I 
112TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 6388 
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 pur-
poses. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
SEPTEMBER 13, 2012 
Mr. WHITFIELD (for himself, Mr. COHEN, Mr. MORAN, and Ms. SCHA-
KOWSKY) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com-
mittee on Energy and Commerce 
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. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. INCREASED ENFORCEMENT UNDER HORSE 
PROTECTION ACT. 
(a) DEFINITIONS.—Section 2 of the Horse Protection 
Act (15 U.S.C. 1821) is amended— 
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(1) by redesignating paragraphs (1), (2), (3), 
and (4) as paragraphs (2), (3), (4), and (5), respec-
tively; 
(2) by inserting before paragraph (2) (as so re-
designated) the following new paragraph: 
‘‘(1) The term ‘action device’ means any boot, 
collar, chain, roller, or other device that encircles or 
is placed upon the lower extremity of the leg of a 
horse in such a manner that it can— 
‘‘(A) rotate around the leg or slide up and 
down the leg, so as to cause friction; or 
‘‘(B) strike the hoof, coronet band, fetlock 
joint, or pastern of the horse.’’; 
(3) in paragraph (2) (as so redesignated) by in-
serting ‘‘, including the sponsoring organization and 
event manager’’ before the period; and 
(4) by adding at the end the following new 
paragraph: 
‘‘(6)(A) The term ‘participate’ means engaging 
in any activity with respect to a horse show, horse 
exhibition, or horse sale or auction, including— 
‘‘(i) transporting or arranging for the 
transportation of a horse to or from a 
horse show, horse exhibition, or horse sale 
or auction; 
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‘‘(ii) personally giving instructions to 
an exhibitor; 
‘‘(iii) being knowingly present in a 
warm-up area, inspection area, or other 
area at a horse show, horse exhibition, or 
horse sale or auction that spectators are 
not permitted to enter; or 
‘‘(iv) financing the participation of 
other individuals in any horse show, horse 
exhibition, or horse sale or auction. 
‘‘(B) Such term does not include spectating.’’. 
(b) FINDINGS.—Section 3 of the Horse Protection 
Act (15 U.S.C. 1822) is amended— 
(1) in paragraph (3)— 
(A) by inserting ‘‘and soring horses for 
such purposes’’ after ‘‘horses in intrastate com-
merce,’’; and 
(B) by inserting ‘‘in many ways, including 
by creating unfair competition, by deceiving the 
spectating public and horse buyers, and by neg-
atively impacting horse sales’’ before the semi-
colon; 
(2) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 
end; 
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(3) in paragraph (5), by striking the period at 
the end and inserting a semicolon; and 
(4) by adding at the end the following new 
paragraphs: 
‘‘(6) the Inspector General of the Department 
of Agriculture has determined that the program 
through which the Secretary inspects horses is inad-
equate for preventing the soring of show horses; and 
‘‘(7) despite regulations in effect related to in-
spection for purposes of ensuring that horses are not 
sore, violations of this Act continue to be preva-
lent.’’. 
(c) HORSE SHOWS AND EXHIBITIONS.—Section 4 of 
the Horse Protection Act (15 U.S.C. 1823) is amended— 
(1) in subsection (a)— 
(A) by striking ‘‘appointed’’ and inserting 
‘‘licensed’’; and 
(B) by adding at the end the following new 
sentences: ‘‘On the first instance in which the 
Secretary determines that a horse is sore, the 
Secretary shall disqualify the horse from being 
shown or exhibited for a period of not less than 
180 days. On the second instance in which the 
Secretary determines that such horse is sore, 
the Secretary shall disqualify the horse for a 
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period of not less than one year. On the third 
instance in which the Secretary determines that 
such horse is sore, the Secretary shall disqualify 
the horse for a period of not less than three 
years.’’; 
(2) in subsection (b), by striking ‘‘appointed’’ 
and inserting ‘‘licensed’’; 
(3) by striking subsection (c) and inserting the 
following new subsection: 
‘‘(c) LICENSURE, TRAINING, AND ASSIGNMENT OF 
INSPECTORS; MANNER OF INSPECTION.—(1)(A) Not later 
than 180 days after the date of enactment of this sub-
section, the Secretary shall prescribe by regulation re-
quirements for the Department of Agriculture to license, 
train, assign, and oversee persons qualified to detect and 
diagnose a horse which is sore or to otherwise inspect 
horses at horse shows, horse exhibitions, or horse sales 
or auctions, to be hired by management of such events, 
for the purposes of enforcing this Act. 
‘‘(B) If the Secretary determines that the perform-
ance of a person licensed in accordance with subparagraph 
(A) is unsatisfactory, the Secretary may, after notice and 
an opportunity for a hearing, revoke the license issued to 
such person. 
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‘‘(C) Licensure of a person in accordance with the 
requirements prescribed under this subsection shall not be 
construed as authorizing such person to conduct inspec-
tions in a manner other than that prescribed for inspec-
tions by the Secretary (or the Secretary’s representative) 
under subsection (e) of this section. 
‘‘(2)(A) Not later than 30 days before the date on 
which a horse show, horse exhibition, or horse sale or auc-
tion begins, the management of such show, exhibition, or 
sale or auction may notify the Secretary of the intent of 
the management to hire a person or persons licensed 
under this subsection and selected by the Secretary to con-
duct inspections at such show, exhibition, or sale or auc-
tion. 
‘‘(B) After such notification, the Secretary shall as-
sign a person or persons licensed under this subsection 
to conduct inspections at the horse show, horse exhibition, 
or horse sale or auction. 
