WHE are sharing an alert we just received from HSUS from the political swamp.

ACTION is need NOW. Congress is moving to give power to strip protections that exist, without appropriate review. PLEASE read this and take ACTION NOW!

From HSUS.

Horses need your immediate help in the form of a phone call. Would you please make a quick phone call to the office of your U.S. Representative to protect horses? This is urgent!

Here is the link to best find your Member of Congress and their phone number: http://action.humanesociety.org/site/PageServer?pagename=electedOfficials_federal.

“I am a horse owner, equine enthusiast, and equine welfare advocate. I am calling to ask the (Congresswoman or Congressman) to VOTE NO on H.R. 21- Midnight Rules Relief Act of 2017 (Sponsored by Rep. Darrell Issa / Judiciary Committee) and VOTE NO on H.R. 26 – Regulations from the Executive in Need of Scrutiny (REINS) Act of 2017 (Sponsored by Rep. Doug Collins / Judiciary Committee) and the REINS bill.” A main point of the message is that to “Make America Great Again, we need to protect American horses and restore economically healthy and humane training practices and policies. Please vote no on the Midnight Rules Relief Act and the REINS Act.”

Our most up-to-date information is that the U.S. House of Representatives will vote on these pieces of legislation sometime between 12:00 – 2:00 PM, EST today. Please make your call as soon as possible.

Here are some additional details:

The Midnight Rules Relief Act of 2017, H.R. 21, would amend the Congressional Review Act to allow en bloc disapproval of multiple regulations finalized during the last year of a President’s term. Such action would prevent due consideration of the merits of individual regulations. For animal protection rules adopted during the Obama Administration, including in the final year of his term, most have been many years in the making, have elicited overwhelming numbers of favorable public comments, and have enjoyed strong, bipartisan congressional support.  It would be a terrible mistake for Congress to sweep them away and undercut these reasonable efforts to ensure that animal protection laws are carried out effectively.

We also disagree with the general premise for this bill – that regulations proposed or finalized during the “midnight” rulemaking period are rushed and inadequately vetted. A Public Citizen report found that rules issued during the “midnight” or presidential transition period spent even more time in the rulemaking process and received even more extensive vetting than other rules. Analysis of all economically significant rulemakings finalized since 1999 showed that such rules issued during the transition period took on average 3.6 years to complete compared to 2.8 years for such rules issued at other times during a term. Furthermore, the OMB Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs review for midnight rules was no shorter, and was in some cases longer, than for non-midnight rules.

The Regulations from the Executive in Need of Scrutiny (REINS) Act of 2017, H.R. 26, would require that both houses of Congress approve a major rule (including those issued during the 60 legislative/session days prior to adjournment of the previous session), with no alteration, within a 70-day window. If both chambers are unable to swiftly approve a major rule, it would not take effect and reconsideration during that Congress would be precluded. By doing nothing, Congress would prevent existing laws from being implemented, including common sense, non-controversial rules affecting animal welfare. The bill forces expedited floor consideration by both chambers of resolutions to approve major rules and to disapprove nonmajor rules, and it bars judicial review of any actions taken under the REINS Act.

Congress already sets the boundaries for agency rulemaking, making the REINS Act needless and redundant. It is already the case that agencies can only exercise authority that has been delegated by Congress in authorizing legislation, and if agencies overstep their authority, judicial scrutiny can be invoked and agency actions can be reversed.

Thanks so much for taking quick action to protect horses.

JUST DO IT!