I 

116TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 5715 

To improve honesty in pet sales, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 30, 2020 

Mr. CRIST (for himself and Mr. RESCHENTHALER) introduced the following 

bill; which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture, and in addition 

to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such 

provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To improve honesty in pet sales, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Petfax Act of 2020’’. 

5 SEC. 2. PROVISION OF INFORMATION TO PURCHASERS OF 

6 DOGS AND CATS. 

7 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

8 (1) COMMISSION.—The term ‘‘Commission’’ 

9 means the Federal Trade Commission. 


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1 (2) COVERED DOG OR CAT.—The term ‘‘covered 

2 dog or cat’’ means a dog or cat bred and raised by 

3 any dealer that is required to be licensed under sec4 tion 3 of the Animal Welfare Act (7 U.S.C. 2133). 

5 (3) COVERED SELLER.— 

6 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘covered sell7 er’’ means— 

8 (i) a dealer; 

9 (ii) a retail pet store; and 

10 (iii) any other person that sells, or of11 fers for sale, dogs or cats, including 

12 through the internet, for compensation or 

13 profit other than on an intermittent basis. 

14 (B) EXCLUSION.—The term ‘‘covered sell15 er’’ does not include— 

16 (i) a public animal shelter; or 

17 (ii) an organization— 

18 (I) described in section 501(c)(3) 

19 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 

20 and exempt from taxation under 

21 501(a) of that Code; and 

22 (II) that is involved in bona fide 

23 animal adoption or rescue activities. 


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1 (4) DEALER.—The term ‘‘dealer’’ has the 

2 meaning given the term in section 2 of the Animal 

3 Welfare Act (7 U.S.C. 2132). 

4 (5) FINANCIAL CONSIDERATION.—The term ‘‘fi5 nancial consideration’’ means any payment, includ6 ing a donation, but does not include— 

7 (A) a payment made to a public animal 

8 shelter; or 

9 (B) a payment that is made solely to reim10 burse a person for the costs of caring for a dog 

11 or cat. 

12 (6) PURCHASER.—The term ‘‘purchaser’’ 

13 means a person that— 

14 (A) is not a dealer; and 

15 (B) purchases a covered dog or cat. 

16 (b) REQUIREMENT.—A covered seller may not sell, 

17 or offer for sale, a covered dog or cat, including through 

18 the internet, unless, before the purchase of the covered 

19 dog or cat, the covered seller provides to the purchaser, 

20 in a form prescribed by the Commission— 

21 (1) information relating to the source of the 

22 covered dog or cat, including— 

23 (A) the name, address, telephone number, 

24 and Department of Agriculture license or reg25 istration number (if such a number exists) of— 


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1 (i) the dealer that bred and raised the 

2 covered dog or cat, and— 

3 (I) the number of dogs and cats 

4 bred by such dealer during the prior 

5 2 years; and 

6 (II) the number of dogs and cats 

7 sold by such dealer during the prior 2 

8 years; 

9 (ii) the covered seller that acquired 

10 the covered dog or cat from the dealer de11 scribed in clause (i), if any; and 

12 (iii) each covered seller that acquired 

13 the covered dog or cat thereafter, if any; 

14 and 

15 (B) a listing and description of each viola16 tion of the Animal Welfare Act (7 U.S.C. 2131 

17 et seq.), if any, during the prior 2 years by each 

18 dealer and covered seller described in clauses 

19 (i), (ii), and (iii) of subparagraph (A), as appli20 cable; and 

21 (2) information relating to the health history of 

22 the covered dog or cat, including— 

23 (A) the date of birth of covered dog or cat; 


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1 (B)(i) if the covered dog or cat has re2 ceived individual examinations by a licensed vet3 erinarian— 

4 (I) the most recent date on which the 

5 covered cat or dog received an individual 

6 examination by a licensed veterinarian; and 

7 (II) the name, address, telephone 

8 number, and State license number (if such 

9 a number exists) of the licensed veteri10 narian described in subclause (I); or 

11 (ii) if the covered dog or cat has not re12 ceived an individual examination by a licensed 

13 veterinarian, a statement that the covered dog 

14 or cat has not received an examination by a li15 censed veterinarian; and 

16 (C) a list of— 

17 (i) each vaccine administered to the 

18 covered dog or cat; 

19 (ii) each congenital deformity, disease, 

20 disorder, or condition that the covered sell21 er knows, or should reasonably know, af22 fects the covered dog or cat; and 

23 (iii) each infectious disease, disorder, 

24 or condition that the covered seller knows, 


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1 or should reasonably know, affects the cov2 ered dog or cat. 

