14,000 WILD HORSES TO BE SLAUGHTERED
(Please also see UPDATES below.)
Lantry, SD- Surreptitiously, over the Thanksgiving Day Holiday, a rider (#142) introduced by Senator Mark Burns of Montana in the omnibus federal Appropriation Bill literally guts the built in protections in the 1971 Wild Horse and Burro Act and will allow for thousands of wild horses to be shipped to slaughter.
Without hearings or input from concerned citizens of our country this rider appeared in the 4,000 page spending bill document and was passed unanimously by both houses. It is now waiting signing by President Bush on December 8th.
“After thirty-three years of a compassionate, conservation minded Act that protected the fast diminishing wild horse herds from slaughter, this rider spells doom to America’s wild horses”, according to Karen Sussman, president of ISPMB.
Sussman says that ISPMB’s first president, Wild Horse Annie, and the organization committed twenty-one years of fighting to protect the few remaining wild horses on public lands so that future generations could enjoy these magnificent animals that represent freedom and the American way. Sussman says, “With one swipe of the ink over paper with the President’s signature, over fifty years of fighting for protection of wild horses and burros in our country will be annihilated.”
Today, we have fewer wild horses and burros than in 1971 when the Wild Horse and Burro Act was passed. The constant erosion of protection has been an ongoing battle with the BLM, mandated by law to protect these animals. In 1974, there were more than 55,000 wild horses and burros roaming ten western states and 303 herd areas identified. Today, according to BLM statistics, although much disputed by preservation groups, there are 36,000 wild horses and burros and only 186 areas where wild horses and burros can be found. More herd areas are slated to be zeroed out.
There is still time to makes changes in the Appropriation Bill as Congress reconvenes on Monday to pull some riders out of the bill. If Congress would so deem, rider #142 could be pulled out on Monday.
Sussman says that a groundswell of support is needed and concerned citizens must contact their Congressional representatives in their states. Already the phone lines to the president’s office are ringing constantly.
If the rider cannot be pulled from the Appropriation Bill the rider becomes a permanent amendment to the Wild Horse and Burro Act, it opens the backdoor for the BLM to send thousands of wild horses to slaughter.
CONTACT: Karen A. Sussman (1)605-964-6866 or (1)605-365-6991
International Society for the Protection of Mustangs and Burros
http://www.ispmb.org
UPDATES
FIRST ALERTS
Dear Friends of Wild Horses,
Attached is a press release and below are actions that you can take to save America's wild horses from slaughter.
The following site will give you access to your Congressional members in your state.
http://www.webslingerz.com/jhoffman/congress-email.html or www.congress.org
What the current rider to the Appropriations law will do:
Wild horses over the age of ten will automatically be sent to slaughter
Wild horses aged ten and under will go to slaughter is they are not adopted in three adoptions
BLM does not have to advertise adoptions
Horses will be sold to the highest bidder ("killer buyers")
Selling wild horses to slaughter will no longer be considered a crime.
Facts about Wild Horses:
In 1971, there were 303 herd areas designated for wild horses and burros.
Today there are only 186 herd areas left.
In 1974, there were 60,000 wild horses and burros on public lands.
Today there are less than 35,000 wild horses and burros on public lands according to BLM statistics.
BLM plans to bring the population down to 20,000 wild horses and burros.
At above levels, 70% of the herd areas will have less than 100 animals - meaning that populations will not be genetically viable with reduced levels.
Currently, wild horses are far more genetically diverse compared to any breed of domestic horse in the US. This means that wild horses are healthier and have little to no inbreeding in the herds.
No age of wild horse is unadoptable. Time and patience allows for a bonding between human and horse regardless of age.
Because of nature's breeding program, wild horses have nearly perfect conformations and are extremely healthy and survival oriented. They are by nature curious and form lasting human-animal bonds.
Many of the herds have ancestry dating back to the Spanish Conquistadors.
What will happen:
Approximately 14,000 wild horses will go to slaughter immediately.
The door is open for thousands of more horses to go to slaughter.
The great genetic diversity of wild horses will be diminished as BLM reduces populations to below viable levels.
Why is this happening:
Wild horses have had to fight for every blade of grass since the turn of the 20th century.
Wild horses were driven out of plush ranges and survived in locations uninhabitable my cattle - hence the birth of public lands.
