We in New Jersey love horses. Horses are our loyal companions, and they stand by us as our partners in work and sport. They are symbols of our spirit and freedom. We recognize that we owe it to horses to respect and protect them, and that’s why in 2012, our state banned slaughtering horses for human consumption. The people of New Jersey strongly oppose this vile industry.Yet, there are some looking to make a profit by condemning these loyal companions to a gruesome death in a slaughter plant. The predatory slaughter industry gathers up these faithful companions only to turn them into meat exports for profit. Horses unlucky enough to end up in the hands of kill buyers suffer terribly from the auction to the slaughter process itself. When horse slaughter plants operated in the U.S., it proved to be no better – the USDA documented horrific injuries and cruelty.

Not only is slaughtering horses cruel, but it is an abhorrent waste of taxpayer dollars. The budget of the USDA’s Food Safety Inspection Service is already stretched thin, and President Trump’s budget for next year calls for a 21% reduction in the USDA budget. Taxpayers should not support funding a program to slaughter horses to produce a product that neither Americans nor their pets consume.

For the last several years, Congress has rightfully included language that prevented the wasteful use of tax dollars for USDA horse slaughter inspections, effectively preventing horse slaughter plants from operating here. Without this key language, horse slaughter plants can open. It is critical for Congress to maintain the current ban until federal legislation – the Safeguard American Food Exports Act – is passed to permanently end the needless slaughter of American horses.