Prohibits any person, corporation, association, or other entity from slaughtering a horse where such person, corporation, association, or other entity knows or has reason to know that such horse will be used for human or animal consumption; prohibits any person, corporation, association, or other entity from possessing, selling, importing, etc,, a horse or horseflesh if such person, corporation, association, or other entity knows or should have known that any part of such horse or horseflesh will be used for human or animal consumption; provides penalties for violation.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A5109A
SPONSOR: Glick TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the agriculture and markets law, in relation to prohib-
iting the slaughtering of horses for human or animal consumption
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
To amend the Agriculture and Markets Law by adding a new section 385, to
prohibit the slaughtering of horses for human or animal consumption.
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Section 1: The Agriculture and Markets Law shall be amended by adding a
new section 385. This section will make it unlawful to slaughter a horse
for human or animal consumption. The term "horse" includes all members
of the equine family, including horses, ponies, donkeys, mules, asses,
and burros. The term horse flesh means any part of the horse's body. A
violation of this law will be a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of not
more than one thousand dollars per horse for an individual person, and
up to $2,500 per horse for a corporation, association, or other entity
for the first violation. Subsequent violations increase to up to $2,000
or $5,000 per horse, respectively.
Section 2: This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day
after it shall have become a law.
JUSTIFICATION:
104,899 horses were slaughtered in the United States during 2006, the
last full year of horse slaughtering in the US, according to the Govern-
ment Accountability Office. In 2007, after Congressional approval of an
appropriations bill that included a rider prohibiting the USDA from
financing the inspection of horse meat, all US horse slaughter facili-
ties closed. From 2006 through 2010, US horse for slaughter exports to
Canada increased by 148%. In 2010, 137,984 horses were exported to Cana-
da for slaughter. The vast majority of these horses are being slaugh-
tered for human consumption abroad, mainly in Europe and Japan. In 2011,
that 2007 rider was removed by Congress in an omnibus spending act. The
door has potentially been re-opened for horse slaughter within the
United States as a horse meat plant ih New Mexico nears approval in
2013.
Pet horses, workhorses, racehorses and even wild horses go to slaughter.
Most arrive at the slaughterhouse via livestock auctions where, often
unknown to the seller, they are bought by middlemen working for the
slaughter plants. These so-called "killer buyers" travel from one
auction to the next collecting young, old, sick and healthy animals
until their trucks are full. Some are shipped for more than 24 hours at
a time without food, water or rest, and suffer horribly along the way.
The callous treatment of horses at the slaughterhouse often results in
their prolonged suffering. Panicked horses are prodded and beaten off
the truck and into the kill-chute. The improper use of stunning equip-
ment, designed to render the animal unconscious with a swift shot to the
head, means that horses sometimes endure repeated blows and remain
conscious during their own slaughter. This bill would prohibit any ,
person from slaughtering a horse where such person knows or has reason
to know that such horse will be used for human or animal consumption.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2021-22: A.5481 Referred to Agriculture
2019-20: A.7871 Referred to Agriculture
2017-18: A4012A Referred to Agriculture
2015-16: Referred to Agriculture
2013-2014: Referred to Agriculture
2011-2012: Referred to Agriculture
2009-10: Referred to Agriculture; Held for consideration
2007-08: Referred to Agriculture
2005-06: Referred to Codes; Passed Senate
2004: Referred to Agriculture
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day after it
shall have become a law.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
5109--A
2023-2024 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
March 2, 2023
___________
Introduced by M. of A. GLICK, LUPARDO, SIMON, BURDICK, EPSTEIN, DINOW-
ITZ, STIRPE, THIELE, L. ROSENTHAL, LAVINE, WOERNER, CRUZ -- read once
and referred to the Committee on Agriculture -- committee discharged,
bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said
committee
AN ACT to amend the agriculture and markets law, in relation to prohib-
iting the slaughtering of horses for human or animal consumption
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The agriculture and markets law is amended by adding a new
2 section 385 to read as follows:
3 § 385. Prohibition of slaughtering horses for human or animal consump-
4 tion. 1. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, it shall be unlaw-
5 ful for any person, corporation, association, or other entity to slaugh-
6 ter or have another person, corporation, association, or other entity
7 slaughter a horse if any part of such horse will be used for human or
8 animal consumption.
9 2. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, it shall be unlawful
10 for any person, corporation, association, or other entity who owns or is
11 in the process of taking ownership of a horse to import, export, sell,
12 offer to sell or barter, transfer, purchase, possess, transport, deliv-
13 er, receive, give away, hold, or accept, or direct another person to
14 import, export, sell, offer to sell or barter, transfer, purchase,
15 possess, transport, deliver, receive, give away, hold, or accept a
16 horse, with the intent of slaughtering or having another person, corpo-
17 ration, association, or other entity slaughter such horse for the
18 purpose of human or animal consumption.
19 3. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, it shall be unlawful
20 for any person, corporation, association, or other entity who owns or is
21 in the process of taking ownership of horseflesh to import, export,
22 sell, offer to sell or barter, transfer, purchase, possess, transport,
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD06575-04-3
A. 5109--A 2
1 deliver, receive, give away, hold, or accept, or direct another person
2 to import, export, sell, offer to sell or barter, transfer, purchase,
3 possess, transport, deliver, receive, give away, hold, or accept horse-
4 flesh, with the intent of slaughtering or having another person, corpo-
5 ration, association, or other entity slaughter such horse for the
6 purpose of human or animal consumption.
7 4. For the purposes of this section:
8 (a) The term "horseflesh" shall mean the flesh of a dead horse,
9 including the animal's viscera, skin, hide, hooves, and bones; and
10 (b) The term "slaughter" shall mean the intentional killing, or having
11 another kill a horse if such person knows that the purpose of such kill-
12 ing is using any part of such horse for human or animal consumption.
13 5. A violation of this section is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine
14 of not more than one thousand dollars per horse for an individual
15 person, and up to two thousand five hundred dollars per horse for a
16 corporation, association, or other entity, for the first violation. Any
17 subsequent violation shall be punishable by a fine of up to two thousand
18 dollars per horse for an individual person, and up to five thousand
19 dollars per horse for a corporation, association, or other entity.
20 6. The provisions of this section shall be in addition to, and not in
21 lieu of, any other laws protecting animal welfare. This section shall
22 not be construed to limit any state law or rules protecting the welfare
23 of animals or to prevent a local governing body from adopting and
24 enforcing its own animal welfare laws and regulations. Nothing in this
25 section shall prohibit a person from otherwise lawful disposition of a
26 deceased horse or any part of such horse.
27 7. If any provision of this section, or the application thereof to any
28 person or circumstances, is held invalid or unconstitutional, such inva-
29 lidity or unconstitutionality shall not affect other provisions or
30 applications of this section that can be given effect without the inval-
31 id or unconstitutional provision or application, and to such end the
32 provisions of this section shall be severable.
33 § 2. This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day after
34 it shall have become a law.
