It’s #WildWednesdays – a unified call-in day for wild horses! Supporters all around the country are making their voices heard for wild horses, and we need you to join them!
In less than a week, a key House committee will decide whether the ban on slaughtering wild horses is removed from the 2018 budget bill. The lives of nearly 100,000 wild horses and burros are on the line.
Please make a quick, polite phone call to your Representative at 202-225-3121 right now. You can say:
“I’m (your name), calling from (your town). As your constituent, I ask Rep. (rep’s name) to reject the BLM’s 2018 budget request to slaughter thousands of America’s wild horses and burros. Please vote to maintain the current ban on slaughtering these iconic animals.”
Please make a quick call right now – it will only take a minute and it can make a big difference!
On June 29, 2017 Bernadette Juarez, Deputy Administrator of APHIS-Animal Care, released an open letter to the management of horse shows, exhibitions, sales, as well as Horse Industry Organizations and Associations (HIOs), and the owners, trainers, exhibitors, and custodians of horses engaged in Horse Protection Act (HPA) covered activities.
In it she provides a progress report on the efforts to strengthen the HPA inspection program, their working relationship with the industry, and HPA enforcement. She applauded the HIOs that have made refinements to their processes to achieve their new standards, including the updated inspection guidance intended to promote consistency throughout the entire industry. That inspection guidance was posted on their website, found here, along with videos that depict the inspection process.
She ended her letter by acknowledging that “A consistent and thorough inspection process coupled with management’s commitment to fulfilling its responsibilities under the HPA are essential for ensuring exhibitors have clear expectations and can confidently present horses for inspection and participate in HPA-covered events.”
On March 30, 2017, Representatives Ted Yoho (R-FL) and Kurt Schrader (D-OR) re- introduced the Prevent All Soring Tactics Act of 2015 (HR 1847) (PAST act) in the House of Representatives. The bill is intended to strengthen the Horse Protection Act (HPA) and prevent the soring of Tennessee Walking Horses, Racking Horses, and Spotted Saddle Horses. The bill is supported by the American Horse Council and most national horse show organizations. The AHC urges all members of the horse industry to contact their Representative and ask them to support the bill and become a co-sponsor.
The American Horse Council (AHC) National Issues Forum, sponsored by Luitpold Animal Health, on June 12th provided a wealth of information and ideas from different perspectives on how we can grow the industry and continue to work together. Attendees were treated to insights ranging from cutting-edge research to help our equine athletes, to how we can encourage the next generation to get involved, as well as how tradition, continuity, and innovation can work together for the benefit of the industry in moving forward.
The Morning Session kicked off with keynote speaker Roger Dow of the U.S. Travel Association who spoke about several initiatives the travel industry has undertaken the past few years to increase tourism and travel within and to the United States. For example, a Visa Waiver Program that allows residents of allied countries to be pre-screened before entry and are given visa-free travel to the U.S. for up to 90 days. Most notably though, was the creation of a Global Meetings Industry Day that showcases the impact that business meetings, conferences, conventions, incentive travel, trade shows and exhibitions have on people, business and communities.
“Staying focused, finding things you can work on together, and speaking with one voice are critical to ensuring the success and longevity of any industry,” Mr. Dow closed with.
To read the recap of the National Issues Forum in its entirety, please click below.
1) The Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) 2018 budget asks Congress to lift a ban on destroying healthy mustangs and burros.
2) If the ban is lifted, wild horses and burros in holding facilities will be killed or sold to slaughter. The remaining “excess” population will be slaughtered, possibly gunned-down in the wild. Up to 92,000 healthy horses will die.
3) The Congressional markup to decide if this slaughter provision is included will happen in the next two weeks.
If this sounds like the worst-case-scenario for our cause, it is. If Congress accepts the BLM’s budget provision, we would see an unprecedented mass slaughter of healthy horses and burros. It would lead to horses being slaughtered for human consumption. It would destroy our nation’s icons of freedom. It would be a tragedy.
There have been reports this week that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has decided to offer extra H2B visas for temporary, seasonal workers. These visas are used for temporary, non-agriculture workers at a variety of businesses, including members of the horse industry; principally horse trainers and owners who cannot find American workers to fill semi-skilled jobs at racetracks, horse shows, fairs and in similar non-agricultural activities.
The government offers 66,000 such visas a year, with the 2017 cap having been met within the first 30 days of open enrollment. This left many organizations without access to the critical labor pool provided by the H-2B program. Trainers at racetracks around the country have reported difficulties in filling staff positions.
