Rep. Mace’s New Bill Aims to Protect Animals and Taxpayer Dollars: The Preventing Animal Abuse and Waste Act (PAAW Act)

(Washington D.C.) - Today, Representative Mace (R-SC-01) introduced the Preventing Animal Abuse and Waste Act (PAAW Act), to amend the Public Health Service Act and prohibit the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) from conducting or funding research that causes significant pain or distress to dogs or cats. Rep. Jared Moskowitz(D-FL-23) is the co-lead, offering bipartisan support, Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-NY-11) is one of the bill's original cosponsors, and the bill is also supported by the White Coat Waste Project, which has led investigations into NIH’s dog and cat testing and awarded Rep. Mace for her work to end government animal experiments. 

In 2022, after advocacy by Rep. Mace, Dr. Fauci canceled plans to conduct completely unnecessary drug tests on puppies. The incident and others have underscored the NIH’s problematic waste of tax dollars for cruel dog and cat tests when alternatives are available.

“As an animal lover, I’ve been disturbed to learn the scale and scope of barbaric and unnecessary dog and cat experiments funded by the National Institutes of Health,” said Rep. Mace.“Americans across the political spectrum have been horrified to learn their tax dollars are being used to subsidize cruelty to thousands of puppies and kittens in labs every year. The PAAW Act will ensure taxpayers’ hard-earned money is not wasted on outdated and cruel experiments on pets.”

“As a dog owner, I’m appalled by the inhumane practices that have been conducted using taxpayer dollars. I’m happy to have worked across the aisle with Rep. Mace to choose paws over politics and put a stop to unnecessary government experiments on cats and dogs,” said Rep. Moskowitz.

"Protecting animal welfare has always been a personal passion of mine, and it’s disheartening to know that taxpayers are footing a multi-billion-dollar bill for federal labs to conduct outdated and inhumane experiments on tens of thousands of dogs and cats every year,” Rep. Malliotakis said. “While we continue our fight to end cruel animal testing altogether, I’m proud to join my colleagues in supporting this bipartisan legislation that requires more oversight over NIH-sponsored animal research and prohibits studies that cause significant pain and distress to our most vulnerable animal populations.”

“We applaud Rep. Nancy Mace for introducing the bipartisan PAAW Act and her outstanding leadership to cut the NIH’s taxpayer-funded cruelty to canines and kittens. Our investigations have exposed how NIH wastes millions of tax dollars in the US and abroad to intentionally breed sick and deformed puppies and kittens, poison puppies with cocaine and fentanyl, cripple cats, and infest abandoned pets with biting flies. Polls show that the NIH’s wasteful dog and cat experiments are opposed by a supermajority of taxpayers — Republicans, Independents and Democrats alike—and they shouldn’t be forced to pay. When it comes to painful and unnecessary dog and cat testing, wasteful NIH spending is the problem and Rep. Mace’s PAAW Act is the solution. Stop the money. Stop the madness!” said Justin Goodman, Senior Vice President of Advocacy and Public Policy at government watchdog White Coat Waste Project.

Key findings cited in the bill underscore the misuse of taxpayer dollars in conducting research that causes unnecessary pain and distress to common pets. It points out instances where the NIH has funded studies despite alternative methods being available, leading to wasted time and resources. The bill also addresses the lack of transparency in reporting mechanisms, emphasizing the need for comprehensive reporting to Congress and taxpayers regarding the scale, scope, and cost of using dogs and cats in research.

One of the significant provisions of the PAAW Act is the prohibition on research causing significant pain or distress to dogs and cats. It mandates that the Director of NIH may not support any research falling under pain category D or E as classified by the Department of Agriculture, ensuring a higher standard of animal welfare in biomedical research.

To ensure accountability and oversight, the bill includes provisions for regular reporting on the use of dogs and cats in NIH-conducted and funded research. This includes detailed information on ongoing and prospective research projects, their associated costs, efforts to phase out the use of animals, and the number of animals retired and adopted from research programs.

Additionally, the bill calls for a comprehensive study by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to assess NIH's efforts in reducing and replacing the use of dogs and cats in research. The study will evaluate the effectiveness of existing policies and initiatives, compare NIH's efforts with other federal agencies, and provide recommendations for improvement.

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