[Senate Report 110-229]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
Calendar No. 488
110th Congress Report
SENATE
1st Session 110-229
======================================================================
TO AMEND THE HORSE PROTECTION ACT
__________
R E P O R T
OF THE
COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE, SCIENCE, AND TRANSPORTATION
on
S. 311
November 14, 2007.--Ordered to be printed
SENATE COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE, SCIENCE, AND TRANSPORTATION
one hundred tenth congress
first session
DANIEL K. INOUYE, Hawaii, Chairman
TED STEVENS, Alaska, Vice-Chairman
JOHN D. ROCKEFELLER IV, West JOHN McCAIN, Arizona
Virginia TRENT LOTT, Mississippi
JOHN F. KERRY, Massachusetts KAY BAILEY HUTCHISON, Texas
BYRON L. DORGAN, North Dakota OLYMPIA J. SNOWE, Maine
BARBARA BOXER, California GORDON H. SMITH, Oregon
BILL NELSON, Florida JOHN ENSIGN, Nevada
MARIA CANTWELL, Washington JOHN E. SUNUNU, New Hampshire
FRANK R. LAUTENBERG, New Jersey JIM DeMINT, South Carolina
MARK PRYOR, Arkansas DAVID VITTER, Louisiana
THOMAS CARPER, Delaware JOHN THUNE, South Dakota
CLAIRE McCASKILL, Missouri
AMY KLOBUCHAR, Minnesota
Margaret Cummisky, Staff Director and Chief Counsel
Lila Helms, Deputy Staff Director and Policy Director
Jean Toal Eisen, Senior Advisor and Deputy Policy Director
Christine Kurth, Republican Staff Director and General Counsel
Paul J. Nagle, Republican Chief Counsel
Calendar No. 488
110th Congress Report
SENATE
1st Session 110-229
======================================================================
TO AMEND THE HORSE PROTECTION ACT
_______
November 14, 2007.--Ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. Inouye, from the Committee on Commerce, Science, and
Transportation, submitted the following
REPORT
[To accompany S. 311]
The Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, to
which was referred the bill (S. 311) to amend the Horse
Protection Act to prohibit the shipping, transporting, moving,
delivering, receiving, possessing, purchasing, selling, or
donation of horses and other equines to be slaughtered for
human consumption, and for other purposes, having considered
the same, reports favorably thereon without an amendment and
recommends that the bill do pass.
Purpose of the Bill
S. 311 is a bill to end the interstate transportation of
horses and other equines for the purpose of slaughter for human
consumption.
Background and Needs
The purpose of S. 311 is to end the domestic slaughter of
horses and other equines for the purpose of selling horse meat
for human consumption. Debate regarding this issue revolves
around the acceptability of horse slaughter, and how to care
for or humanely dispose of horses that may no longer be
slaughtered for human food.
While it is uncommon to consume horse meat in the United
States, horse meat is considered a delicacy in many other
nations. This culinary interest has generated a significant
demand for horse products, and has led to the slaughter of
horses for human consumption in facilities located in various
nations. Until recently, three Belgian-owned facilities,
located in Texas and Illinois, were the sole horse
slaughterhouses in the United States. These facilities
slaughtered for export approximately 100,000 horses annually.
The United States exported more than 17,000 metric tons of
horse meat valued at about $65 million in 2006. Most of these
slaughtered horses were raised for other purposes--the majority
for riding--but they were no longer wanted by their owners and
were sold at auctions or through other means. The U.N. Food and
Agriculture Organization estimates that Canada and Mexico,
respectively, slaughtered a total of 88,000 and 626,000 horses
for horsemeat in 2005. A portion of these horses were shipped
from the United States, which, in 2005, exported more than
21,000 live horses to Canada and more than 11,000 to Mexico.
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), over 90
percent of horses currently sent to slaughter are healthy and
in good condition. Slaughterhouses generally seek such horses,
rather than old or infirm horses, because of the superior
quality of meat from these animals.
