Official Summary Text
SB1199 - 572R - Senate Fact Sheet
Assigned to
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PASSED BY HOUSE
ARIZONA STATE SENATE
Fifty-Seventh
Legislature, Second Regular Session
AMENDED
FACT SHEET FOR
S.B. 1199
veterinary
medical examining board; continuation
(
NOW:
salt river horse herd
)
As passed by the Senate, S.B. 1199 continued the Arizona State Veterinary
Medical Examining Board for eight years.
The House of Representatives adopted a strike-everything amendment that
does the following:
Purpose
An emergency measure that prescribes requirements relating to the Salt
River horse herd and allows the Arizona Department of Agriculture (AZDA) or the
county sheriff, if outlined conditions exist, to remove and transfer an
unidentified horse to a private entity that has a valid agreement with Arizona
to address issues relating to the Salt River horse herd and to adopt out the
unidentified horse through an adoption contract. Prescribes requirements for
agreements between the AZDA and the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) and private
entities relating to the Salt River horse herd.
Background
A person may not harass, shoot, injure, kill or slaughter a horse that is
part of the Salt River horse herd or interfere with, take, chase, capture or
euthanize a horse that is part of the Salt River horse herd without written
authorization from either the AZDA or the county sheriff for humane purposes.
Arizona must enter into an agreement with the USFS to address any issue
relating to the Salt River horse herd. If an incident occurs that requires
interaction with the Salt River horse herd in order to protect the safety or
health of a horse that is, or horses that are, part of the Salt River horse
herd or the public, a private or public entity may address the incident after
obtaining written authorization from either the AZDA or the county sheriff.
Salt River horse herd
includes the horses that inhabit and that
have historically lived in and around the lower Salt River and Saguaro Lake
areas in the Tonto National Forest and that do not have a brand or other mark
that indicates ownership (
A.R.S.
� 3-1491
).
There is no anticipated fiscal impact to the state General Fund
associated with this legislation.
Provisions
1.
Allows the AZDA or the county sheriff, if the AZDA cannot prove
ownership of a horse and the horse is not identified as part of the Salt River horse
herd, to remove and transfer the unidentified horse to a private entity that
has a valid agreement with Arizona to address issues relating to the Salt River
horse herd and to adopt out the unidentified horse through an adoption
contract.
2.
Requires the state, when entering into an agreement with a private
entity to address any issue relating to the Salt River horse herd, to give
preference to an entity that has a proven record and experience addressing
issues relating to the Salt River horse herd.
3.
Requires the AZDA to post the statutorily prescribed agreement with the USFS
and the outlined agreement with a private entity relating to the Salt River horse
herd on its website.
4.
Requires the AZDA to maintain a genetically viable Salt River horse herd
consistent with genetic viability standards and peer reviewed studies as they
evolve and become available.
5.
Requires the AZDA to make publicly available on its website all genetic
assessment data and all corresponding scientific studies on which the
assessment relies.
6.
Deems that a person that interferes with, takes, chases, captures or
euthanizes a Salt River horse without written authorization from the AZDA or a
county sheriff is guilty of a petty offense.
7.
Requires the AZDA to contract for an independent genetic assessment of
the Salt River horse herd.
8.
Requires the genetic testing to employ generally accepted genetic
analysis methodologies that include measures of effective population size,
allelic diversity and inbreeding coefficients.
9.
Requires the AZDA to award the contract for genetic testing consistent
with the statutorily prescribed competitive bidding process with preference
given to providers with a demonstrated expertise in equine genetics.
10.
Prohibits a
person from intentionally harassing, shooting, injuring, killing or
slaughtering a horse that is, or was, part of the Salt River horse herd.
11.
Prohibits a private entity
that has entered into a contract with Arizona to address any issues relating to
the Salt River horse herd from:
a)
removing
any Salt River horse if the herd maintains a negative growth rate unless
removal is necessary to prevent or alleviate the suffering of an individually
assessed horse and not for population control; or
b)
employing
fertility control and population control measures other than nonhormonal
fertility control vaccines that preserve the mare's natural reproductive cycle
and natural behavior.
12.
Prohibits
the AZDA from entering into any new agreement with a private entity to address
any issue relating to the Salt River horse herd that includes an obligation to
remove Salt River horses from the herd.
13.
Specifies
that the outlined requirement relating to Salt River horses does not impair any
obligations that Arizona incurred through an agreement between Arizona and the USFS
before the effective date of this act.
14.
Contains
statements of legislative findings.
15.
Defines
interfere with
as:
a)
approaching
a Salt River horse at a distance of less than 50 feet while a Salt River horse
is present; or
b)
approaching
an authorized Salt River horse herd feeding station at a distance of less than
50 feet.
16.
Defines
Salt
River horse herd
.
17.
Makes
conforming changes.
18.
Becomes
effective on signature of the Governor, if the emergency clause is enacted.
Amendments Adopted by the House of Representatives
�
Adopted the strike-everything amendment relating to Salt River
horses.
House Action
LARA������� 3/23/26���� DPA/SE��� 5-3-0-0
3
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Read����� 6/9/26������������������������ 43-10-6-1
Prepared by Senate Research
June 10, 2026
SB/hk
Current Bill Text
Read the full stored bill text
SB1199 - 572R - H Ver
House Engrossed
Senate Bill
veterinary
medical examining board; continuation
(now:� Salt River
horse herd)
State of Arizona
Senate
Fifty-seventh Legislature
Second Regular Session
2026
SENATE BILL 1199
AN
ACT
AMENDING section 3-1491, Arizona
Revised Statutes; relating to the salt river horse herd.
