Arizona House Bill Proposes Protections for Salt River Wild Horses

Arizona is taking legislative steps to protect the iconic Salt River wild horses. House Bill 2340, proposed by Rep. Kelly Townsend, aims to safeguard these horses by establishing them as state property under the Arizona Department of Agriculture. The bill also seeks to prevent their slaughter without departmental approval.

PHOENIX — A herd of wild horses along the Salt River was set to be a topic of discussion by an Arizona House panel on Wednesday.

The panel was scheduled to debate a measure that would offer protections to the horses that were slated for a possible final roundup less than a year ago.

Rep. Kelly Townsend’s proposal would establish the herd of about 100 horses as state property under the care of the Arizona Department of Agriculture.

House Bill 2340 would also stop the slaughter or euthanasia of the horses without department approval.

The U.S. Forest Service has consistently denied that it had planned to destroy the horses, which live in the Tonto National Forest.

A spokesman said the agency had originally considered capturing and auctioning off some of the horses. But that idea included a disturbing reference to “disposing of” others.

Public outcry, led by a group dedicated to saving the horses, caused the department to reverse course.

The group managed to collect 150,000 signatures on a petition that asked the Forest Service to “stop the annihilation” of the animals.

Advocates for the horses said the bill doesn’t add enough protections and criminalizes euthanasia for humane reasons.

The House federalism committee was to debate the measure.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Originally posted by KTAR.com