Brooks Animal Law Digest

House Resolution 3783 would prohibit the farming of mink, who are highly susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 and avian influenza, for their fur and would compensate mink farmers during their transition out of the industry. Recent research has suggested that mink may be capable of “independent viral evolution and may establish a source for future outbreaks [of SARS-CoV-2] with novel strains.” The bill was introduced by Representative Adriano Espaillat and has been referred to the House Committee on Agriculture and the House Committee on the Budget. The bill text is not yet publicly available.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed House Bill 598, which criminalizes the possession of, or exercise of control over, an animal for five years following conviction of a federal or state law relating to animal care or cruelty. The newly enacted legislation will take effect on September 1, 2023.

New Jersey Senate Bill 3934 would require certain correctional facilities to allow service and companion animals to assist inmates with disabilities. The bill has been referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee, but the text of the bill has not yet been made publicly available.

Charles River Laboratories International Inc. (“Charles River”) investor Sharan Coleman filed a class action lawsuit against Charles River, its CEO James Foster, CFO Flavia Pease, and former CFO David Smith. The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts, accuses the company and its executives of concealing their involvement in the illegal importation of nonhuman primates for research, which led to a U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) investigation and subsequent stock price decline. The complaint alleges violations of the Securities Exchange Act and is on behalf of a proposed class of individuals and entities that purchased or acquired Charles River securities between May 5, 2020, and February 21, 2023.

A federal judge in Oregon saved the landmark Juliana climate suit in a recent ruling, finding that proposed amendments to the complaint will surmount the deficiencies previously identified by the Ninth Circuit. The case, brought by a group of young people between the ages of eight and nineteen, “allege[s] injury from the devastation of climate change and contend[s] that the Constitution guarantees the right to a stable climate system capable of sustaining human life.” The recent ruling finds that the plaintiffs’ efforts to seek declaratory relief that the United States’ national energy system has violated plaintiffs’ constitutional rights, “is squarely within the constitutional and statutory power of Article III courts to grant.”

White Coat Waste Project (WCW) submitted a complaint to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) about Harvard Medical School’s NIH-funded primate experiments, alleging that Harvard has violated federal law by failing to publicly disclose how taxpayer money has been used on the experiments. WCW is urging NIH to investigate alleged disclosure violations and defund the experiments. Harvard Law School’s Animal Law & Policy Clinic is among those who have previously called upon the NIH to terminate funding for the school’s primate experiments.

House Resolution 3748 would amend the Animal Health Protection Act to improve the prevention and spread of animal diseases. The bill was introduced by Representative Randy Feenstra and has been referred to the House Committee on Agriculture and the House Ways and Means Committee. The bill text is not yet available.

Senate Bill 1780 would amend the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act to allow the U.S. Department of Agriculture to enter into contracts with Tribal organizations to carry out the authority of the Food Safety and Inspection Service, affording Tribes the opportunity to expand meat production and processing. The bill was introduced by Senator Markwayne Mullin and has been referred to the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs. The bill text is not yet publicly available.

House Resolution 3783 would prohibit the farming of mink, who are highly susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 and avian influenza, for their fur and would compensate mink farmers during their transition out of the industry. Recent research has suggested that mink may be capable of “independent viral evolution and may establish a source for future outbreaks [of SARS-CoV-2] with novel strains.” The bill was introduced by Representative Adriano Espaillat and has been referred to the House Committee on Agriculture and the House Committee on the Budget. The bill text is not yet publicly available.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed House Bill 598, which criminalizes the possession of, or exercise of control over, an animal for five years following conviction of a federal or state law relating to animal care or cruelty. The newly enacted legislation will take effect on September 1, 2023.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed Senate Bill 876, which expands regulation of dog and cat breeders to require anyone that owns and breeds five or more animals for “direct or indirect sale or for exchange in return for consideration” to secure a state occupational license. The threshold number of animals was formerly eleven. The bill takes effect on September 1, 2023, and requires commercial breeders to obtain an occupational license by January 1, 2024.

New York Assembly Bill 7624 would prohibit the use of primates in entertainment acts. The bill has been referred to the Assembly Committee on Agriculture.

Pennsylvania Senate Bill 746 would make update licensing requirements and fees for dog owners and dog kennels. The legislation would revise annual and lifetime dog licenses and increase fees for the first time in over 25 years. Under the updates, Pennsylvania residents would pay $8 for an annual license or $80 for a lifetime license for male and female dogs, with lower fees for residents 65 years of age or older and persons with disabilities. The bill has been referred to the Senate Committee on Agriculture and Rural Affairs.

New Jersey Senate Bill 3934 would require certain correctional facilities to allow service and companion animals to assist inmates with disabilities. The bill has been referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee, but the text of the bill has not yet been made publicly available.