Many public lands ranchers would like to see wild horses eliminated on public lands.
Only 2% of the beef eaten in the US comes from public lands ranching.
More than 50% of leased public lands is leased by 3% of the permittees who comprise large corporations such as mining, oil, banks etc.
Public lands ranching costs the taxpayers approximately 1/2 billion dollars per year while the Wild Horse and Burro program costs the taxpayers 11 million per year.
Ranchers pay the BLM $1.43 per cow plus a calf per month (AUM) to graze on public lands. Imagine feeding a 2,000 pound animal (cow and calf) for $1.43 per month. It is unlikely that you could raise a hamster for that amount of money per month.
According to the GAO report in 1990, wild horses were NOT the cause of declining rangelands but it was attributed to overgrazing by cattle.
Private ranchers must pay at least $35.00 per month for their cows and must compete against public lands ranching while most of the beef eaten in the US comes from our private ranchers.
Most wild horse herd areas have cattle grazing in the herd areas.
There are millions of acres where there are no horses and cattle graze.
There is a complacency amongst the American people who think wild horses are being protected because of the Wild Horse and Burro Act. Few people know that we have less horses now than when the act passed in 1971.
BLM has never really had a marketing plan or training program for staff and a business cannot produce without either.
BLM originally was a grazing agency and were mandated by law to manage the wild horses. Therefore, the wild horse and burro program never really had a fighting chance during those early years when the program was in its infancy because those who wanted to rid the public lands of wild horses were in charge of the program.
BLM is under the false impression that wild horses over the age of ten are unadoptable.. Not true.
This really could be the "White Hat" program of the BLM if they desired.
What to do:
Call your Representative and ask them to remove the Rider #142 from the Appropriation Bill. House is due to meet on 12/6/04
Call Senator Conrad Burns of Montana and ask him to remove the rider from the Appropriation Bill. 202-224-2644 or 1-800-344-1513.
Call the President's comment line and tell him that you protest the slaughter of America's wild horses. 202-456-2461
Call Senator Reid of Nevada and ask him to remove the rider from the Appropriation Bill 202-224-3542.
E-mail this article to as many people as possible.
For further questions:
Call the International Society for the Protection of Mustangs and Burros - (1)605-964-6866 or (1)605-365-6991
Future Plans:
A delegation of Native American presidents, chiefs, and spiritual leaders will go to Washington to speak with the President and Secretary Norton of the Interior. A press conference will be held in Washington. Our goal is to ask that the wild horses not be slaughtered and offer a solution to take excess wild horses to different tribal lands to protect the horses on those lands.
Introduce legislation to amend the Wild Horse and Burro Act to reinstitute protections in 109th Congress.
Current Situation:
ISPMB is the oldest wild horse and burro organization in the US and responsible for the passage of the 1971 Wild Horse and Burro Act that protected wild horses from slaughter.
ISPMB is the only organization in the US that manages wild horse herds.
ISPMB already manages three wild horse herds on the Cheyenne River Reservation. The Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe manages a fourth herd given to them by ISPMB.
Plans are underway to give a fifth herd to the Osage Indians in Oklahoma.
Thank you for helping our wild horses !
Karen Sussman
President ISPMB
PO Box 55
Lantry, SD 57636
(1)605-964-6866
(1)605-365-6991
http://www.ispmb.org
ispmb@lakotanetwork.com
Please stay in touch with ISPMB as we have the most current information on the legislation that will kill thousands of wild horses.
Please flood your Representative's lines asking that they remove Rider #142 from the Appropriations Bill HR 4818.
Tell them that you will not stand by while our wild horses are slaughtered. The wild horses represent what our country stands for and that is FREEDOM.
Below is the Bill. IT HAS NOT PASSED THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES. They meet on Monday at 2PM and work through Wednesday. There is time to STOP THIS!!!
