H.R. 297 — HELP PETS Act

This section prohibits federal funds from being made available to any institution of higher education—as defined in section 102 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1002)—that conducts or funds painful research on dogs or cats beginning 180 days after enactment. The prohibition does not apply to (1) clinical veterinary research, defined as research on a dog or cat with a naturally occurring disease or injury conducted for the animal's benefit to study the effect of a procedure, device, or treatment protocol; or (2) any physical exam, training program, or study relating to service animals (as defined in 49 CFR 37.3) or military animals (as defined in 10 U.S.C. 2583(i)(1)). Painful research includes any research, biomedical training, experimentation, or biological testing classified in pain category D or E by the Department of Agriculture.