Congress Approves Bill to Fund Government with Provisions Impacting Horse Industry
On December 13, Congress approved a bill to fund the government through the 2015 fiscal year. The bill includes several provisions which are relevant to the horse industry and equine welfare, including the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) appropriations bill for the 2015 fiscal year, according to the American Horse Council.
The bill appropriates $871.3 million for the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service and Equine Health, which is the USDA agency responsible for protecting the equine industry and responding to contagious equine disease outbreaks.
The USDA appropriations also include language prohibiting the use of funds to provide inspectors at meat processing facilities that slaughter horses. This verbiage effectively prevents any horse slaughter facility from opening through the end of the 2015 fiscal year (September 30, 2015). This continues a decade-long block against horse slaughter in the U.S. except for a period in 2012 and 2013.
Finally, $697,000 is allocated for the enforcement of the Horse Protection Act, as it was in 2014.
For more details, read the American Horse Council's summary here.
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