Humane Society of the United States
Were Donor Millions Squandered in “Groundless” Lawsuit?
Donors to animal rights organizations like the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) need to think hard about how their charitable dollars can best be spent to improve the welfare of animals. Recent events suggest that local animal welfare shelters might put those dollars to better use for animals than does the HSUS and their cohorts. Driven by the fanatical certainty of their ideology, HSUS and others risked ethical misconduct and wound up losing millions of dollars in a frivolous and groundless lawsuit.
HSUS vs. Circus
A lawsuit brought in 2000 by HSUS and other animal rights organizations against Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus turned out to be so tainted that twenty-five million dollars have been paid by the plaintiffs to the circus owners in settlements. In 2012 the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) paid $9.3 million in a settlement for its part in the false claims made. As the lawsuit fell apart, other animal rights groups abandoned the action.
In May of this year, HSUS and others paid another $15.7 million in settlement fees as part of the same failed lawsuit, bluntly described by Judge Emmet G. Sullivan of the U.S. District Court of the District of Columbia as “groundless and unreasonable from its inception.”
Congress Bans Horse Slaughter…Again
The Congress passed, and the President signed the new budget, effectively banning horse slaughter once again by cutting funding for USDA inspections at horse slaughter facilities. Congress did this very same thing in 2006, an action which effectively closed all horse processing plants in the country. Much has happened between then and now. In 2011, the highly respected General Accounting Office (GAO)—Congress’s own watchdog agency—reported bluntly to Congress that their funding cut and the resultant plant closures actually had the opposite effect from that intended. The GAO told Congress that horses were now traveling further (to Mexico and Canada) and in many cases were slaughtered under worse conditions than before, and that their legislation had harmed horse welfare. After receiving that report, in 2011 Congress reinstated the funding for USDA inspections, opening the door for a resumption of horse processing in this country. As a result of that action, the USDA recently gave approval for the opening of horse slaughter plants in New Mexico and Missouri. However, lawsuits filed by animal rights activists repeatedly delayed those openings. “Americans do not want to see scarce tax dollars used to oversee an inhumane, disreputable horse slaughter industry,” said Wayne Pacelle, president and CEO of The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS). “We don’t have dog and cat slaughter plants in the U.S. catering to small markets overseas, and we shouldn’t have horse slaughter operations for that purpose, either.” HSUS and the Obama administration both lobbied to end horse slaughter in the U.S. Yet unsolved, however, is the issue of how to humanely cope with the more than 100,000 unwanted and abandoned horses that used to pass through those processing facilities each year. Click for more details. Posted January 15, 2014
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Not Stupid; Just Misled
A recent poll by the Opinion Research Corporation revealed that seventy-one percent of Americans believe that the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) is an umbrella organization for local humane societies across the country. They’re wrong.
Further, sixty-eight percent believe that donations made to HSUS help to fund these humane shelters. They’re ninety-nine percent wrong.
HSUS, according to IRS filings, gives one percent of their budget to animal shelters, according to JoAnn Alumbaugh’s article in Dairy Herd Network.
Are all these people wrong because they are stupid, or are they being misled?
Just Be Honest
According to a recent national poll, seventy-one percent of Americans believe that the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) is an umbrella organization of their local pet shelters. This, according to an article by Rick Berman of the Center for Consumer Freedom published in MyCentralJersey.com, a Gannett Company publication.
HSUS is not, in fact, associated with your local humane shelter. But certainly due in part to this misunderstanding, HSUS raised $131 million last year. I’m not about to debate here the merits or shortcomings of HSUS. That has been done, some would say, ad nauseum. But I do fault HSUS for not setting the record straight.
