I 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 3268 

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. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 28, 2015 

Mr. YOHO (for himself, Mr. SCHRADER, Mr. FITZPATRICK, Mr. COHEN, Mr. 

JOLLY, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. BUCHANAN, Ms. SLAUGHTER, Mr. COLLINS of New York, Mr. YARMUTH, Mr. LOBIONDO, Ms. DELBENE, Mr. 

MARINO, Mr. FARR, Mr. JONES, Mr. HECK of Washington, Mr. SMITH

of New Jersey, Ms. DELAURO, Mr. WILLIAMS, Mrs. KIRKPATRICK, Mr. 

DENHAM, Mr. WELCH, Mr. BRAT, Mr. SARBANES, Mr. SMITH of Texas, 

Mr. BLUMENAUER, Mr. CRENSHAW, Ms. JACKSON LEE, Mr. GIBSON, Mr. 

LEVIN, Mr. MEADOWS, Ms. DEGETTE, Mr. RODNEY DAVIS of Illinois, 

Mr. BEN RAY LUJA ́N of New Mexico, Mr. BARLETTA, Mr. QUIGLEY, Mr. 

MICA, Mr. DEUTCH, Mr. LANCE, Mr. PRICE of North Carolina, Mr. 

POSEY, Ms. MCCOLLUM, Mr. MEEHAN, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. ROSKAM, 

Mr. VELA, Mr. COSTELLO of Pennsylvania, Mr. KEATING, Mr. JOYCE, 

Mrs. LOWEY, Mr. HECK of Nevada, Mr. VARGAS, Mr. FORBES, Mr. CONNOLLY, Mr. YODER, Mr. PETERS, Mr. HUNTER, Mr. ENGEL, Mr. SALMON, Ms. MICHELLE LUJAN GRISHAM of New Mexico, Mr. SCHWEIKERT, 

Ms. SINEMA, Mr. CHABOT, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. CALVERT, Mrs. DAVIS of 

California, Mr. DONOVAN, Ms. PINGREE, Mrs. WALORSKI, Mr. CARTWRIGHT, Mr. FARENTHOLD, Mr. POCAN, Mr. RIBBLE, Ms. MENG, Mr. 

JOHNSON of Ohio, Ms. NORTON, Mr. DIAZ-BALART, Mr. WALZ, Mr. 

HUDSON, Mr. LARSEN of Washington, Mr. HANNA, Ms. ESHOO, Mr. 

VALADAO, Mr. VAN HOLLEN, Mr. FLORES, Mr. ISRAEL, Mr. WITTMAN, 

Ms. FRANKEL of Florida, Mr. COOK, Mr. LANGEVIN, Mr. TURNER, Ms. 

WILSON of Florida, Ms. MCSALLY, Mr. KILMER, Ms. GRANGER, Mr. 

GUTIE ́RREZ, Mr. NUGENT, Ms. BORDALLO, Mr. PERRY, Mr. GRAYSON, 

Mr. KING of New York, Mr. SEAN PATRICK MALONEY of New York, Mr. 

KELLY of Pennsylvania, Mr. PALLONE, Mr. DOLD, Mr. HONDA, Mr. 

FORTENBERRY, and Mrs. BEATTY) introduced the following bill; which 

was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce 


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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. 

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 ‘‘Prevent All Soring 

5 Tactics Act of 2015’’ or the ‘‘PAST Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. INCREASED ENFORCEMENT UNDER HORSE PRO7 TECTION ACT. 

8 (a) DEFINITIONS.—Section 2 of the Horse Protection 

9 Act (15 U.S.C. 1821) is amended— 

10 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (1), (2), (3), 

11 and (4) as paragraphs (2), (3), (4), and (5), respec12 tively; 

13 (2) by inserting before paragraph (2) (as so re14 designated) the following new paragraph: 

15 ‘‘(1)(A) The term ‘action device’ means any 

16 boot, collar, chain, roller, or other device that encir17 cles or is placed upon the lower extremity of the leg 

18 of a horse in such a manner that it can— 

19 ‘‘(i) rotate around the leg or slide up and 

20 down the leg, so as to cause friction; or 


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1 ‘‘(ii) strike the hoof, coronet band, fetlock 

2 joint, or pastern of the horse. 

