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

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The Monthly National Legislation Reporthttp://mnlreport.typepad.com/Page 240 of 3307/5/2010(4/28/09) - FORMER Attorney General Ramesh Lawrence Maharaj yesterday filed a Parliamentary motion urging the Government to explain why it has failed to implement the DangerousDogs Act. “These dogs are really killer dogs; they are not pets,” Maharaj said yesterday. “I am calling on the Government to implement the Act”. His motion on the adjournment, which maycome up at next week’s sitting of the House of Representatives, asks for the Government, “to state what it intends to do with the Dangerous Dogs Act 2000 which was assented to, but not yetimplemented.” “The Dangerous Dogs Act of 2000 was passed using a special majority which meant it had the support of the present Government while they were in Opposition,” Maharaj,who oversaw the drafting of the Act, said. “The Act prohibits the importation of any dangerous dogs and prohibits the importation of any embryo or semen of dangerous dogs. The wholepolicy was to prevent the importation of these dogs, and to not have them bred.”UK(4/28/09) - More DDA Dogs Die as Taxpayer Picks Up Astonishing £736,760 Bill. More dead dogs and over seven hundred, thousand pounds. A Freedom of Information (FOI) request hasshown that dogs are still dying while in the care of the Metropolitan police service (MPS) as they attempt to enforce the draconian Dangerous Dogs Act - at a cost of more than £736,760 oftaxpayer’s money in just a five month period. The costs relate only to boarding, transport and veterinary costs of dogs held and do not include any other associated legal costs such asbehaviourist assessments and other costs of bringing a case to court. The FOI request supplied to Alison Green of anti BSL group DDA Watch shows that between 31st September 08 and 28February 09 a total of 233 dogs were seized by MPS with 202 held as potentially banned breeds. Only 27 of those 202 were also held under section three of the DDA indicating that thebehaviour of the majority of the dogs held was not of concern. Nine of the dogs held died in MPS “care”. This brings the total of dogs that have lost their lives due to illness or unknown reasonin the last two years to a shocking 110 in MPS contracted kennels alone. While the number seems to show fewer dogs on average have died in recent months it still begs the question of why noone is being held accountable? A separate request sent to West Midlands Police showed that they too are seeing dogs dying while being held as three dogs held in their care died in kennelsbetween September 08 and February 09. With Defra’s recent guidance on enforcing the Dangerous Dogs Act, unless the law is repealed we can only expect to see more dogs dying and moretaxpayer’s money being spent on legislation that can never be fully enforced. If the issue of the dog’s appearance was no longer a question the MPS alone could free up over ONE MILLIONpounds each year.Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)March 30, 2009March 2009 - Part 2FEDERALHR1388 - Short Title- This Act may be cited as the `Generations Invigorating Volunteerism and Education Act' or the `GIVE Act'.H.Amdt 49 - Amendment to prohibit organizations from attempting to influence legislation; organize or engage in protests, petitions, boycotts, or strikes; and assist, promote, ordeter union organizing.STATES - IN ALPHABETICAL ORDERALASKAJuneau - (3/19/09) - A bill that makes it a criminal offense to have sex with an animal has passed its first committee. The measure, which would make Alaska the 36th state to outlawbestiality, was heard in the House Judiciary Committee Friday. It would expand Alaska's existing animal cruelty laws to include sexual conduct, making the offense a class Amisdemeanor. The bill has the support of the Alaska Peace Officers Association, the Department of Corrections and the Humane Society. Veterinarian Rachel Dzuiba says the bill not onlyprotects animals but children and other vulnerable people as well.CALIFORNIAAB1122 - An act to add Section 597.4 to the Penal Code, relating to animals, as introduced, Lieu. Animal abuse: sale of live animals: flea markets.Manteca - (3/29/09) - Pit bulls and related breeds in Manteca are required by city law to be neutered or spayed. Now city leaders think it is a good idea to make owners of all dogs – witha few notable exceptions – to have their canines fixed. Dog owners and the general public have a chance Monday to say what they think of the plan as well as make suggestions onwhat the city should or shouldn’t do during a meeting at 6 p.m. at the Civic Center council chambers at 1001 W. Center St. Police Chief Dave Bricker will conduct the meeting.Exemptions to the spaying and neutering requirement as the proposed ordinance now stands would be licensed show dogs, livestock dogs, police dogs, breeders licensed by the city, orassistance dogs. A mandatory neutering and spaying law would work for all dogs over six months of age within Manteca’s city limits. That means if Manteca Animal Control picks up yourstray dog for wandering the streets you may have to pay in excess of $100 to have it spayed or neutered in addition to impound fees and paying for a license if you do not have one.COLORADOFort Collins - After a tragic incident in which a dog slipped into a Fort Collins neighbor's home and killed a cat, the issue of breed-specific legislation has resurfaced on news and blogsites across the state. City council looked at the legislation of other cities and decided to zero in on specific types of pit bulls, including American Pit Bull Terriers, AmericanStaffordshire Bull Terriers, Staffordshire Bull Terriers and dogs that display the majority of the physical traits of any of these breeds. In addition, existing pit bull owners were allowed tokeep their dogs through a permitting process, something Mayor Shannon Crespin said was important so pets were not taken from families when the policy was implemented.DELAWAREHB95 - AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 7 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO DOGS.This bill adopts the recommendations of the Humane Society of the UnitedStates regarding restrictions on the large-scale for-profit dog breedingoperations commonly known as "puppy mills." The intent of this bill is toensure that dogs are bred in sanitary and humane conditions. The bill