Federal laws neither ban the use of equines for food nor set
on-farm care standards. Protection usually is subject to
varying State and local laws. Some of these laws may set
affirmative care standards, although more are likely to be
anti-cruelty measures. However, U.S. horse slaughter plants are
subject to the Federal Meat Inspection Act (FMIA) of 1906, as
amended (21 U.S.C. 601 et seq.), which requires the USDA to
inspect all cattle, sheep, swine, goats, and equines
slaughtered and processed into products for human food. This
Act, administered by USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service
(FSIS), aims to ensure that meat and meat products from these
animals are safe, wholesome, and properly labeled. FSIS safety
inspection is mandatory, and most costs must be covered by
appropriated funds, except for overtime and holiday periods.
Meat inspectors also are charged with enforcing the Humane
Slaughter Act (7 U.S.C. 1901 et seq.), requiring that livestock
(but not poultry) be rendered unconscious prior to slaughter.
Plants also can request that graders from USDA's Agricultural
Marketing Service be placed in their plants to assign official
grades to their products based on quality traits and yield.
Plants pay user fees for this inspection service, which is
voluntary and conducted under authority of the Agricultural
Marketing Act of 1946 (AMA) (7 U.S.C. 1621 et seq.). The AMA is
also the authority FSIS uses to provide voluntary food safety
inspections of animals and products not specifically covered by
either the FMIA or the Poultry Products Inspection Act.
Horses may have to be shipped long distances to reach the few
plants that will slaughter them. Horse practitioners and
welfare groups gained passage of language in the 1996 farm bill
(P.L. 104-127, Title IX-A, Commercial Transportation of Equine
for Slaughter, 7 U.S.C. note) that authorizes the Secretary of
Agriculture to issue guidelines for regulating such transport,
subject to available appropriations. USDA's Animal and Plant
Health Inspection Service developed guidelines with the
cooperation of horse groups, and they became effective February
5, 2002.
Several States--including Texas--have laws aimed at
preventing the slaughter of horses for human food. A Federal
lawsuit filed by the owners of the two Texas slaughter plants,
Beltex Corporation and Dallas Crown, Inc., sought to clarify
that the Texas state law banning the sale of horsemeat, first
passed in 1949, was not enforceable and that they should not be
prosecuted. The U.S. District Court had earlier agreed with the
plants' owners that the law had been repealed, was preempted by
the FMIA, and violated the dormant Commerce Clause of the U.S.
Constitution. However, on January 19, 2007, a panel of the U.S.
Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit rejected all three
arguments in the lower court's ruling, declaring the Texas law
to be in force and clearing the way for the State Attorney
General to prosecute the plants' owners if they continued to
operate.
A separate March 2007 decision by a Federal Circuit Court
effectively ended the domestic slaughter of horses for human
consumption by blocking the USDA from providing any horse meat
inspections. Congress ended Federal funding for horse meat
inspections in the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and
Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act of
2006, but the USDA circumvented this provision by devising a
plan to provide the inspections of horse meat for a fee. In the
decision in the case by the Humane Society of the United
States, the Court found that the USDA did not follow Federal
procedures for setting up the inspection fee program. It has
been reported that these rulings have forced the two plants in
Texas to cease operations and will purportedly cause horse meat
production at the Illinois facility to end.
Summary of Provisions
S. 311 would amend the Horse Protection Act (15 U.S.C. 1821
et seq.), which currently makes it a crime to exhibit or
transport for the purpose of exhibition any ``sore'' horse
(i.e., one whose feet have been injured to alter its gait). The
bill would prohibit the ``shipping, transporting, moving,
delivering, receiving, possessing, purchasing, selling, or
donation of any horse or other equine to be slaughtered for
human consumption.'' Additionally, the bill would permit USDA
to detain for examination and evidence any horse for which it
has probable cause that the animal will be slaughtered for
food. Violators would be subject to specified criminal and
civil penalties and prison terms. The bill would increase the
authorization of appropriations for administering the Act from
$500,000 to $5 million annually.
Legislative History
S. 311 was introduced on January 17, 2007, by Senator
Landrieu and co-sponsored by Senators Ensign, Byrd, Snowe,
Kerry, Collins, Boxer, Graham, Carper, Levin, Reed, and
Menendez and was referred to the Senate Committee on Commerce,
Science, and Transportation. On April 25, 2007, the Committee
met in open executive session and ordered S. 311 reported
favorably, without amendment.
