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Cat Abuse in Testing Stops Act of 2020

H.R. 8867 · 116th Congress · Dec 3, 2020 · Lineage

A BILL

To amend title 38, United States Code, to prohibit the Secretary of Veterans Affairs from conducting medical research causing significant pain or distress to cats.

Section 1 Short title

This Act may be cited as the “Cat Abuse in Testing Stops Act of 2020” or the “CATS Act of 2020”.

Sec. 2 Prohibition on Department of Veterans Affairs medical research causing significant pain or distress to cats

(a)
In general— Section 7303 of title 38, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:

“(e)

“(1) In carrying out research, the Secretary may not purchase, breed, transport, house, feed, maintain, dispose of, or experiment on cats as part of the conduct of any study that causes significant pain or distress.

“(2) In this subsection, the term study that causes significant pain or distress includes any study classified to pain category D or E by the Department of Agriculture (or such successor categories developed pursuant to section 13 of the Animal Welfare Act (7 U.S.C. 2143)).”

(b)
Effective date— The amendment made by subsection (a) shall take effect 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act.