the 9 requirements prescribed under this subsection shall not be 10 construed as authorizing such person to conduct inspec- 11 tions in a manner other than that prescribed for inspec- 12 tions by the Secretary (or the Secretary’s representative) 13 under subsection (e). 14 ‘‘(2)(A) Not later than 30 days before the date on 15 which a horse show, horse exhibition, or horse sale or auc- 16 tion begins, the management of such show, exhibition, or 17 sale or auction may notify the Secretary of the intent of 18 the management to hire a person or persons licensed 19 under this subsection and assigned by the Secretary to 20 conduct inspections at such show, exhibition, or sale or 21 auction. 22 ‘‘(B) After such notification, the Secretary shall as- 23 sign a person or persons licensed under this subsection 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:37 Apr 09, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1007.IS S1007 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 7 •S 1007 IS to conduct inspections at the horse show, horse exhibition, 1 or horse sale or auction. 2 ‘‘(3) A person licensed by the Secretary to conduct 3 inspections under this subsection shall issue a citation 4 with respect to any violation of this Act recorded during 5 an inspection and notify the Secretary of each such viola- 6 tion not later than five days after the date on which a 7 citation was issued with respect to such violation.’’; and 8 (4) by adding at the end the following new sub- 9 section: 10 ‘‘(f) The Secretary shall publish on the public website 11 of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service of the 12 Department of Agriculture, and update as frequently as 13 the Secretary determines is necessary, information on vio- 14 lations of this Act for the purposes of allowing the man- 15 agement of a horse show, horse exhibition, or horse sale 16 or auction to determine if an individual is in violation of 17 this Act.’’. 18 (d) UNLAWFUL ACTS.—Section 5 of the Horse Pro- 19 tection Act (15 U.S.C. 1824) is amended— 20 (1) in paragraph (2)— 21 (A) by striking ‘‘or (C) respecting’’ and in- 22 serting ‘‘(C), or (D) respecting’’; and 23 (B) by striking ‘‘and (D)’’ and inserting 24 ‘‘(D) causing a horse to become sore or direct- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:37 Apr 09, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1007.IS S1007 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 8 •S 1007 IS ing another person to cause a horse to become 1 sore for the purpose of showing, exhibiting, sell- 2 ing, auctioning, or offering for sale the horse in 3 any horse show, horse exhibition, or horse sale 4 or auction, and (E)’’; 5 (2) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘appoint’’ and 6 inserting ‘‘hire’’; 7 (3) in paragraph (4)— 8 (A) by striking ‘‘appoint’’ and inserting 9 ‘‘hire’’; and 10 (B) by striking ‘‘qualified’’; 11 (4) in paragraph (5), by striking ‘‘appointed’’ 12 and inserting ‘‘hired’’; 13 (5) in paragraph (6)— 14 (A) by striking ‘‘appointed’’ and inserting 15 ‘‘hired’’; and 16 (B) by inserting ‘‘that the horse is sore’’ 17 after ‘‘the Secretary’’; and 18 (6) by adding at the end the following new 19 paragraphs: 20 ‘‘(12) The use of an action device on any limb 21 of a Tennessee Walking Horse, a Racking Horse, or 22 a Spotted Saddle Horse at a horse show, horse exhi- 23 bition, or horse sale or auction. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:37 Apr 09, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1007.IS S1007 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 9 •S 1007 IS ‘‘(13) The use of a weighted shoe, pad, wedge, 1 hoof band, or other device or material at a horse 2 show, horse exhibition, or horse sale or auction 3 that— 4 ‘‘(A) is placed on, inserted in, or attached 5 to any limb of a Tennessee Walking Horse, a 6 Racking Horse, or a Spotted Saddle Horse; 7 ‘‘(B) is constructed to artificially alter the 8 gait of such a horse; and 9 ‘‘(C) is not strictly protective or thera- 10 peutic in nature.’’. 11 (e) VIOLATIONS AND PENALTIES.