Horse Protection

What it does

• •Removes provisions of a May 2024 Horse Protection rule that were vacated by court order and withdraws remaining non-vacated provisions to ensure due process alignment with the Horse Protection Act.
• •Revises certification and licensing requirements for designated qualified persons (DQPs) who inspect horses for signs of soring at shows, sales, and auctions.
• •Enhances DQP inspection procedures and establishes an appeal process for APHIS inspections before any possible disqualification.
• •Clarifies that a horse determined to be sore is disqualified only from the class in which the inspection occurred, not the entire event.

Why it matters

• •The proposed rule corrects regulatory overreach from the May 2024 final rule by removing vacated court provisions and realigning regulations with statutory authority under the Horse Protection Act.
• •Enhanced procedures and appeal rights for DQPs and event management improve fairness in enforcement while maintaining protections against the cruel practice of soring horses.
• •The class-specific disqualification clarification limits scope of penalties to affected competition classes rather than excluding horses from entire events.

Who is affected

• •Horse show, exhibition, sale, and auction management and organizers who must appoint and supervise designated qualified persons.
• •Designated qualified persons (DQPs) who are trained and licensed to inspect horses for signs of soring and whose certification and appeal rights are modified.
• •Horse owners and competitors whose horses are subject to inspection and potential disqualification at equine events.

What happens next

The agency will accept public comments through December 14, 2026, at regulations.gov or by mail to the identified docket before finalizing the rule.