2025 -- H 5865
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LC001884
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S T A T E O F R H O D E I S L A N D
IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY
JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2025
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A N A C T
RELATING TO ANIMALS AND ANIMAL HUSBANDRY -- CRUELTY TO ANIMALS
Introduced By: Representatives Lima, J. Brien, Serpa, Fellela, O'Brien, Potter, Kislak,
Hull, Knight, and Cruz
Date Introduced: February 28, 2025
Referred To: House Health & Human Services
It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:
SECTION 1. Sections 4-1-1 and 4-1-3 of the General Laws in Chapter 4-1 entitled "Cruelty 1
to Animals" are hereby amended to read as follows: 2
4-1-1. Definitions — Responsibility for agents and employees. 3
(a) In this chapter and in §§ 4-4-9, 4-4-10, and 23-19-8: 4
(1) “Animal” and “animals” means every living creature except a human being. 5
(2) "Cosmetic" means any: 6
(i) Articles intended to be rubbed, poured, sprinkled, or sprayed on, introduced into, or 7
otherwise applied to the human body or any part thereof for cleansing, beautifying, promoting 8
attractiveness, or altering the appearance; and 9
(ii) Articles intended for use as a component of any such articles; except that such term 10
shall not include soap. 11
(3) "Cosmetic animal testing" means the internal or external application or exposure of any 12
cosmetic product, or any cosmetic ingredient or non-functional constituent, to the skin, eyes, or 13
other body part (organ or extremity) of a live non-human vertebrate for the purpose of evaluating 14
the safety or efficacy of a cosmetic product or a cosmetic ingredient or non-functional constituent 15
for the use in a cosmetic product. 16
(4) "Cosmetic product" means a finished cosmetic the manufacture of which has been 17
completed. 18
(2)(5) “Licensed graduate veterinarian” or “veterinarian” means a person licensed to 19
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engage in the practice of veterinary medicine, surgery, and dentistry in this state who is a graduate 1
of an accredited veterinary medical, surgical, and dental school or college of a standard recognized 2
by the Rhode Island Veterinary Medical Association. 3
(3)(6) “Owner,” “person,” and “whoever” means corporations as well as individuals. 4
(4)(7) “Guardian” shall mean a person(s) having the same rights and responsibilities of an 5
owner, and both terms shall be used interchangeably. A guardian shall also mean a person who 6
possesses, has title to or an interest in, harbors, or has control, custody, or possession of an animal 7
and who is responsible for an animal’s safety and well-being. 8
(8) "Cosmetic ingredient" means any single chemical entity or mixture used as a 9
component of a cosmetic product as defined by 21 C.F.R. 700.3. 10
(9) "Manufacturer" means any entity whose name appears on the label of a cosmetic 11
product pursuant to the requirements of 21 C.F.R. 701.12. 12
(10) "Non-functional constituent" means any incidental ingredient as defined by 21 C.F.R. 13
701.3. 14
(11) "Supplier" means any entity that supplies, directly or through a third party, any 15
ingredient used in the formulation of a cosmetic product. 16
(5)(12) Except for livestock as defined in § 4-26-3(6), “adequate living conditions” shall 17
mean a sanitary environment that is dry and free of accumulated feces and free of debris and 18
garbage that may clutter the environment, pose a danger, or entangle the animal. The environment 19
in which the animal is kept must be consistent with federal regulatory requirements, where 20
applicable, or generally recognized professional standards, where applicable, or otherwise be of 21
sufficient size so as not to inhibit comfortable rest, normal posture, or range of movement, and 22
suitable to maintain the animal in a good state of health. “Adequate living conditions” for livestock 23
as defined in § 4-26-3(6) shall mean best management practices established, no later than July 1, 24
2014, by the Rhode Island livestock welfare and care standards advisory council. 25
(6)(13) Except for livestock as defined in § 4-26-3, “hazardous accumulation of animals” 26
means the accumulation of a large number of animals, to a point where the owner, possessor, or 27
person having the charge of custody of the aforementioned animals fails to or is unable to provide 28
“adequate living conditions” as defined herein, resulting in harm or danger to the health and 29
wellbeing of the animals. 30
(b) The knowledge and acts of agents of and persons employed by corporations in regard 31
to animals transported, owned or employed by or in the custody of that corporation are held to be 32
the acts and knowledge of that corporation. 33
4-1-3. Unnecessary cruelty. 34
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(a) Every owner, possessor, or person having the charge or custody of any animal, who 1
cruelly drives or works that animal when unfit for labor, or cruelly abandons that animal, or who 2
carries that animal or who fails to provide that animal with adequate living conditions as defined 3
in § 4-1-1, or who engages in the hazardous accumulation of animals as defined in § 4-1-1, or 4
causes that animal, to be carried, in or upon any vehicle or otherwise, in a cruel or inhuman manner; 5
or willfully, intentionally, maliciously, recklessly, and/or knowingly authorizes or permits that 6
animal to be subjected to unnecessary torture, suffering, or cruelty of any kind; or who places, or 7
causes to have placed, on any animal any substance that may produce irritation or pain or that is 8
declared a hazardous substance by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration or by the state 9
department of health, shall be punished for each offense in the manner provided in § 4-1-2. If the 10
offense described in this section results in the death of the animal, the person shall be punished in 11