The extra visas will be available to employers that show they’d be significantly harmed if they aren’t able to temporarily hire foreign workers. DHS hasn’t decided how many visas will be offered but that number should be set soon. The department expects to start issuing visas as soon as late July.
If you have any questions, please contact the AHC.
WHAT’S HAPPENING: Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke is scheduled to testify before the Senate Interior Appropriations Subcommittee this Wednesday, June 21. He will defend his Fiscal Year 2018 budget, which asks Congress to lift the ban on destroying healthy wild horses and burros and selling these cherished animals for slaughter.
WHY YOU SHOULD ACT: The Senators on this subcommittee play a key role in determining whether as many as 92,000 wild horses and burros will be slaughtered and their wild populations reduced to near-extinction levels.
WHAT TO SAY: Call your Senator, or subcommittee leadership, if your Senator is not included on the list below. Suggested message: “My name is _____ calling from _____. Please ask Senator _____ to strongly oppose the BLM’s budget request to lift the ban on killing healthy horses and burros and selling these animals ‘without restriction,’ which would lead to the brutal slaughter of thousands. Please require the BLM to use humane birth control, as recommended by the National Academy of Sciences, not killing to manage our wild horses and burros.”
WHO YOU SHOULD CALL:
ALASKA RESIDENTS: Call Senator Lisa Murkowski, 202-224-6665. Follow up with a personal message: CLICK HERE
CALIFORNIA RESIDENTS: Call Senator Dianne Feinstein, 202-224-3841. If this is busy call her office in San Francisco (415-393-0707) or Los Angeles (310-914-7300). Follow up by sending a personal message: CLICK HERE.
MARYLAND RESIDENTS: Call Senator Chris Van Hollen, 202-224-4654. Follow up by sending a personal message: CLICK HERE.
MONTANA RESIDENTS: Call Senator Jon Tester, 202-224-2644. Follow up by sending a personal message: CLICK HERE.
NEW MEXICO RESIDENTS: Call Senator Tom Udall, 202-224-6621. Follow up by sending a personal message: CLICK HERE.
OREGON RESIDENTS: Call Senator Jeff Merkley, 202-224-3753. Follow up by sending a personal message: CLICK HERE(Choose “share your opinion on bills or other issues”)
RHODE ISLAND RESIDENTS: Call Senator Jack Reed, 202-224-4642. Follow up by sending a personal message: CLICK HERE.
VERMONT RESIDENTS: Call Senator Patrick Leahy, 202-224-4242. Follow up by sending a personal message: CLICK HERE.
RESIDENTS OF ALL OTHER STATES: Call Subcommittee Chair Lisa Murkowski, 202-224-6665 and Ranking Member Tom Udall: 202-224-6621. Even though you are not a constituent, let them know that you are calling because our public lands and our wild horses and burros belong to all Americans, and all Americans should have a say in how they are managed
Remember: Please be polite and respectful in order to be the most effective voice possible for our wild horses and burros! Thank you!!
Tens of thousands of innocent, federally protected wild horses and burros are in danger of being killed or sold for slaughter if Congress approves the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) 2018 budget request. The BLM is asking Congress to lift the ban on destroying healthy mustangs and burros and selling those in holding facilities for slaughter. If Congress approves this request, the mass killing of the 46,000 wild horses and burros in holding facilities and the 46,000 “excess” animals on the range would begin.
We can stop this, but only if your elected representatives in Washington, DC hear from you! Our wild horses and burros don’t have a voice, so we must speak up on their behalf to save them from a horrific fate… It only takes a minute – please take action below – today!
#ImWithTheBand — our new social media awareness campaign — launched today with a reach of nearly 4 million people!
Music legend Carole King and actor Wendie Malick have Joined the Band to defend wild horse families (known as bands) from unprecedented threats to their future.
The Administration wants to slaughter tens of thousands of these innocent and iconic animals and drive their wild populations down to near extinction levels. We must tell Congress to stop this lethal plan!
Visit StandWithTheBands.org, where you’ll be able to create your “backstage pass” — your own shareable graphic — to promote on your social media pages, take action and watch our new educational video.
Help us harness the power of the people to save America’s mustangs…Join The Band today!!
