In January, Oregon horse owner Lindy Minten proposed a bill that would require any horses in the state for more than 30 days to have an "equine ownership certificate." The bill has been effectively killed for the current session, but could re-emerge in the future.
As written, the bill would require horse owners to have a certificate for each of their horses at a cost of no more than $100. It also outlines requirements for humane horse transportation, including requirements for trailer size as it relates to the horses in transport and mandatory rest times for long trips.
Finally, the state of Oregon would be charged with keeping a registry of horse rescues, and rescue organizations would have to register with the state.
Minten stated that her goal was to help rescue organizations by weeding out the horse dealers posing as rescues. She also expressed that her bill was a working draft and she hoped that horse owners and rescuers would provide input to make it better. Minten has a Facebook page where interested parties can provide input.