WASHINGTON (October 3, 2016)—The Humane Society Legislative Fund, the nation’s leading political advocacy organization for animal welfare, announces its endorsement of Bryan Caforio, D-California, for election to the U.S. House of Representatives. Citing his strong leadership and advocacy on animal protection policies, the HSLF urges voters in California’s 25th Congressional District to support Caforio in November’s general election.
Caforio’s opponent, incumbent Rep. Steve Knight, earned an “11” in the HSLF’s 2015 Humane Scorecard. Since winning election, he has opposed or failed to support legislation to protect the human and animal victims of domestic violence, make animal cruelty a federal crime, phase out the testing of cosmetics on live animals, strengthen the federal law against horse “soring” and prohibit the slaughter and export of horses for human consumption.
“Rep Knight is out of touch with the mainstream animal protection policies supported by the constituents in this congressional district,” said Sara Amundson, executive director of the HSLF. “Voters in the 25th District who care about the humane treatment of animals should support Bryan Caforio for election.”
As a state legislator, Knight:
- Opposed a bill to prohibit the sale of shelled eggs from farms not in compliance with animal care standards (AB 1437);
- Opposed a bill to protect tenants from being forced by landlords into unnecessary surgery on their pets, i.e. declawing or devocalization (AB 2743);
- Opposed a bill to require shelter animals to be microchipped (SB 702);
- Opposed a bill that banned the sale of animals in parking lots and along roadsides, as well as increased penalties for neglect (SB 917);
- Opposed a bill to ban the hounding of bears and bobcats (SB 1221);
- Opposed a bill to protect pets and wildlife from unnecessary cruelty and death associated with trapping methods (SB 1480);
- Opposed a bill to increase the ability to prosecute and penalize for wildlife crimes (AB 2179);
- Opposed a bill to require lead-free ammunition in order to protect both wildlife and people from the dangers of lead poisoning (AB 711).
Media Contact: John Cleveland, (202) 676-2338, jcleveland@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.
