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“INTRODUCTION OF THE ANIMAL WELFARE ACCOUNTABILITY AND TRANSPARENCY ACT” mentioning the U.S. Dept of Agriculture was published in the Extensions of Remarks section on pages E275-E276 on March 6, 2017.
The Department is primarily focused on food nutrition, with assistance programs making up 80 percent of its budget. Downsizing the Federal Government, a project aimed at lowering taxes and boosting federal efficiency, said the Department implements too many regulations and restrictions and impedes the economy.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
INTRODUCTION OF THE ANIMAL WELFARE ACCOUNTABILITY AND TRANSPARENCY ACT
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HON. EARL BLUMENAUER
of oregon
in the house of representatives
Monday, March 6, 2017
Mr. BLUMENAUER. Mr. Speaker, early last month, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) abruptly pulled animal welfare violation documents from its website. This database contained thousands of inspection reports and other information about violations of the Animal Welfare Act and the Horse Protection Act made by research laboratories, zoos, dog breeding operations, and other facilities. While the agency has begun to repost some of these documents, it has so far only restored a small fraction of the information that was taken down. In the meantime, consumers and animal welfare advocates lack the transparency needed to make informed decisions and hold violators accountable.
For the life of me, I can't understand why USDA would hide this vital information. Ensuring transparency under these laws is a no-brainer. Luckily, many of my colleagues feel the same. Today, I am pleased to introduce, with 34 of my colleagues, the Animal Welfare Accountability and Transparency Act. This bill would require USDA to repost this information on its website and would increase accountability for those who treat animals inhumanely.
Providing consumers with information about where their pets come from and how animals are treated is the least we can do to discourage people from violating the law. It is critical that we ensure the standards set forth by Animal Welfare Act and the Horse Protection Act are upheld. This is why the Animal Welfare Accountability and Transparency Act would create an additional incentive to abide by these laws.
The bill would take away certain tax benefits for businesses that are found to be in violation of those laws. Under current tax rules, the costs of breeding and working animals are treated the same as machinery and equipment, and businesses may deduct these costs from their taxes over a specified period. The bill would prohibit businesses found to have violated the Animal Welfare Act or the Horse Protection Act from claiming these accelerated depreciation bonuses for tax purposes.
I am also happy to have worked with my colleague from Oregon, Senator Ron Wyden, who introduced a Senate version of this legislation late last week. This bill is a small step that this Congress can take quickly to show that we respond to animal abuse and that the federal government should be transparent with consumers. I call on my colleagues to support this bill so that we can send a strong message to animal abusers across this country that their horrendous actions will not be kept in the shadows.
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