HAF2
Well-Known Member
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2017/02/wildlife-watch-usda-animal-welfare-trump-records/
Adam Roberts, CEO of Born Free USA, an animal advocacy nonprofit based in Washington, D.C., is “shocked” by the purge. He says the documents shed light on cruelty in “substandard roadside zoos, shameful animal circuses, puppy breeding factories and more.” Often, the animals in these facilities may have visible wounds or cramped conditions or no access to water, according to Roberts. He says “the government's decision to make it harder to access this information further protects animal exploiters in the shroud of secrecy on which their nefarious activities thrive.”
From now on the documents will be accessible only via official requests made under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). FOIA requests can take months to process. That’s far too long, Roberts says. When Born Free receives welfare complaints from concerned citizens, he says the organization has always checked USDA records to see if any complaints had already been made involving the facility or animal in question. Waiting months for a FOIA report for information that previously could be obtained with the click of a button “may mean prolonged suffering for an animal in need,” Roberts says.
The impact on journalism—and therefore the public’s awareness of animal suffering—may also be significant. “Long delays in processing federal FOIA requests already hinder the public and journalists in obtaining information that's essential to ensuring that government is truly working for the people,” says Doug Haddix, executive director of Investigative Reporters and Editors, based in Columbia, Missouri. The added burden of animal requests could slow FOIAs down even more.
“Access to public data and documents should not be a partisan political issue,” Haddix says. “Anyone concerned about responsible and transparent government should be alarmed by the USDA's actions.”
Ashe and others are urging the USDA to reconsider. Reporting on animal welfare violations has played a significant role in ending numerous incidents of animal suffering.
http://bfp.org/new-trump-rule-means-animal-labs-hidden/
Today, without warning, the Trump administration ordered that the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal Plant Health Inspection Service immediately take offline thousands and thousands of records related to Animal Welfare Act-related entities, including research facilities that experiment on dogs and cats.
This database contained inspection reports that allowed the public to see a host of law enforcement records related to the Animal Welfare Act. These records included inspection reports from facilities who were violating the law, annual reports that allowed the public to know what laboratories are experimenting on animals, how many animals are used for research, and other related information. Now the public will have not even any basic statistical information going forward regarding animal use in the United States. The rule also affects other regulated entities, including puppy mills, circuses, and zoos. This new rule from the Trump administration allows those who break the law to evade public scrutiny.
This move makes it IMPOSSIBLE to find out where animals are located, their treatment and any violations, essentially giving carte blanche to anyone to hide animal violations, and violate animal welfare laws, among other things.
Because this information will now be hidden, it also makes it impossible for us to take action against facilities abusing animals, or even reach out to facilities using animals to offer assistance in placing beagles in loving homes.
BFP is looking at legal options to force the Trump administration to reverse course on this decision that destroys transparency. Please help by contacting your members of Congress here and urging them to change this rule. We need more transparency surrounding animal research, not less.
Adam Roberts, CEO of Born Free USA, an animal advocacy nonprofit based in Washington, D.C., is “shocked” by the purge. He says the documents shed light on cruelty in “substandard roadside zoos, shameful animal circuses, puppy breeding factories and more.” Often, the animals in these facilities may have visible wounds or cramped conditions or no access to water, according to Roberts. He says “the government's decision to make it harder to access this information further protects animal exploiters in the shroud of secrecy on which their nefarious activities thrive.”
From now on the documents will be accessible only via official requests made under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). FOIA requests can take months to process. That’s far too long, Roberts says. When Born Free receives welfare complaints from concerned citizens, he says the organization has always checked USDA records to see if any complaints had already been made involving the facility or animal in question. Waiting months for a FOIA report for information that previously could be obtained with the click of a button “may mean prolonged suffering for an animal in need,” Roberts says.
The impact on journalism—and therefore the public’s awareness of animal suffering—may also be significant. “Long delays in processing federal FOIA requests already hinder the public and journalists in obtaining information that's essential to ensuring that government is truly working for the people,” says Doug Haddix, executive director of Investigative Reporters and Editors, based in Columbia, Missouri. The added burden of animal requests could slow FOIAs down even more.
“Access to public data and documents should not be a partisan political issue,” Haddix says. “Anyone concerned about responsible and transparent government should be alarmed by the USDA's actions.”
Ashe and others are urging the USDA to reconsider. Reporting on animal welfare violations has played a significant role in ending numerous incidents of animal suffering.
http://bfp.org/new-trump-rule-means-animal-labs-hidden/
Today, without warning, the Trump administration ordered that the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal Plant Health Inspection Service immediately take offline thousands and thousands of records related to Animal Welfare Act-related entities, including research facilities that experiment on dogs and cats.
This database contained inspection reports that allowed the public to see a host of law enforcement records related to the Animal Welfare Act. These records included inspection reports from facilities who were violating the law, annual reports that allowed the public to know what laboratories are experimenting on animals, how many animals are used for research, and other related information. Now the public will have not even any basic statistical information going forward regarding animal use in the United States. The rule also affects other regulated entities, including puppy mills, circuses, and zoos. This new rule from the Trump administration allows those who break the law to evade public scrutiny.
This move makes it IMPOSSIBLE to find out where animals are located, their treatment and any violations, essentially giving carte blanche to anyone to hide animal violations, and violate animal welfare laws, among other things.
Because this information will now be hidden, it also makes it impossible for us to take action against facilities abusing animals, or even reach out to facilities using animals to offer assistance in placing beagles in loving homes.
BFP is looking at legal options to force the Trump administration to reverse course on this decision that destroys transparency. Please help by contacting your members of Congress here and urging them to change this rule. We need more transparency surrounding animal research, not less.
ath:/aphis_content_library/sa_newsroom/sa_stakeholder_announcements/sa_by_date/sa-2017/sa-02/awa-hpa-compliance
