West Houston News

Congressman Troy E. Nehls and Congresswoman Dina Titus have reintroduced the Cease Animal Research Grants Overseas (CARGO) Act, a bipartisan bill designed to stop the National Institutes of Health (NIH) from funding foreign laboratories that conduct animal experiments using American taxpayer money. The legislation was previously introduced in the 118th Congress.

From 2011 to 2021, NIH awarded over $2.2 billion in grants to foreign labs in regions such as South America, Europe, Asia, and Canada. These funds supported animal experiments criticized for lacking accountability and oversight, leading to issues like animal abuse and research misconduct. Currently, NIH lacks effective mechanisms to ensure compliance with basic animal welfare standards in these foreign labs.

The CARGO Act aims to redirect funds toward more humane and human-relevant research methods.

“American’s hard-earned taxpayer money should not be used to fund cruel experiments on animals overseas that do not contribute to advancing public health in our country,” said Congressman Nehls. “The fact that the NIH doled out over $2 billion in taxpayer money to foreign laboratories is unacceptable. I’m proud to reintroduce this legislation to ensure that hard-earned tax dollars are not wasted or used to torture animals.”

“Too many NIH programs overseas either fail to hold up under intensive scrutiny or are exempt from that oversight altogether, resulting in the abuse of animals through experiments funded by taxpayer dollars,” said Congresswoman Titus. “The CARGO Act is a critical step in ending animal suffering and redirecting resources to more reliable and humane research methods here in the United States.”

Cosponsors of the CARGO Act include Representatives Eleanor Holmes Norton, Young Kim, Brian Fitzpatrick, Don Davis, and Nicole Malliotakis.

This legislation has garnered support from People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA).

"Billions of dollars are being funneled into cruel and ineffective experiments in foreign laboratories, with little to no accountability or oversight,” said Kathy Guillermo, Senior Vice President of PETA. “Meanwhile, American taxpayers are footing the bill for this neglect. We thank Representatives Nehls and Titus for their leadership in sponsoring the CARGO Act, which will save both animals' lives and taxpayers' dollars. We urge everyone to contact their representatives and ask them to support this commonsense legislation."