Federal disaster funds now cover pet emergency shelters and supplies
H.R. 7438 — PETSAFE Act of 2026 · Filed by Brian Mast (R-FL) · 21 cosponsors · Introduced Feb 9, 2026 · Referred to committee
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What it does
This bill amends federal disaster-relief law to allow states, local governments, and tribal governments to use emergency-preparedness grants to buy equipment and supplies for companion animals during disasters—including crates, trailers, pet supplies, veterinary care, sheltering equipment, generators, software, training, and rescue gear. It also raises the federal cost-share for these pet-preparedness activities from 50% to 90%, meaning the federal government covers more of the cost.
Why we flagged it
The bill's sole operative mechanism is to authorize and fund emergency-preparedness activities specifically for companion animals during disasters, raising the federal cost-share to incentivize state and local adoption of pet-inclusive disaster planning.
What the text implies
- Raises federal cost-share for pet-preparedness activities to 90%, creating a higher federal subsidy for this category than for general emergency preparedness (50%), which may incentivize states to prioritize pet-focused spending.
- Authorizes purchase of 'disaster response software' and 'emergency management and response training' for animal response, which could expand the scope of disaster-management infrastructure beyond traditional pet sheltering.
- Does not specify caps, limits, or accountability measures for how much a state/local government may spend on any single category (e.g., mobile trailers, generators), leaving discretion to grantees.
Section numbers refer to the bill text the analysis read — linked under Primary records below.
Who it affects
Pet owners and households with companion animals gain concrete emergency-preparedness resources and federal funding support during disasters. The higher federal cost-share (90% vs. 50%) reduces the burden on state and local budgets, freeing resources for other public needs. No restrictions on citizens' rights or remedies are imposed.
Who stands to gain
- state and local emergency-management agencies (grant recipients)
- veterinary suppliers and animal-care equipment manufacturers
- disaster-response software vendors
- animal-rescue organizations (potential contractors for training and response teams)
Named in the bill
Post-Katrina Emergency Management Reform Act of 2006, Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, FEMA (implied administrator of grants under cited acts), state and local governments, tribal governments
Where it stands
21 cosponsors: 17 Democrats, 4 Republicans.
- Feb 9, 2026 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in House”
- Feb 9, 2026 — Referred to House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure · Congress.gov: “Referred to the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure”
Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.
Money around this bill
2 lobbying clients named this bill on 3 disclosure filings across 1 quarter, Jun 2026 to Jun 2026. Those filings disclosed $378,000 in lobbying spend. A filing names 9 bills on average, so that figure is what each filing reported, not a share belonging to this bill.
More lobbying clients named this bill than 41% of bills with at least one filing.
Brian Mast, the sponsor, reported $378,866 in PAC receipts in the 2026 cycle.
- American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals — $378,000 on 2 filings
- Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council — $0 on 1 filing
Lobbying Disclosure Act filings through Jul 16, 2026. A filing shows who paid to lobby on a bill it names, not what changed.
How this was measured
Analysis — Quorum's AI read the bill text published by Congress.gov (1,155 characters) on Oct 17, 2026. Section numbers in the findings refer to that text, linked below; transparency and hidden-provision scores are compared against the median of 16,222 analysed bills.
Status and sponsors — Congress.gov's bill record — actions, committee referrals and cosponsors — loaded nightly. The timeline shows status changes, not every procedural action.
Money — Senate Lobbying Disclosure Act filings whose specific-issue field names this bill for quarters ending Jun 2026 to Jun 2026. A filing's amount is reported whole beside the median number of bills a filing names; it is never divided across them. PAC receipts are FEC-reported contributions to the sponsor's candidate committee in the 2026 cycle.
As of — lobbying records through Jul 16, 2026 · page rendered 2026-10-20.
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