URGENT: Maryland Lawmakers Need
to Hear from You - Please Oppose
S.B. 675 and H.B. 732
As reported by NABR earlier this month, two bills introduced in the Maryland General Assembly will be up for consideration very soon. Simply put, Senate Bill 675 and House Bill 732 would require research facilities to provide former research animals to animal rescue organizations for adoption. Because research programs already adopt out animals themselves with great effectiveness, this bill would effectively create a "middleman" in the process of finding homes for former research animals. Both bills also carry an overly burdensome and duplicative reporting requirement on animals in research. S.B. 675 has been scheduled for a hearing next week on Feb. 27 at 1:00 p.m. in the Senate Committee on Education, Health, and Environmental Affairs. H.B. 732 is slated to be heard on March 13 at 1:00 p.m. in the House Appropriations Committee.
We need your help! If you or someone you know is a resident of Maryland, please send this pre-formatted letter to members of the House and Senate urging them to oppose S.B. 675 and H.B. 732. It only takes a few minutes, but sending this letter may have an impact on the future of biomedical research within the State of Maryland.Also, if you are able, please consider signing-up to deliver in-person testimony in Annapolis.
Research animal adoption bills are a solution in search of a non-existent problem. They would add an unnecessary middleman to existing research animal adoption processes, heightening the compliance burden faced by researchers. Should the bills become law, they would open the door for amendments that could introduce even more arduous restrictions on animal research.
S.B. 675 and H.B. 732 are lobbied by the Beagle Freedom Project (BFP) (now the Rescue+Freedom Project, or RFP), an organization that has previously advocated for an end to all animal research. The group has very publicly vilified animal research and targeted specific institutions regarding their adoption policies. Read this POLITICO story to learn more about this controversial organization.
Again, if you or someone you know is a Maryland resident, please send this pre-written letter to Annapolis ASAP urging them to OPPOSE S.B. 675 and H.B. 732. Using NABR's letter writing module is simple, quick, easy, and very important in the effort to push back against this bill.