Here is the link to the H.Rpt. 108-792 Conference Report to Accompany H.R. 4818 - Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2005. http://thomas.loc.gov/home/omni2005/index.htm
Click on Division E which covers appropriations language for DOI, either the text version or the PDF version, whichever you prefer. The amendment is under Sec. 142. The text is as follows:
SEC. 142. SALE OF WILD FREE-ROAMING HORSES AND BURROS. (a) IN GENERAL.--Section 3 of Public Law 92-195 (16 U.S.C. 1333) is amended--
(1) in subsection (d)(5), by striking ``this section'' and all that follows through the period at the end and inserting ``this section.''; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
``(e) SALE OF EXCESS ANIMALS.--
``(1) IN GENERAL.--Any excess animal or the remains of an excess animal shall be sold if-- ``(A) the excess animal is more than 10 years of age; or ``(B) the excess animal has been offered unsuccessfully for adoption at least 3 times.
``(2) METHOD OF SALE.--An excess animal that meets either of the criteria in paragraph (1) shall be made available for sale without limitation, including through auction to the highest bidder, at local sale yards or other convenient livestock selling facilities, until such time as-- ``(A) all excess animals offered for sale are sold; or ``(B) the appropriate management level, as determined by the Secretary, is attained in all areas occupied by wild free-roaming horses and burros.
``(3) DISPOSITION OF FUNDS.--Funds generated from the sale of excess animals under this subsection shall be-- ``(A) credited as an offsetting collection to the Management of Lands and Resources appropriation for the Bureau of Land Management; and ``(B) used for the costs relating to the adoption of wild free-roaming horses and burros, including the costs of marketing such adoption.
'`(4) EFFECT OF SALE.--Any excess animal sold under this provision shall no longer be considered to be a wild free-roaming horse or burro for purposes of this Act.''.
Below is how to access your Representatives and Senators. Call and e-mail.
http://www.webslingerz.com/jhoffman/congress-email.html
Call these numbers and e-mail
President Bush - (202)456-1111 president@whitehouse.gov
VP Cheney - 202-456-2461 vice.president@whitehouse.gov
Senator Harry Reid - 202-224-3542
Senator Conrad Burns 1-800-344-1513 or 202-224-2644
For more information please contact ISPMB at ispmb@lakotanetwork.com
Thank you for your help!
Karen A. Sussman
President, ISPMB
PO Box 55
Lantry, SD 57636
(1)605-964-6866
(1)605-365-6991
HOW TO STOP THIS OUTRAGE
TODAY! FLOOD WASHINGTON WITH PAPER
WE ARE BEGINNING A PAPER CAMPAIGN ON WASHINGTON TO BRING ATTENTION TO RIDER #142 ON HR 4848 THAT WILL ALLOW FOR THE SLAUGHTER OF WILD HORSES IN OUR COUNTRY - AN ESTIMATED 14,000 WILD HORSES WILL BEGIN TO BE SLAUGHTERED IN 2005!
HERE'S WHAT YOU CAN DO TO HELP TODAY PLEASE!!
Fax and E-mail Senator's Conrad Burns (MT) and Harry Reid (NV)
Fax and E-mail Representative's Tom Delay and Nancy Pelosi (House Majority and Minority Leaders.)
Fax and E-mail your Representive first and then Senators
Fax and E-mail President Bush
FACTS:
Most Senators and Representatives are unaware of rider #142
Senator Conrad Burns proposed a rider along with Senator Reid to allow the Bureau of Land Management the ability to sell wild horses to slaughter
Horse over the age of ten will immediately go to slaughter.
Those horses under ten who fail adoption three times can be slaughtered.
BLM has always had a poor marketing program and we are not hopeful that it will improve.
Until this time BLM only rounded up five and under age horses for the adoption program. This will give BLM the ability to gather the most fertile (also the wise and those who know how to survive) now that they have an easy avenue to dispose of them. We anticipate that another 10 to 20 thousand wild horses will go to slaughter beyone the initial 14,000.
Because of BLM's management - a myth was created that a horse over ten cannot be adopted... Hence their policy that all ten and over will go to Sanctuaries and live out their lives. These horses have been on some of these sanctuaries since the late 80's.
Public lands ranchers are supporting this rider.
See more facts below
Sample Letters Below
For Your Representative, Senators, and President:
Dear Honorable Representative_______or Dear Honorable Senator_______or President George Bush___
In just the past few days it has come to my attention that the future of our nation's symbol of freedom, designated by Congress as our "National Heritage Species," the wild horse is gravely threatened with rider (#142) attached to the Federal Appropriations Bill HR 4848 that will allow for thousands of wild horses to be slaughtered.
