[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3732 Introduced in House (IH)]
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119th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 3732
To provide protections for good faith donations of pet food and
supplies.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
June 4, 2025
Mr. Raskin (for himself, Mrs. Kim, Mrs. McBath, Mr. Fitzpatrick, Mrs.
Dingell, and Ms. Malliotakis) introduced the following bill; which was
referred to the Committee on the Judiciary
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To provide protections for good faith donations of pet food and
supplies.
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 ``Bring Animals Relief and Kibble Act
of 2025'' or the ``BARK Act of 2025''.
SEC. 2. LIABILITY FOR DAMAGES FROM GOOD FAITH DONATIONS OF PET FOOD AND
SUPPLIES.
(a) In General.--
(1) Liability of persons.--A person shall not be subject to
civil or criminal liability arising from the nature, age,
packaging, or condition of an apparently fit pet-related
product that the person donates in good faith to a State or
unit of local government or a nonprofit organization for
ultimate distribution to qualified animals.
(2) Liability of nonprofit organizations.--A nonprofit
organization shall not be subject to civil or criminal
liability arising from the nature, age, packaging, or condition
of an apparently fit pet-related product that the nonprofit
organization received as a donation from a person in good faith
for ultimate distribution to qualified animals.
(3) Liability of state and local governments.--A State or
unit of local government shall not be subject to liability
arising from the nature, age, packaging, or condition of an
apparently fit pet-related product that the State or unit of
local government received as a donation from a person in good
faith for ultimate distribution to qualified animals.
(4) Waiver not applicable to gross negligence or
intentional misconduct.--Paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) shall not
apply to an injury to, or death of, an ultimate user or
recipient of the apparently fit pet-related product that
results from an act or omission of the person, nonprofit
organization, or State or unit of local government, as
applicable, constituting gross negligence or intentional
misconduct.
(b) Partial Compliance.--If a person donates in good faith pet food
or pet supplies that do not meet all quality and labeling standards
imposed by Federal, State, and local laws and regulations, such person
shall not be subject to civil or criminal liability in accordance with
this section if the State or unit of local government or nonprofit
organization to which the food or supplies are donated--
(1) is informed by such person of the distressed or
defective condition of the food or supplies;
(2) agrees to recondition such food or supplies to comply
with such quality and labeling standards prior to distribution
of such food or supplies; and
(3) is knowledgeable of such quality and labeling standards
to properly recondition such food or supplies.
(c) Construction.--Nothing in this section shall be construed to--
(1) create any liability; or
(2) supercede State or local health regulations.
(d) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Apparently fit pet-related product.--The term
``apparently fit pet-related product'' means any pet food or
pet supply that meets all quality and labeling standards
imposed by Federal, State, and local laws and regulations even
though the product may not be readily marketable due to
appearance, age, freshness, grade, size, surplus, or other
conditions.
(2) Child nutrition act of 1966 terms.--The terms
``donate'', ``gross negligence'', ``intentional misconduct'',
``nonprofit organization'', and ``person'' have the meanings
given such terms in section 22(b) of the Child Nutrition Act of
1966 (42 U.S.C. 1791(b)).
(3) Emotional support animal.--The term ``emotional support
animal'' means an animal that--
(A) is covered by the exclusion specified in
section 5.303 of title 24, Code of Federal Regulations
(or successor regulation); and
(B) is not a service animal.
(4) Pet.--The term ``pet'' means a domesticated animal,
such as a dog, cat, bird, rodent, fish, turtle, or other animal
that is kept for pleasure rather than for commercial purposes.
(5) Pet food.--The term ``pet food'' means any raw, cooked,
processed, or prepared edible substance, ice, beverage, or
ingredient used or intended for use in whole or in part for
consumption by a qualified animal.
(6) Pet supply.--The term ``pet supply'' means tangible
personal property used for qualified animals, including pet
carriers, crates, kennels, houses, cages, clothing, bedding,
toys, collars, leashes, leads, tie-outs, feeders, bowls,
dishes, pet gates, or pet doors.
(7) Qualified animal.--The term ``qualified animal'' means
a pet, an emotional support animal, or a service animal.
(8) Service animal.--The term ``service animal'' has the
meaning given the term in section 36.104 of title 28, Code of
Federal Regulations (or successor regulation).
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