Estimated Costs
In accordance with paragraph 11(a) of rule XXVI of the
Standing Rules of the Senate and section 403 of the
Congressional Budget Act of 1974, the Committee provides the
following cost estimate, prepared by the Congressional Budget
Office:
S. 311--A bill to amend the Horse Protection Act to prohibit the
shipping, transporting, moving, delivering, receiving,
possessing, purchasing, selling, or donation of horses and
other equines to be slaughtered for human consumption
Summary: S. 311 would amend provisions of the Horse
Protection Act of 1970 related to the slaughter of certain
equines for human consumption. The bill would authorize the
Secretary of Agriculture to detain and examine, test, or taking
evidence from any equine if the Secretary has probable cause to
believe that the equine may be slaughtered for human
consumption. The bill would authorize the appropriations of $5
million per year for those purposes. Enacting S. 311 would not
affect direct spending or revenues.
S. 311 would impose a private-sector and an
intergovernmental mandate as defined in the Unfunded Mandates
Reform Act (UMRA). It would amend the Horse Protection Act to
prohibit shipping, transporting, moving, delivering, receiving,
possessing, purchasing, selling, or donating a horse or other
equine to be slaughtered for human consumption. CBO expects
that the cost of the mandate would fall below the thresholds
established by UMRA for private-sector and intergovernmental
mandates ($131 million and $66 million, respectively, in 2007,
adjusted annually for inflation).
Estimated cost to the Federal government: The estimated
budgetary impact of S. 311 is shown in the following table. The
costs of this legislation fall within budget function 350
(agriculture). Assuming appropriation of the authorized
amounts, CBO estimates that implementing S. 311 would cost the
federal government $4 million in fiscal year 2008 and $24
million over the 2008-2012 period.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
By fiscal year, in millions of
dollars--
---------------------------------------
2008 2009 2010 2011 2012
------------------------------------------------------------------------
CHANGES IN SPENDING SUBJECT TO APPROPRIATION
Estimated Authorization Level 5 5 5 5 5
Estimated Outlays 4 5 5 5 5
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Intergovernmental and private-sector impact: By prohibiting
shipping, transporting, moving, delivering, receiving,
possessing, purchasing, selling, or donating a horse or other
equine to be slaughtered for human consumption, S. 311 would
impose a private-sector and an intergovernmental mandate as
defined in UMRA. The cost of the mandate to the private sector
would be the loss of income to entities involved in the horse
slaughter industry and the cost to horse owners to dispose of
horses that otherwise would have been slaughtered for human
consumption. Based on information from USDA, CBO expects that
those costs would fall below the annual threshold established
by UMRA for private-sector mandates ($131 million in 2007,
adjusted annually for inflation).
This mandate also would affect state, local, and tribal
governments to the extent that they would be responsible for
unwanted horses that otherwise would have been sold contrary to
this prohibition. Because most unwanted horses remain in the
hands of private individuals or organizations, CBO estimates
that this cost would not be large, and would be well below the
threshold established in UMRA for intergovernmental mandates
($66 million in 2007, adjusted annually for inflation).
Estimate prepared by: Federal Costs: Jim Langley; Impact on
State, Local, and Tribal Governments: Marjorie Miller; Impact
on the Private Sector: Amy Petz.
Estimate approved by: Peter H. Fontaine, Deputy Assistant
Director for Budget Analysis.
Regulatory Impact Statement
In accordance with paragraph 11(b) of rule XXVI of the
Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee provides the
following evaluation of the regulatory impact of the
legislation, as reported:
NUMBER OF PERSONS COVERED
S. 311 is expected to impact the small number of persons in
United States who may seek to export horses to other countries
for the purpose of slaughter for human consumption.
ECONOMIC IMPACT
S. 311 is not expected to have an adverse impact on the U.S.
economy. At the present time, the commercial facilities that
had previously engaged in the slaughtering of horses for human
consumption have ended this service, so this bill will have no
impact on domestic slaughter operations. Horse owners who sell
horses for slaughter to other countries, typically Mexico or
Canada, would be prohibited from transporting horses for such
purposes in interstate commerce. According to the USDA, roughly
3,000 horses are currently being sent to Canada and Mexico for
slaughter for human consumption per month now that all domestic
slaughterhouses are closed, equaling roughly 72,000 horses
exported for this purpose per year. Ending this export trade
may result in lower income to owners currently involved in this
trade for the sale of their horses, but the Committee believes
that many outlets will still exist for horse owners to dispose
of their horses for other commercial purposes. For further
analysis of the economic impact on the private sector, see page
2 of the CBO estimate.
