Congress Passed An Animal Cruelty Prevention Bill Championed By Lisa Vanderpump

Another bill backed by Bravolebrity, restauranteur, and animal rights activist Lisa Vanderpump has been given the green light. On Tuesday, Oct. 22, the House passed the PACT Act, an animal cruelty prevention bill championed by Lisa Vanderpump. The Vanderpump Dog Foundation founder's support of the Preventing Animal Cruelty and Torture Act has been so significant, Congressman Ted Deutch made a point to reference her when speaking about the bill. “Congratulations to Congressman Ted Deutch & everyone who fought to get the #PACTact passed!” she wrote, sharing a clip of Deutch thanking Vanderpump for her contribution to the cause.

The PACT Act is an amendment to the Animal Crush Video Prohibition Act of 2010, a law that bans the creation, sale, and distribution of videos that depict acts of animal cruelty, per CNN. However, the 2010 law does not criminalize the acts of abuse depicted. The PACT Act makes it so extreme and deliberate acts of animal abuse are a federal offense.

Florida Congressmen Ted Deutch and Vern Buchanan introduced the bill in January, as reported by The Herald-Tribune. Regarding the PACT Act, Deutch said in a press release, “We've acted in the past to stop the horrific trend of animal abuse videos; now it's time to make the underlying acts of cruelty a crime as well." In February, LVP, Ken Todd, Pandora Vanderpump Sabo, Dr. John Sessa, and the pooches of Villa Rosa met with Deutch to discuss the PACT Act. The former Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star shared a photo they took together on Instagram and advocated for the bill in the caption. She has posted about the bill several times since.

On Tuesday, Oct. 22, the House of Representatives passed the PACT Act. Deutch wrote on Instagram that the “bill is a significant milestone in the bipartisan quest to end animal abuse and protect our pets from senseless acts of cruelty and torture.” He also noted that “people are surprised to hear that animal cruelty is not currently a federal crime” but the House’s vote is “a major step toward correcting this.” As CBS News pointed out, the Senate still has to give the PACT Act the thumbs up.

This is not the first shoutout that Vanderpump has received from Congress. When the House passed a resolution in 2018 that called for the end to the cat and dog meat industry, Rep. Alcee Hastings thanked Vanderpump for her support. The moment was featured on RHOBH Season 9.

Vanderpump's time as a Real Housewife of Beverly Hills may be over, but her time as a Real Animal Advocate of Beverly Hills lives on.