To amend section 495 of the Public Health Service Act to require inspections of foreign laboratories conducting biomedical and behavioral research to ensure compliance with applicable animal welfare requirements, and for other purposes.

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office] [H.R. 7165 Introduced in House (IH)] <DOC> 119th CONGRESS 2d Session H. R. 7165 To amend section 495 of the Public Health Service Act to require inspections of foreign laboratories conducting biomedical and behavioral research to ensure compliance with applicable animal welfare requirements, and for other purposes. _______________________________________________________________________ IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES January 20, 2026 Mr. Steube (for himself and Ms. Lee of Nevada) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce _______________________________________________________________________ A BILL To amend section 495 of the Public Health Service Act to require inspections of foreign laboratories conducting biomedical and behavioral research to ensure compliance with applicable animal welfare requirements, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, SECTION 1. SHORT TITLES. This Act may be cited as the ``Worldwide Animal Testing Compliance and Harmonization Act of 2026'' or the ``WATCH Act''. SEC. 2. FOREIGN LABORATORY INSPECTIONS AND CERTIFICATION. (a) In General.--Section 495 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 289d) is amended by adding at the end the following: ``(f) Inspection and Certification of Foreign Laboratories.-- ``(1) In general.--As a condition of eligibility to perform research involving animals under a grant, contract, or cooperative agreement administered by the National Institutes of Health or any national research institute, a laboratory located outside the United States that receives Federal funds shall be subject to quarterly inspections to evaluate compliance with the requirements under this title. ``(2) Inspection and certification requirements.-- ``(A) Quarterly inspection process.--The Secretary, in consultation w