3 ‘‘(B) Such term does not include soft rubber or 

4 soft leather bell boots or quarter boots that are used 

5 as protective devices.’’; and 

6 (3) by adding at the end the following new 

7 paragraph: 

8 ‘‘(6)(A) The term ‘participate’ means engaging 

9 in any activity with respect to a horse show, horse 

10 exhibition, or horse sale or auction, including— 

11 ‘‘(i) transporting or arranging for the 

12 transportation of a horse to or from a horse 

13 show, horse exhibition, or horse sale or auction; 

14 ‘‘(ii) personally giving instructions to an 

15 exhibitor; or 

16 ‘‘(iii) being knowingly present in a warm17 up area, inspection area, or other area at a 

18 horse show, horse exhibition, or horse sale or 

19 auction that spectators are not permitted to 

20 enter. 

21 ‘‘(B) Such term does not include spectating.’’. 

22 (b) FINDINGS.—Section 3 of the Horse Protection 

23 Act (15 U.S.C. 1822) is amended— 

24 (1) in paragraph (3)— 


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1 (A) by inserting ‘‘and soring horses for 

2 such purposes’’ after ‘‘horses in intrastate com3 merce’’; and 

4 (B) by inserting ‘‘in many ways, including 

5 by creating unfair competition, by deceiving the 

6 spectating public and horse buyers, and by neg7 atively impacting horse sales’’ before the semi8 colon; 

9 (2) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 

10 end; 

11 (3) in paragraph (5), by striking the period at 

12 the end and inserting a semicolon; and 

13 (4) by adding at the end the following new 

14 paragraphs: 

15 ‘‘(6) the Inspector General of the Department 

16 of Agriculture has determined that the program 

17 through which the Secretary inspects horses is inad18 equate for preventing soring; 

19 ‘‘(7) historically, Tennessee Walking Horses, 

20 Racking Horses, and Spotted Saddle Horses have 

21 been subjected to soring; and 

22 ‘‘(8) despite regulations in effect related to in23 spection for purposes of ensuring that horses are not 

24 sore, violations of this Act continue to be prevalent 


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1 in the Tennessee Walking Horse, Racking Horse, 

2 and Spotted Saddle Horse breeds.’’. 

3 (c) HORSE SHOWS AND EXHIBITIONS.—Section 4 of 

4 the Horse Protection Act (15 U.S.C. 1823) is amended— 

5 (1) in subsection (a)— 

6 (A) by striking ‘‘appointed’’ and inserting 

7 ‘‘licensed’’; and 

8 (B) by adding at the end the following new 

9 sentences: ‘‘In the first instance in which the 

10 Secretary determines that a horse is sore, the 

11 Secretary shall disqualify the horse from being 

12 shown or exhibited for a period of not less than 

13 180 days. In the second instance in which the 

14 Secretary determines that such horse is sore, 

15 the Secretary shall disqualify the horse for a 

16 period of not less than one year. In the third 

17 instance in which the Secretary determines that 

18 such horse is sore, the Secretary shall disqualify 

19 the horse for a period of not less than three 

20 years.’’; 

21 (2) in subsection (b) by striking ‘‘appointed’’ 

22 and inserting ‘‘licensed’’; 

23 (3) by striking subsection (c) and inserting the 

24 following new subsection: 


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1 ‘‘(c)(1)(A) The Secretary shall prescribe by regula2 tion requirements for the Department of Agriculture to 

3 license, train, assign, and oversee persons qualified to de4 tect and diagnose a horse which is sore or to otherwise 

5 inspect horses at horse shows, horse exhibitions, or horse 

6 sales or auctions, for hire by the management of such 

7 events, for the purposes of enforcing this Act. 

8 ‘‘(B) No person shall be issued a license under this 

9 subsection unless such person is free from conflicts of in10 terest, as defined by the Secretary in the regulations 

11 issued under subparagraph (A). 

