HOUSE JOINT MEMORIAL 16

51st legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2013

INTRODUCED BY

Paul C. Bandy

A JOINT MEMORIAL

REQUESTING THE NEW MEXICO DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE TO STUDY THE FEASIBILITY OF THE REINTRODUCTION OF HORSE SLAUGHTER AND PROCESSING OF HORSE MEAT.

     WHEREAS, in recent years, the slaughter and processing of horses has become a controversial and emotional issue, which has resulted in the closing of the last horse processing and slaughter facility in the United States; and

     WHEREAS, thousands of unwanted horses are exposed to abandonment and neglect annually because of the cessation of horse slaughter in the United States; and

     WHEREAS, horses from the United States have been shipped to Canada and Mexico and potentially exposed to inhumane slaughter; and

     WHEREAS, the nation's inadequate and overburdened horse rescue and adoption facilities cannot begin to handle the influx of additional unwanted and abandoned horses each year that result from the cessation of equine slaughter, processing and transport activity; and

     WHEREAS, the current economic downturn has added significantly to the problem of abandoned and neglected horses; and

     WHEREAS, the federal inspection program governing horse slaughter and facilities has been reinstated; and

     WHEREAS, a number of states, including Arkansas, Arizona, Idaho, Illinois, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, North Dakota, Tennessee, Utah and Wyoming, have considered a variety of bills and resolutions opposing efforts to restrict the market, transport, processing or export of horses; and

     WHEREAS, there is a critical need for humane horse processing facilities in the United States to reduce the suffering inflicted on unwanted and abandoned horses and to meet overseas export markets for horse meat in a humane manner;

     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that the New Mexico department of agriculture be requested to undertake a study of the feasibility of humane horse slaughter and processing facilities being established in New Mexico; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the department report its findings and recommendations to the appropriate committee of the legislature by December 1, 2013; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this memorial be transmitted to the director of the New Mexico department of agriculture.

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