Vet Medicine Mobility Act passes US Senate; now goes to House

Via the Equiery and the American Horse Council.

In a post last year, we reported on changes in the way the Drug Enforcement Administration was interpreting provisions in the Controlled Substances Act, essentially making it illegal for vets to keep on their trucks the drugs necessary to provide routine or emergency care to horses. A bill attempting to correct this situation is now moving through Congress. From the American Horse Council:

On Wednesday, January 8, the United States Senate passed, the Veterinary Medicine Mobility Act (S. 1171), sponsored by Senator Jerry Moran (R-KS). The bill was passed unanimously without amendment and has been sent to the House of Representatives where it awaits further action.

The Veterinary Medicine Mobility Act amends the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) to clarify that veterinarians are allowed to transport, administer and dispense controlled substances and medications outside of their registered offices and hospitals. It would ensure equine veterinarians have the ability provide mobile or ambulatory services in the field to the horse community.

The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) recently changed its interpretation of provisions within the CSA regarding what veterinarians may carry with them and has stated it now believes it is illegal for veterinarians to transport controlled substances and medications for use outside of their registered locations, such as an animal hospital.

Equine veterinarians often provide mobile services and treat horses at farms, training facilities, horse shows, or racetracks. In many cases it is not possible for owners to bring their horses to a clinic or hospital. For this reason, veterinarians have for years carried any medications they may have needed with them secured in their vehicle. However, their ability to do this and provide care to horses in the field is now in jeopardy.

This legislation would allow vets to continue to treat horses as they always have. The AHC supports this bill and hopes the House will pass the bill quickly.

Maryland regulations governing horse trailers and trailering

For those of you who missed our great meeting last Friday night, where representatives of the State Highway Administration, the Motor Vehicle Administration and the State Police answered questions about rules governing trailers and trailering, Commercial Drivers Licenses, etc., click here for a great publication from the University of Maryland Extension that lays it all out very clearly.

Horse Council PAC makes donations to legislators

The following contributions will be made by the Horse Council PAC before the start of the 2014 Maryland General Assembly.  They were agreed to unanimously by the board of directors of the Horse Council PAC on December 20, 2013 after considering participation in MHC activities, responsiveness to MHC requests, alignment with MHC on policy positions, and ability to affect outcomes on MHC issues by virtue of committee assignment and rank. 

1. Mike Miller D – Senate President, Prince George’s and Calvert - $200

1. Mike Busch D – Speaker of the House, Anne Arundel - $200

1. Maggie Macintosh D - House, Baltimore City, Chair Environmental Matters - $200

1. Ed Reilly R – Senate, Anne Arundel, Minority Whip, attended multiple MHC events and led 2011 tour - $200

1. Guy Guzzone D – House, Howard, Deputy Majority Whip, running for Senate, attended multiple MHC events and led 2012 tour - $200

1. Sheila Hixson D – House, Montgomery, Chair Ways and Means, attended Horse Expo - $200

1. Eric Luedtke D – House, Montgomery, Vice Chair Ways and Means, attended BBQ - $100

1. Karen Montgomery D – Senate, Montgomery, Education, Health and Environmental Affairs Committee, sent staff to BBQ - $100

1. Tom Hucker D – House, Montgomery, Economic Matters, attended Horse Expo - $100

1. Peter Murphy D– House, Charles, Health and Government Operations, attended Horse Expo - $100

1. Susan Aumann R – House, Baltimore Co, Asst. Minority Whip, sent staff to BBQ - $100

1. Jeannie Haddaway-Riccio R – House, Caroline, Dorchester, Talbot, Wicomico, Minority Whip, Economic Matters, attended BBQ, running for Lt. Governor - $100

1. David Brinkley R – Senate, Frederick and Carroll, Minority Leader, Finance, attended mulitiple MHC events, longtime friend of MHC and horseman - $100

1. Steve Lafferty D – House, Baltimore Co., Environmental Matters, attended Horse Expo with wife who is involved with horses - $100

1. J. B. Jennings R – Senate, Baltimore and Harford; Education, Health, and Environment, has attended past MHC functions and owns feed store - $100

1. David Rudolph D – House, Cecil, Vice Chair Economic Matters, supporter of Fair Hill - $100

1. Geraldine Valentino-Smith D, House, Prince George's, Judicial Committee, has been responsive on equestrian use of Bowie Training Center - $100

Attention residents of Harford and Cecil counties! Del. Glen Glass Town Hall meeting

Del. Glen Glass (Cecil and Harford counties) has issued this invitation for a Town Hall meeting:


Dear Friend:

In preparation for the 2014 Session of the Maryland General Assembly, I am holding a Town Hall meeting on Saturday, January 4th, 2014 from 12:00PM to 2:00PM at the American Legion Hall located at 44 North Parke Street, Aberdeen, MD 21001.

The Town Hall meeting will provide a forum for you to communicate directly to me.  I want to hear from you about the concerns and issues that are of interest to you.  As your Delegate in Annapolis, I want to know how I can best represent you in the legislature, and how I can make the 2014 Session a productive one, setting forth an agenda that reflects what is important to you.  One of the issues that I am going to consider is a bill that will fix Maryland’s automated speed camera enforcement program to prevent the current abuses in the existing program.