12 ‘‘(C) If the Secretary determines that the perform13 ance of a person licensed in accordance with subparagraph 

14 (A) is unsatisfactory, the Secretary may, after notice and 

15 an opportunity for a hearing, revoke the license issued to 

16 such person. 

17 ‘‘(D) In issuing licenses under this subsection, the 

18 Secretary shall give a preference to persons who are li19 censed or accredited veterinarians. 

20 ‘‘(E) Licensure of a person in accordance with the 

21 requirements prescribed under this subsection shall not be 

22 construed as authorizing such person to conduct inspec23 tions in a manner other than that prescribed for inspec24 tions by the Secretary (or the Secretary’s representative) 

25 under subsection (e). 


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1 ‘‘(2)(A) Not later than 30 days before the date on 

2 which a horse show, horse exhibition, or horse sale or auc3 tion begins, the management of such show, exhibition, or 

4 sale or auction may notify the Secretary of the intent of 

5 the management to hire a person or persons licensed 

6 under this subsection and assigned by the Secretary to 

7 conduct inspections at such show, exhibition, or sale or 

8 auction. 

9 ‘‘(B) After such notification, the Secretary shall as10 sign a person or persons licensed under this subsection 

11 to conduct inspections at the horse show, horse exhibition, 

12 or horse sale or auction. 

13 ‘‘(3) A person licensed by the Secretary to conduct 

14 inspections under this subsection shall issue a citation 

15 with respect to any violation of this Act recorded during 

16 an inspection and notify the Secretary of each such viola17 tion not later than five days after the date on which a 

18 citation was issued with respect to such violation.’’; and 

19 (4) by adding at the end the following new sub20 section: 

21 ‘‘(f) The Secretary shall publish on the public website 

22 of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service of the 

23 Department of Agriculture, and update as frequently as 

24 the Secretary determines is necessary, information on vio25 lations of this Act for the purposes of allowing the manVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:04 Jul 30, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3268.IH H3268

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1 agement of a horse show, horse exhibition, or horse sale 

2 or auction to determine if an individual is in violation of 

3 this Act.’’. 

4 (d) UNLAWFUL ACTS.—Section 5 of the Horse Pro5 tection Act (15 U.S.C. 1824) is amended— 

6 (1) in paragraph (2)— 

7 (A) by striking ‘‘or (C) respecting’’ and in8 serting ‘‘(C), or (D) respecting’’; and 

9 (B) by striking ‘‘and (D)’’ and inserting 

10 ‘‘(D) causing a horse to become sore or direct11 ing another person to cause a horse to become 

12 sore for the purpose of showing, exhibiting, sell13 ing, auctioning, or offering for sale the horse in 

14 any horse show, horse exhibition, or horse sale 

15 or auction, and (E)’’; 

16 (2) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘appoint’’ and 

17 inserting ‘‘hire’’; 

18 (3) in paragraph (4)— 

19 (A) by striking ‘‘appoint’’ and inserting 

20 ‘‘hire’’; and 

21 (B) by striking ‘‘qualified’’; 

22 (4) in paragraph (5), by striking ‘‘appointed’’ 

23 and inserting ‘‘hired’’; 

24 (5) in paragraph (6)— 


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1 (A) by striking ‘‘appointed’’ and inserting 

2 ‘‘hired’’; and 

3 (B) by inserting ‘‘that the horse is sore’’ 

4 after ‘‘the Secretary’’; and 

5 (6) by adding at the end the following new 

6 paragraphs: 

7 ‘‘(12) The use of an action device on any limb 

8 of a Tennessee Walking Horse, a Racking Horse, or 

9 a Spotted Saddle Horse at a horse show, horse exhi10 bition, or horse sale or auction. 

11 ‘‘(13) The use of a weighted shoe, pad, wedge, 

12 hoof band, or other device or material at a horse 

13 show, horse exhibition, or horse sale or auction 

14 that— 

15 ‘‘(A) is placed on, inserted in, or attached 

16 to any limb of a Tennessee Walking Horse, a 

17 Racking Horse, or a Spotted Saddle Horse; 

18 ‘‘(B) is constructed to artificially alter the 

19 gait of such a horse; and 

20 ‘‘(C) is not strictly protective or thera21 peutic in nature.’’. 

