Senate Appropriations 2027 (template)

I am writing to briefly share a fully drafted programmatic funding request on BLM’s Comprehensive Animal Welfare Program (CAWP). The request is narrow, nonpartisan, and focused on ensuring that existing BLM Wild Horse and Burro Program funds actually produce enforceable, science-based welfare standards and reduce preventable deaths and litigation costs.

Programmatic Funding Request

Your name: 
email:
phone number:

Subcommittee:
Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies

Department/Agency: 
Bureau of Land Management

Account: 
Bureau of Land Management Wild Horse and Burro Program

Program:
“Comprehensive Animal Welfare Program (CAWP)” in its BLM Wild Horse and Burro Program budget, so there is no official line-item series to cite for “how much per year is spent on CAWP.“

Appropriations Bill: 
Interior & Environment

Applying for both funding, and report/bill language.

Amount Appropriated in FY 2026 appropriation for BLM’s Wild Horse and Burro Program is 144 million.

Funding Request 

I request that you submit a programmatic funding request and specific line item designating $1,000,000 within the BLM Wild Horse and Burro Program shall be available specifically to complete and formalize science-based and enforceable wild horse and burro welfare standards as part of BLM’s Comprehensive Animal Welfare Program (CAWP), including the publication for public comment and finalization of regulations.   

Justification for Programmatic Funding Request:

The Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) Wild Horse and Burro Program continues to expend taxpayer dollars without achieving meaningful reductions in preventable injuries and deaths of wild horses and burros. A dedicated line item is needed to ensure funds are specifically directed to completing the long delayed process of issuing the existing draft Comprehensive Animal Welfare Program (CAWP) for public comment, incorporating revisions, and finalizing a binding, science-based welfare policy within one year. Since 2015, BLM has used funds to develop a draft CAWP and related tools but has never completed public review or rulemaking, leaving the agency without enforceable welfare regulations and animals vulnerable to avoidable suffering during gathers, transport, and holding.

These failures undermine the humane intent of the Wild FreeRoaming Horses and Burros Act of 1971, waste public resources, and erode confidence in federal management. Dedicated programmatic funding of $1,000,000 within the Wild Horse and Burro Program is therefore necessary to complete, strengthen, and enforce CAWP standards—establishing enforceable heat and air quality thresholds, burro specific protections, a data-driven foaling season framework, independent assessment tools, and transparent reporting on outcomes. This targeted investment will ensure taxpayer funds are used efficiently and that BLM finally fulfills its statutory obligation to manage and protect these animals humanely, turning incomplete policy work into enforceable standards that improve welfare outcomes, reduce unnecessary litigation, and restore public trust in the program’s integrity.

Proposed Bill Language:

$1,000,000 within the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Wild Horse and Burro Program shall be available specifically to complete and formalize science-based and enforceable wild horse and burro welfare standards as part of BLM’s Comprehensive Animal Welfare Program (CAWP), including the publication for public comment and finalization of regulations.   

This funding shall be used to (1) complete review and public comment on existing draft CAWP welfare standards and publish final, binding regulations that cover on-range management, gathers, transport, all on and off-range holding facilities, adoptions and sales of wild horses and burros; (2) develop and apply science-based thresholds, including complying with current veterinary welfare standards for equines, and heat index and Air Quality Index standards; (3) adopt species specific protections for burros, and data-driven foaling season safeguards that limit gathers, shipping, and processing during late term pregnancy and neonatal periods; and (4) restore and modernize assessment and documentation tools, and implement associated training, independent inspections and assessments, and transparent public reporting on injuries, deaths, foals, jennies, miscarriages, live births, and facility conditions to ensure consistent compliance with CAWP.

BLM shall be required to provide a clear timeline to complete and formalize science-based, enforceable regulations with deadlines and reporting to Congress, and complete and formalize existing draft CAWP welfare standards within one year.

Justification for Bill Language Request:

Justification for Bill Language Request:
In FY 2026, BLM plans to round up an estimated 14,000 wild horses across ten western states without an enforceable CAWP in place. Wild horses and burros are federally protected public resources, and their management reflects national values about humane treatment, government accountability, and stewardship of public lands, making this a concern for every state, not only those with BLM herd areas. Few issues erode public trust faster than reports of inhumane treatment by the agency responsible for their care. Congress already has clear statutory authority under the Wild Free‑Roaming Horses and Burros Act to direct BLM to finalize enforceable welfare standards, and on the Act’s 55th anniversary, Congress has a timely opportunity to require BLM to complete that work within one year.

BLM is already partway through the process. In 2015, the agency published a draft CAWP and created a self-assessment tool for field operations, but neither was implemented or finalized through rulemaking. In 2020, BLM unilaterally declared CAWP a “permanent policy” without the promised public review, revision, or comment period. As a result, “comply with CAWP” refers only to internal guidance, not binding regulations, and key gaps persist: no measurable thresholds for heat stress or air quality, no burro specific standards, and no data-driven foaling season protections. Even the limited standards that exist are inconsistently followed, with repeated documentation of rough handling, overcrowding, inadequate shelter, and preventable injuries and deaths.

Recent Freedom of Information Act findings confirm that BLM formally adopted only the CAWP cover letter (Instruction Memorandum 2021002), while the underlying standards remain unreviewed and non binding. Bill/report language is therefore needed to direct BLM to publish the existing draft CAWP for public comment, incorporate scientific and stakeholder input, and finalize enforceable regulations—including clear thresholds for heat and air quality, burro specific protections, and a data-driven foaling season framework—within a specified timeframe. This directive complements, but does not duplicate, the requested programmatic funding by ensuring that any additional resources result in fully vetted, enforceable welfare standards rather than internal, optional guidance.