3 (c) TRANSFERS.—A covered seller providing to an4 other covered seller a covered dog or cat that will ulti5 mately be sold to a purchaser shall provide to the other 

6 covered seller the information described in subsection (b). 

7 (d) APPLICATION TO NON-PROFIT SELLERS.—Any 

8 organization described in subsection (a)(3)(B)(ii) that ac9 quires a dog or cat in exchange for financial consideration 

10 shall disclose to any person seeking to acquire such dog 

11 or cat from such organization in exchange for financial 

12 consideration— 

13 (1) the fact that such organization acquired 

14 such dog or cat in exchange for financial consider15 ation and the amount of such consideration; and 

16 (2) the name of the person from which the or17 ganization acquired such dog or cat (if known to the 

18 organization). 

19 (e) REGULATIONS.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 

21 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Commis22 sion shall promulgate regulations under section 553 

23 of title 5, United States Code, to carry out this sec24 tion. 


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1 (2) REQUIREMENTS.—The regulations under 

2 paragraph (1) shall— 

3 (A) include the manner and method by 

4 which the information described in subsection 

5 (b) may be provided to a potential purchaser 

6 under that subsection, or to another covered 

7 seller under subsection (c), as applicable, to 

8 comply with this section; and 

9 (B) provide that a covered seller that uses 

10 a different manner or method than the manner 

11 and method described in subparagraph (A) to 

12 provide the information described in subsection 

13 (b) to a potential purchaser under that sub14 section, or to another covered seller under sub15 section (c), as applicable, may not be deter16 mined to be in noncompliance with this section 

17 solely because of the manner and method used. 

18 (f) EFFECT.—Nothing in this section shall preempt 

19 any State or local law. 

20 SEC. 3. UNFAIR OR DECEPTIVE ACTS OR PRACTICES WITH 

21 RESPECT TO THE SALE OF ANIMALS FOR USE 

22 AS PETS. 

23 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 


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1 (1) COMMISSION; COVERED SELLER.—The 

2 terms ‘‘Commission’’ and ‘‘covered seller’’ have the 

3 meanings given those terms in section 2. 

4 (2) HIGH-VOLUME BREEDER.—The term ‘‘high5 volume breeder’’ means any person that— 

6 (A) is engaged in the breeding of dogs or 

7 cats; and 

8 (B)(i) is required to be licensed as a dealer 

9 under section 3 of the Animal Welfare Act (7 

10 U.S.C. 2133); 

11 (ii) keeps on the premises of the person 

12 not fewer than 4 breeding dogs or cats; or 

13 (iii) during a 1-year period, sells not fewer 

14 than 25 dogs or cats that were bred on the 

15 premises of the person. 

16 (b) UNLAWFUL ACTIVITY.— 

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—It is unlawful to engage in 

18 an unfair or deceptive act or practice with respect to 

19 any sale of an animal for use as a pet. 

20 (2) MISREPRESENTATIONS RELATING TO THE

21 SOURCE OF DOGS AND CATS.—It is a violation of 

22 paragraph (1) for a covered seller, in selling, or ne23 gotiating the purchase or sale of, a dog or cat, to 

24 misrepresent where the dog or cat was bred or the 


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1 source from which the covered seller acquired the 

2 dog or cat, including by misrepresenting whether— 

3 (A) a high-volume breeder bred the dog or 

4 cat; or 

5 (B) the covered seller acquired the dog or 

6 cat from a high-volume breeder. 

7 (3) VIOLATION OF REQUIREMENT TO PROVIDE

8 CERTAIN INFORMATION.—It is a violation of para9 graph (1) for a covered seller to sell a dog or cat 

10 in violation of section 2 on or after the date that is 

11 60 days after the date on which the Commission 

12 promulgates regulations under subsection (e)(1) of 

13 that section. 

14 (c) ENFORCEMENT BY THE COMMISSION.— 

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—This section shall be en16 forced by the Commission under the Federal Trade 

17 Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 41 et seq.). 

18 (2) UNFAIR OR DECEPTIVE ACTS OR PRAC19 TICES.—A violation of this section shall be treated 

20 as a violation of a rule defining an unfair or decep21 tive act or practice prescribed under section 

22 18(a)(1)(B) of the Federal Trade Commission Act 

23 (15 U.S.C. 57a(a)(1)(B)). 

