I 118TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 3090 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 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES MAY 5, 2023 Mr. FITZPATRICK (for himself, Mr. COHEN, Mr. BUCHANAN, Ms. SCHA- KOWSKY, Mr. BEYER, Mr. SCHIFF, Mr. CONNOLLY, Mr. SHERMAN, Ms. MATSUI, Mr. EVANS, Ms. DAVIDS of Kansas, Mr. PETERS, Ms. WILSON of Florida, Mr. LYNCH, Mr. HUFFMAN, Mr. GOMEZ, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, Mr. TONKO, Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ, Mr. CA´RDENAS, Mr. RUPPERS- BERGER, Mr. QUIGLEY, Mrs. TORRES of California, Mr. BOYLE of Penn- sylvania, Mr. FOSTER, Ms. BROWNLEY, Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia, Mr. STANTON, Mr. POCAN, Ms. GARCIA of Texas, Ms. HOULAHAN, Ms. MENG, Mr. SABLAN, Mr. BISHOP of Georgia, Mr. CASTRO of Texas, Ms. KELLY of Illinois, Mr. ALLRED, Mr. CARBAJAL, Mr. KHANNA, Mr. PA- NETTA, Ms. ESCOBAR, Ms. JACOBS, Mrs. MCBATH, Ms. SA´NCHEZ, Mr. MORELLE, Ms. MOORE of Wisconsin, Ms. STEVENS, Mr. NADLER, Mr. CASTEN, Ms. CHU, Ms. BLUNT ROCHESTER, Mr. SWALWELL, Mr. SCHNEIDER, Mr. GALLEGO, Mr. GARCI´A of Illinois, Mr. CARTWRIGHT, Mr. MOULTON, Mr. VEASEY, Ms. PORTER, Mr. RASKIN, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia, Mr. DOGGETT, Ms. MACE, Mr. KRISHNAMOORTHI, Mr. HIGGINS of New York, Mr. KILMER, Ms. CASTOR of Florida, Mr. TRONE, Mr. MCHENRY, Ms. PINGREE, Ms. LEE of Cali- fornia, Mr. KILDEE, Mr. RESCHENTHALER, Mr. SMUCKER, Mr. MEUSER, Ms. MCCOLLUM, Mr. SMITH of New Jersey, Ms. ROSS, Mr. HIMES, Mr. AUCHINCLOSS, Mr. MFUME, Mrs. TRAHAN, Mr. ESPAILLAT, Mr. PAYNE, Mr. SMITH of Washington, Mr. CROW, Mr. PAPPAS, Ms. DELAURO, Mr. TAKANO, Ms. SCHOLTEN, Ms. STRICKLAND, Mr. NEGUSE, Ms. SHERRILL, Mr. SARBANES, Mr. MEEKS, Mr. CICILLINE, Mr. BLU- MENAUER, Ms. WILLIAMS of Georgia, Ms. CRAIG, Ms. BARRAGA´N, Ms. KAPTUR, Mr. SOTO, Ms. SLOTKIN, Mr. COURTNEY, Ms. TOKUDA, Mr. VARGAS, Mr. DESAULNIER, Mr. THOMPSON of California, Mr. WALTZ, Ms. VELA´ZQUEZ, Ms. TITUS, Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN, Mr. MCGARVEY, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. KIM of New Jersey, Ms. PRESSLEY, Ms. DEAN of Pennsylvania, Mr. NORCROSS, Ms. NORTON, Mrs. BEATTY, Mr. POSEY, Ms. UNDERWOOD, Mr. DAVIS of Illinois, Ms. SALAZAR, Mr. CAREY, Ms. VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:06 May 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6652 E:\BILLS\H3090.IH H3090 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 2 •HR 3090 IH LOIS FRANKEL of Florida, Ms. WILD, Mr. MULLIN, Mrs. LEE of Nevada, Mr. TORRES of New York, Mr. HUDSON, Mr. BERA, Mr. KEATING, Ms. JACKSON LEE, Mr. LARSON of Connecticut, Mr. GOTTHEIMER, Mr. WITTMAN, Mrs. FLETCHER, Mr. MAGAZINER, Mr. NEAL, Mr. DELUZIO, Mr. CARTER of Louisiana, Mrs. KIM of California, Ms. MALLIOTAKIS, Ms. JAYAPAL, Mr. GOODEN of Texas, Mr. FULCHER, Mr. VAN DREW, Mr. LANDSMAN, Mr. CARSON, Ms. LEE of Florida, Ms. BROWN, Mr. RUIZ, Mr. KELLY of Pennsylvania, Mr. LARSEN of Washington, Ms. TENNEY, Ms. PLASKETT, Mr. SCHWEIKERT, Mr. SCOTT of Virginia, Mr. AGUILAR, Mr. LIEU, Ms. TLAIB, Mr. PASCRELL, Mr. BUCK, Mr. THANEDAR, Mrs. MCCLAIN, Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi, Mr. SORENSEN, Mrs. DINGELL, Ms. KUSTER, Mr. JOYCE of Ohio, Mr. LAWLER, Ms. ESHOO, Mr. CUELLAR, Ms. CROCKETT, Mr. MOSKOWITZ, Mrs. FOUSHEE, Mr. ROBERT GARCIA of California, Mr. CISCOMANI, Mr. CALVERT, Mr. CASE, Ms. DELBENE, Ms. BONAMICI, and Ms. SCANLON) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on En- ergy and Commerce A BILL To amend the Horse Protection Act to designate additional unlawful acts under the Act, strengthen penalties for violations of the Act, improve Department of Agriculture enforcement of the Act, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Prevent All Soring 4 Tactics Act of 2023’’ or the ‘‘PAST Act of 2023’’. 