Today, the Horseracing Integrity Act of 2017 (H.R. 2651) was introduced by Representatives Andy Barr (R-KY) and Paul Tonko (D-NY). The bill would create a new Horseracing Anti-Doping and Medication Authority and uniform racing medication rules. Representatives Barr and Tonko had previously introduced a racing medication bill that only applied to Thoroughbred horseracing. The recently introduced bill, while similar to the previous bill, has several key differences. Most notably the new bill would apply to Quarter Horse and Standardbred races as well, not only Thoroughbred races and prohibits the use of any substance within 24 hours of a race.
The AHC is continuing to review the bill to determine its impact on the horse racing industry and taken has no position on this legislation.
Authorize the creation of the Horseracing Anti-Doping and Medication Authority, or Authority. The board of the Authority will be composed of thirteen members, including the chief operating officer of U.S Anti-Doping Agency (USADA), six individuals representing USADA, and six individuals appointed by USADA from various the sectors of the horseracing industry. The Authority would operate nominally under the Federal Trade Commission.
The Authority will have responsibility for developing and administering an anti-doping and medication control program for covered horses, covered persons and covered horseraces. In general the Authority shall exercise authority over all Thoroughbred,Quarter Horse and Standardbred horseracing anti-doping and medication control matters.
The Authority will be required to create a uniform set of anti-doping and medication control rules, including lists of permitted and prohibited substances.
The Authority will also be required to promulgate uniform rules for imposing sanctions for rule violations.
The bill will also establish several standing technical committees to assist the Authority.
The Authority, the medication program, and enforcement activities will be funded by an assessment placed on state racing commissions based on the calculation of cost per racing starter to fund the program.
The bill prohibits the use of any substance or medication within 24 hours of a race.
The bill does not amend the Interstate Horseracing Act of 1978
We knew this was coming, and now our worst fears have been realized.
Yesterday, the Trump Administration released its budget request to Congress for the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and it literally places the lives of over 90,000 wild horses and burros in jeopardy.
The Administration is asking Congress to lift the ban on killing healthy wild horses and burros or selling them for slaughter. The BLM wants permission to destroy “unadoptable” horses and burros as well as those it considers to be “excess” on the range. If Congress approves this request, the mass killing of the 46,000 wild horses and burros in holding facilities and the 46,000 “excess” animals on the range would begin.
We must make sure Congress stands firm against slaughtering our national icons!
This is going to be an intensive 4-6 month campaign to defeat this lethal budget proposal in Congress.
Right now, we need you to do these three things IMMEDIATELY!
1. Send a strong and unified message to Congress.
2. #JoinTheBand to send a tidal wave of public support for wild horses and burros on social media on May 30.
3. Donate so that we can elevate our grassroots and legislative campaigns to the seismic level necessary to save our national icons!
The fight is on to save our wild horses and burros! We’re ready, but we NEED your help. Let’s protect our wild horses and burros from this Administration’s lethal plans… Take action today!
On May 30, we want to send out a loud message calling on legislators to protect America’s wild horses, and we will do so using a platform called Thunderclap. It’s a tool that allows people to pledge a tweet or Facebook post that will be posted along with thousands of other supporters on the same day. Think of it as a massive flash mob on social media with a collective message calling on the world to Stand With America’s Wild Bands. It’s completely secure and will post a single, one-time message on your behalf. If all of our supporters take part, we can reach millions of people on May 30 when the message is blasted out. Only the power of the people can save our national heritage animals. Spreading the word is absolutely critical, and now it couldn’t be easier! If you’re With The Band, please sign up today!
On Monday, May 15, AWHC Executive Director Suzanne Roy accompanied Salt River Wild Horse Management Group President Simone Netherlands to Window Rock, Arizona, the capitol of the Navajo Nation, to present information on humane wild horse management options. Also presenting at the meeting was Leland Grass (pictured at center above) of Dine’ for Wild Horses & Seminars. Leland is a prominent wild horse advocate and member of the Navajo nation. The Navajo face a complex problem of managing a large popultion of domestic, semi-feral and wild horses on the 18 million acre reservation. Officials from the Fish and Wildlife, Agriculture and Natural Resources divisions attended the meeting and were very welcoming toward us and the information we presented.
Disaster is looming for America’s wild horses and burros. Congress just called for accelerated roundups and removal of tens of thousands of mustangs and burros from their homes on the range.
Beginning in July, helicopters will again descend our western public lands to terrorize and traumatize these peaceful animals.
Tiny foals will be stampeded for miles. Foals will be ripped from their mothers’ sides. Mares will be forcibly taken from their stallions… only to be separated forever and loaded onto trailers for their final ride.