24 (3) ACTIONS BY THE COMMISSION.— 


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1 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall 

2 prevent any person from violating this section 

3 in the same manner, by the same means, and 

4 with the same jurisdiction, powers, and duties 

5 as though all applicable terms and provisions of 

6 the Federal Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 

7 41 et seq.) were incorporated into and made a 

8 part of this section. 

9 (B) PRIVILEGES AND IMMUNITIES.—Any 

10 person who violates this section shall be subject 

11 to the penalties and entitled to the privileges 

12 and immunities provided under the Federal 

13 Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 41 et seq.). 

14 (d) EFFECT.— 

15 (1) AUTHORITY PRESERVED.—Nothing in this 

16 section shall be construed to limit the authority of 

17 the Commission, the Secretary of Commerce, or the 

18 Secretary of Agriculture under any other provision 

19 of law. 

20 (2) PREEMPTION.—Nothing in this section shall 

21 preempt any State or local law. 

22 SEC. 4. PUBLIC AVAILABILITY OF REGULATORY RECORDS. 

23 Notwithstanding any other provision of law, not later 

24 than 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the 

25 Secretary of Agriculture (referred to in this section as the 


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1 ‘‘Secretary’’) shall maintain and promptly make available 

2 to the public in an online searchable database in a ma3 chine-readable format on the website of the Department 

4 of Agriculture information relating to the administration 

5 of the Animal Welfare Act (7 U.S.C. 2131 et seq.) and 

6 the Horse Protection Act (15 U.S.C. 1821 et seq.), includ7 ing— 

8 (1) the entirety of each report of any inspection 

9 conducted, and record of any enforcement action 

10 taken, at any time under— 

11 (A) either of those Acts; or 

12 (B) any regulation issued under those 

13 Acts; 

14 (2) with respect to the Animal Welfare Act— 

15 (A) the entirety of each annual report sub16 mitted by a research facility under section 13 of 

17 that Act (7 U.S.C. 2143); and 

18 (B) the name, address, and license or reg19 istration number of each research facility, ex20 hibitor, dealer, and other person or establish21 ment— 

22 (i) licensed by the Secretary under 

23 section 3 or 12 of that Act (7 U.S.C. 

24 2133, 2142); or 


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1 (ii) registered with the Secretary 

2 under section 6 of that Act (7 U.S.C. 

3 2136); and 

4 (3) with respect to the Horse Protection Act, 

5 the name and address of— 

6 (A) any person that is licensed to conduct 

7 any inspection under section 4(c) of that Act 

8 (15 U.S.C. 1823(c)); or 

9 (B) any organization or association that is 

10 licensed by the Department of Agriculture to 

11 promote horses through— 

12 (i) the showing, exhibiting, sale, auc13 tion, or registry of horses; or 

14 (ii) the conduct of any activity that 

15 contributes to the advancement of horses. 

16 SEC. 5. PROHIBITION ON ISSUING LICENSES TO CERTAIN 

17 PERSONS AS A RESULT OF LICENSE REVOCA18 TION. 

19 (a) DEFINITION OF IMMEDIATE FAMILY MEMBER.— 

20 Section 2 of the Animal Welfare Act (7 U.S.C. 2132) is 

21 amended by adding at the end the following: 

22 ‘‘(p) The term ‘immediate family member’ means, 

23 with respect to a dealer— 


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1 ‘‘(1) a spouse, domestic partner, child, parent, 

2 brother, sister, grandparent, or grandchild of the 

3 dealer; and 

4 ‘‘(2) a spouse or domestic partner of a child, 

5 parent, brother, sister, grandparent, or grandchild of 

6 the dealer.’’. 

7 (b) PROHIBITION ON ISSUING LICENSES TO CERTAIN

8 PERSONS AS A RESULT OF LICENSE REVOCATION.—Sec9 tion 3 of the Animal Welfare Act (7 U.S.C. 2133) is 

10 amended— 

11 (1) by striking the section designation and all 

12 that follows through ‘‘The Secretary shall’’ and in13 serting the following: 

14 ‘‘SEC. 3. LICENSES. 