This rider was attached to the legislation without the consent of the people. We are deeply concerned that a minority of two Western Senators and a small following could have the authority to surreptitiously add this to the Appropriation bill that needs passage in order for our government to continue to function. This does not represent the will of the majority of people in our country and this practice of attaching riders to the appropriation bills must STOP.
This rider was inserted without a hearing because every effort that the Bureau of Land Management has taken to acquire "sale authority" for slaughter has failed miserably when brought to the attention of the American people.
I am asking you today to do everything in your power to stop this Rider from becoming legislation. This great icon of our country, the actual "last living symbol of the West," deserves better. We would like a full investigation into the BLM and its inability to create an excellent marketing program that would allow for the placement of these magnificent animals into good homes.
I am asking you as a constituent in your State ( or if the President - a citizen of this great country) to stop this "sale authority" immediately. Congress meets on Monday. Please let my voice be heard in Washington.
Sincerely,
__________
To Senator's Burns and Reid:
Dear Honorable Senator Burns: or Dear Honorable Senator Reid
It has come to my attention that you have drafted a rider #142 to the Federal Appropriations Bill that will allow for the slaughter of America's wild horses.
I am deeply concerned about this for the following reasons:
Riders should not be attached to federal spending legislation because the voice of the American people cannot be heard and then we as citizens no longer live in a democracy when our voices cannot be heard.
The Wild Horse is the icon for the American people. They symbolize the freedom for which our country stands. Congress even designated a special name for them as our 'National Heritage Specie." to give them special recognition.
Many of my friends didn't even know that wild horses existed in our country because we see absolutely no marketing of these beautiful animals.
I understand that the Bureau of Land Management has been managing these animals for more than thirty years and yet does not have a marketing program or a training program for employees pertaining to these animals.
How can Congress stand by while the Bureau manages our wild horses and burros out of existence and then ask for the final remedy and that is "sale authority." because of BLM's poor management?
Reducing wild horses down to a level of 20,000 as proposed by the BLM will jeapardize the wild horse populations as their numbers will be too low to sustain viable herds. I have been told that the BLM is eliminating another herd in Colorado as I write this letter.
As a deeply concerned citizen of this great country, I will not stand by while these icons go to slaughter.
I am imploring you to remove the Rider #142 by calling the House Majority Leader and asking that it be removed from the legislation on Monday December 6th.
Thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely,
House Majority and Minority Leaders:
Dear Honorable Representative Delay: or Dear Honorable Representative Pelosi:
It has recently come to my attention that there exists a rider (#142) on the federal spending bill that will allow America's icon, the wild horse, to be slaughtered. You know that our wild horses represent the symbol of our great country - that being freedom.
I am imploring you to address this at Mondays session of Congress as this issue is not only important to me but to many Americans. We understand that Congress has certain rules to follow. However, the Spending Budget has not been signed into legislation yet and we want our voice heard on this subject.
Please help us to stop rider #142. This great icon of the West, termed in the law as the "last living symbol of the West.' must not end up as dog food or human consumption in foreign countries. We won't stand for it!
I am also questioning the process of how this rider became attached to the spending bill without a hearing. Certainly this process must be questioned and stopped. A twenty-four hour debate on a subject over a holiday seems less than fair to us as Americans. I am wondering if this process is not in opposition to our great Constitution - a government for the people and by the people. This rider does not reflect the will of the majority of Americans.
I look forward to action on Monday when you convene and I look forward to hearing your response.
Most sincerely,
For addresses, please see:
http://www.congress.org (find your Senator, Representative)
http://www.house.gov/writerep/ (find your Representative by zip code)
Representative Nancy Pelosi - Fax - 202-225-4188
Representative Tom DeLay Fax - 202-225-5241
Senator Conrad Bursn Fax - 202-224-8616
Senator Harry Reid Fax - 202-224-7327
President Bush Fax - 202-456-2461 e-mail president@whitehouse.gov
(other e-mails must be accessed from above sites)
Please fax today and before 2PM Monday EST. This is urgent and we can do this if we can get millions to fax Washington.
THE PAPER BLITZ
For more information:
Contact: International Society for the Protection of Mustangs and Burros
Karen A. Sussman, president
PO Box 55
Lantry, SD 57636
(1)605-964-6866
(1)605-365-6991
http://www.ispmb.org
ispmb@lakotanetwork.com
(Please also see UPDATES below.)