5 SEC. 2. INCREASED ENFORCEMENT UNDER HORSE PRO- 6 TECTION ACT. 7 (a) DEFINITIONS.—Section 2 of the Horse Protection 8 Act (15 U.S.C. 1821) is amended— 9 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:06 May 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3090.IH H3090 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 3 •HR 3090 IH (1) by redesignating paragraphs (1), (2), (3), 1 and (4) as paragraphs (2), (3), (4), and (5), respec- 2 tively; 3 (2) by inserting before paragraph (2) (as so re- 4 designated) the following new paragraph: 5 ‘‘(1)(A) The term ‘action device’ means any 6 boot, collar, chain, roller, or other device that encir- 7 cles or is placed upon the lower extremity of the leg 8 of a horse in such a manner that it can— 9 ‘‘(i) rotate around the leg or slide up and 10 down the leg, so as to cause friction; or 11 ‘‘(ii) strike the hoof, coronet band, fetlock 12 joint, or pastern of the horse. 13 ‘‘(B) Such term does not include soft rubber or 14 soft leather bell boots or quarter boots that are used 15 as protective devices.’’; and 16 (3) by adding at the end the following new 17 paragraph: 18 ‘‘(6)(A) The term ‘participate’ means engaging 19 in any activity with respect to a horse show, horse 20 exhibition, or horse sale or auction, including— 21 ‘‘(i) transporting or arranging for the 22 transportation of a horse to or from a horse 23 show, horse exhibition, or horse sale or auction; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:06 May 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3090.IH H3090 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 4 •HR 3090 IH ‘‘(ii) personally giving instructions to an 1 exhibitor; or 2 ‘‘(iii) being knowingly present in a warm- 3 up area, inspection area, or other area at a 4 horse show, horse exhibition, or horse sale or 5 auction that spectators are not permitted to 6 enter. 7 ‘‘(B) Such term does not include spectating.’’. 8 (b) FINDINGS.—Section 3 of the Horse Protection 9 Act (15 U.S.C. 1822) is amended— 10 (1) in paragraph (3)— 11 (A) by inserting ‘‘and soring horses for 12 such purposes’’ after ‘‘horses in intrastate com- 13 merce’’; and 14 (B) by inserting ‘‘in many ways, including 15 by creating unfair competition, by deceiving the 16 spectating public and horse buyers, and by neg- 17 atively impacting horse sales’’ before the semi- 18 colon; 19 (2) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 20 end; 21 (3) in paragraph (5), by striking the period at 22 the end and inserting a semicolon; and 23 (4) by adding at the end the following new 24 paragraphs: 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:06 May 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3090.IH H3090 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 5 •HR 3090 IH ‘‘(6) the Inspector General of the Department 1 of Agriculture has determined that the program 2 through which the Secretary inspects horses is inad- 3 equate for preventing soring; 4 ‘‘(7) historically, Tennessee Walking Horses, 5 Racking Horses, and Spotted Saddle Horses have 6 been subjected to soring; and 7 ‘‘(8) despite regulations in effect related to in- 8 spection for purposes of ensuring that horses are not 9 sore, violations of this Act continue to be prevalent 10 in the Tennessee Walking Horse, Racking Horse, 11 and Spotted Saddle Horse breeds.’’. 12 (c) HORSE SHOWS AND EXHIBITIONS.