The Save America's Forgotten Equines (SAFE) Act has been garnering more and more support and attention in the past few months, within our sport and in Congress. The bill, which has over 200 co-sponsors, was recently added to the list of amendments to the Transportation and Infrastructure (T&I) Committee's 5-year Surface Reauthorization Bill. According to the T&I Committee, the bipartisan bill "invests in America's roads, bridges, transit, rail transportation, and highway and motor carrier safety programs. Fundamentally, the bill emphasizes moving people, goods, and freight safely and efficiently across the country."
Before sending the bill to the House floor for a vote, the committee holds a markup, during which amendments to the bill can be offered and voted on. If a majority agree, the amendment gets added to the bill.
The SAFE Act amendment was introduced by Rep. Jeff Van Drew (R-NJ) and Rep. Dina Titus (D-NV). As part of his public comments, Rep. Van Drew said: "This amendment is based on the bipartisan Safe Act, led by Congressman Vern Buchanan, which has 229 co-sponsors, 229 co-sponsors right here in the House. It is supported by a broad coalition of horse industry leaders, animal welfare organizations, equine rescue groups, and many others, including the Jockey Club, the National Thoroughbred Racing Association, the ASPCA, the Animal Welfare Institute, and much more."
It initially 'lost' a voice vote, but a recorded vote was requested, during which the amendment was agreed to, 34-30, and added to the bill.
This is a big step forward in the journey to getting the SAFE Act enshrined into law, but there is still a long way to go — it heads to the House floor for a vote, and if it passes there, it must survive passing in the Senate, and the President must sign it into law. So, while it is still in the early stages, having the SAFE Act added in a big, must-pass vehicle is a great start.
Immigration and Visa Update
There are a few updates on immigration and visas I wanted to provide you with.
The first is that the Appropriations Committee in the House passed FY 27 Homeland Security Appropriations bill with the certified seasonal employer cap relief provision included On June 9, the Committee also passed the FY 27 DOL funding bill with the regulatory provisions that have been law for the past several years. This essentially keeps the process for H-2B provisions and supplemental applications the same.
On another note, the House Agriculture Committee introduced the Securing Agriculture's Workforce Act, which used bipartisan recommendations to come up with some changes to the H-2A and H-2B programs.
According to them:
"The Securing Agriculture's Workforce Act addresses the challenges American producers are facing by:
Expanding Access:
Removes the requirement that the work must be seasonal in nature, leaving in place that the work must be temporary, which is defined as a job contract of 350 days or less.
Modifies what is considered "agriculture labor or services" to fit modern production practices and transfers the authority to further define this term to the Secretary of Agriculture."
New World Screwworm in the US, Dept. of Agriculture Prepared to Respond
On June 3, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) detected New World Screwworm in the United States. It was detected in a bovine in Texas, and while not detected in an equine, the risk of equines getting affected is high. Because of this, and out of an abundance of caution, the USDA has halted equine exports to Mexico for the time being. This restriction also applies to cattle, wild ruminants, sheep and goats, swine, ferrets, and birds.
New World screwworm was present in the US for hundreds of years before being eradicated in the 1960s. It is likely that the country will get it under control, but the detection itself means vigilance is required among all trainers and owners. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins has said the USDA is prepared to eradicate the pest across the country.
This is a developing story, and we will keep you updated on further developments regarding the spread and control of the pest.
This press release has not been edited by BloodHorse. If there are any questions please contact the organization that produced the release.