PRIVACY
S. 311 would have no effect on the privacy rights of
individuals.
PAPERWORK
The Committee anticipates no increase in paperwork burdens on
requirements for private individuals or businesses as a result
of this bill.
Section-by-Section Analysis
Section 1: Prohibits the shipping, transporting, moving, delivering,
receiving, possessing, purchasing, selling or donation of
horses and other equines for slaughter for human consumption
Subsection (a) would define human consumption and what
constitutes the slaughter of horses.
Subsection (b) would contain the bill's findings, including
that horses are vital to the United States and deserve
protection; that horses are domestic animals; that they are
unlike cows, pigs, and other animals that are raised for the
purpose of being slaughtered for human consumption; that horses
cannot be safely and humanely transported in double deck
trailers; and that horse slaughter has an adverse effect and
burden on interstate and foreign commerce.
Subsection (c) would outline what actions are prohibited if
the purpose associated with that action is to slaughter a horse
for human consumption.
Subsection (d) would provide the Secretary of Agriculture the
authority to detain and examine horses at various locations for
the purpose of taking evidence on the belief that the horse is
sore or if that an action prohibited under subsection (c) is
taking place.
Subsection (e) would increase the authorized appropriations
amount to carry out the Horse Protection Act from $500,000 to
$5,000,000.
Changes in Existing Law
In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the Standing
Rules of the Senate, changes in existing law made by the bill,
as reported, are shown as follows (existing law proposed to be
omitted is enclosed in black brackets, new material is printed
in italic, existing law in which no change is proposed is shown
in roman):
HORSE PROTECTION ACT
[15 U.S.C. 1821-Definitions]
Sec. 2. As used in this Act unless the context otherwise
requires:
(1) The term ``human consumption'' means ingestion by
people as a source of food.
[(1)] (2) The term ``management'' means any person
who organizes, exercises control over, or administers
or who is responsible for organizing, directing, or
administering.
[(2)] (3) The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary
of Agriculture.
(4) The term ``slaughter'' means the killing of 1 or
more horses or other equines with the intent to sell or
trade the flesh for human consumption.
[(3)] (5) The term ``sore'' when used to describe a
horse means that--
(A) an irritating or blistering agent has
been applied, internally or externally, by a
person to any limb of a horse,
(B) any burn, cut, or laceration has been
inflicted by a person on any limb of a horse,
(C) any tack, nail, screw, or chemical agent
has been injected by a person into or used by a
person on any limb of a horse, or
(D) any other substance or device has been
used by a person on any limb of a horse or a
person has engaged in a practice involving a
horse, and, as a result of such application,
infliction, injection, use, or practice, such
horse suffers, or can reasonably be expected to
suffer, physical pain or distress,
inflammation, or lameness when walking,
trotting, or otherwise moving, except that such
term does not include such an application,
infliction, injection, use, or practice in
connection with the therapeutic treatment of a
horse by or under the supervision of a person
licensed to practice veterinary medicine in the
State in which such treatment was given.
[(4)] (6) The term ``State'' means any of the
several States, the District of Columbia, the
Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Virgin
Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the Trust
Territory of the Pacific Islands.
