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As your constituent and someone who cares about the welfare of animals, I urge you to exclude the "Confiscation for Unrelieved Suffering" provision – currently included as Sec. 12406(c) – from the 2026 Farm Bill. Instead of strengthening protections for dogs in puppy mills, this provision would roll them back and make it even less likely that suffering dogs will get the help they need. Under the Animal Welfare Act, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has the duty to protect dogs in puppy mills and remove any dogs found suffering. The House Farm Bill, however, would raise the standard for removal from "suffering" to “unrelieved suffering.” This bill would also allow the USDA to shift the full physical and financial burden of animal removal and care onto state and local law enforcement and animal control, straining already limited resources, delaying critical intervention, and prolonging animal cruelty. As a result, dogs who are clearly suffering won’t get the help they need and could be forced to endure neglect and cruelty for longer periods of time—if not the rest of their lives. Like the vast majority of Americans, I want Congress to protect dogs, not make it even less likely that the USDA will help those who are suffering. Please keep this troubling provision out of the Farm Bill.

As your constituent, I am writing because I am deeply concerned that hundreds of thousands of vulnerable animals are languishing in U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)-licensed facilities--such as cruel puppy mills--and the agency is not fulfilling its responsibility to protect them. I urge you to take action by cosponsoring Goldie’s Act, when it is reintroduced in the Senate. Goldie’s Act would strengthen Animal Welfare Act (AWA) enforcement and better protect animals under the USDA’s watch from suffering. Goldie, the Golden Retriever for whom this legislation is named, suffered and died at a USDA-licensed facility because the USDA failed in its responsibility to protect her – and many other dogs at the same facility – from neglect. Hundreds of thousands of other animals in USDA-licensed facilities are still at risk. Goldie’s Act would ensure much-needed enforcement reform by requiring frequent and meaningful inspections, immediate assistance for visibly suffering animals, penalties for violators of the law, and cross reporting with local law enforcement. Animal protection is a priority for me, and I urge you to help these vulnerable animals by co-sponsoring this critical bill.