Save the date! A very exciting day for carriage horses and animal rights in New York City is happening on June 18th when Intro 1425, the Carriage Horse Heat Relief Bill, and other bills to protect animals, will get a hearing at City Hall in the New York City Council Health Committee.  We need your presence and voice to help us pass the Carriage Horse Heat Relief Bill and supporting animal rights by attending and testifying in favor at City Hall.

 

WHERE: City Hall--directly across the street from 250 Broadway

WHEN: Tuesday, June 18--Hearing starts promptly at 10am. 

 

We advise that you line up outside the City Hall gates on the Broadway side around 9am to ensure you can gain entry. The hearing starts promptly at 10am in the City Hall chambers. You will have two minutes to speak at the hearing. 

 

NYCLASS has been working hard to to pass Intro 1425, the Carriage Horse Heat Relief Bill, and now we finally have a hearing where you can express your strong support for passage of this bill directly to NYC Council Members!

 

The horse carriage drivers will be out in full force to oppose the Carriage Horse Heat Relief Bill and we we need YOU to come testify in favor of the bill to ensure that horses will no longer be forced to pull heavy carriages during scorching NYC heatwaves every summer. 

 

Sample testimony for Intro 1425, The Carriage Horse Heat Relief Bill:

 

"My name is_____ and I am a NYC resident who lives in_____ and I am strongly in support of Intro 1425, The Carriage Horse Heat Relief Bill, sponsored by Council Member Keith Powers and 20 Council Members. Horses should not be forced to pull hundreds of pounds on city streets during scorching heatwaves. It is cruel and dangerous to allow carriage horses to be worked during very humid heatwaves when they are at a higher risk of heat stress or collapsing. The heat laws for the horses in NYC have never been updated, and it is long overdue to improve the welfare of these horses who pound the pavement over 9 hours every day, in all kinds of extreme weather.  I fully support updating the law so that horses will no longer be forced to pull carriages when the heat index reaches 90 degrees or above. The current law does not take into account the "real feel" for the horses when they are on the streets suffering during high-humidity citywide heat advisories when the heat index reaches or exceeds 90 degrees. Carriage horses deserve better and should be sent back to their stables when the heat index reaches 90 degrees for their own safety an welfare and the safety of the public. Please pass Intro 1425 so that horses will not have to suffer through the worst of the most humid, brutal heatwaves on the streets pulling hundreds of pounds this summer and ever again. 

You can read the full language of Intro 1425 here

 

We will send out an email update next week listing the other animal rights legislation on the agenda at the June 18 that we suggest you also support in addition to the Carriage Horse Heat Relief Bill. 

 

DIRECTIONS FOR SENDING IN TESTIMONY BY EMAIL

If you are cannot attend the June 18 hearing in person, but want to send in written testimony in support of Intro 1425, please email it directly to: Emily Balkan – Policy Analyst for the Committee on Health ([email protected]) and Amy Slattery, CM Levine’s Legislative Director ([email protected]) Be sure to put "Support for Intro 1425" in the Subject line.

 

After so long of little progress for carriage horses we finally are seeing major progress on the horizon, thanks to your continued support. NYC is becoming a leader in animal rights! Please consider donating to NYCLASS to fuel our fight for animals in New York!