[15 U.S.C. 1822-Congressional statement of findings]
Sec. 3. The Congress finds and declares that--
(1) horses and other equines play a vital role in the
collective experience of the United States and deserve
protection and compassion;
(2) horses and other equines are domestic animals
that are used primarily for recreation, pleasure, and
sport;
(3) unlike cows, pigs, and many other animals, horses
and other equines are not raised for the purpose of
being slaughtered for human consumption;
(4) individuals selling horses or other equines at
auctions are seldom aware that the animals may be
bought for the purpose of being slaughtered for human
consumption;
(5) the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service of
the Department of Agriculture has found that horses and
other equines cannot be safely and humanely transported
in double deck trailers;
[(1)] (6) the soring of horses is cruel and inhumane;
[(2)] (7) horses shown or exhibited which are sore,
where such soreness improves the performance of such
horse, compete unfairly with horses which are not sore;
[(3)] (8) [the movement, showing, exhibition, or sale
of sore horses in intrastate commerce adversely affects
and burdens interstate and foreign commerce] the
movement, showing, exhibition, or sale of sore horses
in intrastate commerce, and the shipping, transporting,
moving, delivering, receiving, possessing, purchasing,
selling, or donation in intrastate commerce of horses
and other equines to be slaughtered for human
consumption, adversely affect and burden interstate and
foreign commerce;
[(4)] (9) all horses which are subject to regulation
under this Act are either in interstate or foreign
commerce or substantially affect such commerce; and
[(5)] (10) regulation under this Act by the Secretary
is appropriate to prevent and eliminate burdens upon
commerce and to effectively regulate commerce.
[15 U.S.C. 1824-Unlawful acts]
Sec. 5. The following conduct is prohibited:
(1) The shipping, transporting, moving, delivering,
or receiving of any horse which is sore with reason to
believe that such horse while it is sore may be shown,
exhibited, entered for the purpose of being shown or
exhibited, sold, auctioned, or offered for sale, in any
horse show, horse exhibition, or horse sale or auction;
except that this paragraph does not apply to the
shipping, transporting, moving, delivering, or
receiving of any horse by a common or contract carrier
or an employee thereof in the usual course of the
carrier's business or employee's employment unless the
carrier or employee has reason to believe that such
horse is sore.
(2) The (A) showing or exhibiting, in any horse show
or horse exhibition, of any horse which is sore, (B)
entering for the purpose of showing or exhibiting in
any horse show or horse exhibition, any horse which is
sore, (C) selling, auctioning, or offering for sale, in
any horse sale or auction, any horse which is sore, and
(D) allowing any activity described in clause (A), (B),
or (C) respecting a horse which is sore by the owner of
such horse.
(3) The failure by the management of any horse show
or horse exhibition, which does not appoint and retain
a person in accordance with section 4(c) of this Act,
to disqualify from being shown or exhibited any horse
which is sore.
(4) The failure by the management of any horse sale
or auction, which does not appoint and retain a
qualified person in accordance with section 4(c) of
this Act, to prohibit the sale, offering for sale, or
auction of any horse which is sore.
(5) The failure by the management of any horse show
or horse exhibition, which has appointed and retained a
person in accordance with section 4(c) of this Act, to
disqualify from being shown or exhibited any horse (A)
which is sore; and (B) after having been notified by
such person or the Secretary that the horse is sore or
after otherwise having knowledge that the horse is
sore.
(6) The failure by the management of any horse sale
or auction which has appointed and retained a person in
accordance with section 4(c) of this Act, to prohibit
the sale, offering for sale, or auction of any horse
(A) which is sore, and (B) after having been notified
by such person or the Secretary or after otherwise
having knowledge that the horse is sore.
(7) The showing or exhibiting at a horse show or
horse exhibition; the selling or auctioning at a horse
sale or auction; the allowing to be shown, exhibited,
or sold at a horse show, horse exhibition, or horse
sale or auction; the entering for the purpose of
showing or exhibiting in any horse show or horse
exhibition; or offering for sale at a horse sale or
auction, any horse which is wearing or bearing any
equipment, device, paraphernalia, or substance which
the Secretary by regulation under section 9 prohibits
to prevent the soring of horses.
(8) The shipping, transporting, moving, delivering,
receiving, possessing, purchasing, selling, or donation
of any horse or other equine to be slaughtered for
human consumption.
[(8)] (9) The failing to establish, maintain, or
submit records, notices, reports, or other information
required under section 4.
[(9)] (10) The failure or refusal to permit access to
or copying of records, or the failure or refusal to
permit entry or inspection, as required by section 4.
[(10)] (11) The removal of any marking required by
the Secretary to identify a horse as being detained.
[(11)] (12) The failure or refusal to provide the
Secretary with adequate space or facilities, as the
Secretary may by regulation under section 9 prescribe,
in which to conduct inspections or any other activity
authorized to be performed by the Secretary under this
Act.
