[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1529 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

<DOC>






118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1529

 To amend the Animal Welfare Act to provide for greater protection of 
                   roosters, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 10, 2023

  Mr. Booker introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
   referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend the Animal Welfare Act to provide for greater protection of 
                   roosters, and for other purposes.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Fighting Inhumane Gambling and High-
risk Trafficking Act of 2023'' or the ``FIGHT Act of 2023''.

SEC. 2. ANIMAL FIGHTING.

    (a) Definition of Rooster.--Section 2 of the Animal Welfare Act (7 
U.S.C. 2132) is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(p) The term `rooster' means any male member of Gallus Domesticus 
species that is older than 6 months.''.
    (b) Animal Fighting Venture Simulcasting Prohibited.--Section 26 of 
the Animal Welfare Act (7 U.S.C. 2156) is amended--
            (1) by striking the section designation and header and all 
        that follows through ``It shall be unlawful'' in subsection 
        (a)(2) and inserting the following:

``SEC. 26. SPONSORING OR EXHIBITING AN ANIMAL IN, ATTENDING, CAUSING A 
              MINOR TO ATTEND, OR SIMULCASTING AN ANIMAL FIGHTING 
              VENTURE.

    ``(a) Sponsoring or Exhibiting.--
            ``(1) In general.--It shall be unlawful for any person to 
        knowingly sponsor or exhibit an animal in an animal fighting 
        venture.
            ``(2) Attending or causing an individual who has not 
        attained the age of 16 to attend.--It shall be unlawful''; and
            (2) in subsection (a), by adding at the end the following:
            ``(3) Animal venture simulcasting.--It shall be unlawful 
        for any person to transmit or receive in any State simulcasting 
        of an animal fighting venture.''.
    (c) Use of Postal Service or Other Interstate Instrumentality To 
Transport Roosters.--Section 26(c) of the Animal Welfare Act (7 U.S.C. 
2156(c)) is amended--
            (1) in the subsection heading, by inserting ``or To 
        Transport Roosters'' after ``Venture'';
            (2) by striking ``speech for purposes of advertising'' and 
        inserting the following: ``speech--
            ``(1) for purposes of advertising'';
            (3) in paragraph (1) (as so designated), by striking the 
        period at the end and inserting ``; or''; and
            (4) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(2) to transport a rooster.''.
    (d) Civil Citizen Suits; Seizure.--Section 26(e) of the Animal 
Welfare Act (7 U.S.C. 2156(e)) is amended--
            (1) by striking the subsection designation and heading and 
        all that follows through ``The Secretary or any other person 
        authorized by him'' in the first sentence and inserting the 
        following:
    ``(e) Investigations; Civil Citizen Suits.--
            ``(1) Investigation of violations by secretary; assistance 
        by other federal agencies; issuance of search warrant; 
        forfeiture; cost recoverable in forfeiture or civil action.--
        The Secretary, or any other person authorized by the 
        Secretary,''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(2) Civil citizen suits.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Any person may commence a civil 
                suit in a district court of the United States on their 
                own behalf to enjoin any person who is alleged to be in 
                violation of any provision of this section.
                    ``(B) Amount of fine.--For any person found to have 
                violated a provision of this section in any suit 
                brought under subparagraph (A), the district court may 
                issue a fine in an amount not greater than $5,000 for 
                each violation.
                    ``(C) Requirement.--A person seeking to commence a 
                civil suit under subparagraph (A) shall, at least 60 
                days before commencing the suit, submit to the 
                Secretary and to the alleged violator written notice of 
                the alleged violation of a provision of this section.
                    ``(D) Limitation.--No action may be commenced under 
                subparagraph (A)--
                            ``(i) if the Secretary has commenced an 
                        action against the same person to impose a 
                        penalty pursuant to paragraph (1) for the same 
                        alleged violation; or
                            ``(ii) if the United States has commenced, 
                        and is diligently prosecuting, a criminal 
                        action against the same person in a State or 
                        Federal court to redress the same alleged 
                        violation.
                    ``(E) Jurisdiction.--A suit under this paragraph 
                may be brought in the judicial district in which the 
                alleged violation occurred.
                    ``(F) Intervention.--The Attorney General, at the 
                request of the Secretary, may intervene on behalf of 
                the United States as a matter of right in any civil 
                suit brought under subparagraph (A).
                    ``(G) Attorney's fees.--The court, in issuing any 
                final order in any suit brought under subparagraph (A), 
                may award costs of litigation (including reasonable 
                attorney and expert witness fees) to any party, 
                whenever the court determines such an award is 
                appropriate.
            ``(3) Seizure.--Whoever is found, pursuant to an 
        investigation under paragraph (1), to have violated subsection 
        (a)(1) shall, in addition to the penalties applicable under 
        paragraph (1), be subject to seizure of all real property, 
        including any right, title, and interest (including any 
        leasehold interest) in the whole of any lot or tract of land 
        and any appurtenances or improvements, that is used, or 
        intended to be used, in any manner or part, to commit, or to 
        facilitate the commission of, a violation of subsection 
        (a)(1).''.
    (e) Technical Corrections.--
            (1) Section 26(h) of the Animal Welfare Act (7 U.S.C. 
        2156(h)) is amended to read as follows:
    ``(h) Conflict With State Law.--The provisions of this Act shall 
not supersede or otherwise invalidate any such State, local, or 
municipal legislation or ordinance relating to animal fighting ventures 
except in case of a direct and irreconcilable conflict between any 
requirements thereunder and this Act or any rule, regulation, or 
standard hereunder.''.
            (2) Section 3001(a) of title 39, United States Code, is 
        amended by inserting ``(7 U.S.C. 2156),'' before ``is 
        nonmailable''.
                                 <all>