Lantry, SD- Surreptitiously, over the Thanksgiving Day Holiday, a rider (#142) introduced by Senator Mark Burns of Montana in the omnibus federal Appropriation Bill literally guts the built in protections in the 1971 Wild Horse and Burro Act and will allow for thousands of wild horses to be shipped to slaughter.
Without hearings or input from concerned citizens of our country this rider appeared in the 4,000 page spending bill document and was passed unanimously by both houses. It is now waiting signing by President Bush on December 8th.
“After thirty-three years of a compassionate, conservation minded Act that protected the fast diminishing wild horse herds from slaughter, this rider spells doom to America’s wild horses”, according to Karen Sussman, president of ISPMB.
Sussman says that ISPMB’s first president, Wild Horse Annie, and the organization committed twenty-one years of fighting to protect the few remaining wild horses on public lands so that future generations could enjoy these magnificent animals that represent freedom and the American way. Sussman says, “With one swipe of the ink over paper with the President’s signature, over fifty years of fighting for protection of wild horses and burros in our country will be annihilated.”
Today, we have fewer wild horses and burros than in 1971 when the Wild Horse and Burro Act was passed. The constant erosion of protection has been an ongoing battle with the BLM, mandated by law to protect these animals. In 1974, there were more than 55,000 wild horses and burros roaming ten western states and 303 herd areas identified. Today, according to BLM statistics, although much disputed by preservation groups, there are 36,000 wild horses and burros and only 186 areas where wild horses and burros can be found. More herd areas are slated to be zeroed out.
There is still time to makes changes in the Appropriation Bill as Congress reconvenes on Monday to pull some riders out of the bill. If Congress would so deem, rider #142 could be pulled out on Monday.
Sussman says that a groundswell of support is needed and concerned citizens must contact their Congressional representatives in their states. Already the phone lines to the president’s office are ringing constantly.
If the rider cannot be pulled from the Appropriation Bill the rider becomes a permanent amendment to the Wild Horse and Burro Act, it opens the backdoor for the BLM to send thousands of wild horses to slaughter.
CONTACT: Karen A. Sussman (1)605-964-6866 or (1)605-365-6991
International Society for the Protection of Mustangs and Burros
http://www.ispmb.org
UPDATES
FIRST ALERTS
Dear Friends of Wild Horses,
Attached is a press release and below are actions that you can take to save America's wild horses from slaughter.
The following site will give you access to your Congressional members in your state.
http://www.webslingerz.com/jhoffman/congress-email.html or www.congress.org
What the current rider to the Appropriations law will do:
Wild horses over the age of ten will automatically be sent to slaughter
Wild horses aged ten and under will go to slaughter is they are not adopted in three adoptions
BLM does not have to advertise adoptions
Horses will be sold to the highest bidder ("killer buyers")
Selling wild horses to slaughter will no longer be considered a crime.
Facts about Wild Horses:
In 1971, there were 303 herd areas designated for wild horses and burros.
Today there are only 186 herd areas left.
In 1974, there were 60,000 wild horses and burros on public lands.
Today there are less than 35,000 wild horses and burros on public lands according to BLM statistics.
BLM plans to bring the population down to 20,000 wild horses and burros.
At above levels, 70% of the herd areas will have less than 100 animals - meaning that populations will not be genetically viable with reduced levels.
Currently, wild horses are far more genetically diverse compared to any breed of domestic horse in the US. This means that wild horses are healthier and have little to no inbreeding in the herds.
No age of wild horse is unadoptable. Time and patience allows for a bonding between human and horse regardless of age.
Because of nature's breeding program, wild horses have nearly perfect conformations and are extremely healthy and survival oriented. They are by nature curious and form lasting human-animal bonds.
Many of the herds have ancestry dating back to the Spanish Conquistadors.
What will happen:
Approximately 14,000 wild horses will go to slaughter immediately.
The door is open for thousands of more horses to go to slaughter.
The great genetic diversity of wild horses will be diminished as BLM reduces populations to below viable levels.
Why is this happening:
Wild horses have had to fight for every blade of grass since the turn of the 20th century.
Wild horses were driven out of plush ranges and survived in locations uninhabitable my cattle - hence the birth of public lands.
