No CRS summary available for this bill.
This section sets forth 19 congressional findings on commercial greyhound racing, including its history since legalization in Florida in 1931; reliance on internet-based wagering; greyhound injuries (e.g., over 10,000 reported in West Virginia since 2008, including 3,500 broken bones and 437 deaths); drug use; 20-23 hour daily confinement; live lure training and open field coursing using small animals; and the industry's decline from 60 tracks 25 years ago to two remaining in West Virginia, which receive nearly $20 million in annual subsidies and operate at a loss in most states where legal.
This section adds a new section 30 to the Animal Welfare Act (AWA), which sets standards for the humane treatment, handling, and transport of certain animals used in research, exhibitions, and commerce. The new section prohibits (1) knowingly engaging in commercial greyhound racing, live lure training, or open field coursing events in which greyhounds move in interstate or foreign commerce; (2) conducting commercial greyhound racing or meetings involving betting or wagering on greyhounds; (3) conducting open field coursing or live lure training using any live bait; (4) engaging in or facilitating simulcast betting on greyhound races in interstate or foreign commerce; and (5) knowingly selling, buying, possessing, training, transporting, delivering, or receiving greyhounds for such purposes. It authorizes the Secretary of Agriculture to investigate violations with assistance from federal and state agencies and imposes penalties of fines under the AWA, imprisonment for up to seven years, or both, per violation. This section also amends the AWA definition of "animal" to explicitly include hares (in addition to rabbits and other designated species). The amendments apply to conduct on or after October 1, 2027, without preempting state laws on gambling or animal welfare or altering the Interstate Horseracing Act's relationship to other federal laws.