USDA's efforts to tighten enforcement of the Horse Protection Act began a new chapter this week with the withdrawal of a previous rulemaking, an action it says was supported by comments on a proposed new rule that could soon take its place.
USDA has long struggled with its enforcement of a ban against horse soring, a procedure to enhance a walking horse’s gait for competitions that has been illegal since the 1970 passage of the HPA.
On Monday, USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service withdrew a 2017 final rule on the subject, the agency said in a release. USDA tried to pull the 2017 rule one year later after it was published, but a court ruling eventually found the withdrawal unlawful.
APHIS said withdrawing the rule now “is a necessary step that will allow the agency to move forward in strengthening the HPA regulations with transparency and appropriate public input. With this withdrawal, the agency can now fully focus on the new proposed rule.”
The agency published a new proposal in August that would create qualifying criteria for inspectors and processes for application denials. The rule also would remove “regulatory responsibilities” from horse industry groups, allow APHIS officials to conduct inspections at events, and bar the use of devices or practices that could mask the evidence of soring.
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The American Veterinary Medical Association commented in favor of the rule, saying the proposed changes are “necessary to protect the welfare of horses.” The Humane Society of the United States offered similar thoughts, but suggested a handful of changes, including having APHIS assign inspection personnel rather than allowing show management to choose them.
The Tennessee Walking Horse Breeders’ and Exhibitors’ Association argued the proposed changes “violate the principles of due process, afford no notice and hearing, as required under the HPA, are illegal, and specifically have been adjudged so for years.”
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