If you are not able to attend the Town Hall meeting, or if you would like to send in advance any comments on topics that you would like to be discussed, please email me at Glen.Glass@house.state.md.us

I will look forward to hearing from you, or seeing you at the Town Hall meeting on January 4th.  In the meantime, I wish you a very happy holiday season, and send my best wishes for a Happy New Year!

Your delegate and servant,

Glen Glass
District 34A
6 Bladen Street, Room 325
Annapolis, MD 21401

Do you need a Commercial Driver's License to haul your trailer?

Click Here for a link to an article with some useful info.

Maryland Horse Council Votes to Support Prince Georges County Casino at Rosecroft Raceway

Mythic Landing Enterprises, LLC Press ReleaseFor Immediate Release Maryland Horse Council Votes to Support Prince Georges County Casino at Rosecroft Raceway Maryland Horse Council Board of Directors Voted at Annual Meeting on November 19th      December 5, 2013 - Damascus, MD: On November 19th, at the Maryland Horse Council Annual Meeting at the Miller Senate Office Building in Annapolis, the Board of Directors voted to support locating the Prince Georges County casino at Rosecroft Raceway. Below is the text of a letter written by Maryland Horse Council President Jane Seigler to Video Lottery Facility Location Commission Chairman Don Fry strongly urging the Commission to locate the casino at Rosecroft, and outlining why such a casino at Rosecroft would have huge benefits not only for the horse industry, but also for the community at large. Text of President Seigler's letter: "The Maryland Horse Council strongly supports the location of the Prince   George's County Casino at Rosecroft Raceway. The Horse Council is the non-profit, umbrella trade association for all equine related businesses, professions, associations and interest groups in the State of Maryland. [See mdhorsecouncil.org.] The Horse Council's member associations represent over 35,000 horse people, and our membership also comprises farms, businesses, charities, foundations and individual supportive members. Our membership includes many farms, families and businesses involved in the Standardbred industry in Maryland, as well as many individuals who follow and enthusiastically enjoy the sport. We are sure that the Lottery Commission is well aware of the important economic impact of the Standardbred industry on the state and local economy: 1,600 jobs, $66,000,000 in assets and 18,000 acres of green space. You perhaps might not be as aware of the symbiotic relationship among all the various segments of the horse industry in Maryland. The Standardbred, Thoroughbred, other sport horse and pleasure horse segments each rely on a largely integrated network of vendors of everything from feed and hay, to veterinary medicine, to pickup trucks. Thus the health of each segment contributes in a very direct way to the health of the entire horse industry in Maryland - an industry with total assets of $5.6 billion, and which controls 587,000 acres, almost one-third of all the agricultural land in Maryland. Location of the Casino at Rosecroft will help ensure that the track remains healthy and thriving, which in turns helps ensure a healthy and thriving Standardbred industry, a healthy and thriving Maryland horse industry and a healthy and thriving Maryland economy. But the economic benefits of locating the Casino at Rosecroft go beyond the impact on the Standardbred industry and the horse industry as a whole. The Casino will undoubtedly boost the local economy in general. It just makes sense that it should be sited where it can be a catalyst for new growth and economic development, rather than being lumped in with a site that is already highly developed. The citizens of Prince George's County deserve to enjoy new economic opportunities at diverse locations, including Rosecroft. For all of these reasons, the Maryland Horse Council strongly urges the Video Lottery Facility Location Commission to locate the Prince George's County Casino at Rosecroft Raceway." To view a copy of the letter, click HERE. To learn more about the Maryland Horse Council, click HERE.        ###    Maryland Horse Council Jane Seigler, President seigler.jane@gmail.com Mythic Landing Enterprises, LLC Margaret Rizzo, President margaret@mythiclanding.com

Judicial and regulatory news

Via the MD Farm Bureau:

Two recent developments that could have impact on horse farmers -

1. A West Virginia poultry farmer prevailed in a court case brought by the EPA and some environmental groups that would have required them to obtain a Clean Water Act permit on the basis of runoff from their farmyard area.
"The Clean Water Act prohibits the discharge of pollutants from "point sources" of pollution to navigable waters (which are loosely defined to include many wetlands and tributaries adjacent to waters that are actually navigable). Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs) are defined as point sources under the Clean Water Act. However, the Clean Water Act specifically exempts "agricultural stormwater runoff" from the definition of point sources of pollution.  . . .
Chief Judge John Preston Bailey of the District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia held that ventilation fan exhaust (dust, feathers, manure, and dander) that landed in the farmyard and ran off during precipitation events is agricultural stormwater runoff, which does not require a permit under the Clean Water Act." John Dillard, Agweb.com.
This ruling was based on the fact that "only the portions of the operation where animals are confined, where litter or manure is stored, where the raw materials are stored and waste containment areas are the “production area,” ("production areas" do require Clean Water Act permits). However, dust from ventilation fans that lands on other parts of the operation and runs off during precipitation is not subject to the permit requirement.

2. The Maryland Department of Agriculture has re-submitted the proposal to update the phosphorus measurement portion of nutrient management plans.  Under the proposed regulation, the P-Site Index will be replaced with the Phosphorus Management Tool (PMT), which is designed to be more sensitive to the potential for P to move off of farmland. The new regulation, if adopted, could be more restrictive of the use of phosphorus in fertilizers applied to the land.

For more information about either of these topics, click here.