15 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall’’; 

16 (2) in subsection (a) (as so designated), in the 

17 first sentence, in the first proviso— 

18 (A) by inserting ‘‘or renewed’’ after 

19 ‘‘issued’’; and 

20 (B) by striking ‘‘demonstrated that his fa21 cilities’’ and inserting ‘‘demonstrated through 

22 facility inspection that the facilities’’; and 

23 (3) by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(b) PROHIBITION ON ISSUING LICENSES TO CER2 TAIN PERSONS AS A RESULT OF LICENSE SUSPENSION

3 OR REVOCATION.— 

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall not 

5 issue or renew a license for the purpose of being a 

6 dealer of dogs or cats to a person who is an imme7 diate family member of, or who resides at the same 

8 address of, a dealer of dogs or cats if— 

9 ‘‘(A) the license is for purposes of oper10 ating a facility for dogs or cats at a location 

11 that the dealer has used as a facility for dogs 

12 or cats; and 

13 ‘‘(B) within the last 10 years, a license of 

14 that dealer has been suspended after notice and 

15 opportunity for hearing or revoked pursuant to 

16 section 19(a). 

17 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTION.—Paragraph (1) shall not 

18 apply to a person described in that paragraph if that 

19 person shows by clear and convincing evidence that 

20 a dealer described in that paragraph— 

21 ‘‘(A) will have no ownership interest in the 

22 facility for which that person seeks a license; 

23 ‘‘(B) will play no role in the care of dogs 

24 or cats at the facility; and 


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1 ‘‘(C) will play no role in the management 

2 of the facility. 

3 ‘‘(c) PROHIBITION ON ISSUING LICENSES TO CER4 TAIN LEGAL ENTITIES AS A RESULT OF LICENSE SUS5 PENSION OR REVOCATION.— 

6 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall not 

7 issue or renew a license for the purpose of being a 

8 dealer of dogs or cats to any person that is a part9 nership, firm, joint stock company, corporation, as10 sociation, trust, estate, or other legal entity if any 

11 person who holds an ownership interest in the part12 nership, firm, joint stock company, corporation, as13 sociation, trust, estate, or other legal entity— 

14 ‘‘(A) previously held a license for purposes 

15 of operating a facility for dogs or cats at the 

16 same address of the facility for which the li17 cense is being sought; and 

18 ‘‘(B) within the last 10 years, that license 

19 has been suspended after notice and oppor20 tunity for hearing or revoked pursuant to sec21 tion 19(a). 

22 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTION.—Paragraph (1) shall not 

23 apply to a person seeking the issuance or renewal of 

24 a license described in that paragraph if that person 

25 shows by clear and convincing evidence that a perVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:17 Jan 30, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00015 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5715.IH H5715

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1 son who previously held a license for purposes of op2 erating a facility for dogs or cats described in sub3 paragraph (A) of that paragraph— 

4 ‘‘(A) will play no role in the care of dogs 

5 or cats at the facility; and 

6 ‘‘(B) will play no role in the management 

7 of the facility. 

8 ‘‘(d) 10-YEAR BAR FOR SUSPENSION OR REVOCA9 TION OF A LICENSE OF A DEALER OF DOGS OR CATS.— 

10 The Secretary shall not issue or renew a license for the 

11 purpose of being a dealer of dogs or cats to a person if— 

12 ‘‘(1) within the last 10 years, a license for the 

13 purpose of being a dealer of dogs or cats of that per14 son has been suspended after notice and opportunity 

15 for hearing or revoked pursuant to section 19(a); 

16 and 

17 ‘‘(2) the license is for purposes of operating a 

18 facility for dogs or cats at a location that the person 

19 has used as a facility for dogs or cats.’’. 

20 (c) REVOCATION OF IMPROPERLY GRANTED LI21 CENSES.—Section 19 of the Animal Welfare Act (7 U.S.C. 

22 2149) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

23 ‘‘(e) REVOCATION OF IMPROPERLY GRANTED LI24 CENSES.—The Secretary shall revoke a license issued after 

25 the date of enactment of this subsection if the Secretary 


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1 subsequently determines that, at the time of issuance, the 

2 issuance of the license violated section 3.’’. 

3 (d) REGULATIONS.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Agriculture 

5 may prescribe such regulations as the Secretary of 

6 Agriculture determines to be necessary to implement 

7 the amendments made by this section. 

8 (2) DEADLINE.—Any regulations under para9 graph (1) shall be prescribed not later than 1 year 

10 after the date of enactment of this Act. 

Æ 


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