US Representative Lucille Roybal-Allard has been awarded our Legislator of the Month award for February 2020.
Each month, we nominate a lawmaker as the Legislator or Parliamentarian of the Month, to celebrate the work these individuals do for animals.
This month Rep Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-CA), receives her award for her bill the Humane and Existing Alternatives in Research and Testing Sciences Act (The HEARTS Act).
The HEARTS ACT (H.R. 1209) will prioritize and incentivize the use of non-animal research methods in NIH funded research, increasing the humaneness and effectiveness of science in the US.
We were delighted to present Rep Roybal-Allard with this award in Washington DC at the congressional briefing we held last week for “Advancing Humane Science in NIH-funded Research” which highlighted the importance of the HEARTS ACT. We are always thrilled to honour lawmakers who show concern for animal welfare and take steps to help end the suffering of animals in laboratories.
At our briefing, Rep Roybal-Allard said: “It has been my privilege to work with Cruelty Free International today, but it has been an even greater privilege to work with this incredible organization to develop legislation that would prioritize the use of non-animal research methods in taxpayer-funded science.”
She later added on Twitter, “Glad to advocate for my #HEARTSAct, to prioritize alternatives to #AnimalTesting at @NIH, during @CrueltyFreeIntl's Capitol Hill briefing today. I'm honored to be named the organization's Legislator of the Month.”
Monica Engebretson, our Head of Public Affairs North America, said: “Congresswoman Roybal-Allard has been a tireless advocate for ending the suffering of animals in laboratories. With the HEARTS Act she is continuing to lead the charge to push the NIH to embrace modern non-animal research methods and hold the agency accountable to US taxpayers who overwhelmingly believe that the NIH should give priority funding to research proposals that use alternatives to animal testing.”
US residents can help advance the HEARTS Act by contacting their US Representative and asking that they become a cosponsor of the bill. Take action here.