Sponsors (22)
Official title: To amend the Act commonly known as the Wild Free-roaming Horses and Burros Act to prohibit certain uses of aircraft with respect to the management of wild free-roaming horses and burros, and for other purposes.
Introduced July 10, 2025 by Alice Costandina Titus · Last progress July 10, 2025
The bill would reduce harm to wild horses/burros and increase transparency while potentially saving some taxpayer money, but it risks higher transition and program costs, reduced ability to rapidly manage herds in remote areas, and increased burdens on ranchers and government agencies.
Taxpayers could see direct budget savings from eliminating helicopter/fixed‑wing roundups, given historic roundup costs (noted savings >$69.5M since FY2012) and contractor reductions.
Wild free‑roaming horses and burros would face less stress, injury, and mortality because aircraft chases would be reduced and alternatives are emphasized.
Public transparency and congressional oversight of BLM gathers would improve through required recording/publishing of aircraft footage and a GAO report to relevant committees, informing future policy.
Transitioning away from aircraft and scaling fertility‑control or other land‑based programs could raise near‑term and programmatic costs for federal and local agencies and for taxpayers.
Reduced use of helicopters and fixed‑wing aircraft may limit the agency's ability to gather animals quickly in remote or rugged areas, potentially delaying management actions that protect rangeland and public safety.
If fertility‑control or other slower alternatives do not reduce populations quickly, grazing competition and land‑use conflicts could continue or worsen during the transition, harming ranchers and local ecosystems.
Based on analysis of 4 sections of legislative text.
Restricts and phases out helicopter and fixed-wing aircraft use for BLM wild horse and burro roundups, requires aircraft cameras and GAO study of humane alternatives and job impacts.
Revises federal authorities over Bureau of Land Management (BLM) gathers of wild free-roaming horses and burros by restricting and phasing out use of helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft for roundups, requiring cameras on aircraft that are used, and directing a GAO report on humane alternatives and job impacts. The bill also records congressional findings about costs, limited public visibility of helicopter roundups, and low historical spending on fertility-control alternatives.