Page 1 of 330 The Monthly National Legislation Report 7/5/2010 ...

The Monthly National Legislation Reporthttp://mnlreport.typepad.com/Page 153 of 3307/5/2010North Platte – (8/6/09) - The North Platte City Council met in regular session Tuesday, August 4 prior to continuing their budget discussions. The third reading of the animal control ordinance was approvedunanimously. It will become law fifteen days after its passing. Pawsitive Partners, a North Platte animal advocacy group, has pledged to work with the city to implement the new ordinances. The group believesthat the law represents a big step forward in reducing the number of animals euthanized in North Platte. Within ten days of adoption, the new ordinance would require that the animal be spayed or neutered. Petowners would receive a partial refund of the adoption fee for being in compliance with city law. Owners who did not spay or neuter their pet within the ten-day window would receive a letter reminding themabout the ordinance. This is where Pawsitive Partners is willing to step up. “The animal shelter staff already has so much paper work,” said Maber. Pawsitive Partner would volunteer their time to write andsend the letters. Pawsitive Partners has long been helping local low to mid income pet owners pay for spaying and neutering. The policy is similar to one that has been very successful in Hastings. Fremont hada similar program, but altered it to demand that pets be fixed immediately after adoption.NEW JERSEYEwing – (8/11/09) - Forty animal rights activists — local volunteers and professionals from New Jersey and beyond — confronted township officials last night and blasted the proposed Ewing Animal Shelterpolicy calling for euthanasia for cats and dogs not adopted within 60 days. Their remarks were made during a special meeting called by Mayor Jack Ball to present copies of the new policy — which takeseffect Sept. 14 — and to allow residents and others to air their suggestions and grievances. And they did. Ball noted the policy’s original 30-day deadline for adoption or death has been extended to 60 days,which virtually everyone in the audience protested as inadequate. The mayor also handed out applications to volunteer at the shelter. Even long-standing volunteers who have worked there for years must applyby the Sept. 1 deadline. Health Officer Allen Lee will interview applicants and decide who is acceptable, Ball said. The audience included local pet rescue volunteers from various groups, shelter volunteers,and representatives from the Humane Society of the United States and the New Jersey Animal Rights Alliance, the latter organizations’ representatives offering their experience and service to Ewing.Jackson – (8/15/09) - Hoping to rectify what the town deems an out of control feral cat population by up to 90 percent, the township council modified Jackson's recently passed feral cat ordinance, mandatingstrict time limits for how long a trapped animal can sit outside in a cage until it is picked up. In June, the township council unanimously adopted legislation designed to control the feral cat population through aTrap-Neuter- Release (TNR) program. Developed by the Animal Welfare Task Force of New Jersey, the TNR program is viewed by health and animal advocacy organizations as a more humane approach intrying to control feral cats. As one of the more vocal supporters of a feral cat ordinance, Councilman Scott Martin said since its initial adoption in June, the council had more time to review the legislation andfound some elements which needed to be added. "We basically addressed some of the areas we felt might have fell a little short," said Martin. One of those areas was setting a strict time limit on how long a catcould be held before being picked up for spaying or neutering. Two time limits were established. The first pertains to the warmer months of April through October, calling for a trapped cat to be retrieved within12 hours, while in the colder months of November through March, a trapped cat must be retrieved within 10 hours. The feral cat ordinance also creates a township animal welfare committee, established toperform functions related to the TNR program, as well as promoting and seeking donations to support the program. The seven-member committee is expected to include the township's animal control officer,one council member, one mayor's representative and four citizens, of which two would be appointed by the council and two appointed by the mayor.Spotswood – (8/11/09) - The Borough Council has adopted an ordinance that will change the way residents with "potentially dangerous" dogs are regulated. The ordinance, which will become law Sept. 2, wasunanimously approved at Monday's Borough Council meeting by a 3-0 vote with Council members Curtis Stollen, Edward T. Seely and Charles J. Spicuzzo in favor of the proposal. Council members MargaretDrozd and John Shaughnessy were absent. "The new ordinance put in language so that we can comply with the state law," said Stollen, the council president. "We had a situation where our local municipaljudge had found a potentially vicious dog and had ruled it as such, so it was necessary for us to put language in the ordinance to handle the ruling he had made." The new ordinance is retroactive to that case,borough clerk Patricia DeStefano said. Under the ordinance, owners of dogs categorized as potentially dangerous must register their pet with the borough at the cost of $200 in addition to an annual license feeof $100, DeStefano said. The dog will have to be muzzled and kept on a leash when walked in public, DeStefano said. "It has to be a short leash, no more than 3-feet long," Stollen said. In addition, owners ofpotentially dangerous dogs must have liability insurance and a tattoo placed on the dog's shoulders, Mayor Thomas W. Barlow said. If a dog is deemed potentially dangerous, its owner take strong safetymeasures to maintain that the pet does not attack again, Stollen said. Only the municipal court can deem a pet potentially dangerous, DeStefano said. If a potentially dangerous dog attacks, the court willdetermine the amount of the fine the owner is assessed and if the owner can maintain ownership of the pet, Stollen said. "The (municipal court) judge also has other remedies that they're allowed to rule with,"Stollen said. "We've heard instances before in the state where dogs who had horrific encounters with people were destroyed. So there are clearly other avenues open to the judge."NEW