William Helms: “my amendment will clarify once and for all any question about rats, mice and birds used for medical research under the…”

“my amendment will clarify once and for all any question about rats, mice and birds used for medical research under the Animal Welfare Act. Approval of this amendment will make sure that none of the important work taking place in the medical research community will be delayed, made more expensive, or be otherwise compromised by regulatory shenanigans on the part of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Specifically, this amendment will follow Congressional intent by excluding rats, mice and birds from the definition of ``animal'' under the Animal Welfare Act. This has been the established practice of USDA during the more than 30 years that the Animal Welfare Act has been the law of the land during which time scientists and researchers have developed extensive protocols based on current regulatory procedures based on that Act. So, the medical research community was astonished the U.S. Department of Agriculture, weary and browbeat into submission by numerous lawsuits and petitions by the so-called ``animal rights'' crowd, gave notice of its intent to add rats, mice, and birds under the regulatory umbrella.”