[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 513 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
<DOC>
116th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 513
To amend title 18, United States Code, with respect to civil
forfeitures relating to certain seized animals, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
February 14, 2019
Ms. Harris (for herself and Ms. Collins) introduced the following bill;
which was read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend title 18, United States Code, with respect to civil
forfeitures relating to certain seized animals, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Help Extract Animals from Red Tape
Act of 2019'' or the ``HEART Act of 2019''.
SEC. 2. REDUCED NOTICE PERIOD.
(a) Notice Timing for Cases of Animal Seizure.--Section
983(a)(1)(A) of title 18, United States Code, is amended--
(1) in clause (i), by inserting ``and subject to clause
(vi),'' after ``Except as provided in clauses (ii) through
(v),''; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
``(vi) In the case of a civil forfeiture proceeding
relating to an animal seized under section 26 of the Animal
Welfare Act (7 U.S.C. 2156) or section 1955 of this title,
clauses (i), (ii), (iii), and (v) of this subparagraph shall be
applied by substituting--
``(I) `30 days' for `60 days' each place that term
appears; and
``(II) `30-day' for `60-day' each place that term
appears.''.
(b) Notice Procedures for Cases of Animal Seizure.--Section
983(a)(1) of title 18, United States Code is amended--
(1) in subparagraph (B), by inserting ``, and, in the case
of a civil forfeiture proceeding relating to an animal seized
under section 26 of the Animal Welfare Act (7 U.S.C. 2156) or
section 1955 of this title, that, after considering the factors
under subparagraph (G), the delay is warranted'' after ``if the
official determines that the conditions in subparagraph (D) are
present'';
(2) in subparagraph (C), by inserting ``, and, in the case
of a civil forfeiture proceeding relating to an animal seized
under section 26 of the Animal Welfare Act (7 U.S.C. 2156) or
section 1955 of this title, that, after considering the factors
under subparagraph (G), the delay is warranted'' after ``that
the conditions in subparagraph (D) are present''; and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
``(G) In the case of a civil forfeiture proceeding relating
to an animal seized under section 26 of the Animal Welfare Act
(7 U.S.C. 2156) or section 1955 of this title, the period for
sending notice under this paragraph may be extended only after
consideration of--
``(i) the cost to the Government of caring and
providing shelter for the animal;
``(ii) the psychological and physical health of the
animal and the effect the delay will have on the
rehabilitation of the animal; and
``(iii) any increased risk that the delay could
necessitate euthanizing the animal.''.
SEC. 3. SEIZURES OF ANIMALS.
(a) Payment for Certain Costs.--Section 524(c)(1) of title 28,
United States Code, is amended--
(1) in subparagraph (H), by striking ``and'' at the end;
(2) in subparagraph (I), by striking the period at the end
and inserting ``; and''; and
(3) by inserting after subparagraph (I) the following:
``(J) payment for the transportation of, shelter of, care
for, veterinary services provided to, and, when appropriate,
humane euthanasia of an animal seized under section 26 of the
Animal Welfare Act (7 U.S.C. 2156) or section 1955 of title
18.''.
(b) Reimbursement and Proportionality.--Section 983(h) of title 18,
United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
``(4) Civil forfeiture proceedings involving animals.--
``(A) In general.--Subject to subparagraph (B), in
any covered proceeding in which the Government
prevails, the court shall require the claimant to
reimburse the United States for any actual and
reasonable costs incurred by the Government for
transportation of, shelter of, care for, veterinary
services provided to, and, when appropriate, humane
euthanasia of an animal that was the subject of the
covered proceeding.
``(B) Reduction.--The court may reduce the amount
of a reimbursement described in subparagraph (A) on the
basis of--
``(i) the seriousness of the offense;
``(ii) the culpability of the claimant;
``(iii) the prior record of the claimant;
``(iv) the financial condition of the
claimant and any need of the claimant to
support a family; and
``(v) the purpose of the civil forfeiture
statute in question.
``(C) Application.--A reimbursement described in
subparagraph (A) shall be credited to--
``(i) the agency that paid the costs being
reimbursed; or
``(ii) the fund that was used to pay the
costs being reimbursed.
``(D) Definition.--In this paragraph, the term
`covered proceeding' means a civil forfeiture
proceeding under section 26 of the Animal Welfare Act
(7 U.S.C. 2156) or section 1955 of this title, the
subject of which is an animal.''.
<all>
HEART Act of 2019
#513 | S Congress #116
Policy Area: Crime and Law Enforcement
Subjects: Animal protection and human-animal relationshipsCivil actions and liabilityCrimes against animals and natural resourcesCriminal procedure and sentencingGamblingJudicial procedure and administrationLaw enforcement administration and fundingMuseums, exhibitions, cultural centersVeterinary medicine and animal diseases
Last Action: Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. (2/14/2019)
Bill Text Source: Congress.gov
Summary and Impacts
Original Text