New from the ASPCA: On Wednesday, July 21st, the U.S. House of Representatives voted almost unanimously to pass H.R. 5566, the Prevention of Interstate Commerce in Animal Crush Videos Act of 2010.
Congress will soon recess for the summer, but hopefully a companion bill will be introduced in the Senate in September. It is vital for the Senate to act before the current federal legislative session ends January 3, 2011.
The ASPCA further states that H.R. 5566 amends the Crush Act to prohibit distribution, selling or offering to distribute or sell any depiction of animals being crushed, drowned, suffocated, impaled or burned where such actions are illegal.
Representative Elton Gallegly (R-CA) introduced the bill after the Supreme Court ruled in April that the original Crush Act, a 1999 federal law banning the creation, sale and possession of material depicting genuine acts of animal cruelty is unconstitutional and too broad in its scope.
In the absence of the act, depictions of animal cruelty are on the rise.
Representative Gallegly, working with law and constitutional scholars, drafted H.R. 5566 ensuring its language is able to withstand First Amendment challenges.
You can help. After the recess, contact your Senators and strongly encourage them to pass a companion bill to H.R. 5566 quickly.