—Section 6 of the 12 Horse Protection Act (15 U.S.C. 1825) is amended— 13 (1) in subsection (a)— 14 (A) in paragraph (1)— 15 (i) by striking ‘‘Except as provided in 16 paragraph (2) of this subsection, any per- 17 son who knowingly violates section 5’’ and 18 inserting ‘‘Any person who knowingly vio- 19 lates section 5 or the regulations issued 20 under such section, including any violation 21 recorded during an inspection conducted in 22 accordance with section 4(c) or 4(e)’’; and 23 (ii) by striking ‘‘more than $3,000, or 24 imprisoned for not more than one year, or 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:37 Apr 09, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1007.IS S1007 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 10 •S 1007 IS both.’’ and inserting ‘‘more than $5,000, 1 or imprisoned for not more than three 2 years, or both, for each such violation.’’; 3 (B) in paragraph (2)— 4 (i) by striking subparagraph (A); 5 (ii) by striking ‘‘(2)’’; and 6 (iii) by redesignating subparagraphs 7 (B) and (C) as paragraphs (2) and (3), re- 8 spectively, and moving the margins of such 9 paragraphs (as so redesignated) two ems 10 to the left; and 11 (C) by adding at the end the following new 12 paragraph: 13 ‘‘(4) Any person who knowingly fails to obey an order 14 of disqualification shall, upon conviction thereof, be fined 15 not more than $5,000 for each failure to obey such an 16 order, imprisoned for not more than three years, or both.’’; 17 (2) in subsection (b)— 18 (A) in paragraph (1)— 19 (i) by striking ‘‘section 5 of this Act’’ 20 and inserting ‘‘section 5 or the regulations 21 issued under such section’’; and 22 (ii) by striking ‘‘$2,000’’ and insert- 23 ing ‘‘$4,000’’; and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:37 Apr 09, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1007.IS S1007 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 11 •S 1007 IS (B) by adding at the end the following new 1 paragraph: 2 ‘‘(5) Any person who fails to pay a licensed inspector 3 hired under section 4(c) shall, upon conviction thereof, be 4 fined not more than $4,000 for each such violation.’’; and 5 (3) in subsection (c)— 6 (A) in the first sentence— 7 (i) by inserting ‘‘, or otherwise partici- 8 pating in any horse show, horse exhibition, 9 or horse sale or auction’’ before ‘‘for a pe- 10 riod of not less than one year’’; and 11 (ii) by striking ‘‘any subsequent’’ and 12 inserting ‘‘the second’’; 13 (B) by inserting before ‘‘Any person who 14 knowingly fails’’ the following: ‘‘For the third 15 or any subsequent violation, a person may be 16 permanently disqualified by order of the Sec- 17 retary, after notice and an opportunity for a 18 hearing before the Secretary, from showing or 19 exhibiting any horse, judging or managing any 20 horse show, horse exhibition, or horse sale or 21 auction, or otherwise participating in, including 22 financing the participation of other individuals 23 in, any horse show, horse exhibition, or horse 24 sale or auction (regardless of whether walking 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:37 Apr 09, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1007.IS S1007 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 12 •S 1007 IS horses are shown, exhibited, sold, auctioned, or 1 offered for sale at the horse show, horse exhi- 2 bition, or horse sale or auction).’’; and 3 (C) by striking ‘‘$3,000’’ each place it ap- 4 pears and inserting ‘‘$5,000’’. 5 (f) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 180 days after 6 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of 7 Agriculture shall issue regulations to carry out the amend- 8 ments made by this section, including regulations pre- 9 scribing the requirements under subsection (c) of section 10 4 of the Horse Protection Act (15 U.S.C. 1823(c)), as 11 amended by subsection (c)(3). 12 (g) SEVERABILITY.—If any provision of this Act or 13 any amendment made by this Act, or the application of 14 a provision to any person or circumstance, is held to be 15 unconstitutional, the remainder of this Act and the 16 amendments made by this Act, and the application of the 17 provisions to any person or circumstance, sha [Text truncated for display. 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