# Plain Language Summary: Homeward Bound Act

This bill delays a new federal rule about importing dogs into the United States for a specific group of people. In May 2024, the Department of Health and Human Services issued stricter requirements for bringing dogs into the country to prevent rabies. This bill gives certain people an 18-month break from following those new rules.

The people who get this delay are military members stationed overseas, their families living with them abroad, and people who work at U.S. embassies and consulates around the world. These groups can now import dogs from countries considered low-risk for rabies without having to follow the new restrictions for the next year and a half. The same delay applies to anyone importing a service animal (like a guide dog for someone who is blind) from a low-risk country. This matters because military families and diplomats often want to bring their pets home with them when they relocate, and the new rules made that process more complicated.

The bill also requires the CDC to make some immediate changes to how dog imports work. Starting right away, people can import dogs of any age from low-risk rabies countries at any port of entry. Additionally, for dogs born before this bill becomes law, the government can't require them to be microchipped just to enter the country. These changes make the process simpler and faster for people trying to bring their dogs back to the United States, particularly those serving the country abroad who may have adopted local dogs during their assignments.

Homeward Bound Act

Armstrong, Kelly

Homeward Bound ActThis bill allows dogs under six months of age, and dogs without microchips born before the bill becomes law, to be imported into the United States from low-risk countries for rabies. The bill delays the applicability of new requirements on importing dogs for certain government personnel importing dogs from low-risk countries, and for service animals imported from low-risk countries.&nbsp;On May 13, 2024, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) published a rule adding new requirements for importing dogs to prevent the reintroduction and spread of rabies. The rule, among other things, requires that every dog imported into the United States must be at least six months of age and must have a microchip implanted. The bill requires the CDC to revise the rule so that dogs of any age may be imported from low-risk countries for rabies, and so that dogs imported from low-risk countries do not need a microchip if born before the bill becomes law.In addition, the bill delays the applicability of the rule by 18 months for (1)&nbsp;members of the Armed Forces stationed in a foreign country, personnel serving at a diplomatic or consular post, and their families seeking to import a dog from a low-risk country; and (2)&nbsp;individuals seeking to import service animals from low-risk countries.&nbsp;