WASHINGTON (Sept. 25, 2014) -- The Humane Society Legislative Fund, the nation’s leading political advocacy organization for animal welfare, announces its endorsement of Rep. Chris Smith, R-N.J., for re-election to the House of Representatives. Citing his strong leadership and advocacy on animal protection policies, the HSLF urges voters in New Jersey’s 4th Congressional District to support Rep. Smith in November’s general election.
“Chris Smith has been a consistent supporter of legislation to protect animals from cruelty and abuse. As a member of the Congressional Animal Protection Caucus, he’s worked to promote the values of kindness and compassion for all creatures,” said Sara Amundson, executive director of the HSLF. “Voters in the 4th District who care about the humane treatment of animals should support Chris Smith for Congress.”
The HSLF publishes an annual Humane Scorecard of Congress to give voters a snapshot of every federal legislator's record on animal protection issues; Rep. Smith consistently scores highly and received a perfect score of 100 for votes in favor of animal welfare measures before the U.S. House in the 113th Congress’ Midterm Scorecard.
Among his efforts in the 113th Congress, Rep. Smith:
- Sponsored the End Neglected Tropical Diseases Act (H.R. 4847), which would add rabies—a devastating disease for street dogs and other animals—to the list of neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) addressed by the U.S. Agency for International Development.
- Co-sponsored the Prevent All Soring Tactics (PAST) Act (H.R. 1518) to strengthen the federal law against the “soring” of show horses—using caustic chemicals and other painful substances to injure the horses’ hooves and legs to induce a high-stepping gait.
- Co-sponsored the Safeguard American Food Exports (SAFE) Act (H.R. 1094) to prohibit the sale or transport of equines and equine parts in interstate or foreign commerce for human consumption.
- Co-sponsored the Egg Products Inspection Act Amendments (H.R. 1731) to ban barren battery cages in the egg industry and improve the treatment of hundreds of millions of laying hens.
- Co-sponsored the Animal Fighting Spectator Prohibition Act (H.R. 366) to close a loophole in the federal animal fighting law by making it a crime to attend or bring a child to a dogfight or cockfight.
- Signed a group letter opposing the dangerous and overreaching “King amendment,” which threatened to nullify hundreds of state and local laws on food safety, animal welfare and agriculture, and was nixed from the 2014 Farm Bill.
- Signed a group letter to the U.S. Department of Agriculture urging the agency to close a loophole in federal regulations that allows downer veal calves – those too sick, injured or weak to stand on their own – to be abused and slaughtered for food.
- Led the effort to marshal the support of his colleagues on a group letter to the Agriculture Appropriations subcommittee to provide adequate funding for the enforcement of the Horse Protection Act, Humane Methods of Slaughter Act and federal animal fighting law, as well as for programs to address the needs of animals in disasters and to ease a shortage of veterinarians in rural and inner-city areas and at the USDA through student loan forgiveness.
Media Contact: Martin Montorfano, (202) 676-2347, mmontorfano@hslf.org
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HSLF is a nonpartisan organization that evaluates candidates based only on a single criterion: where they stand on animal welfare. HSLF does not judge candidates based on party affiliation or any other issue.
The Humane Society Legislative Fund is a social welfare organization incorporated under section 501(c)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code and formed in 2004 as a separate lobbying affiliate of The Humane Society of the United States. The HSLF works to pass animal protection laws at the state and federal level, to educate the public about animal protection issues, and to support humane candidates for office. Visit us on all our channels: on the web at hslf.org, on our blog at animalsandpolitics.com, on Facebook at facebook.com/humanelegislation and on Twitter at twitter.com/HSLegFund.
Paid for by Humane Society Legislative Fund and not authorized by any candidate or candidate’s committee. HSLF, 1255 23rd Street, NW, Suite 455, Washington, DC 20037.
