3 days ago
Georgia Senator introduces bipartisan ‘BARK Act' to help animal shelters get supplies, donations
U.S. Sen. Rev. Raphael Warnock is working to pass a bipartisan bill aimed at making it easier for animal shelters to take in pet food and donated supplies.
Working with North Carolina U.S. Sen. Thom Tillis, Warnock introduced the Bring Animals Relief and Kibble Act, or the BARK Act.
According to the senator's office, the bill encourages giving supplies to shelters by providing liability protections for good-faith donations of pet food and supplies.
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'Georgia animal shelters around the state are struggling to keep their doors open, we should make it easier for local businesses to donate pet food and supplies,' Warnock said in a statement. 'This common-sense, bipartisan legislation protects good-faith donations, making the donation process easier and less stressful, allowing much needed resources to go to dogs and cats waiting for adoption instead of being thrown away.'
The bipartisan effort to pass the bill is not restricted to the U.S. Senate.
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In the U.S. House of Representatives, Reps. Jamie Raskin of Maryland and Young Kim of California introduced the BARK Act's companion legislation.
Echoing the reasoning, Tillis said he supported the bill because 'every year, pet stores throw out surplus pet food, which could easily be donated to feed hungry pets in animal shelters."
According to Warnock's office, Georgia shelters are facing overcrowding an rising costs, and the bipartisan legislation would support these overwhelmed shelters, and others across the United States, while reducing waste.
'No shelter pet should have to go hungry when so many pet stores have a surplus of readily available food,' Tillis added.
The BARK Act was endorsed by the Humane World Action Fund, Best Friends Animal Society, Pet Food Institute and American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.
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