The Monthly National Legislation Reporthttp://mnlreport.typepad.com/Page 241 of 3307/5/2010prohibits the possession of more than 25 breeding dogs at one time andimposes minimum requirements for breeding dogs to receive veterinary care.D.C.Mt. Vernon - (3/19/09) - Animal control officers and city swooped into the park at Mount Vernon Place near the Washington Monument this week, citing dog walkers for failing to havetheir dogs on leash. Bob Anderson, director of Baltimore Animal Control, said officers responded after receiving numerous complaints about dogs bothering pedestrians in thepark. Failing to have a dog on the leash can result in a $100 fine for the first offense and a $1,000 fine for repeat offenders. Those fines are set to go up soon, Anderson said. City lawrequires dogs to be on leash or in a carrier whenever they are off the owner's property, Anderson said. The law specifies that the leashes should be no more than 8 feet long; retractableleashes are not permitted in the city. The law also requires dog walkers to have something to pick up feces (plastic bags count).FLORIDAHB451 - (3/24/09) - A mandatory spay-neuter bill under consideration in Florida has been revised so that it’s no longer required for pet owners to get their dogs or cats sterilized. As ofTuesday morning, March 24, House Bill 451 was amended to remove all mandatory spay-neuter language. Instead, the new version of the bill gives the local government the option to usea $5 surcharge added to animal-control citations to help pay for low-cost spay-neuter programs. The “strike-all” amendment to the bill was adopted by the Florida House Agriculture andNatural Resources Policy Committee. As originally introduced, the bill called for most dogs and cats to be sterilized at 4 months of age.A court ruled Miami-Dade's 20 year ban on pit bulls was too vague in defining "pit bull" and unfairly let animal control officers basically guess whether a dog is a pit bull. FOR IMMEDIATERELEASE PRLog (Press Release) Mar 19, 2009 Miami-Dade County, F, Florida - Miami Coalition Against Breed Specific Legislation (MCABSL) and Animal Law Coalition applaud a courtruling that the Miami Dade County Pit Bull ban is too vague, and the county cannot enforce the finding by animal control that a dog is a pit bull that must be euthanized or removed fromthe county.Holly Hill - proposed ordinance would require some pet owners to have their dogs and cats spayed or neutered. Pets that are not well enough to survive an operation, that are too old tohave the operation or that are used for professional breeding would be exempted. The ordinance would be enforced when animals are caught by animal control or are brought in by theowner for pet licenses.GEORGIAFayette County - (3/21/09) - Fayette County’s animal control director recently made a presentation at the request of the Fayette County Commission in response to resident inquiriesabout chained dogs in our county, and the issue is worthy of attention. A sensible chaining ordinance that prevents dogs from being tied up day and night would prevent animal crueltyand public safety threats, and there are volunteers available to help low-income dog owners erect pens or fences.KENTUCKYLouisville - (3/19/09) - City officials have received several complaints about how Metro Animal Services is enforcing the dangerous dog ordinance. Now one of the law's co-sponsors plans tolook into the complaints. Janet Head wasn't home Monday when she got a call that Metro Animal Services was in her house taking her miniature schnauzers away. Three adult dogs and foursix week old puppies. "An absolute violation of my privacy, my rights as a human being. I think that's horrible," Head said. Metro Animal Services also took her sister's dogs. The two say theybreed their dogs about once a year. It took two days, a court appearance and an injunction from a judge - plus $1,300 in fees - to get the dogs back. Officials from Metro Animal Services says itwas because they didn't have a kennel license. Councilman Kelly Downard, who helped write the current dog ordinance, says he believes the law is being improperly enforced. "AnimalServices is apparently interpreting the law to say that anybody who breeds dogs is a breeder and needs to have a kennel license, that's not true. Part of the law enforces breeding activities butit doesn't enforce what they are going after. I really don't think that was ever the intent. I wrote the darn law, so I know." He says the kennel license is for people whose primary purpose ofhaving dogs is to breed and sell them, not occasional breeders who have been targeted in recent raids. Despite Downard's comments, Metro Animal Services officials stand by their actions.Downard says he plans to hold hearings before Metro's Oversite committee to clarify parts of the dog ordinance and how it's being enforced. He says that will likely happen in the next monthor so.MAINEHP0151/LD186 - An Act Pertaining to the Possession of Animal Fighting ParaphernaliaHP362/LD 517 - An Act To Authorize the Employment of Animal Control Officers by Animal SheltersHP666/LD964 - An Act Pertaining to the Breeding and Selling of Dogs and Cats/Rep.Pieh (prior 2010)LD 1103 - An Act To Amend the Animal Welfare Laws (of Maine)LD 1053 -WITHDRAWN-see below - An Act to Ensure Humane Dog and Cat Breeding in the State (of Maine) Rep. STEVENS BILL-NOTE - LD1053 - I would like you to know that I have decided to pull LD 1053, An Act To Ensure Humane Dog and Cat Breeding in the State. The bill was currently before theAgriculture, Conservation and Forestry Committee, but had not been scheduled for a public hearing. Thank you again for contacting me and sharing your opinion. I really appreciate it.Best,SaraRepresentative Sara R. Stevens252 Nowell RoadBangor, ME 04401Repsara.stevens@legislature.maine.gov942-8900MARYLANDWashington County - (3/24/09) - Dogs that attack or threaten people or other pets would get 18 months to improve their behavior before being labeled permanently as a "vicious anddangerous animal" under changes to the Washington County animal control ordinance proposed Tuesday. Currently, animals can be labeled "vicious and dangerous" after only one attack,which has led to protests from owners who say their pets were otherwise well-behaved, said Paul Miller, executive director of the Humane Society of Washington County, which enforces theordinance. The Washington County Commissioners discussed the idea and other proposed changes at their meeting Tuesday, and agreed to hold a public hearing on the proposed changes. Adate for the hearing has not been set.
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