[15 U.S.C. 1825-Violations and penalties]
Sec. 6. (a)(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2) of this
subsection, any person who knowingly violates section 5 shall,
upon conviction thereof, be fined not more than $3,000, or
imprisoned for not more than one year, or both.
(2)(A) If any person knowingly violates section 5, after one
or more prior convictions of such person for such a violation
have become final, such person shall, upon conviction thereof,
be fined not more than $5,000, or imprisoned for not more than
two years, or both.
(B) Any person who knowingly makes, or causes to be made, a
false entry or statement in any report required under this Act;
who knowingly makes, or causes to be made, any false entry in
any account, record, or memorandum required to be established
and maintained by any person or in any notification or other
information required to be submitted to the Secretary under
section 4 of this Act; who knowingly neglects or fails to make
or cause to be made, full, true, and correct entries in such
accounts, records, memoranda, notification, or other materials;
who knowingly removes any such documentary evidence out of the
jurisdiction of the United States; who knowingly mutilates,
alters, or by any other means falsifies any such documentary
evidence; or who knowingly refuses to submit any such
documentary evidence to the Secretary for inspection and
copying shall be guilty of an offense against the United
States, and upon conviction thereof shall be fined not more
than $5,000, or imprisoned for not more than three years, or
both.
(C) Any person who forcibly assaults, resists, opposes,
impedes, intimidates, or interferes with any person while
engaged in or on account of the performance of his official
duties under this Act shall be fined not more than $5,000, or
imprisoned not more than three years, or both. Whoever, in the
commission of such acts, uses a deadly or dangerous weapon
shall be fined not more than $10,000, or imprisoned not more
than ten years, or both. Whoever kills any person while engaged
in or on account of the performance of his official duties
under this Act shall be punishable as provided under sections
1111 and 1112 of title 18, United States Code.
(b)(1) Any person who violates section 5 of this Act shall be
liable to the United States for a civil penalty of not more
than $2,000 for each violation. No penalty shall be assessed
unless such person is given notice and opportunity for a
hearing before the Secretary with respect to such violation.
The amount of such civil penalty shall be assessed by the
Secretary by written order. In determining the amount of such
penalty, the Secretary shall take into account all factors
relevant to such determination, including the nature,
circumstances, extent, and gravity of the prohibited conduct
and, with respect to the person found to have engaged in such
conduct, the degree of culpability, any history of prior
offenses, ability to pay, effect on ability to continue to do
business, and such other matters as justice may require.
(2) Any person against whom a violation is found and a civil
penalty assessed under paragraph (1) of this subsection may
obtain review in the court of appeals of the United States for
the circuit in which such person resides or has his place of
business or in the United States Court of Appeals for the
District of Columbia Circuit by filing a notice of appeal in
such court within 30 days from the date of such order and by
simultaneously sending a copy of such notice by certified mail
to the Secretary. The Secretary shall promptly file in such
court a certified copy of the record upon which such violation
was found and such penalty assessed, as provided in section
2112 of title 28, United States Code. The findings of the
Secretary shall be set aside if found to be unsupported by
substantial evidence.
(3) If any person fails to pay an assessment of a civil
penalty after it has become a final and unappealable order, or
after the appropriate court of appeals has entered final
judgment in favor of the Secretary, the Secretary shall refer
the matter to the Attorney General, who shall recover the
amount assessed in any appropriate district court of the United
States. In such action, the validity and appropriateness of the
final order imposing the civil penalty shall not be subject to
review.
(4) The Secretary may, in his discretion, compromise, modify,
or remit, with or without conditions, any civil penalty
assessed under this subsection.
