Wild Horse and Burro Protection Act of 2025

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4356 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 4356

  To amend the Act commonly known as the Wild Free-roaming Horses and 
  Burros Act to prohibit certain uses of aircraft with respect to the 
   management of wild free-roaming horses and burros, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 10, 2025

 Ms. Titus (for herself, Mr. Cohen, and Mr. Ciscomani) introduced the 
    following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural 
                               Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To amend the Act commonly known as the Wild Free-roaming Horses and 
  Burros Act to prohibit certain uses of aircraft with respect to the 
   management of wild free-roaming horses and burros, and for other 
                               purposes.

    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 ``Wild Horse and Burro Protection Act 
of 2025''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) As part of efforts to control equine populations under 
        law, the Bureau of Land Management is directed to humanely 
        capture wild free-roaming horses and burros for adoption.
            (2) The use of helicopters to chase equines over prolonged 
        distances, usually on rough terrain, is particularly dangerous, 
        and can frighten the animals and lead to deadly situations, 
        often miles from public view.
            (3) Public observation of roundups is typically limited, 
        thereby restricting public access to the government operation.
            (4) Scientific research shows that more humane and cost-
        effective alternatives exist to control equine populations, 
        including fertility controls.
            (5) Since fiscal year 2012, over $69.5 million in taxpayer 
        dollars have funded roundup operations to remove federally 
        protected wild horses and burros from the range.
            (6) In the past five years (2020-2024), at least $36.7 
        million has been spent on roundups, including over $6 million 
        paid to helicopter roundup contractors in fiscal year 2022 
        alone.
            (7) Since 2012, the Bureau of Land Management has 
        administered fewer than 800 fertility control treatments per 
        year on average. In fiscal year 2012, 1,045 treatments were 
        applied; in fiscal year 2024, 1,038 treatments.
            (8) Historically, the Bureau of Land Management's Wild 
        Horse and Burro Program has spent less than one percent of its 
        budget on implementing fertility controls.
            (9) The elimination of helicopters from the Bureau of Land 
        Management's gatherings would provide a more humane method of 
        capturing equines, and provide significant savings to 
        taxpayers.

SEC. 3. AMENDMENTS TO THE WILD FREE-ROAMING HORSES AND BURROS ACT.

    Section 9 of the Act commonly known as the Wild Free-roaming Horses 
and Burros Act (Public Law 92-195; 16 U.S.C. 1338a) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``In administering this Act'' and inserting 
        ``(a) In General.--In administering this Act'';
            (2) by striking ``helicopters or, for the purpose of 
        transporting captured animals, motor vehicles'' and inserting 
        ``motor vehicles for the purpose of transporting captured 
        animals or aircraft only in compliance with subsection (b) of 
        this section'';
            (3) by striking ``fixed-wing aircraft, or helicopters, or 
        to'' and inserting ``or''; and
            (4) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(b) Phased Elimination of Certain Uses of Aircraft.--In 
administering this Act, during the 2-year period after the date of the 
enactment of the Wild Horse and Burro Protection Act of 2025, the 
Secretary shall phase out the use or contracts for the use of 
helicopters or fixed-wing aircraft for the purposes of rounding up or 
gathering wild free-roaming horses and burros, ensuring an effective 
reduction in the reliance on these methods each year until all such 
practices have been terminated.
    ``(c) Requirement for Use of Cameras on Aircraft.--Any helicopter 
or aircraft used for the purposes of rounding up or gathering wild 
horses and burros shall be equipped with one or more cameras to record 
the roundup or gather operation. The Secretary shall ensure such 
footage is made available as part of the corresponding agency roundup 
or gather report.''.

SEC. 4. GAO REPORT.

    Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act, 
the Comptroller General shall submit, to the Committee on Natural 
Resources of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Energy 
and Natural Resources of the Senate, a report that describes--
            (1) humane alternatives to the use of helicopters and 
        fixed-wing aircraft in managing wild free-roaming horse and 
        burro populations;
            (2) job creation opportunities presented by the use of such 
        humane alternatives; and
            (3) the effects of aircraft, including unmanned aircraft 
        systems, on wild free-roaming horse and burro populations.
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