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HSUS hits 34 states with 179 bills

179 Animal Rights Anti-Dog

Bills Introduced In 34 States
Texas & Maine Hearings This Week, OK & WA At Brink

It is the year of the full-court-press against dog owners by the radical Humane Society of the United States (HSUS), which has the long-range agenda of eliminating animal ownership in America.

But Texas, Maine, Washington and Oklahoma dog owners won’t have a single second to waste if they want to save their rights to own and enjoy their dogs:
A hearing on a Texas kennel and breeding bill is set for Wednesday, April 1, 2009.

A rally by HSUS and People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) is set for Tuesday, March 31, in Oklahoma City, a day before anti-breeder legislation is scheduled for a committee vote. The legislation recently passed the House by a wide margin..


In Maine, a hearing is set for Friday, April 3, on a bill that will have a major impact on hunting and field trialing with dogs.


A bill that will have an impact on hobby breeders of purebred dogs in Washington passed the House and a Senate committee by wide margins, and can be voted on by the full Senate at any time.


This report will begin by summarizing the CFA report, and then discuss the Texas, Oklahoma, Maine and Washington legislation in separate sections.
As the Washington and Oklahoma legislation proves, the threats to dog ownership this year are very real. HSUS has amassed a war chest in excess of $120 million, and that’s a lot of money to use against dog owners.
Continued apathy will be your greatest enemy, and apathy accurately describes the response of most dog owners thus far. At almost every hearing, animal rights activists have outnumbered dog owners by margins of two-to-three to one.

It can be viewed online at http://www.cfa.org/exhibitors/bill-tracking.pdf .
New Jersey has 23 separate bills, followed by 18 in Illinois, 15 in Massachusetts, 14 in New York, 13 in Hawaii, nine in Tennessee, eight in Connecticut, seven in Texas, and six in New Hampshire and Florida.

States with more than one bill are Arizona, Arkansas, California, Iowa, Maine, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Virginia and West Virginia.
Wyoming, Washington, Vermont, Oklahoma, Mississippi, Kentucky, Kansas, Delaware and Colorado face one bill apiece.

The most common kinds of legislation are about people who breed dogs, people who sell puppies, mandatory pet sterilization, puppy “lemon laws,” restrictions on selling dogs, and limits on the number of pets a person can own.

Texas Breeding Bill Hearing

The Texas House Licensing and Administrative Procedures Committee will hold a hearing on legislation that would place crippling restrictions on people who raise dogs. The hearing on House Bill 3180 is set this coming Wednesday, April 1, in Rome E2.016 at the Capitol in Austin.


ASDA is urging all Texas dog owners to attend this hearing if possible, sign up to testify, submit comments to each member of the committee. Comments can be submitted by mail, fax or phone, with email as somewhat less effective.

Link to the committee website: http://www.house.state.tx.us/committees/list81/350.htm . If you click on each member’s name, his or her home page and contact information will display.
HB 3180 is complex. http://www.capitol.state.tx.us/tlod...ml/HB03180I.htm .

Major provisions:
Anyone who owns or possesses 11 or more intact female dogs is considered to be a commercial breeder, subject to intense and crippling regulation. No one could possess more than 50 intact adult dogs.

A hobby breeder is defined as someone who owns or possesses 10 or fewer intact female dogs.
A definition says a dealer is anyone who is required by law to collect sales tax for the sale of a dog or puppy.

A criminal background check is required of everyone who applies for a license as a commercial or hobby breeder.

The Department of Licensing and Regulation will inspect kennels and administer the law, with annual inspections. A Vet or ACO could be called to assist inspection, with the kennel owner paying for the cost. Regulation will not be with the Department of Agriculture or any other agency familiar with animal husbandry.

A 7-member advisory board will be created to oversee the law and develop regulations. People who raise dogs will not have representation on this committee.

Commercial kennels (including serious hobbyists) would have to shut down until bureaucracy runs its course, an inspection is held and a license is issued. No time limits are set for the state to act.

These standards essentially would prohibit serious hobby breeders from raising puppies inside their home, and would require a sterile institutional environment. Regulations would require kennels to employ a staff deemed sufficient, and formal training required.

Stiff fines and civil penalties for even minor violations,& penalties could be cumulative, with each dog and each day as a separate offense.

Maine Hunting Dogs

Dogs that kill or injure any domesticated animal could face a court order mandating euthanasia if LD 988 (same as HP 680) passes into law. This bill is scheduled for a hearing on Friday.

