The U.S. House of Representatives approved legislation today reinstating over 30 years of federal policy that prohibits the commercial sale and slaughter of wild horses and burros that make their home on our nation's public lands. The legislation, introduced by Rep. Nick J. Rahall (D-WV), Chairman of the House Natural Resources Committee, passed with a vote of 277-137.

"This Congress is tasked with the stewardship of much that is invaluable - breathtaking natural wonders, healthy rivers and streams - all icons of American history. It is our responsibility to manage these resources for the good of future generations, and it is a responsibility that I take very seriously," said Rahall. "The proper care and preservation of the wild horses that roam public lands in the West also falls within our stewardship - yet current policy is keeping us from living up to our responsibility."

H.R. 249, championed with bipartisan support, requires the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the Forest Service to resume their responsibility to enforce the protection of wild horses on public lands. In 1971, Congress adopted legislation to protect wild horses and mandated that they could not be sold or slaughtered for processing into commercial products. Since then, the BLM has allowed for the general public to adopt wild horses captured, when their population becomes excessive.

But a provision in the Fiscal Year 2005 omnibus appropriations bill, known as the Burns rider, overturned 34 years of national policy on the care and management of wild horses and burros. As a result, countless wild horses have been rounded up for slaughter so their meat can be offered on menus in overseas nations such as France, Belgium, and Japan, where it is considered a delicacy.

"It is incredible that this nation would even think of allowing the commercial sale of horse flesh for human consumption. The very notion that wild American horses would be slaughtered as a food source for foreign gourmets has struck a chord within the American people," Rahall said. "We must put a halt to this process, one that is nothing short of inhumane, once and for all."

In 2005 and 2006, Rahall successfully offered similar legislation as amendments to the Interior Appropriations bill. However, neither amendment was signed into law - leaving thousands of wild horses and burros victimized, and at increased risk to sale and slaughter.

"My colleagues in the House have demonstrated, once again, that the will of the American people is strong in the fight to protect wild horses. Americans do not want it, and we should not be facilitating it any longer," Rahall said.