In our lifetimes, more wild horses could disappear from on our public lands.
Contribute to the Wild Horse Crisis Fund to protect these innocent victims of government brutality.
Thank you for standing up for America’s wild horses and burros – only the power of the people can save them!
– Suzanne Roy, Executive Director
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The American Wild Horse Campaign is dedicated to preserving American wild horses and burros in viable free-roaming herds for generations to come, as part of our national heritage.
The American Wild Horse Campaign is 501(c)3 non-profit. Please consider making a tax-deductible donation to support our work.
This is it: Your chance to stand with tens of thousands of citizens in defense of America’s iconic mustangs and burros. Sign up today to make your voice heard!
On May 30, our collective voices will rise up on social media to take a stand against mass roundups and slaughter of these cherished animals. As a champion for these national icons, you won’t want to miss the chance to join in this groundbreaking campaign.
Only the power of the people can save our national heritage animals,. Spreading the word is absolutely critical, and now it couldn’t be easier!. We’re using a platform called Thunderclap. It’s a tool that allows people to pledge a tweet or Facebook post that will be posted along with thousands of other supporters on May 30. Think of it as a massive flash mob on social media with a collective message calling on the world to Stand With America’s Wild Bands.
It’s completely secure and will post a single, one-time message on your behalf. If all of our supporters take part, we can reach millions of people on May 30 when the message is blasted out.
The UHC will be hosting its annual meeting in conjunction with the American Horse Council’s Annual Meeting and National Issues Forum in Washington DC. UHC member organizations and guests will hear program updates, review survey results and discuss the coalition’s objectives for the upcoming year.
Congress just passed an Omnibus spending bill to fund the government for the next five months – until the end of Fiscal Year 2017. The good news: Congress maintained the de facto ban on domestic horse slaughter and the prohibition against the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) sale for slaughter or killing of captured wild horses and burros. More troubling, though, is a provision in Section 116 that allows the BLM to strip wild horses and burros of federal protection and transfer them to state, federal and local agencies for use as “work animals.”
We thank the Appropriations Committee leadership for including a prohibition on slaughter and euthanasia of healthy horses in this language. However, we remain gravely concerned that this new law is open for abuse and could become a vehicle for delivering captured wild horses and burros into the hands of state and local agencies that actively lobby for their destruction. Also troubling is report language accompanying the Omnibus that calls for “accelerated” roundups to reduce wild horse and burro populations to the BLM’s “Appropriate” Management Levels. If taken literally, this could mean the removal of as many as 50,000 more wild horses and burros from the range.
Over the last week, AWHC members made tens of thousands of calls and sent 55,000 messages to appropriators expressing concern about threats to wild horses and burros in the Omnibus. This strong show of public support and concern will make it more difficult for opponents of wild horses to exploit loopholes in the new law, and serves as a safeguard against more dangerous threats that may be in store. So far, Congress is holding firm against mass killing and slaughter, but that support is fragile as pressure builds not only for mass roundups but also to upend the federal law that protects these national icons on our Western public lands. Now is the time to make your voice heard.
I’m sorry to have to give you some devastating news. In the wee hours of Monday morning, Congress released a 1,600+ page spending bill for 2017. Buried on page 804 is Section 116, which allows the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to strip wild horses and burros of federal protection and “immediately” transfer them to state and local governments for use as “work animals.”
But with no definition of work animal, and no limit to the number of horses and burros that can be transferred, this language could provide a back door route to killing thousands of these national legacy animals. Although Congress added language prohibiting commercial slaughter and putting some restrictions on “euthanasia,” signalling its intent to prevent the killing of healthy horses. However, ambiguities and loopholes in the language leave it open to abuse. Especially at risk are the older mustangs and burros, now protected under federal law. Under the language these majestic, elder animals could be killed simply due to “advanced age,” a term that is undefined.
We can’t let this stand…Congress should not be allowed to undermine the will of the American people and a unanimously-passed Act of Congress – the Wild Free Roaming Horses and Burros Act – through a last-minute spending bill.
We have just hours to make our voices heard… Please click below NOW to call and send a message to key appropriators asking them to strip this devastating provision that could result in the killing of thousands – and potentially tens of thousands — of America’s cherished wild horses and burros.
If you do one thing for wild horses and burros, please do this now!