MEXICOAlbuquerque – (8/1/09) - They’re all gray wolves, but the Mexican gray wolf is notably different than its faraway cousins, and conservationists now say the animals need specific protection under federal lawto avoid extinction. Three conservation groups filed petitions this week asking the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to list the Mexican gray wolf on the federal endangered species list separate from other graywolves in North America. They say that would force the agency to pay more attention to the animal. “It’s obvious that absent a subspecific designation, Mexican wolves will continue to flounder in the wild andmay in fact go extinct for a second time,” said Rob Edward of WildEarth Guardians, one of the groups that filed a petition. The Mexican wolf, a subspecies of the gray wolf, was exterminated in the wild in theSouthwest by the 1930s. First listed as endangered as an individual species in 1976, the Fish and Wildlife Service created a species-wide designation for gray wolves in 1978 and included the Mexican wolves.Edward said the Mexican wolves are being treated as a “side show” despite their fragile foothold in the wild. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service did not immediately return messages left Tuesday seekingcomment about the two petitions. The government in 1998 began reintroducing wolves along the Arizona-New Mexico line in a 4 million acre-plus territory interspersed with forests, private land and towns.Biologists had hoped to have at least 100 wolves in the wild and 18 breeding pairs by 2006. The most recent survey shows there were 52 wolves scattered between New Mexico and Arizona at the end of 2008.NEW YORKElmira – (8/11/09) - The controversy and debate continues over a park for man’s best friend. For the second time this summer, plans to build a dog park in Elmira were met with plenty of barking. People insupport of a dog park next to Elmira's Brick Pond on Sullivan Street are fighting to make it happen, while those against the idea say "no dogs allowed." Since last September, Jen Curley, the President of the"Friends of the Dog Park " has been working to build a dog park in Elmira. . "A dog park is meant to build community, rather than take it away. It's a positive initiative for any neighborhood." said Curley. Thedog park plans include: - A five-foot high fence surrounding the area where dogs would roam without a leash. - There would be a double-gated entrance. - There would also be signs posted throughout the area,listing rules that *must* be followed. The committee Friends of the Dog Park , plans to hold another meeting at Brick Pond Park to hear more from the community. No date has been set.Ft. Greene/Clinton Hill – (8/4/09) - Let’s just put a name on it right now: The Laika Law. Laika, the Husky “dog-napped” by a well-meaning passerby from the front of a Fort Greene shop where she wastied last week — and since found — has inspired a new bill that would make dog-napping a crime. Assemblyman Joseph R. Lentol, who represents part of Fort Greene, wants to make sure pet-napping is takenseriously by the law, said his media coordinator, Amy Z. Cleary. Under current law, stealing a dog is treated the same as stealing a VCR. That shouldn’t be, Ms. Cleary said. Society, she said, has evolved to thepoint where a pet is considered a member of a family, and Mr. Lentol wants the law to reflect that, she said. The bill aims to raise dog and cat-napping (the stealing, not the sleeping) to a Class E felony withtwo years of jail time if convicted. If a dog-napper aims to sell the animal for scientific research or for malicious purposes (such as for use in dog fighting, an issue Mr. Lentol has campaigned against since2007) the crime would be upgraded to a Class D felony, under the bill. This would entail four years of jail time if convicted.Plattsburgh – (8/1/09) - The Town of Plattsburgh has drafted two local laws regarding the control and sheltering of dogs. Local Law 3 of 2009 would set new dog-control regulations "to protect the health,safety and well-being of persons and property within the town." Local Law 4 would require proper shelter for dogs to protect their health and safety. Local Law 3 would require dogs to be leashed andcontrolled when on public lands or private property without the property owner's permission. The law would also set regulations on dangerous, aggressive or nuisance behavior. It designed to be enforced by thetown dog-control officer, who could write an appearance ticket when he sees a violation. A witness to bad dog behavior could file a sworn statement with a town justice specifying the conduct, time, date, placeand the name and address of the owner. The law would give the dog-control officer power to impound a dog in violation of the regulations. The first instance would be subject to a fine of $50, and second andsubsequent violations would mean a $100 fine, with an extra $25 for each additional day of impound.Local Law 4 would require that dogs have adequate shelter when left outside and not be left exposed to sunlight without shade if that could harm them. That law would also be enforced by the dog-controlofficer. Again, a witness could file a sworn statement with a town justice that must list the conduct, time, date, place and the name and address of the owner. The proposed law provides for seizure of dogssuffering from inadequate shelter, saying they would be returned after proof of adequate shelter and a $50 fine, plus $25 for each subsequent day.Those convicted of violations of the new laws, should they be passed, would be fined up to $250 or imprisoned for 15 days for each violation. Dogs that go unclaimed under both laws would be put up foradoption or be subject to euthanasia under Agriculture and Markets Law. The Town Council will hold public hearings on the new laws at 6:15 and 6:30 p.m. Monday. Copies of both laws are available at thePlattsburgh Town Clerk's Office, 151 Banker Road.NORTH CAROLINANRA-ILA - NORTH CAROLINA STATE ROUNDUP – (8/14/09)The North Carolina General Assembly adjourned for the year on Tuesday, August 11, and will be back for their Short Session on May 12, 2010. This year was very busy for NRA, as a number of pro-gunreforms were introduced. While many pro-gun bills failed to be considered, there were several successes. Click HERE to see the NRA NC Roundup, including their report on SB460- the anti-dogbreeder, anti-hunting bill promoted by the radical Humane Society of the United States (HSUS).