In a 2022 Appropriations bill, Congress ordered the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to stop its use of “teachable moments,” the agency term used to allow officials to keep certain Animal Welfare Act (AWA) violations from appearing on inspection reports.

Animal advocates criticized the use of teachable moments for their lack of transparency because it made it nearly impossible to get an accurate report of a facility’s care and treatment of animals. Now all AWA violations must be cited in facility inspection reports.

USDA is charged by Congress to ensure AWA compliance at facilities like laboratories, breeders, zoos, and circuses and does this though inspections. Although the USDA has claimed that the use of teachable moments was to encourage compliance, it was effectively just another example of the agency’s pro-business approach to regulation, which put animals at risk and kept the public in the dark.

According to the USDA’s animal care inspection guide, teachable moments were supposed to be minor and not “adversely impacting the health or well-being of an animal.” However, it was discovered that some incidents of unreported violations under the teachable moments policy directly impacted animal health, such as one case where bear cubs were transported without proper ventilation.

While removing the teachable moments policy is a step towards the USDA being more transparent, it needs to do more. The agency should also acknowledge that when it comes to enforcing the AWA, it must shift its focus fully to protecting animals and not the businesses that exploit them.