the manner provided in § 4-1-5. If any owner, possessor, or person having the charge or custody of 12
any animal is found guilty of or pleads nolo contendere to a violation of this section and said 13
violation involves the hazardous accumulation of animals, the court shall, in imposing a penalty 14
under this section, take into account whether the defendant’s conduct could be considered to be the 15
result of a mental health disorder as defined in § 27-38.2-2. 16
(b) The substances proscribed by subsection (a) do not include any drug having curative 17
and therapeutic effect for disease in animals and that is prepared and intended for veterinary use. 18
(c) University, college, or hospital research facilities licensed and/or inspected by the U.S. 19
Department of Agriculture or the U.S. Public Health Service of the Department of Health and 20
Human Services shall be exempt from the provisions of subsection (a) provided that they are in 21
good standing with the federal agency responsible for licensing or assurance of the facility. 22
(d)(1) No manufacturer shall sell or offer for sale in the state any cosmetic that was 23
developed or manufactured using cosmetic animal testing, if the testing was conducted or 24
contracted by the manufacturer or any supplier of the manufacturer on or after January 1, 2026. 25
(2) The prohibitions of subsection (d)(1) of this section do not apply to cosmetics 26
developed or manufactured using cosmetic animal testing if: 27
(i) Such testing is requested, conducted, or required by a federal or state regulatory 28
authority and: 29
(A) There is no non-animal alternative method or strategy recognized by any federal 30
agency or the organization for economic cooperation and development for the relevant safety 31
endpoints for the cosmetic ingredient or non-functional constituent; 32
(B) The cosmetic ingredient or non-functional constituent poses a risk of causing a specific 33
human health problem that is substantiated and the need to conduct cosmetic animal testing is 34
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justified and supported by a detailed research protocol proposed as the basis for the evaluation of 1
the cosmetic ingredient, or non-functional constituent; and 2
(C) The cosmetic ingredient or non-functional constituent is in wide use and, in the case of 3
a cosmetic ingredient, cannot be replaced by another ingredient capable of performing a similar 4
function; 5
(ii) Such testing is conducted outside the United States to comply with a requirement of a 6
foreign regulatory authority; provided that, no evidence derived from such testing is relied upon to 7
substantiate the safety of the cosmetic in Rhode Island; 8
(iii) Such testing is conducted on a product or ingredient subject to the requirements of 9
subchapter V of the federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, 21 U.S.C. § 351 et seq.; or 10
(iv) Such testing is conducted for a cosmetic ingredient intended to be used in a product 11
that is not a cosmetic product and conducted pursuant to a requirement of a federal, state, or foreign 12
regulatory authority as long as no evidence derived from animal testing conducted after the 13
effective date of this subsection is relied upon to substantiate the safety of a cosmetic sold in the 14
state by a manufacturer, unless all of the following apply: 15
(A) There is no non-animal alternative method or strategy recognized by any federal or 16
state agency or the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development for the relevant 17
safety endpoints for such ingredient; 18
(B) There is documented evidence of the non-cosmetic intent of the test; and 19
(C) There is a history of use of the ingredient outside of cosmetics at least one year prior 20
to the manufacturer's reliance on such data. 21
(3) The provisions of subsection (d) of this section shall not apply to: 22
(i) A cosmetic product if the cosmetic in its final form was tested on animals before January 23
1, 2025 even if the cosmetic is manufactured on or after that date; provided that, no new animal 24
testing in violation subsection (d) of this section occurs after January 1, 2026; 25
(ii) An ingredient in a cosmetic if the cosmetic ingredient was tested on animals before 26
January 1, 2025 even if the ingredient is manufactured on or after that date; provided that, no new 27
animal testing in violation of subsection (d) of this section occurs after January 1, 2026; or 28
(iii) A manufacturer reviewing, assessing, or retaining evidence from a cosmetic animal 29
test. 30
(4) No political subdivision of the state may establish or continue any prohibition on or 31
relating to cosmetic animal testing, as defined in this section, that is not identical to the prohibitions 32
set forth in this section. 33
(5) Any person or manufacturer that violates subsection (d)(1) of this section shall be 34
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subject to a penalty of up to one thousand dollars ($1,000) for each offense. If the violation is of a 1
continuing nature, each day during which it continues constitutes an additional, separate, and 2
distinct offense. 3
SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage. 4
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EXPLANATION
BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL
OF
A N A C T
RELATING TO ANIMALS AND ANIMAL HUSBANDRY -- CRUELTY TO ANIMALS
***
This act would ban a person or manufacturer from selling or offering for sale in this state 1
any cosmetic that was developed or manufactured using animal testing, if the test was conducted 2
or contracted by the manufacturer or any supplier of the manufacturer on or after January 1, 2026. 3
A violation of this act would result in a one thousand dollar ($1,000) fine for each offense. 4
This act would take effect upon passage. 5
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LC001884
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