I 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 7958 

To amend the Public Health Service Act to prohibit the Director of the 

National Institutes of Health from conducting or funding research that 

causes significant pain or distress to a dog or cat, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 11, 2024 

Ms. MACE (for herself, Mr. MOSKOWITZ, Mr. NEHLS, Ms. KAPTUR, Ms. 

MALLIOTAKIS, Ms. TITUS, Mr. CARTER of Georgia, Ms. NORTON, and 

Mr. STEUBE) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Energy and Commerce 

A BILL 

To amend the Public Health Service Act to prohibit the 

Director of the National Institutes of Health from conducting or funding research that causes significant pain 

or distress to a dog or cat, 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 ‘‘Preventing Animal 

5 Abuse and Waste Act’’ or the ‘‘PAAW Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds the following: 


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1 (1) The National Institutes of Health (in this 

2 section referred to as ‘‘NIH’’) spends taxpayer dol3 lars to conduct and fund research that causes pain 

4 and distress to dogs and cats. 

5 (2) The NIH states that ‘‘animal models often 

6 fail to provide good ways to mimic disease or predict 

7 how drugs will work in humans, resulting in much 

8 wasted time and money while patients wait for 

9 therapies’’. 

10 (3) The NIH often conducts and funds tests on 

11 dogs to assess the safety of experimental human 

12 drugs even though the Food and Drug Administra13 tion has stated, ‘‘The FDA does not mandate that 

14 human drugs be studied in dogs.’’. 

15 (4) The National Academies of Sciences, Engi16 neering, and Medicine has repeatedly found research 

17 on dogs, cats, and other animals that is conducted 

18 and funded by the NIH and other agencies to be un19 necessary. 

20 (5) Alternative research methodologies and 

21 other species can replace the use of dogs and cats 

22 in NIH-conducted and funded research. 

23 (6) Federal agencies including the Department 

24 of Veterans Affairs, the Environmental Protection 

25 Agency, and the Food and Drug Administration 


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1 have launched initiatives to reduce and replace test2 ing on dogs and cats, specifically. 

3 (7) Existing reporting mechanisms do not pro4 vide adequate information to Congress and tax5 payers about the scale, scope, and cost of dog and 

6 cat use in NIH-conducted and funded research. 

7 SEC. 3. PROHIBITION ON RESEARCH CAUSING SIGNIFICANT 

8 PAIN OR DISTRESS TO DOGS AND CATS. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subpart 6 of part C of title IV 

10 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 285f et seq.) 

11 is amended by adding at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘SEC. 447E. PROHIBITION ON RESEARCH CAUSING SIGNIFI13 CANT PAIN OR DISTRESS TO DOGS AND CATS. 

14 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Director of NIH may not 

15 conduct or support any research that causes significant 

16 pain or distress to a dog or cat. 

17 ‘‘(b) DEFINITION.—In this section, the term ‘re18 search that causes significant pain or distress’ includes 

19 any study classified in pain category D or E by the De20 partment of Agriculture.’’. 

21 (b) APPLICABILITY.—The amendment made by sub22 section (a) applies beginning on the date that is 90 days 

23 after the date of enactment of this Act. 


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1 SEC. 4. REPORTING. 

2 (a) NIH REPORT ON RESEARCH CAUSING PAIN OR

3 DISTRESS TO DOGS AND CATS.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 6 months 

5 after the date of enactment of this Act, and annually 

6 thereafter, the Director of the NIH shall publish on 

7 the NIH website, and submit to the Committee on 

8 Energy and Commerce of the House of Representa9 tives and to the Committee on Health, Education, 

10 Labor, and Pensions of the Senate, a report on the 

11 use of dogs and cats in NIH-conducted and funded 

12 biomedical research. 

13 (2) CONTENTS OF REPORT.—Each report under 

14 paragraph (1) shall include, for the period covered 

15 by the report— 

16 (A) a list of all ongoing or prospective re17 search projects that cause significant pain or 

18 distress to a dog or cat and are conducted or 

19 funded by the NIH; 

20 (B) for each project— 

21 (i) the project title; 

22 (ii) the grant or contract number; 

23 (iii) the research abstract; 

24 (iv) the research location; 

25 (v) the cost to taxpayers during the 

26 previous fiscal year and since inception; 


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1 (vi) the number of dogs or cats used; 

2 (vii) the projected start and end 

3 dates; 

4 (viii) the Department of Agriculture 

5 pain and distress category; and 

6 (ix) the amount of funds obligated or 

7 estimated to be obligated for each such 

8 project; 

9 (C) an explanation of— 

10 (i) efforts to phase out the use of dogs 

11 and cats in research that is conducted or 

12 funded by the NIH; and 

13 (ii) any barriers to such phase out; 

14 and 

15 (D) the number of dogs and cats retired 

16 and adopted from research conducted or funded 

17 by the NIH. 

18 (b) GAO STUDY ON NIH DOG AND CAT RESEARCH

19 AND EFFORTS TO REDUCE USE OF DOGS AND CATS IN

20 TESTING.—Not later than one year after the date of en21 actment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United 

22 States shall submit a report to the Congress that— 

23 (1) reviews and summarizes the use of dogs and 

24 cats in research that is conducted or funded by the 

25 NIH; 


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1 (2) identifies NIH policies and initiatives aimed 

2 at reducing and replacing the specific use of dogs 

3 and cats in research that causes significant pain or 

4 distress and is conducted or funded by the NIH; 

5 (3) assesses the effectiveness of any NIH poli6 cies and initiatives aimed at reducing and replacing 

7 the use of dogs and cats in NIH-conducted and 

8 funded research; 

9 (4) compares NIH efforts to reduce and replace 

10 dog and cat testing to similar efforts at other Fed11 eral agencies; 

12 (5) identifies areas where the NIH can im13 prove— 

14 (A) efforts to reduce and replace the use of 

15 dogs and cats in research that is conducted or 

16 funded by the NIH; and 

17 (B) public reporting on progress made; 

18 (6) assesses the effectiveness of any NIH poli19 cies and initiatives aimed at retiring and re-homing 

20 dogs and cats no longer needed in research con21 ducted or funded by the NIH; 

22 (7) makes recommendations for improving— 

23 (A) the effectiveness of efforts to reduce 

24 and replace the use of dogs and cats in research 

25 conducted or funded by the NIH; and 


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1 (B) public reporting on progress made; 

2 and 

3 (8) includes any other matter the Comptroller 

4 General of the United States determines important 

5 to assessing and improving NIH’s efforts to reduce 

6 and replace the use of dogs and cats in federally 

7 funded research that causes significant pain or dis8 tress. 

9 (c) DEFINITION.—In this section: 

10 (1) The term ‘‘NIH’’ means the National Insti11 tutes of Health. 

12 (2) The term ‘‘research that causes significant 

13 pain or distress’’ includes any study classified in 

14 pain category D or E by the Department of Agri15 culture. 

Æ 


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