(c) In addition to any fine, imprisonment, or civil penalty
authorized under this section, any person who was convicted
under subsection (a) or who paid a civil penalty assessed under
subsection (b) or is subject to a final order under such
subsection assessing a civil penalty for any violation of any
provision of this Act or any regulation issued under this Act
may be disqualified by order of the Secretary, 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 for a period of not
less than one year for the first violation and not less than
five years for any subsequent violation. Any person who
knowingly fails to obey an order of disqualification shall be
subject to a civil penalty of not more than $3,000 for each
violation. Any horse show, horse exhibition, or horse sale or
auction, or the management thereof, collectively and severally,
which knowingly allows any person who is under an order of
disqualification to show or exhibit any horse, to enter for the
purpose of showing or exhibiting any horse, to take part in
managing or judging, or otherwise to participate in any horse
show, horse exhibition, or horse sale or auction in violation
of an order shall be subject to a civil penalty of not more
than $3,000 for each violation. The provisions of subsection
(b) respecting the assessment, review, collection, and
compromise, modification, and remission of a civil penalty
apply with respect to civil penalties under this subsection.
(d) The Secretary may require by subpena the attendance and
testimony of witnesses and the production of books, papers, and
documents relating to any matter under investigation or the
subject of a proceeding. Witnesses summoned before the
Secretary shall be paid the same fees and mileage that are paid
witnesses in the courts of the United States.
(2) The attendance of witnesses, and the production of books,
papers, and documents, may be required at any designated place
from any place in the United States. In case of disobedience to
a subpena the Secretary, or any party to a proceeding before
the Secretary, may invoke the aid of any appropriate district
court of the United States in requiring attendance and
testimony of witnesses and the production of such books,
papers, and documents under the provisions of this Act.
(3) The Secretary may order testimony to be taken by
deposition under oath in any proceeding or investigation
pending before him, at any stage of the proceeding or
investigation. Depositions may be taken before any person
designated by the Secretary who has power to administer oaths.
The Secretary may also require the production of books, papers,
and documents at the taking of depositions.
(4) Witnesses whose depositions are taken and the persons
taking them shall be entitled to the same fees as paid for like
services in the courts of the United States or in other
jurisdictions in which they may appear.
(5) In any civil or criminal action to enforce this Act or
any regulation under this Act a horse shall be presumed to be a
horse which is sore if it manifests abnormal sensitivity or
inflammation in both of its forelimbs or both of its hindlimbs.
(6) The United States district courts, the District Court of
Guam, the District Court of the Virgin Islands, the highest
court of American Samoa, and the United States courts of the
other territories, are vested with jurisdiction specifically to
enforce, and to prevent and restrain violations of this Act,
and shall have jurisdiction in all other kinds of cases arising
under this Act, except as provided in subsection (b) of this
section.
(e)(1) The Secretary may detain for examination, testing, or
the taking of evidence--
(A) any horse at any horse show, horse exhibition, or
horse sale or auction that is sore or that the
Secretary has probable cause to believe is sore; and
(B) any horse or other equine that the Secretary has
probable cause to believe is being shipped,
transported, moved, delivered, received, possessed,
purchased, sold, or donated in violation of section
5(8).
[(1)] (2) [The Secretary may detain (for a period not to
exceed twenty-four hours) for examination, testing, or the
taking of evidence, any horse at any horse show, horse
exhibition, or horse sale or auction which is sore or which the
Secretary has probable cause to believe is sore.] The Secretary
may require the temporary marking of any horse during the
period of its detention for the purpose of identifying the
horse as detained. A horse which is detained subject to this
paragraph shall not be moved by any person from the place it is
so detained except as authorized by the Secretary or until the
expiration of the detention period applicable to the horse.
[(2)] (3) Any equipment, device, paraphernalia, or substance
which was used in violation of any provision of this Act or any
regulation issued under this Act or which contributed to the
soring of any horse at or prior to any horse show, horse
exhibition, or horse sale or auction, shall be liable to be
proceeded against, by process of libel for the seizure and
condemnation of such equipment, device, paraphernalia, or
substance, in any United States district court within the
jurisdiction of which such equipment, device, paraphernalia, or
substance is found. Such proceedings shall conform as nearly as
possible to proceedings in rem in admiralty.
[15 U.S.C. 1831-Authorization of appropriations]
Sec. 12. There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out
this Act $125,000 for the period beginning July 1, 1976, and
ending September 30, 1976; and for the fiscal year beginning
October 1, 1976, and for each fiscal year thereafter there are
authorized to be appropriated such sums, not to exceed
[$500,000] $5,000,000, as may be necessary to carry out this
Act.