Many public lands ranchers would like to see wild horses eliminated on public lands.
Only 2% of the beef eaten in the US comes from public lands ranching.
More than 50% of leased public lands is leased by 3% of the permittees who comprise large corporations such as mining, oil, banks etc.
Public lands ranching costs the taxpayers approximately 1/2 billion dollars per year while the Wild Horse and Burro program costs the taxpayers 11 million per year.
Ranchers pay the BLM $1.43 per cow plus a calf per month (AUM) to graze on public lands. Imagine feeding a 2,000 pound animal (cow and calf) for $1.43 per month. It is unlikely that you could raise a hamster for that amount of money per month.
According to the GAO report in 1990, wild horses were NOT the cause of declining rangelands but it was attributed to overgrazing by cattle.
Private ranchers must pay at least $35.00 per month for their cows and must compete against public lands ranching while most of the beef eaten in the US comes from our private ranchers.
Most wild horse herd areas have cattle grazing in the herd areas.
There are millions of acres where there are no horses and cattle graze.
There is a complacency amongst the American people who think wild horses are being protected because of the Wild Horse and Burro Act. Few people know that we have less horses now than when the act passed in 1971.
BLM has never really had a marketing plan or training program for staff and a business cannot produce without either.
BLM originally was a grazing agency and were mandated by law to manage the wild horses. Therefore, the wild horse and burro program never really had a fighting chance during those early years when the program was in its infancy because those who wanted to rid the public lands of wild horses were in charge of the program.
BLM is under the false impression that wild horses over the age of ten are unadoptable.. Not true.
This really could be the "White Hat" program of the BLM if they desired.
What to do:
Call your Representative and ask them to remove the Rider #142 from the Appropriation Bill. House is due to meet on 12/6/04
Call Senator Conrad Burns of Montana and ask him to remove the rider from the Appropriation Bill. 202-224-2644 or 1-800-344-1513.
Call the President's comment line and tell him that you protest the slaughter of America's wild horses. 202-456-2461
Call Senator Reid of Nevada and ask him to remove the rider from the Appropriation Bill 202-224-3542.
E-mail this article to as many people as possible.
For further questions:
Call the International Society for the Protection of Mustangs and Burros - (1)605-964-6866 or (1)605-365-6991
Future Plans:
A delegation of Native American presidents, chiefs, and spiritual leaders will go to Washington to speak with the President and Secretary Norton of the Interior. A press conference will be held in Washington. Our goal is to ask that the wild horses not be slaughtered and offer a solution to take excess wild horses to different tribal lands to protect the horses on those lands.
Introduce legislation to amend the Wild Horse and Burro Act to reinstitute protections in 109th Congress.
Current Situation:
ISPMB is the oldest wild horse and burro organization in the US and responsible for the passage of the 1971 Wild Horse and Burro Act that protected wild horses from slaughter.
ISPMB is the only organization in the US that manages wild horse herds.
ISPMB already manages three wild horse herds on the Cheyenne River Reservation. The Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe manages a fourth herd given to them by ISPMB.
Plans are underway to give a fifth herd to the Osage Indians in Oklahoma.
Thank you for helping our wild horses !
Karen Sussman
President ISPMB
PO Box 55
Lantry, SD 57636
(1)605-964-6866
(1)605-365-6991
http://www.ispmb.org
ispmb@lakotanetwork.com
Please stay in touch with ISPMB as we have the most current information on the legislation that will kill thousands of wild horses.
Please flood your Representative's lines asking that they remove Rider #142 from the Appropriations Bill HR 4818.
Tell them that you will not stand by while our wild horses are slaughtered. The wild horses represent what our country stands for and that is FREEDOM.
Below is the Bill. IT HAS NOT PASSED THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES. They meet on Monday at 2PM and work through Wednesday. There is time to STOP THIS!!!
Here is the link to the H.Rpt. 108-792 Conference Report to Accompany H.R. 4818 - Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2005. http://thomas.loc.gov/home/omni2005/index.htm
Click on Division E which covers appropriations language for DOI, either the text version or the PDF version, whichever you prefer. The amendment is under Sec. 142. The text is as follows:
SEC. 142. SALE OF WILD FREE-ROAMING HORSES AND BURROS. (a) IN GENERAL.--Section 3 of Public Law 92-195 (16 U.S.C. 1333) is amended--
(1) in subsection (d)(5), by striking ``this section'' and all that follows through the period at the end and inserting ``this section.''; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
``(e) SALE OF EXCESS ANIMALS.--
``(1) IN GENERAL.--Any excess animal or the remains of an excess animal shall be sold if-- ``(A) the excess animal is more than 10 years of age; or ``(B) the excess animal has been offered unsuccessfully for adoption at least 3 times.