This bill would have particular meaning for people who hunt with dogs or compete in field trials, as animals that are technically domesticated can be encountered far from homes or farms. It even could include a hunting dog that is attacked by another dog, fights back in self-defense, and injures the assailant.

Under LD 988, the court could declare the dog dangerous and order euthanasia. There is no appeal.

A hearing on this legislation is scheduled for Friday, April 3, before the Joint Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry Committee at 11 a.m. in Room 206 of the Cross State Office Building in Augusta.

ASDA urges all Maine dog owners to attend and testify at this hearing if possible, and to submit comments by phone, mail, fax and/or email.

Here is a link showing each member of the committee. Select each official’s name for his or her home page & contact information: http://www.maine.gov/legis/house/jt_com/acf.htm .

Legislation is not sweet for dog owners: http://www.mainelegislature.org/leg...fs/HP068001.pdf .

Oklahoma Bill Ensnares Breeders

Legislation that will affect many people who raise dogs was rescheduled and will face a vote on Wed., April 1, by the Senate Appropriations Committee. If the committee approves the bill, it will be sent to the full Senate. The bill already passed the state House by a wide margin.

HB 1332 was originally scheduled for a vote on March 23, but intense efforts by people who raise dogs made its passage questionable. Thus, its sponsors asked for more time to lobby the senators, and to hold rallies by PETA and HSUS supporters on Tuesday March 31.
The committee vote is set for Room 419-C of the State Capitol Building. The time is listed only as after the session or after the Rules Committee meeting, which is set for either 1:30 p.m. or after the session.
We urge Oklahoma dog owners to contact Appropriations Committee members before Wednesday by phone, fax, mail or email to express opposition. Here is a link to the members of the committee: http://www.oksenate.gov/committees/...ropriations.htm . Click on each member’s name to locate contact information.

A rally of dog owners (organized by commercial breeders with the American Canine Association) is set for 9 a.m. Tuesday at the Capitol.

The legislation is the brainchild of the Oklahoma Veterinary Medical Association (OVMA).
A reading of the original bill was straight out of HSUS handbook for breeding laws.

HB 1332 requires anyone who sells or transfers 25 or more dogs and/or cats in a year to be licensed, inspected and regulated as a commercial kennel. Also includes private animal rescue groups.

Fines, penalties, animal seizures and license revocations are specified, but a kennel owner is not given opportunity to face a court of law. Appeals are administrative only, the Department of Agriculture becoming the cop, judge, jury and executioner.

HB 1332 : http://webserver1.lsb.state.ok.us/2...1332%5Fhflr.rtf .

Washington Bill Due For Vote

Legislation regulating people who raise dogs has passed the Senate in Washington, and also passed through a House committee. It passed by an 8-3 vote in the House Judiciary Committee on March 26, and now can be called for a final vote by the full House at any time.
Proponents of the legislation could not name a single instance when a problem at a kennel was not fully addressed by existing laws. The legislation specifically excludes any kennel that has a federal license.
The bill still specifically targets anyone who owns or possesses more than 10 sexually intact dogs over the age of six months.
The bill also effectively prohibits raising puppies in a home environment.

Link to the legislative summary: http://apps.leg.wa.gov/documents/bi...20JUDI%2009.pdf .

This link is the actual text of the amended bill: http://apps.leg.wa.gov/documents/bi...ls/5651-S.E.pdf .

The American Sporting Dog Alliance urges all Washington dog owners to contact as many state senators as possible to express opposition to SB 5651. List ofstate senators, with links to pages of full contact info: http://www.leg.wa.gov/Senate/Senators/ .

CROSS-POST AND FORWARD THIS REPORT TO YOUR FRIENDS

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SKY
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Author of the novel "Follow Jennifer"

This is the year allright. A liberal left wing President, plus a Senate and House that is the same and see what happens.
You that where going to so much better off. Wheeeeen!
He fires the Pres. of G.M. besause he lost billions now Obama is boss he has only put us trillions in debt that is going to help us common G.M. sales people and Dealers servive.Ha! Ha!
You have not seen anything yet like you are going to from animal rights groups and anti gun people!!!

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Tablerock

I agree - why aren't more people speaking out?

How many who participate on this board have contacted their legislators. The general public is pumping MILLIONS of $ into H$U$, convinced, by the tear-jerker ads on TV that H$U$ will actually spend their wealth doing some good instead of lining their pockets & furthering their goal of eliminating animals for any use, including those that are household & family pets.

__________________
SKY
___________________
Author of the novel "Follow Jennifer"