(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:
Section 1. Section 3-1491, Arizona Revised
Statutes, is amended to read:
START_STATUTE
3-1491.
Salt River horse herd; necessary interaction; written
authorization; violations; classification; definitions
A. A person shall not
intentionally
harass, shoot, injure, kill or slaughter a horse that is
or was
part of the Salt River horse herd.
B. A person shall not interfere with, take, chase,
capture or euthanize a horse that is part of the Salt River horse herd without
written authorization from either the department or the county
sheriff. The department or the county sheriff may provide written
authorization pursuant to this subsection only for humane purposes.
C. If an incident occurs that requires interaction
with the Salt River horse herd in order to protect the safety or health of a
horse that is or horses that are part of the Salt River horse herd or the
public, a private or public entity may address the incident after obtaining
written authorization from either the department or the county sheriff.
D. If a horse has any brand or other mark that
indicates ownership, the department shall attempt to prove ownership of the
horse or the county sheriff shall contact the department to attempt to
establish ownership of the horse.� If the department cannot prove ownership of
the horse
and the horse is not identified as part of the salt
river horse herd
, the department or the county sheriff may provide
written authorization pursuant to this section
to remove and
transfer the UNIDENTIFIED horse to a private entity that has a valid agreement
with this state to address issues relating to the salt river horse herd and
that may adopt out the UNIDENTIFIED horse through an adoption contract
.
E. This state shall enter into an agreement pursuant
to section 11-952 with the United States forest service to implement this
article or to address any issue relating to the Salt River horse
herd.
The department shall post the agreement on its
website.
F. This state may enter into an agreement with a
private entity to address any issue relating to the Salt River horse herd.�
this state shall give preference to an entity that has a proven record
and EXPERIENCE addressing issues RELATing to the salt river horse herd.� The
department shall post the agreement on the department's website.
g. THe department shall maintain a
genetically viable salt river horse herd consistent with genetic viability
standards and peer reviewed studies as they evolve and become AVAILABLE.� The
department shall make publicly available on the department's website all
genetic assessment data and all corresponding scientific studies on which the
ASSESSMENT relies.
G.
h.
A
horse that is part of the Salt River horse herd is not a stray animal as
defined in section 3-1401 and is not subject to sections 3-1371 and
3-1402.
H.
i.
A
person who violates subsection A of this section is guilty of a class 1
misdemeanor.�
A person who violates subsection B of this section
is guilty of a petty offense.
I.
j.
For
the purposes of this section
:
,
1. "interfere with"
includes:
(
a
) approaching
a horse that is part of the salt river horse herd at a DISTANCE of less than
fifty feet while a horse that is part of the salt river horse herd is present.
(
b
) approaching
an authorized salt river horse herd feeding station at a DISTANCE of less than
fifty feet.
2.
"Salt River horse
herd" includes the horses that inhabit and that have historically lived in
and around the lower Salt River and Saguaro Lake areas in the Tonto national
forest and that do not have a brand or other mark that indicates ownership.
END_STATUTE
Sec. 2.
Salt River horse
herd; management agreement; genetic study; moratorium on removal; delayed
repeal; definition
A. The Arizona department
of agriculture shall contract for an independent genetic assessment of the Salt
River horse herd.� The testing shall employ generally accepted genetic analysis
methodologies that include measures of effective population size, allelic
diversity and inbreeding coefficients.
B. The Arizona department
of agriculture shall award the contract for genetic testing consistent with the
competitive bidding process prescribed in title 41, chapter 23, Arizona Revised
Statutes, with preference given to providers with a demonstrated expertise in
equine genetics.
C. Notwithstanding section
3-1491, Arizona Revised Statutes, as amended by this act, a private
entity that has entered into a contract with this state to address any issues
relating to the Salt River horse herd may not do either of the following:
1. Remove any horse that is
part of the Salt River horse herd if the herd maintains a negative growth rate
unless removal is necessary to prevent or alleviate the suffering of an
individually assessed horse and not for population control.
2. Employ fertility control
and population control measures other than nonhormonal fertility control
vaccines that preserve the mare's natural reproductive cycle and natural
behavior.
D. Notwithstanding section
3-1491, Arizona Revised Statutes, as amended by this act, the Arizona
department of agriculture may not enter into any new agreement with a private
entity to address any issue relating to the Salt River horse herd that includes
an obligation to remove horses that are part of the Salt River horse herd from
the herd.
E. This section does not
impair any obligations that this state incurred through an agreement between
this state and the United States forest service before the effective date of
this act.
F. This section is repealed
from and after June 30, 2029.
G. For the purposes of this
section, "Salt River horse herd" has the same meaning prescribed in
section 3-1491, Arizona Revised Statutes, as amended by this act.
Sec. 3.
Legislative findings
The legislature finds that:
1. The Salt River horse
herd is a unique population of animals that residents and visitors of this
state enjoy viewing.
2. As of March 28, 2026,
the Salt River horse herd maintains a population of two hundred seventy-three
horses with a negative yearly growth rate due to a successful fertility control
program.
Sec. 4.
Legislative findings
The legislature finds that the delayed
repeal of section 2 of this act provides sufficient time to contract for a
comprehensive, scientific genetic assessment of the Salt River horse herd.
Sec. 5.
Emergency
This act is an emergency measure that
is necessary to preserve the public peace, health or safety and is operative
immediately as provided by law.