Six US Congressmen Seek Probe of HSUS Tax Status
Six Republican members of Congress have written to Inspector General Eric Thorson claiming that the level of lobbying activity conducted by the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) is incompatible with HSUS’s 501(c)(3) tax exempt status. Previous letters written to IRS Commissioner Douglas Shulman and Director of Exempt Organizations Lois Lerner have been unproductive. Three of the Congressmen—Jo Ann Emerson, Sam Graves, and Billy Long—represent constituents in Missouri where a recent ballot initiative established new regulations for dog breeders there. The initiative was supported by more than two million dollars in HSUS contributions to its front group in Missouri. The Congressmen question whether HSUS attempts to influence legislation constitute a “substantial part” (the IRS test) of HSUS’s activities. Under the IRS code, no group is allowed to maintain tax-exempt status based on its political leanings or power, as taxpayers would be effectively subsidizing a political organization. For more details, read Glen Wunderlich’s article in the Argus-Press. Posted May 16, 2011
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Federal Judge Protects Hunting on Public Lands
Sportsmen won a major courtroom battle when Federal Judge James S. Gwin in Columbus, Ohio denied a lawsuit seeking to close hunting on fifty refuges within the National Wildlife Refuge System. The lawsuit was filed in 2003 by the Fund for Animals, which later merged with the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS). The U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance (USSA)—an organization strongly supported by foxhunters—and other sporting organizations intervened on behalf of sportsmen. Judge Gwin’s ruling counters the attempt by HSUS to use the National Environmental Policy Act to justify the closing of hunting on the refuges. The judge relied heavily on language in the 1997 Refuge Improvement Act, championed by the USSA, which mandated that hunting and fishing be “facilitated” on the refuges. In his ruling, the judge noted that the plaintiffs “are not entitled to an inviolate sanctuary for their preferred uses….Congress has determined that, to the extent possible, hunters, fishers, observers, photographers, and educators must share the refuges.” It is not yet known if HSUS will appeal the ruling. Click for more details. Posted April 21, 2011
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Is HSUS Subverting Children?
HSUS has been publishing a newsletter for school children—KIND News—since 1983. It’s printed for three levels of readership: kindergarten through second grade, third through fourth, and fifth through sixth. HSUS President Wayne Pacelle claims that the newsletter focuses on non-controversial subjects. “We really believe in teaching kids about being good to animals and kindness as an important part of citizenship and adolescent growth,” Pacelle is quoted as saying. “This publication is used throughout America, and it never has political content….It certainly doesn’t take a stand against hunting or farming in any way.” No quarrel with that. But is Mr. Pacelle being disingenuous? According to the North Platte Telegraph (NE), the Lincoln Public Schools have pulled the April 2010 third/fourth grade edition because of its content. A picture on the front page showed a child wearing a gas mask and asked, “What if you had to wear a gas mask to play in your yard?” The article went on to describe agricultural areas affected by swarms of flies, harmful gases, and rivers tainted by animal waste. Children were urged to write to the USDA, the US Environmental Protection Agency, and to lawmakers expressing their concerns. The newsletter was pulled by the Lincoln Public Schools because they have a policy requiring both sides of any controversial issue to be presented to students. They will no longer distribute the newsletter because they cannot effectively monitor its contents. For more information, see Heather Johnson’s full article. Posted March 20, 2011
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Right-to-Hunt Prop 109 Defeated in Arizona
The ballot measure to make hunting a constitutional right was defeated by Arizona voters. Poor communication among pro-hunting groups, confusing language in the legislation, and large expenditures by the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) opposing the bill were cited as reasons for the measure’s defeat. A single cash donation by HSUS of $250,000 to the “No on 109” group represented more money than the total dollars raised by proponents of the bill. Even hunters were confused by the language and weren’t certain which way to vote. Sponsors of the bill realize they need to do a better job of communicating in the future. Read Matt Maxon’s article in the Yuma Sun for more.November 16, 2010
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Iowa Invests in Plan for the Humane Euthanasia of Horses for Animal Consumption
On July 15 an Iowa state economic development board agreed to co-fund a feasibility study by a start-up company seeking a humane way to euthanize and process horses for consumption by animals. Responsible Transportation, LLC wants to develop innovative methods to collect and euthanize horses with no charge to the horse owners.