‘‘(3) A person licensed by the Secretary to conduct 
inspections under this subsection shall issue a citation 
with respect to any violation of this Act recorded during 
an inspection and notify the Secretary of each such viola-
tion not later than five days after the date on which a 
citation was issued with respect to such violation.’’; and 
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(4) in the heading for subsection (e), by strik-
ing ‘‘APPOINTED’’ and inserting ‘‘DESIGNATED’’. 
(d) UNLAWFUL ACTS.—Section 5 of the Horse Pro-
tection Act (15 U.S.C. 1824) is amended— 
(1) in paragraph (2)— 
(A) by striking ‘‘or (C) respecting’’ and in-
serting ‘‘(C), or (D) respecting’’; and 
(B) by striking ‘‘and (D)’’ and inserting 
‘‘(D) causing a horse to become sore or direct-
ing another person to cause a horse to become 
sore for the purpose of showing, exhibiting, sell-
ing, auctioning, or offering for sale the horse in 
any horse show, horse exhibition, or horse sale 
or auction, and (E)’’; 
(2) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘appoint’’ and 
inserting ‘‘hire’’; 
(3) in paragraph (4)— 
(A) by striking ‘‘appoint’’ and inserting 
‘‘hire’’; and 
(B) by striking ‘‘qualified’’; 
(4) in paragraph (5), by striking ‘‘appointed’’ 
and insert ‘‘hired’’; 
(5) in paragraph (6)— 
(A) by striking ‘‘appointed’’ and inserting 
‘‘hired’’; and 
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(B) by inserting ‘‘that the horse is sore’’ 
after ‘‘the Secretary’’; and 
(6) by adding at the end the following new 
paragraphs: 
‘‘(12) The use of an action device on any limb 
of a Tennessee Walking, a Racking, or a Spotted 
Saddle horse at a horse show, horse exhibition, or 
horse sale or auction. 
‘‘(13) The use of a weighted shoe, pad, wedge, 
hoof band, or other device or material at a horse 
show, horse exhibition, or horse sale or auction 
that— 
‘‘(A) is placed on, inserted in, or attached 
to any limb of a Tennessee Walking, a Racking, 
or a Spotted Saddle horse; 
‘‘(B) is constructed to artificially alter the 
gait of such a horse; and 
‘‘(C) is not strictly protective or thera-
peutic in nature.’’. 
(e) VIOLATIONS AND PENALTIES.—Section 6 of the 
Horse Protection Act (15 U.S.C. 1825) is amended— 
(1) in subsection (a)— 
(A) in paragraph (1)— 
(i) by striking ‘‘Except as provided in 
paragraph (2) of this subsection, any per-
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son who knowingly violates section 5’’ and 
inserting ‘‘Any person who knowingly vio-
lates section 5 or the regulations issued 
under such section, including any violation 
recorded during an inspection conducted in 
accordance with section 4(c) or 4(e)’’; and 
(ii) by striking ‘‘more than $3,000, or 
imprisoned for not more than one year, or 
both.’’ and inserting ‘‘more than $5,000, 
or imprisoned for not more than three 
years, or both, for each such violation.’’; 
(B) in paragraph (2)— 
(i) by striking subparagraph (A); 
(ii) by striking ‘‘(2)’’; and 
(iii) by redesignating subparagraphs 
(B) and (C) as paragraphs (2) and (3), re-
spectively, and moving the margins of such 
paragraphs (as so redesignated) two ems 
to the left; and 
(C) by adding at the end the following new 
paragraph: 
‘‘(4) Any person who knowingly fails to obey an 
order of disqualification shall, upon conviction there-
of, be fined not more than $5,000 for each failure 
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to obey such an order, imprisoned for not more than 
three years, or both.’’; 
(2) in subsection (b)— 
(A) in paragraph (1)— 
(i) by striking ‘‘section 5 of this Act’’ 
and inserting ‘‘section 5 or the regulations 
issued under such section’’; and 
(ii) by striking ‘‘$2,000’’ and insert-
ing ‘‘$4,000’’; and 
(B) by adding at the end the following new 
paragraph: 
‘‘(5) Any person who fails to pay a licensed in-
spector hired under section 4(c) shall, upon convic-
tion thereof, be fined not more than $4,000 for each 
such violation.’’; and 
(3) in subsection (c)— 
(A) in the first sentence— 
(i) by inserting ‘‘, or otherwise partici-
pating in any horse show, horse exhibition, 
or horse sale or auction’’ before ‘‘for a pe-
riod of not less than one year’’; and 
(ii) by striking ‘‘any subsequent’’ and 
inserting ‘‘the second’’; 
(B) by inserting before ‘‘Any person who 
knowingly fails’’ the following: ‘‘For the third 
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or any subsequent violation, a person may be 
permanently disqualified by order of the Sec-
retary, after notice and an opportunity for a 
hearing before the Secretary, from showing or 
exhibiting any horse, judging or managing any 
horse show, horse exhibition, or horse sale or 
auction, or otherwise participating in any horse 
show, horse exhibition, or horse sale or auc-
tion.’’; and 
(C) by striking ‘‘$3,000’’ each place it ap-
pears and inserting ‘‘$5,000’’. 
(f) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 180 days after 
the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall 
issue regulations to carry out the amendments made by 
this Act. 
(g) SEVERABILITY.—If any provision of this Act or 
any amendment made by this Act, or the application of 
a provision to any person or circumstance, is held to be 
unconstitutional, the remainder of this Act and the 
amendments made by this Act, and the application of the 
provisions to any person or circumstance, shall not be af-
fected by the holding. 
Æ 
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