Puppy Protection Act of 2026

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office] [S. 4437 Introduced in Senate (IS)] <DOC> 119th CONGRESS 2d Session S. 4437 To amend the Animal Welfare Act to establish additional requirements for dealers, and for other purposes. _______________________________________________________________________ IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES April 29, 2026 Mr. Durbin (for himself, Mr. Schiff, Mrs. Gillibrand, Ms. Alsobrooks, Mr. Merkley, Mr. Booker, Ms. Smith, Mr. Van Hollen, Ms. Duckworth, Mr. Hickenlooper, Mr. Sanders, Mr. Warner, Mr. Coons, Mr. Blumenthal, Mr. Wyden, and Ms. Rosen) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry _______________________________________________________________________ A BILL To amend the Animal Welfare Act to establish additional requirements for dealers, 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 TITLE. This Act may be cited as the ``Puppy Protection Act of 2026''. SEC. 2. ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS FOR DEALERS. (a) Humane Treatment of Dogs by Dealers.--Section 13(a) of the Animal Welfare Act (7 U.S.C. 2143(a)) is amended by adding at the end the following: ``(9) In addition to the requirements under paragraph (2), the standards described in paragraph (1) shall, with respect to dealers, include requirements-- ``(A) that the dealer provide adequate housing for dogs that includes-- ``(i) completely solid flooring; ``(ii) indoor space sufficient to allow the tallest dog in an enclosure to stand on his or her hind legs without touching the roof of the enclosure; ``(iii) with respect to dogs over 8 weeks in age, primary enclosures that, with the length of the dog measured from the tip of the nose to the base of the tail, provide at least-- ``(I) 12 square feet of indoor floor space per each dog measuring not more than 25 inches lon