H.R. 1847 - Prevent All Soring Tactics (PAST) Act Explained

What is this bill about?

This bill aims to strengthen laws against "soring", a cruel practice where horses’ legs or hooves are intentionally hurt or irritated to exaggerate their gait for horse shows and competitions. The bill updates the existing Horse Protection Act to define more clearly what is illegal, make penalties tougher, and improve how the Department of Agriculture enforces these rules.

Key points in simple terms

• New Definitions: The bill explains what “action devices” are — such as special boots or chains that can cause pain — and says that any use of these to hurt horses for shows is illegal.
• Expanded Illegal Acts: It makes it illegal not only to sore horses but also to use weighted shoes, pads, or other devices that change how a horse moves unnaturally for competitions.
• Stronger Penalties: People caught breaking the rules can be fined higher amounts (up to $5,000) and face longer jail times (up to 3 years). Repeat offenders could be banned permanently from participating in horse shows and related events.
• Better Enforcement: The Department of Agriculture will license and oversee inspectors to check horses at shows and auctions ensuring horses are not sore. Inspectors will be held to strict standards to prevent conflicts of interest.
• Public Transparency: Violations will be published online so event organizers can know if individuals have broken the rules before allowing them to participate.
• Multiple Violations Lead to Suspension: A horse found sore will be disqualified from shows for increasingly longer periods: 180 days for the first time, one year for the second, and three years for the third infraction.
• Clarifies Who is Responsible: The bill holds not just the people who directly hurt the horses accountable but anyone who knowingly participates in activities involving sored horses, like transporting or giving instructions to exhibitors.

Why is this important?

Soring causes severe pain and long-term damage to horses just to make them perform a particular style of walking that some people find impressive. It’s considered animal cruelty and distorts fair competition in horse shows. Despite existing laws, soring has continued, especially in breeds like Tennessee Walking Horses and Racking Horses. This bill aims to close loopholes, give inspectors more power and independence, increase penalties, and raise awareness to finally put an end to these harmful practices.

In summary

The PAST Act makes laws tougher against hurting horses with devices or chemicals to change how they walk in competitions. It improves how inspectors are trained and licensed, increases punishments for those who break the law, and makes enforcement stronger and more transparent. Ultimately, it helps protect the welfare of horses and promotes truthful, fair horse competitions.

Summary of the Investing in America’s Small Businesses Act of 2017 (H.R. 1833)

This bill is designed to help small businesses, especially those in underserved areas, get better access to affordable financial products and services. Many small businesses, particularly those owned by women and minorities, struggle to get loans and capital from traditional banks. This bill aims to fix that by supporting community development financial institutions (CDFIs), which are banks and lenders dedicated to helping these types of businesses.

Key Points in Simple Terms:

• Small Business Challenges: Many small businesses can't get loans through regular banks, which limits their growth and ability to create jobs.
• Role of CDFIs: CDFIs focus on underserved communities and have been shown to successfully support small businesses in these areas.
• Loan-Loss Reserve Funds: The bill proposes giving grants to CDFIs so they can create special reserve funds. These funds help CDFIs cover losses from loans that don’t get repaid, so they can take more risks and lend to small businesses that might not otherwise qualify for loans.
• Technical Assistance Grants: The bill also provides money to help CDFIs improve their loan programs—for example, by funding technology, staff training, or helping borrowers with support services.
• Grant Conditions: CDFIs that receive grant money must contribute at least half the amount themselves (matching funds). The grants cannot be used to make loans directly, only to support the loan programs and cover losses.
• Loan Details: Loans made under these programs are capped at $50,000, have no penalties for early repayment, and should be affordable for small businesses.
• Funding Authorization: The bill authorizes $25 million per year (from 2018 to 2023) for these programs, plus $2 million per year to cover administrative costs.

Why This Matters:

Supporting small businesses helps boost local economies by creating jobs and increasing tax revenue that can be used for community services like schools and hospitals. This bill supports financial institutions that focus on communities and businesses that have traditionally been left out of mainstream banking, helping to build stronger and more resilient local economies.

In short:

This law encourages safer lending to small businesses in underserved areas by helping community lenders manage risks and expand their services, ultimately empowering small business owners with better access to the funds they need to grow.

Summary of H.R. 1865: Allow States and Victims to Fight Online Sex Trafficking Act of 2017

This law was passed to make it easier to hold websites responsible when they are involved in illegal activities related to sex trafficking and prostitution. Specifically, it clarifies a previous law (Section 230 of the Communications Act of 1934, often called the Communications Decency Act) that protected websites from being sued for content created by their users.

Background

The original Section 230 law was created to encourage free speech on the internet by protecting websites from being sued for things their users post. However, it was never meant to protect websites that help or promote illegal sexual activities involving children or sex trafficking.

What does this law do?

• Clarifies Legal Protections: The law says that Section 230 does NOT protect websites that knowingly promote or facilitate prostitution or sex trafficking. This means such websites can be held legally responsible.
• New Criminal Offenses: It creates new criminal penalties for website owners or operators who intentionally promote prostitution or turn a blind eye to sex trafficking happening through their platforms. For serious violations, penalties can include up to 25 years in prison.
• Civil Lawsuits: Victims or others harmed by such websites can sue for damages and attorney’s fees.
• State and Federal Laws Enforced: It ensures that both federal and state authorities can enforce laws related to sex trafficking, even if Section 230 was previously cited to block action.
• State Attorneys General Can Take Action: State lawyers can sue on behalf of their residents to stop illegal sex trafficking activities linked to websites.
• Restitution: Courts must order offenders to pay restitution (compensation) to victims when sex trafficking is proven.

Additional Information

- The law applies even to past actions (it is retroactive).
- It broadens the definition of who can be held liable if they help in sex trafficking.
- After three years, a government report must review how this law has been used and its effectiveness.

Why is this important?

Before this law, some websites were able to avoid responsibility by hiding behind Section 230, even if they knowingly allowed or promoted illegal sex acts like trafficking or prostitution. This law closes that loophole and helps protect victims by making sure websites that facilitate these crimes can face legal consequences.

Explanation of the Paycheck Fairness Act

The Paycheck Fairness Act, also known as H.R. 1869, is a bill introduced in the United States House of Representatives to amend the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938. The main purpose of this bill is to provide more effective remedies to victims of discrimination in the payment of wages based on sex. The bill aims to address the ongoing issue of pay disparities between men and women in the workforce.

The bill highlights the following findings:

1. Women continue to earn significantly lower pay than men for equal work despite laws like the Equal Pay Act of 1963.
2. These pay disparities negatively impact working families, women's retirement security, labor resources utilization, and commerce.
3. Artificial barriers to eliminating wage discrimination based on sex still exist.

The bill proposes several provisions, including:

• Enhanced enforcement of equal pay requirements, including modifications to the bona fide factor defense.
• A prohibition on inquiring about or using a prospective employee's wage history in determining future wages.
• Establishment of the National Award for Pay Equity in the Workplace to recognize employers making efforts to eliminate pay disparities.
• Collection of compensation data by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission to better enforce equal pay laws.

Additionally, the bill includes sections for training programs on negotiation skills for girls and women, research on pay disparities, and technical assistance for small businesses to comply with the new requirements.

It's important to note that the bill does not affect compliance with immigration laws and emphasizes the need to address wage discrimination based on sex.