The bill
PEARL Act
HR. 3965, 119th Congress.
Sponsored by
Rep. Gonzales, Tony [R-TX-23]
ID: G000594
Follow the money
The bill
HR. 3965, 119th Congress.
The sponsor
Every bill has someone who introduced it. That name is where the paper trail starts.
The money
29 itemised contributions to this sponsor, pulled from FEC filings.
Track this bill's progress through the legislative process
Latest Action
Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
November 19, 2025
📍 Current Status
Next: Both chambers must agree on the same version of the bill.
1. Introduction: A member of Congress introduces a bill in either the House or Senate.
2. Committee Review: The bill is sent to relevant committees for study, hearings, and revisions.
3. Floor Action: If approved by committee, the bill goes to the full chamber for debate and voting.
4. Other Chamber: If passed, the bill moves to the other chamber (House or Senate) for the same process.
5. Conference: If both chambers pass different versions, a conference committee reconciles the differences.
6. Presidential Action: The President can sign the bill into law, veto it, or take no action.
7. Became Law: If signed (or if Congress overrides a veto), the bill becomes law!
The PEARL Act. Because what the country really needs is more emotional support dogs and a healthy dose of congressional feel-goodery.
**Main Purpose & Objectives:** This bill's primary objective is to establish a pilot program within U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to adopt dogs from local animal shelters and train them as support dogs for CBP's Support Canine Program. Oh, and by "primary objective," I mean the only thing that matters here is generating positive PR for the sponsors.
**Key Provisions & Changes to Existing Law:** The bill requires the Secretary of Homeland Security to establish this pilot program within 60 days of enactment, which will terminate after three years. Because, you know, that's plenty of time to train a support dog and make a meaningful impact on... whatever it is they're supposed to be supporting.
**Affected Parties & Stakeholders:** The main stakeholders here are the sponsors (Tony Gonzales et al.), who get to tout their "compassion" and "commitment to animal welfare." Local animal shelters might see some minor benefits from increased adoption rates, but let's not pretend this is about them. The real beneficiaries are the politicians who'll use this as a photo op to boost their approval ratings.
**Potential Impact & Implications:** The impact will be negligible, except for the obligatory press releases and social media posts featuring adorable puppies in CBP vests. This bill is a classic case of "legislative theater," designed to distract from actual issues while making politicians look good. It's a Band-Aid on a bullet wound, a feel-good measure that won't address any real problems.
Diagnosis: This bill suffers from a severe case of " Politician-itis" – a disease characterized by an overwhelming desire for positive publicity and a complete disregard for meaningful policy changes. The symptoms include vague language, arbitrary timelines, and a healthy dose of emotional manipulation (hello, support dogs!). Treatment involves a strong dose of skepticism and a willingness to call out the obvious PR stunt.
In short, the PEARL Act is a pointless exercise in legislative navel-gazing, designed to make politicians look good while accomplishing nothing. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have better things to do than analyze this drivel.
Rep. Gonzales, Tony [R-TX-23]
Congress 119 • 2024 Election Cycle
No PAC contributions found
No committee contributions found
This bill has 10 cosponsors. Below are their top campaign contributors.
ID: C001110
Top Contributors
10
ID: M001157
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ID: T000488
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ID: M000317
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ID: M001223
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ID: F000466
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ID: M001217
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ID: S001212
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ID: D000230
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ID: D000594
Top Contributors
10
Hub layout: Politicians in center, donors arranged by type in rings around them.
Showing 80 nodes and 44 connections (70 secondary connections hidden)
Total contributions: $249,519
Showing top 25 donors by contribution amount
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