—Section 4 of 13 the Horse Protection Act (15 U.S.C. 1823) is amended— 14 (1) in subsection (a)— 15 (A) by striking ‘‘appointed’’ and inserting 16 ‘‘licensed’’; and 17 (B) by adding at the end the following new 18 sentences: ‘‘In the first instance in which the 19 Secretary determines that a horse is sore, the 20 Secretary shall disqualify the horse from being 21 shown or exhibited for a period of not less than 22 180 days. In the second instance in which the 23 Secretary determines that such horse is sore, 24 the Secretary shall disqualify the horse for a 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:06 May 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3090.IH H3090 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 6 •HR 3090 IH period of not less than 1 year. In the third in- 1 stance in which the Secretary determines that 2 such horse is sore, the Secretary shall disqualify 3 the horse for a period of not less than 3 4 years.’’; 5 (2) in subsection (b) by striking ‘‘appointed’’ 6 and inserting ‘‘licensed’’; 7 (3) by striking subsection (c) and inserting the 8 following new subsection: 9 ‘‘(c)(1)(A) The Secretary shall prescribe by regula- 10 tion requirements for the Department of Agriculture to 11 license, train, assign, and oversee persons qualified to de- 12 tect and diagnose a horse which is sore or to otherwise 13 inspect horses at horse shows, horse exhibitions, or horse 14 sales or auctions, for hire by the management of such 15 events, for the purposes of enforcing this Act. 16 ‘‘(B) No person shall be issued a license under this 17 subsection unless such person is free from conflicts of in- 18 terest, as defined by the Secretary in the regulations 19 issued under subparagraph (A). 20 ‘‘(C) If the Secretary determines that the perform- 21 ance of a person licensed in accordance with subparagraph 22 (A) is unsatisfactory, the Secretary may, after notice and 23 an opportunity for a hearing, revoke the license issued to 24 such person. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:06 May 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3090.IH H3090 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 7 •HR 3090 IH ‘‘(D) In issuing licenses under this subsection, the 1 Secretary shall give a preference to persons who are li- 2 censed or accredited veterinarians. 3 ‘‘(E) Licensure of a person in accordance with the 4 requirements prescribed under this subsection shall not be 5 construed as authorizing such person to conduct inspec- 6 tions in a manner other than that prescribed for inspec- 7 tions by the Secretary (or the Secretary’s representative) 8 under subsection (e). 9 ‘‘(2)(A) Not later than 30 days before the date on 10 which a horse show, horse exhibition, or horse sale or auc- 11 tion begins, the management of such show, exhibition, or 12 sale or auction may notify the Secretary of the intent of 13 the management to hire a person or persons licensed 14 under this subsection and assigned by the Secretary to 15 conduct inspections at such show, exhibition, or sale or 16 auction. 17 ‘‘(B) After such notification, the Secretary shall as- 18 sign a person or persons licensed under this subsection 19 to conduct inspections at the horse show, horse exhibition, 20 or horse sale or auction. 21 ‘‘(3) A person licensed by the Secretary to conduct 22 inspections under this subsection shall issue a citation 23 with respect to any violation of this Act recorded during 24 an inspection and notify the Secretary of each such viola- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:06 May 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3090.IH H3090 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 8 •HR 3090 IH tion not later than 5 days after the date on which a cita- 1 tion was issued with respect to such violation.’’; and 2 (4) by adding at the end the following new sub- 3 section: 4 ‘‘(f) The Secretary shall publish on the public website 5 of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service of the 6 Department of Agriculture, and update as frequently as 7 the Secretary determines is necessary, information on vio- 8 lations of this Act for the purposes of allowing the man- 9 agement of a horse show, horse exhibition, or horse sale 10 or auction to determine if an individual is in violation of 11 this Act.’’