May 11, 2026
Mr. Bacon introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture
To amend the Animal Welfare Act to prohibit gambling on animal fighting ventures, and for other purposes.
Section 1. Short title
This Act may be cited as the Fighting Inhumane Gambling and High-risk Trafficking Act of 2026
or the FIGHT Act of 2026
.
Sec. 2. Animal fighting
Section 26 of the Animal Welfare Act (7 U.S.C. 2156) is amended—
(1)
by striking the section designation and header and all that follows through It shall be unlawful
in subsection (a)(2) and inserting the following:
26. Sponsoring or exhibiting an animal in, attending, causing an individual who has not attained the age of 16 to attend, or gambling on, an animal fighting venture
(a) Sponsoring or exhibiting
(1) In general
It shall be unlawful for any person to knowingly sponsor or exhibit an animal in an animal fighting venture.
(2) Attending or causing an individual who has not attained the age of 16 to attend
It shall be unlawful; and
(2)
in subsection (a), by adding at the end the following:
(3) Animal venture gambling
It shall be unlawful for any person to gamble on an animal fighting venture, including an in-person or broadcast event.