Why It Matters

Animal Wellness Action has retained a new lobbying firm to advance its legislative priorities on Capitol Hill. The organization registered Tony Cárdenas and Bravo Strategy Group as its external lobbying representation on July 26.

By the Numbers

Animal Wellness Action maintains both in-house and external lobbying operations. The organization filed an in-house lobbying report on July 20, 2026 while also registering Bravo Strategy Group as external counsel. Cárdenas, owner of Bravo Strategy Group, has one lobbying disclosure on record during the past two years but no prior government or congressional experience listed in his Legis1 profile.

Farragut Partners LLP is also retained by Animal Wellness Action. The firm's lobbying team includes partners Ed Whitfield and Dean Hingson; Co-Founder/Partner Jeff MacKinnon; Strategic Partner Sarah Walter; Principal/Co-Founder Jeff Mortier; Zach Bennett; Don Green Jr.; and Dylan Moore. Bennett previously served on the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee during the 115th and 116th Congresses and the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee during the 117th and 118th Congresses. Green previously worked for Rep. John Linder and Sen. Olympia J. Snowe, while Moore previously worked for Rep. Larry Bucshon.

Animal Wellness Action previously spent $30,000 per quarter with K&L Gates in early 2021, working through Government Affairs Analyst George Riccardo and Senior Policy Director Jeff Denham.

The Agenda

Farragut Partners LLP is lobbying on FDA Modernization Act successor legislation. The FDA Modernization Act 2.0 removed animal testing as a statutory requirement for certain new drug applications, and the FDA subsequently released a multi-year roadmap to make animal studies the exception rather than the standard for monoclonal antibodies and other drugs, achieving its Year 1 goals by 2026. The proposed FDA Modernization Act 3.0 would direct the agency to continue implementing those reforms and further reduce unnecessary animal testing in drug development.

The organization also supports H.R. 151, which would establish measures to address global public health risks associated with wildlife markets, and the MINKS Act, a bipartisan proposal that would ban mink farming nationwide. The MINKS Act follows documented COVID-19 outbreaks at mink farms that prompted Denmark to cull 17 million minks in November 2020.

Between The Lines

Among the top 25 congressional communications on animal welfare and animal-related issues, 13 were issued by Republicans and 11 by Democrats. Rep. Vern Buchanan (R-FL), co-chair of the Congressional Animal Protection Caucus, championed the FDA Modernization Act 2.0 while serving as chairman of the House Ways and Means Health Subcommittee. Rep. Diana Harshbarger (R-TN) is a cosponsor of the FDA Modernization Act 3.0.

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