``(2) METHOD OF SALE.--An excess animal that meets either of the criteria in paragraph (1) shall be made available for sale without limitation, including through auction to the highest bidder, at local sale yards or other convenient livestock selling facilities, until such time as-- ``(A) all excess animals offered for sale are sold; or ``(B) the appropriate management level, as determined by the Secretary, is attained in all areas occupied by wild free-roaming horses and burros.
``(3) DISPOSITION OF FUNDS.--Funds generated from the sale of excess animals under this subsection shall be-- ``(A) credited as an offsetting collection to the Management of Lands and Resources appropriation for the Bureau of Land Management; and ``(B) used for the costs relating to the adoption of wild free-roaming horses and burros, including the costs of marketing such adoption.
'`(4) EFFECT OF SALE.--Any excess animal sold under this provision shall no longer be considered to be a wild free-roaming horse or burro for purposes of this Act.''.
Below is how to access your Representatives and Senators. Call and e-mail.
http://www.webslingerz.com/jhoffman/congress-email.html
Call these numbers and e-mail
President Bush - (202)456-1111 president@whitehouse.gov
VP Cheney - 202-456-2461 vice.president@whitehouse.gov
Senator Harry Reid - 202-224-3542
Senator Conrad Burns 1-800-344-1513 or 202-224-2644
For more information please contact ISPMB at ispmb@lakotanetwork.com
Thank you for your help!
Karen A. Sussman
President, ISPMB
PO Box 55
Lantry, SD 57636
(1)605-964-6866
(1)605-365-6991
HOW TO STOP THIS OUTRAGE
TODAY! FLOOD WASHINGTON WITH PAPER
WE ARE BEGINNING A PAPER CAMPAIGN ON WASHINGTON TO BRING ATTENTION TO RIDER #142 ON HR 4848 THAT WILL ALLOW FOR THE SLAUGHTER OF WILD HORSES IN OUR COUNTRY - AN ESTIMATED 14,000 WILD HORSES WILL BEGIN TO BE SLAUGHTERED IN 2005!
HERE'S WHAT YOU CAN DO TO HELP TODAY PLEASE!!
Fax and E-mail Senator's Conrad Burns (MT) and Harry Reid (NV)
Fax and E-mail Representative's Tom Delay and Nancy Pelosi (House Majority and Minority Leaders.)
Fax and E-mail your Representive first and then Senators
Fax and E-mail President Bush
FACTS:
Most Senators and Representatives are unaware of rider #142
Senator Conrad Burns proposed a rider along with Senator Reid to allow the Bureau of Land Management the ability to sell wild horses to slaughter
Horse over the age of ten will immediately go to slaughter.
Those horses under ten who fail adoption three times can be slaughtered.
BLM has always had a poor marketing program and we are not hopeful that it will improve.
Until this time BLM only rounded up five and under age horses for the adoption program. This will give BLM the ability to gather the most fertile (also the wise and those who know how to survive) now that they have an easy avenue to dispose of them. We anticipate that another 10 to 20 thousand wild horses will go to slaughter beyone the initial 14,000.
Because of BLM's management - a myth was created that a horse over ten cannot be adopted... Hence their policy that all ten and over will go to Sanctuaries and live out their lives. These horses have been on some of these sanctuaries since the late 80's.
Public lands ranchers are supporting this rider.
See more facts below
Sample Letters Below
For Your Representative, Senators, and President:
Dear Honorable Representative_______or Dear Honorable Senator_______or President George Bush___
In just the past few days it has come to my attention that the future of our nation's symbol of freedom, designated by Congress as our "National Heritage Species," the wild horse is gravely threatened with rider (#142) attached to the Federal Appropriations Bill HR 4848 that will allow for thousands of wild horses to be slaughtered.
