Pocan, Langworthy Lead 34 Members With Letter to Sec. Kennedy on Strengthening NIH Policy on Animal Testing

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Representatives Mark Pocan (WI-02) and Nick Langworthy (NY-23) lead a letter with 34 bipartisan House members to Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., urging him to strengthen NIH’s policy for determining eligibility to receive federal funding related to acquiring animals for NIH-supported research. This letter was prompted by the case of Ridglan Farms, a commercial beagle breeding facility in Wisconsin that was cited by the state for hundreds of counts of animal welfare violations in September 2025 and subsequently agreed to surrender its state commercial breeding license. Despite this, Ridglan continues to hold a USDA Class A license, which, under current NIH policy, is the sole factor used to determine a facility’s eligibility to supply animals in NIH-funded research.

“We write to express our concerns regarding current policy at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) that may unintentionally allow for federal funding to continue to benefit facilities that are engaging in the mistreatment of animals,” the Members wrote. “Building upon work to reduce and ultimately eliminate unnecessary animal testing within federally funded research, including launching a Food and Drug Administration roadmap to phase down mandatory animal testing in April 2025, we urge you to take immediate action to update current policy regarding the use and acquisition of dogs in NIH-supported research.”

“As you are aware, Ridglan Farms is a large-scale beagle breeding facility in Blue Mounds, Wisconsin, which continues to hold a USDA Class A breeding license despite extensive evidence of animal welfare violations,” the Members continued. “There may be an opportunity to further strengthen NIH’s current policy for determining a facility’s eligibility to benefit from NIH-supported research, particularly by considering additional factors beyond whether a facility holds a USDA Class A license. The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) holds the authority to review and update this internal policy and should consider additional factors, including whether a facility has received state-level animal welfare citations or surrendered an equivalent state-level license.”

“As you know, current NIH policy regarding the use and acquisition of dogs in NIH-supported research was last updated in 2013, when the agency ended the practice of using “random-source” dogs in federally funded research,” the Members go on to say. “Since then, researchers have largely turned to USDA Class A dealers, which are larger, commercial animal breeding operations, when determining eligibility for federally funded animal research. Officials at the NIH have indicated that the Class A license is the sole factor taken into account when making such determinations. Considering additional animal welfare information identified through state enforcement actions may help ensure federally funded research continues to meet the highest ethical standards.”

“HHS should consider additional steps to ensure that a USDA Class A license is not the only factor taken into account when determining whether a breeding facility is eligible to receive NIH funding or provide animals to NIH-supported research projects. As the Ridglan Farms case has demonstrated, reviewing these policies may help ensure federally funded research continues to meet the highest ethical and animal welfare standards,” the Members concluded.

A digital copy of the letter can be found here.

The list of signers includes: Reps. Pocan, Langworthy, Beyer, Troy Carter, Casten, Deluzio, DeSaulnier, Doggett, Escobar, Fitzpatrick , Hayes, Hoyer, Huffman, Jayapal, Hank Johnson, Kennedy, Khanna, Krishnamoorthi, Malliotakis, McCollum, McGovern, Gwen Moore, Norton, Quigley, Ramirez, Ross, Salinas, Schakowsky, Titus, Tlaib, Tokuda, Wasserman Schultz, and Watson Coleman

NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.