Tenure: 118th–119th Congresses
Years of Service: 2023–Present
Rep. Kevin Kiley occupies an unusual position on animal protection issues. Representing California—a state that has enacted some of the nation’s strongest animal welfare laws—Kiley has generally aligned with the House Republican conference on major animal-related votes, even when those positions conflict with policies adopted by California voters. At the same time, he has not emerged as a leading opponent of animal protection in the mold of lawmakers such as Paul Gosar or Bruce Westerman, nor has he devoted significant legislative energy to animal issues in either direction.
Because Kiley is still early in his congressional career, his record is defined largely by a handful of high-profile votes rather than a long history of legislative leadership. Most notably, he voted for H.R. 845, the Pet and Livestock Protection Act, legislation that would remove federal Endangered Species Act protections for gray wolves across much of the United States. The bill represented one of the most significant congressional efforts in recent years to reduce federal protections for a recovering predator species.
Kiley also voted for H.R. 556, the Protecting Access for Hunters and Anglers Act. The legislation restricted federal agencies from limiting the use of lead ammunition and lead fishing tackle on federal lands and waters unless specifically authorized by Congress. Lead ammunition and tackle have long been associated with wildlife poisoning, particularly among scavenging birds and waterfowl that ingest spent fragments or lost fishing gear. By supporting H.R. 556, Kiley sided against efforts to give federal land managers greater flexibility to address lead-related wildlife mortality.
On House Roll Call Vote 149, Kiley voted against the Moore Amendment, which sought to exempt West Virginia from the federal prohibition on commercial greyhound racing. The amendment would have created a carveout from a federal animal protection standard that effectively ended commercial greyhound racing operations nationwide.
Kiley also voted for the Farm, Food, and National Security Act, which included language modeled on the Save Our Bacon Act. The provision would preempt state laws governing certain agricultural production standards and would effectively overturn California’s Proposition 12, the voter-approved law establishing minimum confinement standards for breeding pigs and other farm animals whose products are sold within the state. For a California representative, support for the provision was particularly significant because it would nullify one of the state’s most consequential animal welfare laws.
Beyond these votes, Kiley has not established a substantial legislative record involving animal cruelty prevention, companion-animal protection, horse protection, wildlife conservation, or animal testing reform. Unlike some lawmakers who have paired problematic votes with meaningful support for anti-cruelty legislation or conservation initiatives, there is relatively little affirmative engagement on animal protection issues in his record thus far.
For animal protection advocates, Kiley represents a potentially persuadable but currently unreliable vote. His support for wolf delisting, restrictions on lead-ammunition regulation, and Farm Bill preemption language raises significant concerns, though he opposed the greyhound racing exemption (Moore Amendment). However, his record suggests a lawmaker following broader conservative policy preferences rather than one who has made rolling back animal protections a personal legislative mission.
Notable Actions
119th Congress
✅ Cosponsor of the Fighting Inhumane Gambling and High-Risk Trafficking (FIGHT) Act, H.R. 3946, to strengthen federal enforcement against animal fighting and related criminal activity.
✅ Cosponsor of the Prevent All Soring Tactics (PAST) Act, H.R. 1684, to strengthen enforcement against the cruel practice of soring horses. The bill would ban devices associated with soring, require independent USDA-trained inspectors, increase penalties for violations, and strengthen the Horse Protection Act to better protect Tennessee Walking Horses and other affected breeds from intentional abuse.
✅ Cosponsor of the Puppy Protection Act, H.R. 2253, bipartisan legislation to strengthen federal standards of care for dogs kept by commercial breeders by improving requirements for housing, veterinary care, exercise, socialization, and humane breeding practices.
✅ Voted “Aye” on the Van Drew–Titus Amendment (Recorded Vote No. 98-pg. 46) to H.R. 8870 (Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Vote), to incorporate key provisions of the Save America’s Forgotten Equines (SAFE) Act into the Build America 250 Act. The bipartisan amendment would permanently prohibit the export of American horses to Canada, Mexico, or other countries for slaughter for human consumption and ban the use of dangerous double-decker trailers to transport horses. The amendment was adopted by a 34–30 vote. An “Aye” vote is the pro-animal position because it advanced legislation to end the slaughter pipeline for American horses.
✅ Supported House passage of the FDA Modernization Act 3.0, H.R. 2821, which passed by voice vote under suspension of the rules on July 20, 2026. The bipartisan legislation directs the FDA to update its regulations to fully implement the 2022 law allowing scientifically valid non-animal methods to be used instead of animal testing in drug development.