The state of North Carolina and the farmer’s group Farm Bureau have submitted writs of certiorari (nc farm bureau v. peta cert petition; nc state cert petition) to the U.S. Supreme Court, asking the Court to reinstate a North Carolina Ag Gag law. In February, the Fourth Circuit partially enjoined North Carolina from applying the law, holding that undercover investigations “as part of newsgathering constitute[] protected speech.” Both the state and the Farm Bureau urge the Supreme Court to reinstate the law in its entirety.

Charles River Laboratories International Inc. (“Charles River”) investor Sharan Coleman filed a class action lawsuit against Charles River, its CEO James Foster, CFO Flavia Pease, and former CFO David Smith. The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts, accuses the company and its executives of concealing their involvement in the illegal importation of nonhuman primates for research, which led to a U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) investigation and subsequent stock price decline. The complaint alleges violations of the Securities Exchange Act and is on behalf of a proposed class of individuals and entities that purchased or acquired Charles River securities between May 5, 2020, and February 21, 2023.

The City of Seattle and the Sauk-Suiattle Indian Tribe moved to dismiss the City’s request for injunctive relief after the parties settled a tribal court challenge to the city's operation of a hydroelectric dam project on the Skagit River. The settlement includes the City’s proposal for a “Fish Passage Program” to “meaningfully contribute to recovering self-sustaining, harvestable salmon runs in the Skagit River watershed without negatively impacting native Skagit Basin fish populations and the Skagit River watershed ecosystem.” The case, filed by the City of Seattle to challenge the tribal court’s jurisdiction, [has been pending in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington.

A Connecticut couple have sued Connecticut's department of energy and environmental protection over a wild bear collared with a camera. The complaint alleges that the agency released the camera-carrying bear in the vicinity of the couple’s property and the bear subsequently came within 200 yards of their house. The couple claims this violates their Fourth Amendment rights and filed suit in the District of Connecticut requesting injunctive relief and destruction of all photographic evidence. According to media reports, the couple’s allegations “come against the background of state court litigation in which the Town of Hartland has accused the couple and Mark Brault's wildlife and nature tour business, Nature Havens LLC, of unlawfully feeding bears on their property.”

The Center for Food Safety and Pesticide Action Network North America have sued the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), over pesticide-coated crop seeds. The complaint alleges that the coated seeds are highly toxic to birds, bees, butterflies, and other insects and wildlife. The case challenges the EPA’s denial of the plaintiffs’ 2017 petition for rulemaking which urged the agency to close the regulatory loophole that allows coated seeds to evade the registration and labeling requirements of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act. The case has been filed in the Northern District of California and plaintiffs are seeking both declaratory and equitable relief.

The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York denied an application to overturn a magistrate decision denying appointment of lead plaintiffs in a putative class action against Tyson Foods Inc. The putative plaintiff-investors allege shareholder damages stemming from Tyson's COVID-19 response. District Court Judge Ann Donnelly upheld the magistrate judge’s finding that the claimed damages are insufficient to suggest the two investors would “pursue the class claims vigorously.”

The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, the Department’s Fish and Wildlife Commission, and the nonprofit Wild Fish Conservancy have reached an agreement in an Endangered Species Act citizen suit that sought to prevent the release of millions of hatchery-raised fish into the Puget Sound. Under the terms of the settlement, the state agencies have agreed to submit a Hatchery and Genetic Management Plan by August 31, 2023, and to engage in additional surveys and disclosures to help preserve the habitat of protected anadromous fish.

The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York granted Oatly’s motion to dismiss a putative securities class action accusing the Swedish alternative milk manufacturer of pitching its business as more environmentally friendly than it is. U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein ruled that investors didn't sufficiently or plausibly plead their allegations in a manner that conforms to the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act, but may file an amended complaint by August 11, 2023, as long as it is free of “superfluous verbiage, unnecessary allegations, puzzle pleading . . ., inactionable statements of opinion . . ., and mere puffery.”

A federal judge in Oregon saved the landmark Juliana climate suit in a recent ruling, finding that proposed amendments to the complaint will surmount the deficiencies previously identified by the Ninth Circuit. The case, brought by a group of young people between the ages of eight and nineteen, “allege[s] injury from the devastation of climate change and contend[s] that the Constitution guarantees the right to a stable climate system capable of sustaining human life.” The recent ruling finds that the plaintiffs’ efforts to seek declaratory relief that the United States’ national energy system has violated plaintiffs’ constitutional rights, “is squarely within the constitutional and statutory power of Article III courts to grant.”

