THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2013
PAGE 3
ANIMAL RIGHTS
Federal appeals court halts horse slaughterhouses
ASSOCIATED PRESS
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — A federal appeals court on Monday temporarily halted plans by companies in New Mexico and Missouri to begin slaughtering horses, continuing on-again, off-again efforts to resume domestic equine slaughter two years after Congress lifted a ban on the practice.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Horses feed in Valencia County at the Dennis Chavez feedlot in Los Lunas, N.M. A federal appeals court temporarily halted plans to begin slaughtering horses.
Rains Natural Meats of Gallatin, Mo., emphasized the order was temporary.
The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver issued a temporary injunction barring the Department of Agriculture from inspecting the plants, which were gearing up to open in the coming days after a federal judge in Albuquerque on Friday dismissed a lawsuit by The Humane Society of the United States. The Humane Society and other animal protection groups alleged the department failed to conduct proper environ- environmental studies when it issued permits to the slaughterhouses.
The Humane Society filed an immediate appeal and won an emergency injunction.
"Horse slaughter is a predatory, inhumane business, and we are pleased to win another round in the courts to block killing of these animals on American soil for export to Italy and Japan," said Wayne Pacelle, president and CEO of The Humane Society of the United States. "Meanwhile, we are redoubling our efforts in Congress to secure a permanent ban on the slaughter of our horses throughout North America."
Blair Dunn, who represents Valley Meat Co. of Roswell, N.M., and
"We know the 10th Circuit will follow the law and allow my clients to proceed as soon as our side is considered," Dunn said. "The plaintiffs have misstated the law, the facts and the science. We look forward to a quick decision when the facts are considered and the District Court's careful decision is reviewed."
Valley Meat Co. owner Rick De Los Santos has been fighting for two years for approval to open. He converted his small, struggling cattle slaughterhouse in southern New Mexico to take advantage of a shift in Congress that lifted a ban on funding for inspections at horse slaughterhouses.
A vote to end that funding in 2006 had effectively banned horse slaughter until the money was restored in 2011.
were set to open, U.S. District Judge Christina Armijo issued a temporary restraining order that kept the plants closed until she decided the lawsuit by the animal protection groups. Responsible Transportation since has converted its plant to cattle.
The USDA, however, did not approve the first permits for horse slaughter plants until this summer. But just days before Valley Meat and a third company, Responsible Transportation of Sigourney, Iowa.
POLICY
Voters asked to OK sales tax for medical research
ASSOCIATED PRESS
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Supporters of a proposed half-cent sales tax to pay for medical research say Tuesday's election is a unique opportunity for Jackson County voters to invest an innovative future that will make Kansas City synonymous with something other than barbecue.
Opponents question why middle- and lower-income Jackson County residents still trying to recover from the recession should be responsible for bulking up research budgets of two local hospitals and the University of Missouri-Kansas City.
The tax would raise about $40 million a year $800 million over its 20-year lifespan — to pay for medical research at Children's Mercy Hospital, St. Luke's hospitals and UMKC'S four health
professional schools. Children's Mercy would get half of the proceeds, while St. Luke's and UMKC would get 20 percent apiece. The remaining 10 percent would go toward research-related economic development, as determined by the Jackson County Institute
for Translational Medicine, an umbrella organization that would be created to oversee spending.
to hire scientists, researchers and support staff with the sales tax money.
If Jackson County voters approve the measure on Tuesday's ballot, Donald J. Hall and the Hall Family Foundation promise to build a $75 million home for the institute at Children's Mercy. That pledge, the largest ever made by the foundation, would allow the hospital
Supporters say it's a rare opportunity to establish Kansas City as a national medical research hub, complementing medical assets already in place in the metro area
"The good news about our campaign is that nobody has quarreled with our agenda..."
DAVID WESTBROOK senior vice president at Children's Mercy
including the University of Kansas Medical Center in Kansas City, Kan.
"Translational means translating medical research to patient care," said Steve Glorioso, a spokesman
for the pro-tax Committee for Research, Treatment and Cures. "A lot of this is going to be about treatment of people."
Approval would result in nearly 240 new jobs and have a $600 million impact in the first decade, according to the Civic Council of Greater Kansas City, which pushed to have the tax measure put on the ballot. The council, comprised of the area's top chief executives, has long promoted the idea that life sciences research can boost the region's economy.
"This tax is a mechanism to finance innovation," said David Westbrook, senior vice president for strategy and innovation at Children's Mercy. "The good news about our campaign is that nobody has quarreled with our agenda. There has been some dissent in how we're going to pay for it."
Opponents, such as the League of Women Voters and the Catholic Diocese of Kansas City St. Joseph, say the sales tax is regressive and puts the burden on the people who can least afford it. For every $100
spent in Jackson County, shoppers would pay an additional 50 cents on top of existing sales taxes.
"If you have a six-figure income, it's not that much," said Linda Vogel Smith, president of the KC chapter of the League of Women Voters. "There are 30,000 people in Jackson County who have no health insurance. They do not have access to the kind of health care that those who are more affluent have, yet they are being asked to pay this tax."
She said her organization doesn't oppose medical research, but believes there are other sources of financial support. Among those are the National Institutes of Health, which in 2011 gave the University of Kansas Medical Center a nearly $20 million Clinical and Translational Science grant.
After this week, there are only three Friday class days left in the fall semester.
POLICE REPORTS
Information based on the Douglas County Sheriff's Office booking recap.
- A 25-year-old woman was arrested on Monday on the 900 block of Ohio Street on suspicion of one count of property theft valued at $500 and one count of vehicle burglary, valued at $2500. Bond was posted at $2500.
- A 22-year-old man was arrested on Sunday on the 1000 block of W.6th Street on suspicion of operating a vehicle under the influence.A $500 bond was posted.
Allison Kohn
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