Tenure: 118th–119th Congresses
Years of Service: 2023–Present
Notable Actions
119th Congress
✅ Lead cosponsor of the Worldwide Animal Testing Compliance and Harmonization (WATCH) Act, S. 1104, bipartisan legislation to require quarterly inspections of foreign laboratories receiving NIH funding for animal research to ensure compliance with animal welfare standards and suspend or revoke federal funding for facilities that fail to correct violations.
✅ Cosponsor of the Opportunities for Fairness in Farming (OFF) Act, S. 1848, to reform agricultural checkoff programs, which funnel mandatory dues from small farmers to trade groups that lobby against animal welfare policies.
✅ Cosponsor of the Better CARE for Animals Act, S. 1538, to strengthen enforcement of the Animal Welfare Act by expanding federal authority to investigate and prosecute animal cruelty violations and improve coordination between the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Department of Justice.
✅ Cosponsor of the Save America’s Forgotten Equines (SAFE) Act, S. 775, to ban U.S.-based horse slaughter and the export of horses for slaughter for human consumption.
✅ Cosponsor of the Fighting Inhumane Gambling and High-Risk Trafficking (FIGHT) Act, S. 1454, to strengthen federal enforcement against animal fighting and related criminal activity.
✅ Lead sponsor of the Freedom in School Cafeterias and Lunches (FISCAL) Act, S. 1236, to end the National School Lunch Program’s decades-old “cow’s milk only” mandate by requiring schools to offer plant-based milk options to students with lactose intolerance. The bill’s core provisions were ultimately incorporated into the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act, passed unanimously by the Senate, approved by Congress, and signed into law by the President, ensuring schools may offer plant-based milk options and must provide dairy-free alternatives for students.
✅ Voted “Nay” on S.J. Res. 23 (Senate Roll Call Vote 122), a Congressional Review Act resolution to overturn federal regulations strengthening implementation of the Endangered Species Act, including protections governing the listing of imperiled species and designation of critical habitat. A “Nay” vote is the pro-animal position because it supported retaining stronger federal protections for threatened and endangered wildlife and their habitat.
❌ Voted “Nay” on the motion to proceed to S.J. Res. 69 (Senate Roll Call Vote 597), a joint resolution under the Congressional Review Act to bring the measure before the Senate for consideration to overturn the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Barred Owl Management Strategy, which authorized the large-scale killing of barred owls in Washington, Oregon, and California. A “Nay” vote is the anti-animal position because it opposed moving forward with a vote to repeal the barred owl kill plan.
118th Congress
✅ Cosponsor of the Better CARE for Animals Act, S. 2555, to strengthen enforcement of the Animal Welfare Act by expanding federal authority to investigate and prosecute animal cruelty violations and improve coordination between the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Department of Justice.
✅ Cosponsor of the Fighting Inhumane Gambling and High-Risk Trafficking (FIGHT) Act, S. 1529, to strengthen federal enforcement against animal fighting and related criminal activity.
✅ Cosponsor of the Save America’s Forgotten Equines (SAFE) Act, S. 2037, to ban U.S.-based horse slaughter and the export of horses for slaughter for human consumption.
✅ Lead sponsor of the ADD SOY Act, S. 2943, to give kids access to a plant-based milk option in the National School Lunch Program, in addition to the existing cow’s milk offerings.
✅ Lead cosponsor of the Prevent All Soring Tactics (PAST) Act, S. 4004, to end the failed system of industry self-policing under the Horse Protection Act by banning devices associated with horse soring, increasing penalties for violators, and strengthening USDA enforcement to protect Tennessee Walking Horses and related breeds from intentional abuse used to exaggerate their gait in competitions.