22 (e) VIOLATIONS AND PENALTIES.—Section 6 of the 

23 Horse Protection Act (15 U.S.C. 1825) is amended— 

24 (1) in subsection (a)— 

25 (A) in paragraph (1)— 


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1 (i) by striking ‘‘Except as provided in 

2 paragraph (2) of this subsection, any per3 son who knowingly violates section 5’’ and 

4 inserting ‘‘Any person who knowingly vio5 lates section 5 or the regulations issued 

6 under such section, including any violation 

7 recorded during an inspection conducted in 

8 accordance with section 4(c) or 4(e)’’; and 

9 (ii) by striking ‘‘more than $3,000, or 

10 imprisoned for not more than one year, or 

11 both.’’ and inserting ‘‘more than $5,000, 

12 or imprisoned for not more than three 

13 years, or both, for each such violation.’’; 

14 (B) in paragraph (2)— 

15 (i) by striking subparagraph (A); 

16 (ii) by striking ‘‘(2)’’; and 

17 (iii) by redesignating subparagraphs 

18 (B) and (C) as paragraphs (2) and (3), re19 spectively, and moving the margins of such 

20 paragraphs (as so redesignated) two ems 

21 to the left; and 

22 (C) by adding at the end the following new 

23 paragraph: 

24 ‘‘(4) Any person who knowingly fails to obey an order 

25 of disqualification shall, upon conviction thereof, be fined 


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1 not more than $5,000 for each failure to obey such an 

2 order, imprisoned for not more than three years, or both.’’; 

3 (2) in subsection (b)— 

4 (A) in paragraph (1)— 

5 (i) by striking ‘‘section 5 of this Act’’ 

6 and inserting ‘‘section 5 or the regulations 

7 issued under such section’’; and 

8 (ii) by striking ‘‘$2,000’’ and insert9 ing ‘‘$4,000’’; and 

10 (B) by adding at the end the following new 

11 paragraph: 

12 ‘‘(5) Any person who fails to pay a licensed inspector 

13 hired under section 4(c) shall, upon conviction thereof, be 

14 fined not more than $4,000 for each such violation.’’; and 

15 (3) in subsection (c)— 

16 (A) in the first sentence— 

17 (i) by inserting ‘‘, or otherwise partici18 pating in any horse show, horse exhibition, 

19 or horse sale or auction’’ before ‘‘for a pe20 riod of not less than one year’’; and 

21 (ii) by striking ‘‘any subsequent’’ and 

22 inserting ‘‘the second’’; 

23 (B) by inserting before ‘‘Any person who 

24 knowingly fails’’ the following: ‘‘For the third 

25 or any subsequent violation, a person may be 


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1 permanently disqualified by order of the Sec2 retary, after notice and an opportunity for a 

3 hearing before the Secretary, from showing or 

4 exhibiting any horse, judging or managing any 

5 horse show, horse exhibition, or horse sale or 

6 auction, or otherwise participating in, including 

7 financing the participation of other individuals 

8 in, any horse show, horse exhibition, or horse 

9 sale or auction (regardless of whether walking 

10 horses are shown, exhibited, sold, auctioned, or 

11 offered for sale at the horse show, horse exhi12 bition, or horse sale or auction).’’; and 

13 (C) by striking ‘‘$3,000’’ each place it ap14 pears and inserting ‘‘$5,000’’. 

15 (f) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 180 days after 

16 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of 

17 Agriculture shall issue regulations to carry out the amend18 ments made by this section, including regulations pre19 scribing the requirements under subsection (c) of section 

20 4 of the Horse Protection Act (15 U.S.C. 1823(c)), as 

21 amended by subsection (c)(3). 

22 (g) SEVERABILITY.—If any provision of this Act or 

23 any amendment made by this Act, or the application of 

24 a provision to any person or circumstance, is held to be 

25 unconstitutional, the remainder of this Act and the 


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1 amendments made by this Act, and the application of the 

2 provisions to any person or circumstance, shall not be af3 fected by the holding. 

Æ 


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