Sponsors (21)
The bill strengthens tools to stop and deter animal‑fighting—giving courts injunctive power, fee recovery, asset forfeiture, and transport bans—but it delays some private suits, limits citizen enforcement when the government acts, and risks heavy economic harms and compliance burdens for property owners and carriers.
Local and state law enforcement and private citizens gain the power to obtain court orders to halt ongoing animal‑fighting operations, enabling faster judicial intervention to stop cruelty and related criminal activity.
Owners and victims who successfully sue can recover litigation costs, attorney fees, and expert fees, lowering the financial barrier to bringing enforcement actions and encouraging private enforcement.
The bill authorizes civil forfeiture of real property used to facilitate animal fighting, creating a strong deterrent against running operations and allowing courts to disgorge ill‑gotten assets.
Property owners and leaseholders risk severe economic losses through civil forfeiture of real property used for animal fighting, potentially before a full judicial determination, which can harm innocent co‑owners or tenants.
Private citizens and organizations are barred from suing when the Secretary or the United States is already prosecuting the same violation, reducing parallel private enforcement and limiting community-initiated oversight.
Private plaintiffs must wait 60 days after notice before filing suit, delaying immediate legal action against active animal‑fighting operations and potentially allowing harm to continue during the waiting period.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Makes gambling on animal fighting and interstate/postal transport of roosters illegal, defines “rooster,” and adds citizen suits, fines, seizures and property forfeiture as enforcement tools.
Makes it illegal to gamble on animal-fighting ventures and to use the Postal Service or interstate means to transport roosters, defines “rooster” for enforcement, and adds new civil enforcement tools. It creates a private civil cause of action to stop violations, authorizes fines in private suits, allows civil and administrative seizure and forfeiture (including real property) for those who sponsor or exhibit animals in fighting ventures, and adds related technical changes to federal statutes.
Introduced April 10, 2025 by John Neely Kennedy · Last progress April 10, 2025