National Service Animals Monument Act

II 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION S. 4733 To designate the National Service Animals Monument to recognize the heroic deeds and sacrifices of service animals and handlers of service animals in the United States, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES SEPTEMBER 24, 2020 Mr. BLUMENTHAL introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources A BILL To designate the National Service Animals Monument to recognize the heroic deeds and sacrifices of service ani- mals and handlers of service animals in the United States, 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 ‘‘National Service Ani- 4 mals Monument Act’’. 5 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 6 Congress finds that— 7 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:51 Oct 17, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4733.IS S4733 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 •S 4733 IS (1) service animals, such as dogs, horses, mules, 1 homing pigeons, and other animals, have accom- 2 panied and supported service members throughout 3 history; 4 (2) service animals have worked alongside law 5 enforcement personnel and first responders in per- 6 forming vital, heroic, and often life-saving support 7 activities, 8 (3) shelter dogs are often trained as service ani- 9 mals; 10 (4) many veterans and individuals with disabil- 11 ities rely on the devotion, training, and care provided 12 by companion, guide, assistance, and therapy ani- 13 mals, which are increasingly important to improving 14 the quality of life of the veterans and individuals 15 with disabilities that rely on the animals; 16 (5) the Department of the Navy— 17 (A) uses sea lions, which have excellent 18 eyesight— 19 (i) to find and retrieve unarmed test 20 ordinance (including practice mines); and 21 (ii) to secure port complexes; and 22 (B) uses dolphins— 23 (i) to find and retrieve equipment lost 24 at sea; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:51 Oct 17, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4733.IS S4733 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 •S 4733 IS (ii) to identify intruders in restricted 1 areas; and 2 (iii) to detect underwater mines; 3 (6) rescue dogs and handlers have been used in 4 many critical disaster settings, including— 5 (A) in the aftermath of avalanches or other 6 natural disasters; and 7 (B) during search and rescue missions, 8 such as the search and rescue missions after 9 the 9/11 terrorist attacks; 10 (7) during World War I and World War II— 11 (A) homing pigeons served as critical mes- 12 sengers with tiny message capsules attached to 13 the legs of the pigeons that were used to send 14 communications to save the lives of countless 15 soldiers, resulting in many pigeons becoming 16 the target of enemy fire; and 17 (B) donkeys and mules transported food, 18 supplies, ammunition, and wounded soldiers 19 during terrible hardships; 20 (8) the military working dog program in the 21 United States— 22 (A) began in World War II with the pro- 23 gram known as ‘‘Dogs for Defense’’; and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:51 Oct 17, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4733.IS S4733 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 •S 4733 IS (B) continues to be an active program in 1 the military; 2 (9) military working dogs— 3 (A) have saved tens of thousands of lives 4 through the service and sacrifice of the dogs; 5 and 6 (B) are one of the greatest assets of the 7 military; 8 (10) service members have served on horseback 9 from the Revolutionary War to the war in Afghani- 10 stan; 11 (11) horses have carried wounded service mem- 12 bers and critical supplies in support of various mili- 13 tary operations; 14 (12) the purple poppy is the international sym- 15 bol for the service and sacrifice of service animals; 16 (13) on February 24 of each year, National 17 Service Animals Day is celebrated in the United 18 States and throughout the world; and 19 (14) a National Service Animals Monument 20 would represent a place of pride, introspection, and 21 education to pay tribute to the contributions and 22 sacrifices made by all service animals and handlers 23 of service animals throughout history. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:51 Oct 17, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4733.IS S4733 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 5 •S 4733 IS SEC. 3. DESIGNATION OF MONUMENT AS NATIONAL SERV- 1 ICE ANIMALS MONUMENT. 2 (a) DESIGNATION.—The monument to commemorate 3 and recognize the heroic deeds and sacrifices of service 4 animals and the handlers of service animals in the United 5 States, to be constructed by the National Service Animals 6 Monument Corporation at a location determined to be ap- 7 propriate by the National Service Animals Monument Cor- 8 poration, is designated as the ‘‘National Service Animals 9 Monument’’. 10 (b) EFFECT OF DESIGNATION.— 11 (1) IN GENERAL.—The monument designated 12 by subsection (a) is not a unit of the National Park 13 System. 14 (2) USE OF FEDERAL FUNDS.—The designation 15 of the monument by subsection (a) shall not require 16 Federal funds to be expended for any purpose relat- 17 ing to the monument. 18 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:51 Oct 17, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\S4733.IS S4733 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS