California Gov. Jerry Brown signed a bill into law Aug. 17 that changes the requirement for a negative Coggins test for horses coming into the state from six months to one year. The change takes effect Jan. 1, 2014.

"This means less money spent by horsemen," said Bob Fox, legislative analyst for the California Horse Council, sponsors of AB 1388, in a statement. "It’s a significant savings to any horsemen bringing horses into the state.

The former law required any horse brought into this state to be accompanied by a health certificate and verification that the horse has been tested within the preceding six months and found negative for equine infectious anemia. The newly-signed legislation instead requires the same verification within the preceding 12 months.

"We sponsored this bill because the incidence of equine infectious anemia has dropped so dramatically that veterinarians agreed the six-month timeframe was really unnecessary and one year would be perfectly adequate," Fox said. "So, we’re able to provide savings to the horsemen without increasing the risk of exposure to horses