H.R. 1018 expands the Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act of 1971 and prohibits the processing of wild horses or burros for slaughter.  In addition the bill would require the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to vastly expand its wild horse and burro management programs and obtain new rangeland.  The specific provisions of the bill are outlined below.

The legislation provides that any person who processes, transports for processing, or permits to be processed into commercial products a live or deceased wild free-roaming horse or burro, will be subject to a fine of not more than $2,000 or imprisonment for not more than one year, or both.

H.R. 1018 requires that the acreage available for wild horses and burros is never less than the acreage where wild horses and burros were found in 1971.  The bill also requires the Secretary of the Interior to adopted peer-reviewed methods to count wild horse populations and promulgate standards for management levels on public lands.  The Secretary would be required to conduct a census of the wild horse and burro population every two years.

The bill would prohibit the Secretary from destroying, or authorizing the destruction of, wild horses and burros, unless the animal is terminally ill.  In addition, H.R. 1018 also authorizes the Secretary to remove and relocate wild horse if their health or safety is threatened.

Under the legislation, the Secretary would be required to find new rangeland for wild horses and burros.  In addition, the bill would authorize the federal government to acquire new rangelands and sanctuary areas through the use of land acquisitions, exchanges, conservation easements, grazing buyouts, and agreements with private landowners to allow for the federally supervised protection of wild horses and burros on private lands. 

The bill repeals a provision of current law which states that wild horses and burros shall be protected in the areas where they are currently found.  By removing this provision, the bill would expand the Bureau of Land Management's (BLM) jurisdiction to areas where wild horses and burros are not currently found.

Requires the Secretary to research and implement new surgical or "immunecontraception" sterilization in order to reduce the reproductive rates of wild horses and burros. 

H.R. 1018 requires the Secretary to implement "creative" and "more aggressive" marketing strategies in an attempt to get more private individuals or organizations to adopt wild horses and burros.  The legislation also authorizes the Secretary to offer economic incentives for people who successfully complete the adoption process.

H.R. 1018 expands the definitions of a number of terms in the Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act.  The bill also adds a new definition for the term "thriving natural ecological balance," which means a condition that protects "ecosystem health" and a diversity of species, including endangered species.

The legislation requires anyone who adopts a wild horse or burro to attest that its remains will not be used for commercial use and also prohibits keeping a wild horse or burro in a corral for more than six months.

The bill alters the make-up of the Joint Advisory Board that advises the Secretaries of Interior and Agriculture on wild horse and burro management.  The bill would expand the Board from nine members to 12: three representatives of the livestock industry; three representatives of the environmental community; three representatives of the animal protection community; and three scientists with expertise in wildlife management or animal husbandry.