Humane Retirement Act

Humane Retirement Act

This bill requires animal care committees at entities that receive federal funds for biomedical or behavioral research to make reasonable efforts to find parties to adopt dogs and cats that have been retired from research. Prior to euthanizing, the animal care committee must assess the temperament of the dog or cat to determine whether it is suitable for adoption and, if so, make reasonable efforts to offer the dog or cat to an adopting party.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2850 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2850

To amend the Public Health Service Act to ensure that healthy research 
             dogs and cats are adopted into suitable homes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 20, 2019

   Miss Rice of New York (for herself and Mr. Katko) introduced the 
   following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and 
                                Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend the Public Health Service Act to ensure that healthy research 
             dogs and cats are adopted into suitable homes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Humane Retirement Act''.

SEC. 2. ESTABLISHMENT OF ADOPTION POLICY FOR PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICE 
              AGENCIES WITH RESPECT TO RETIRED DOGS AND CATS.

    Section 495 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 289d) is 
amended by adding the following:
    ``(f) Establishment of Adoption Policy for Public Health Service 
Agencies With Respect to Retired Dogs and Cats.--
            ``(1) In general.--Beginning one year after the date of the 
        enactment of this subsection, guidelines of the Secretary under 
        subsection (a)(3) shall require animal care committees 
        described in such subsection that conduct biomedical and 
        behavioral research at Public Health Service funded Federal 
        agencies to, after the completion of any testing or research 
        involving a dog or cat and prior to euthanizing such dog or 
        cat, make a reasonable effort to offer such dog or cat for 
        adoption, if suitable, in accordance with the following:
                    ``(A) Such an animal care committee shall, after 
                the completion of such testing or research involving a 
                dog or cat and prior to euthanizing such dog or cat, 
                assess the health and temperament of the dog or cat and 
                determine whether it is suitable for adoption.
                    ``(B) If found to be suitable for adoption, such an 
                animal care committee shall make reasonable efforts to 
                offer for adoption the dog or cat to an adopting party.
            ``(2) Rules of construction.--Nothing in this subsection 
        shall be construed as--
                    ``(A) creating a duty upon an adopting party to 
                accept a dog or cat offered by an animal care committee 
                described in paragraph (1); or
                    ``(B) prohibiting such committee from euthanizing a 
                dog or cat if the requirements of this subsection are 
                otherwise met.
            ``(3) Liability.--An animal care committee described in 
        paragraph (1) and any officer, director, employee, or agent of 
        such committee are immune from civil liability for any act or 
        omission relating to the adoption of a dog or cat pursuant to 
        this subsection.
            ``(4) Adopting party defined.--For purposes of this 
        subsection, the term `adopting party' means--
                    ``(A) an individual adopting a dog or cat through 
                private placement;
                    ``(B) an animal rescue organization;
                    ``(C) an animal shelter organization;
                    ``(D) a society for the prevention of cruelty to 
                animals;
                    ``(E) a humane society; or
                    ``(F) an animal protective association that 
                operates physical animal sheltering facilities and 
                offers households pets to the public for adoption by 
                way of an established adoption program.''.
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