Eliminating soring in the Tennessee Walking Horse industry has broad support in the horse industry and has been a priority of the American Horse Council (AHC) for the last several years. The focus of these efforts for several years has been passage of the Prevent All Soring Tactics Act or PAST Act in Congress. Additionally, last year the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) also began promulgating new regulations governing enforcement of the Horse Protection Act (HPA), intended to strength regulations against soring. President Trump’s government-wide freeze on all new federal regulations pending review has put an indefinite hold on these new HPA regulations. Now many in the horse industry are wondering what is status of these efforts to eliminate soring.
“The AHC continues to be committed to ending soring in the walking horse industry and believes it will take federal action either by Congress or USDA to end this cruel practice,” said Julie Broadway AHC president. “The ‘big lick’ segment of the walking horse industry has had over 45 years to address this issue and it remains a problem.”
In January of 2017, USDA announced and released a final HPA rule. The AHC believed the final rule would have improved enforcement of the HPA as well as made sure other segments of horse show industry were not unintentionally impacted or burdened by the regulation. However, the final rule was not published in the Federal Register before President Trump issued an order to all federal agencies to withdrawal all regulations that had not yet been published pending review.
“There is no timeline for review of the rule and the new administration could decide to issue a final rule at any time or withdrawal the rule completely. If and when Secretary of Agriculture Nomine Sonny Perdue is confirmed the AHC will be asking him to publish and the final rule,” said Ben Pendergrass AHC, Sr. VP of Policy and Legislative Affairs.
“We do not know yet if the Trump administration will be willing to implement this final rule so it continues to be important for the industry to support the PAST Act, which was recently re-introduced,” continued Pendergrass.
On March 30, 2017, Representatives Ted Yoho (R-FL) and Kurt Schrader (D-OR) re-introduced the PAST Act (HR 1847) in the House of Representatives. The bill is identical to the bill introduced last Congress and continues to be supported by the AHC and most national horse show organizations.
“I am honored to join my fellow veterinarian, Rep. Kurt Schrader, a bipartisan list of members, and organizations who support the end of Horse Soring. As a veterinarian and lover of animals, we must continue to keep pressure on a select group of bad actors in the Walking Horse industry. They must comply with existing law and stop this illegal practice for good,” said Rep. Yoho on re-introducing the bill.
“Horse soring still runs rampant even though laws have been on the books for decades banning this cruel practice,” said Rep. Schrader. “We gave them a chance to self-police but the practice continued. Our bill will strengthen and improve current regulations by improving USDA enforcement, increasing civil and criminal penalties, and banning incentives to sore horses. It’s time for Congress to act and put an end to this abusive practice.”
The PAST act would amend the HPA to prohibit a Tennessee Walking Horse, a Racking Horse, or a Spotted Saddle Horse from being shown, exhibited, or auctioned with an “action device,” or “a weighted shoe, pad, wedge, hoof band or other device or material” if it is constructed to artificially alter the gait of the horse and is not strictly protective or therapeutic.
The legislation would also increase fines and penalties for violations, including the potential for a lifetime ban for repeat offenders and create a new licensing process for horse show inspectors, eliminating the current often criticized designated qualified persons (DQPs) program.
The bill already has already gained 220 co-sponsors, a majority of the House of Representatives. Unfortunately, Senator Kelly Ayotte (R-NH) the principle sponsor of the bill in the Senate lost her bid for reelection. Her loss has delayed re-introduction of the bill in the Senate.
“There continues to be strong challenges to passage of the PAST Act or implementation of the new HPA regulations, but the AHC will continue working until soring is eliminated,” said Broadway. “The AHC urges all members of the horse industry to contact their Representative and Senators to ask them to support the PAST Act and the HPA rule.”
It is no secret that many of the workers on the backstretch at race tracks, on breeding farms and at horse shows are foreign born. Horse industry employers have for many years found it difficult to recruit American workers to fill these jobs. For this reason, American immigration policy has been a major concern of the horse industry and the American Horse Council has worked to ensure the H-2B non-agricultural and H-2A agricultural temporary foreign worker programs are a viable option for the industry. However, new pressures threaten the ability of the horse industry to hire these vital workers.
“The industry has had long-standing problems recruiting workers to fill jobs helping to raise, train, and care for the industry’s horses. This was the case even during the recent recession when unemployment reached 10%,” said AHC Sr. VP, Policy and Legislative Affairs, Ben Pendergrass. “Now that the economy has recovered and unemployment has fallen to around 4.7% finding workers has become especially challenging, this and other factors have made it more vital than ever for Congress to take action to improve the inadequate current guest worker programs.