This rider was attached to the legislation without the consent of the people. We are deeply concerned that a minority of two Western Senators and a small following could have the authority to surreptitiously add this to the Appropriation bill that needs passage in order for our government to continue to function. This does not represent the will of the majority of people in our country and this practice of attaching riders to the appropriation bills must STOP.
This rider was inserted without a hearing because every effort that the Bureau of Land Management has taken to acquire "sale authority" for slaughter has failed miserably when brought to the attention of the American people.
I am asking you today to do everything in your power to stop this Rider from becoming legislation. This great icon of our country, the actual "last living symbol of the West," deserves better. We would like a full investigation into the BLM and its inability to create an excellent marketing program that would allow for the placement of these magnificent animals into good homes.
I am asking you as a constituent in your State ( or if the President - a citizen of this great country) to stop this "sale authority" immediately. Congress meets on Monday. Please let my voice be heard in Washington.
Sincerely,
__________
To Senator's Burns and Reid:
Dear Honorable Senator Burns: or Dear Honorable Senator Reid
It has come to my attention that you have drafted a rider #142 to the Federal Appropriations Bill that will allow for the slaughter of America's wild horses.
I am deeply concerned about this for the following reasons:
Riders should not be attached to federal spending legislation because the voice of the American people cannot be heard and then we as citizens no longer live in a democracy when our voices cannot be heard.
The Wild Horse is the icon for the American people. They symbolize the freedom for which our country stands. Congress even designated a special name for them as our 'National Heritage Specie." to give them special recognition.
Many of my friends didn't even know that wild horses existed in our country because we see absolutely no marketing of these beautiful animals.
I understand that the Bureau of Land Management has been managing these animals for more than thirty years and yet does not have a marketing program or a training program for employees pertaining to these animals.
How can Congress stand by while the Bureau manages our wild horses and burros out of existence and then ask for the final remedy and that is "sale authority." because of BLM's poor management?
Reducing wild horses down to a level of 20,000 as proposed by the BLM will jeapardize the wild horse populations as their numbers will be too low to sustain viable herds. I have been told that the BLM is eliminating another herd in Colorado as I write this letter.
As a deeply concerned citizen of this great country, I will not stand by while these icons go to slaughter.
I am imploring you to remove the Rider #142 by calling the House Majority Leader and asking that it be removed from the legislation on Monday December 6th.
Thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely,
House Majority and Minority Leaders:
Dear Honorable Representative Delay: or Dear Honorable Representative Pelosi:
It has recently come to my attention that there exists a rider (#142) on the federal spending bill that will allow America's icon, the wild horse, to be slaughtered. You know that our wild horses represent the symbol of our great country - that being freedom.
I am imploring you to address this at Mondays session of Congress as this issue is not only important to me but to many Americans. We understand that Congress has certain rules to follow. However, the Spending Budget has not been signed into legislation yet and we want our voice heard on this subject.
Please help us to stop rider #142. This great icon of the West, termed in the law as the "last living symbol of the West.' must not end up as dog food or human consumption in foreign countries. We won't stand for it!
I am also questioning the process of how this rider became attached to the spending bill without a hearing. Certainly this process must be questioned and stopped. A twenty-four hour debate on a subject over a holiday seems less than fair to us as Americans. I am wondering if this process is not in opposition to our great Constitution - a government for the people and by the people. This rider does not reflect the will of the majority of Americans.
I look forward to action on Monday when you convene and I look forward to hearing your response.
Most sincerely,
For addresses, please see:
http://www.congress.org (find your Senator, Representative)
http://www.house.gov/writerep/ (find your Representative by zip code)
Representative Nancy Pelosi - Fax - 202-225-4188
Representative Tom DeLay Fax - 202-225-5241
Senator Conrad Bursn Fax - 202-224-8616
Senator Harry Reid Fax - 202-224-7327
President Bush Fax - 202-456-2461 e-mail president@whitehouse.gov
(other e-mails must be accessed from above sites)
Please fax today and before 2PM Monday EST. This is urgent and we can do this if we can get millions to fax Washington.
THE PAPER BLITZ
For more information:
Contact: International Society for the Protection of Mustangs and Burros
Karen A. Sussman, president
PO Box 55
Lantry, SD 57636
(1)605-964-6866
(1)605-365-6991
http://www.ispmb.org
ispmb@lakotanetwork.com