The Michigan Supreme Court has decided to grant the appeal in a case challenging new permit requirements for manure use on industrial livestock farms. The plaintiffs, a coalition of farmers associations and livestock farms, challenged a recent environmental regulation, arguing that it “banned the application of beneficial manure to fields and arbitrarily limited the amount of phosphorous in soil on which [Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation] waste may be applied.” Although the appellate court ultimately agreed that the case should be dismissed, the court upheld the dismissal on procedural grounds, finding that the plaintiffs failed to first follow the available administrative process by requesting a declaratory ruling from the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy. The Michigan Department appealed the appellate court’s ruling to the state Supreme Court, in an effort to clarify the jurisdictional dispute. The Court now will decide if the permit conditions meet the definition of a “rule” or “license” under Michigan law and whether those permit conditions can be challenged in court.  

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service published notice that the General Conference Committee of the National Poultry Improvement Plan will be holding a meeting that will be open for public attendance, but not public participation. The meeting will take place on June 29, 2023, in Columbus, Ohio.

The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (FWS) announced its intent to list the Sira curassow and the southern helmeted curassow, two birds native to Bolivia and Peru, as endangered under the Endangered Species Act. Both birds are threatened by hunting and habitat destruction. FWS will accept public comments on the proposed rulemaking through July 31, 2023.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced that New Jersey-based E.N.A. Meat Packing Inc. is recalling approximately 39,947 pounds of frozen, raw lamb products that were imported without the benefit of import reinspection. The products were shipped to a facility in Texas for further processing.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) published an advance notice of proposed rulemaking (ANPR) to develop rules for the exhibition of migratory birds and eagles. FWS will accept public comments on the ANPR through July 3, 2023.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service announced that it has updated its guidelines for pork producers on controlling Salmonella in swine from pre-harvest through slaughter. The guideline covers pre-harvest controls, slaughter control recommendations, and pork fabrication controls.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) announced that it has added Gabon, Guinea, and Moldova to the list of regions that APHIS considers to be affected with highly pathogenic avian influenza.

The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (FWS) published its intent to revise current regulatory authorizations and add new regulatory authorizations for the possession of migratory birds and eagles. FWS will accept public comments through July 31, 2023.

The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (FWS) published notice of its receipt of nineteen applications for the recovery of multiple species of protected wildlife. FWS will accept public comments on the applications through July 3, 2023.

White Coat Waste Project (WCW) submitted a complaint to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) about Harvard Medical School’s NIH-funded primate experiments, alleging that Harvard has violated federal law by failing to publicly disclose how taxpayer money has been used on the experiments. WCW is urging NIH to investigate alleged disclosure violations and defund the experiments. Harvard Law School’s Animal Law & Policy Clinic is among those who have previously called upon the NIH to terminate funding for the school’s primate experiments.

The Sierra Club, the Humane Society of the United States, WildEarth Guardians, Wyoming Wildlife Advocates, Western Watershed Project, Friends of the Clearwater, Friends of the Bitterroot, Nimíipuu Protecting the Environment, and Center for Biological Diversity sent correspondence urging the Wyoming Game and Fish Department and Idaho Department of Fish and Game to require black bear hunters to take a bear identification course before getting a hunting license. According to the letters, hunters continue to kill grizzlies, claiming they thought they were black bears.

The Committee on Fisheries of the European Parliament has released an opinion to the Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development as part of efforts under the European protein strategy. The Committee’s opinion encourages the growth of the fish sector, finding that fisheries and aquaculture have “a lower carbon footprint than farmed meat products, also require lower levels of inputs, and have a relevant role to play in helping to build a sustainable food system.”

Cargill, a large U.S. agribusiness company, has announced plans to sell their Chinese poultry business to a private equity firm, DCP Capital. Cargill started its Chinese-based business in 2011 but livestock farm margins in China have been squeezed since the Ukraine war drove up feed prices and demand plummeted during the pandemic. DCP Capital has invested in several food and agriculture businesses including one of China's top poultry producers.

Anima International released information and undercover video footage of egregious abuse of pigs on a Polish pig production breeding facility, prompting the Polish Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to announce that it intends to take enforcement action against the facility. According to the pork industry, Poland primarily supplies pork to Slovakia, Germany, and Italy.

The District Municipality of San Bartolo, Peru has declared itself a “cage-free district” and signed an Inter-institutional Cooperation Agreement with the Association for the Rescue and Welfare of Animals. The agreement will promote the development of specialized training activities in animal welfare and related topics, both for municipal staff and the general public. This agreement marks the first cage-free district in the country of Peru.

A new report from Faunalytics and Sentient Media finds that “very little media coverage of climate change focuses on animal agriculture,” despite animal agriculture being a major cause of the problem. Out of 1,000 articles examined by the report, only 7% mentioned animal agriculture and even those that mentioned the topic “rarely discussed its impact on climate change.” In fact, the report finds that “[t]he animal agriculture industry is often portrayed as a victim of climate change rather than a significant cause.”