❌ Voted “Aye” on H.R. 556, the Protecting Access for Hunters and Anglers Act (House Roll Call Vote 93), to prohibit federal land management agencies from restricting the use of toxic lead ammunition and fishing tackle on public lands and waters to protect wildlife from poisoning. The bill passed the House 215–202. An “Aye” vote is the anti-animal position because it limited the federal government’s ability to restrict toxic lead ammunition and fishing tackle that poison wildlife and contaminate the environment.
❌ Voted “Aye” on H.R. 845, the Pet and Livestock Protection Act (House Roll Call Vote 360), to remove federal Endangered Species Act protections for gray wolves across much of the United States and restricted judicial review of future wolf management decisions. The bill passed the House 211–204. An “Aye” vote is the anti-animal position because it removed Endangered Species Act protections for gray wolves and limited judicial review of future wolf management decisions.
✅ Voted “Nay” on the Riley Moore Amendment to H.R. 7567 (House Roll Call Vote 149), to weaken the Farm Bill’s Greyhound Protection Act provisions by creating a special exemption allowing commercial greyhound racing to continue in West Virginia indefinitely. The House rejected the amendment 187–237. A “Nay” vote is the pro-animal position.
❌ Voted “Aye” on H.R. 7567, the Farm, Food, and National Security Act (House Roll Call Vote 154), to pass the Farm Bill, which included a provision to overturn state laws in California and Massachusetts restricting in-state sales of fresh pork sourced from farms that do not provide minimum space requirements for the housing of pregnant pigs. The bill passed the House 224–200. An “Aye” vote is the anti-animal position because it supported overturning state farm animal welfare laws that require more humane housing standards for pregnant pigs.
❌ Voted “Aye” on the Biggs Amendment to H.R. 3838 (House Roll Call Vote 259), to exempt defense-related activities from the requirements of the Endangered Species Act, eliminating protections for endangered and threatened species and their critical habitat on military lands and during defense operations. The House rejected the amendment 200–228. An “Aye” vote is the anti-animal position because it sought to weaken Endangered Species Act protections for threatened and endangered wildlife on military lands.
✅ Voted “Nay” on the Greene Amendment to H.R. 3838 (House Roll Call Vote 254), to prohibit the Department of Defense from using FY2026 funds for the research, development, procurement, or promotion of cell-cultured meat, an emerging alternative to conventional slaughter-based meat production. The House rejected the amendment 194–236, with 1 voting present. A “Nay” vote is the pro-animal position.
118th Congress
✅ Cosponsor of the Fighting Inhumane Gambling and High-Risk Trafficking (FIGHT) Act, H.R. 2742, to strengthen federal enforcement against animal fighting and related criminal activity.
✅ Cosponsor of the Save America’s Forgotten Equines (SAFE) Act, H.R. 3475, to ban U.S.-based horse slaughter and the export of horses for slaughter for human consumption.
✅ Cosponsor of the Puppy Protection Act, H.R. 1624, bipartisan legislation to strengthen federal standards of care for dogs kept by commercial breeders by improving requirements for housing, veterinary care, exercise, socialization, and humane breeding practices.
✅ Cosponsor of the Prevent All Soring Tactics (PAST) Act, H.R. 3090, bipartisan legislation to strengthen enforcement against the cruel practice of soring horses. The bill would ban devices associated with soring, require independent USDA-trained inspectors, increase penalties for violations, and strengthen the Horse Protection Act to better protect Tennessee Walking Horses and other affected breeds from intentional abuse.
❌ Voted “Aye” on H.R. 764 (House Roll Call Vote 169), legislation to remove federal protections for gray wolves under the Endangered Species Act across most of the United States and return management authority to the states. Wildlife advocates warned that the bill would undermine science-based wildlife management and threaten the long-term recovery of gray wolf populations. The House passed the bill 209–205. An “Aye” vote is the anti-animal position because it removed Endangered Species Act protections for gray wolves across much of the United States, despite concerns that doing so would undermine their long-term recovery and science-based wildlife management.
❌ Voted “Aye” on H.R. 615 (House Roll Call Vote 167), legislation to bar the Department of the Interior and the Department of Agriculture from prohibiting or regulating the use of toxic lead ammunition and fishing tackle on federal lands and waters made available for hunting or fishing. Lead ammunition and tackle poison wildlife, including eagles, loons, condors, and other animals that ingest spent lead fragments or lost fishing gear. The House passed the bill 214–201. An “Aye” vote is the anti-animal position because it blocked federal agencies from restricting toxic lead ammunition and fishing tackle that poison eagles, loons, condors, and other wildlife.