. 12 (d) UNLAWFUL ACTS.—Section 5 of the Horse Pro- 13 tection Act (15 U.S.C. 1824) is amended— 14 (1) in paragraph (2)— 15 (A) by striking ‘‘or (C) respecting’’ and in- 16 serting ‘‘(C), or (D) respecting’’; and 17 (B) by striking ‘‘and (D)’’ and inserting 18 ‘‘(D) causing a horse to become sore or direct- 19 ing another person to cause a horse to become 20 sore for the purpose of showing, exhibiting, sell- 21 ing, auctioning, or offering for sale the horse in 22 any horse show, horse exhibition, or horse sale 23 or auction, and (E)’’; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:06 May 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3090.IH H3090 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 9 •HR 3090 IH (2) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘appoint’’ and 1 inserting ‘‘hire’’; 2 (3) in paragraph (4)— 3 (A) by striking ‘‘appoint’’ and inserting 4 ‘‘hire’’; and 5 (B) by striking ‘‘qualified’’; 6 (4) in paragraph (5), by striking ‘‘appointed’’ 7 and inserting ‘‘hired’’; 8 (5) in paragraph (6)— 9 (A) by striking ‘‘appointed’’ and inserting 10 ‘‘hired’’; and 11 (B) by inserting ‘‘that the horse is sore’’ 12 after ‘‘the Secretary’’; and 13 (6) by adding at the end the following new 14 paragraphs: 15 ‘‘(12) The use of an action device on any limb 16 of a Tennessee Walking Horse, a Racking Horse, or 17 a Spotted Saddle Horse at a horse show, horse exhi- 18 bition, or horse sale or auction. 19 ‘‘(13) The use of a weighted shoe, pad, wedge, 20 hoof band, or other device or material at a horse 21 show, horse exhibition, or horse sale or auction 22 that— 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:06 May 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3090.IH H3090 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 10 •HR 3090 IH ‘‘(A) is placed on, inserted in, or attached 1 to any limb of a Tennessee Walking Horse, a 2 Racking Horse, or a Spotted Saddle Horse; 3 ‘‘(B) is constructed to artificially alter the 4 gait of such a horse; and 5 ‘‘(C) is not strictly protective or thera- 6 peutic in nature.’’. 7 (e) VIOLATIONS AND PENALTIES.—Section 6 of the 8 Horse Protection Act (15 U.S.C. 1825) is amended— 9 (1) in subsection (a)— 10 (A) in paragraph (1)— 11 (i) by striking ‘‘Except as provided in 12 paragraph (2) of this subsection, any per- 13 son who knowingly violates section 5’’ and 14 inserting ‘‘Any person who knowingly vio- 15 lates section 5 or the regulations issued 16 under such section, including any violation 17 recorded during an inspection conducted in 18 accordance with section 4(c) or 4(e)’’; and 19 (ii) by striking ‘‘more than $3,000, or 20 imprisoned for not more than one year, or 21 both.’’ and inserting ‘‘more than $5,000, 22 or imprisoned for not more than 3 years, 23 or both, for each such violation.’’; 24 (B) in paragraph (2)— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:06 May 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3090.IH H3090 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 11 •HR 3090 IH (i) by striking subparagraph (A); 1 (ii) by striking ‘‘(2)’’; and 2 (iii) by redesignating subparagraphs 3 (B) and (C) as paragraphs (2) and (3), re- 4 spectively, and moving the margins of such 5 paragraphs (as so redesignated) two ems 6 to the left; and 7 (C) by adding at the end the following new 8 paragraph: 9 ‘‘(4) Any person who knowingly fails to obey an or [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]