President Trump has recently issued several executive orders relating to increased immigration enforcement and border security. While these orders do not directly relate to the H-2B or H-2A programs, generally speaking, increased enforcement, increased competition for legal workers and greater demand for H-2B and H-2A workers will make it more difficult for horse industry employers to fill many positions.
Already, the cap for H-2B visas for the first half of the fiscal year was reached in record time on January 10th. There is a statutory cap on the total number of H-2B visas issued each year. Currently, Congress has set the H-2B cap at 66,000 per fiscal year, with 33,000 for workers who begin employment in the first half of the fiscal year (October 1 – March 31) and 33,000 for workers who begin employment in the second half of the fiscal year (April 1 – September 30).
Because the cap has already been reached, for many employers that means no H-2B workers will be available if they are needed in 2017. There is no cap on the H-2A agricultural visa program, but those workers can only be employed by horse breeding farms and cannot be utilized by trainers at race tracks or horse shows.
“The industry would like to see comprehensive immigration reform eventual, but the most immediate need is for H-2B cap relief,” continued Pendergrass. “We have been urging Congress to reinstate the so-called ‘H-2B returning worker exemption’ in the Continuing Resolution that will need to be passed at the end of April to keep the government from shutting down. Everyone in the racing or showing segments of the industry really should be contacting their elected officials and urging them to take action.”
The “returning worker exemption” exempts from the 66,000 cap on H-2B visas, workers who had complied with past visa requirements and worked in the program during one of the preceding three years. It was in place for part of 2015 and 2016 and helped ensure the horse industry and other seasonal small businesses had access to needed H-2B workers.
Besides taking this immediate action the AHC believes Congress should pass broader reform legislation like the Save our Small and Seasonal Businesses Act of 2017 (S. 792), introduced recently by Senators Thom Tillis (R-NC), Angus King (I-ME), Susan Collins (R-ME), John Thune (R-SD), Mike Rounds (R-SD), Roy Blunt (R-MO), John Cornyn (R-TX), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), and Mark Warner (D-VA). This is a bipartisan proposal and represents the most comprehensive reform measure for the H-2B program.
Additionally, in the House of Representatives the Strengthen Employment and Seasonal Opportunities Now (SEASON) Act, (HR 2004), has been introduced by Representatives Steve Chabot (R-OH), Jason Chaffetz (R-UT), Bob Gibbs (R-OH), Dr. Andy Harris (R-MD), Kevin Yoder (R-KS) Billy Long (R-MO), and Judiciary Chair Bob Goodlatte of Virginia. The SEASON Act is a fairly broad authorization bill that will reform how the H-2B program would work including addressing regulatory oversight simplification.
“The AHC is continually educating Members of Congress about how this issue is impacting the horse industry, but they also need to hear firsthand from their constituents about their experiences,” said AHC President Julie Broadway. “We urge all members of the racing and showing segments of the industry to contact their elected officials. The AHC is always here to help facilitate communication and answer any questions have about contacting Congress.”
Horses in all segments of the equine industry are regularly transported both intrastate and interstate for a variety of purposes, both by individuals and businesses. The ability to move horses easily for competition, breeding, sale, and recreation is of vital importance to the economic health of the industry.
In order to ensure the American Horse Council has a better understanding of how enforcement of federal motor carrier safety regulations are impacting the industry, we request all members of the horse industry take the following short survey. The survey is anonymous and the results will be used solely for informational purposes.
If you are an equine organization we ask that you please distribute this survey to your membership.
The survey will remain open until May 20th. If you have any questions, please contact the AHC.
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The following is from the 
Horse Council (AHC) for the last several years. The focus of these efforts for several years has been passage of the Prevent All Soring Tactics Act or PAST Act in Congress. Additionally, last year the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) also began promulgating new regulations governing enforcement of the Horse Protection Act (HPA), intended to strength regulations against soring. President Trump’s government-wide freeze on all new federal regulations pending review has put an indefinite hold on these new HPA regulations. Now many in the horse industry are wondering what is status of these efforts to eliminate soring.
industry employers have for many years found it difficult to recruit American workers to fill these jobs. For this reason, American immigration policy has been a major concern of the horse industry and the American Horse Council has worked to ensure the H-2B non-agricultural and H-2A agricultural temporary foreign worker programs are a viable option for the industry. However, new pressures threaten the ability of the horse industry to hire these vital workers.