WASHINGTON (July 27, 2017)—Last night, the U.S. House of Representatives passed an amendment to the defense appropriations bill that would increase funding for the Veterans Affairs’ Adaptive Sports Grant Program for equine-assisted therapy. The amendment increases funding by $5 million for fiscal year 2018.
The funding will enable an expansion of services that use equine-assisted therapy to help veterans receive mental health care treatment.
The Humane Society of the United States and the Humane Society Legislative Fund applaud the House passage of Amendment #47 of H.R. 3219, the Make America Secure Appropriations Act, 2018. Rep. Andy Barr, R-Ky., introduced the amendment.
"We applaud Rep. Barr for his commitment to helping secure funds that will help equines and veterans," said Wayne Pacelle, president and CEO of The HSUS and executive vice president of HSLF. "There have been a series of legislative and regulatory attacks on horses this year, and we hope that is the first in a series of positive actions to turn that around and honor the bond between people and equines.”
Media contact:
Thaisi Da Silva: 202-578-6767, tdasilva@humanesociety.org
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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.
The Humane Society of the United States is the nation’s largest animal protection organization, rated the most effective by its peers. Since 1954, The HSUS has been fighting for the protection of all animals through advocacy, education and hands-on programs. We rescue and care for tens of thousands of animals each year, but our primary mission is to prevent cruelty before it occurs. We're there for all animals, across America and around the world. Celebrating animals and confronting cruelty -- on the Web at humanesociety.org. Subscribe to the blog, A Humane Nation. Join The HSUS on Facebook. Follow The HSUS on Twitter. See our work for animals on your Apple or Android device by searching for our “Humane TV” app.
