California Legislative Alerts available from Fund for Animals

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California legislative alert 1/7/02To receive timely e-mail action alerts,

send a message to: <vhandley with subject: alert.

Include your full name, snail mail address, phone, and the animal

organization you represent, if any. Alerts are usually e-mailed weekly while

the Legislature is in session.

 

 

 

Rose Lernberg [lernberg]

Sunday, January 06, 2002 3:14 AM

California legislative alert 1/7/02

 

 

If you do not wish to continue receiving this alert, send a message to

<vhandley with UNSUBSCRIBE on the subject line. Send a copy of the

message to <lernberg

 

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YOU CAN OBTAIN OFFICIAL LEGISLATIVE INFORMATION by going to web site;

http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/bilinfo.html

 

By entering the number of the bill, you can access the bill text, committee

analyses, and roll call votes.

 

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THE FUND FOR ANIMALS INC.

 

Fort Mason Center

San Francisco, California 94123

415/474-4020 fax: 415/474-5323

e-mail: vhandley

National Office: 200 W. 57th St., New York, NY 10019

Cleveland Amory, Founder

Virginia Handley, California Coordinator

 

 

January 7, 2002

 

 

2002 California Legislation‹Action Alert

 

 

 

This list was prepared by Virginia Handley and Rose Lernberg.

 

 

Address for all legislators and Governor Gray Davis: State Capitol Building,

Sacramento, CA 95814 (916/322-9900)

 

 

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Activists who want to help with animal legislation are welcome to

legislative meetings.

Monday, January 7, 10 A.M. ­ 1 P.M.: Room 2040, State Capitol Building,

Sacramento.

A discussion of expected and possible legislation for 2002.

Call The Fund for Animals, 415/474-4020, for more information.

 

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Assembly Bills:

 

 

AB 670 by Assemblywoman Virginia Strom-Martin being amended Animal Abuse

Support

Originally concerned funds for libraries and animal control. AB 670 will be

amended to require that child protective agencies report possible animal

abuse. Animal control and humane officers are currently required to report

possible child abuse. Next Hearing: Not yet assigned to committee, but must

be heard by mid-January.

Write to: Assemblywoman Strom-Martin. Thank her for introducing AB 670.

 

AB 1336 by Assemblyman Paul Koretz being amended Pet Shops Support

Originally mandated the spaying/neutering of dogs and cats from pet stores.

This was defeated. AB 1336 will be amended to require that pet stores give

buyers information on the benefits of spaying/neutering, veterinary care,

and licensing. Next Hearing: Assembly Business & Professions Committee on

January 8.

Tell the legislators that buyers of dogs and cats need information and

encouragement to be responsible and humane. Write to: Your Assembly Member

and Assemblyman Lou Correa, Chair, Assembly Business and Professions

Committee. Also thank Assemblyman Koretz for introducing AB 1336. Other

committee members are: Assembly Members John Campbell (Vice Chair), Russ

Bogh, Gil Cedillo, Ed Chavez, Ellen Corbett, David Kelley, Paul Koretz,

Lynne Leach, Barbara Matthews, Joe Nation, and Herb Wesson.

 

 

Senate Bills:

 

 

SB 236 by Senator Jack O¹Connell being amended Humane Education No

position yet

Originally required breeder/seller registration and microchipping. A new

bill will be introduced on that topic and SB 236 will be amended, probably

concerning humane education. The new version of SB 236 has not yet been

completely drafted. Next Hearing: Probably Senate Education Committee on

January 16.

 

SB 1210 by Senator Gloria Romero amended 5/21/01 Traveling

Circuses/Carnivals Support

Requires a traveling circus or carnival to provide the local animal control

agency where it will be performing with a plan for recapture if an animal

escapes, a list of names and credentials of all animal keepers and handlers,

and a list of all exhibited animals and the history of any that have posed a

threat to the public in the past. Next Hearing: Senate Judiciary Committee

on January 15.

Tell the legislators that animal control/humane societies need this

information for the safety of the animals and their public. Write to: Your

State Senator and Senator Martha Escutia, Chair, Senate Judiciary Committee.

Also thank Senator Romero for introducing SB 1210. Other committee members

are: Senators Ray Haynes (Vice Chair), Dick Ackerman, Sheila Kuehl, Jack

O'Connell, Steve Peace, and Byron Sher.

 

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Commission on State Mandates: 980 Ninth Street, Suite 300, Sacramento CA

95814. (916) 323-3562

 

The Commission declared on January 25, 2001 that the State must reimburse

cities/counties for increased costs incurred by SB 1785 (1998) including

veterinary care and maintenance for strays but, unfortunately, not for owner

surrendered animals. On August 23rd, the Commission directed staff to do

additional research on the ³Parameters and Guidelines² that will determine

the amount of money involved. Without funding, shelters will continue to be

overcrowded, diseased, and turn away animals in need for lack of space. Next

Hearing: Possibly January 24.

Write to: The Commission. Ask them to provide the funding for the

increased sheltering and veterinary care that SB 1785 requires for the

animals. Refer to the Test Claim on Animal Adoption, 98-TC-11. Also write to

your local animal control agency, City Council, and County Board of

Supervisors. Ask them to participate in this process so that your

city/county gets funds to pay for the increased sheltering and veterinary

care that SB 1785 requires for the animals.

 

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California Fish and Game Commission/Department 1416 Ninth St., Sacramento,

CA 95814

 

Live Animal Markets Oppose

The Legislature passed AB 238 and AB 2479 last year. AB 2479 addressed

inhumane aspects of the live animal markets but neither bill addressed

environmental issues of non-native species, imported by the hundreds of

thousands, endangering our native wildlife such as pond turtles and

red-legged frogs. Recently Chinese turtles have been found in the markets,

adding to the number of illegal and non-native species.

Write to: California Fish and Game Commission. Tell the Commissioners

that only an importation ban will protect turtles from being decimated in

the wild in other states, and protect our California wildlife from the

devastating effects of non-native turtles and frogs being released into

California waters. Tell them to enforce existing Fish and Game Code laws and

regulations.

Also write to: Mayor Willie Brown, City Hall, San Francisco 94102. Ask

him to enforce AB 2479 in San Francisco¹s markets, which he now refuses to

do. After years of hearings. lawsuits, guidelines, meetings, and

demonstrations, there is no improvement.

 

Hunting and Trapping Regulations Oppose

The Department is proposing increases in the number of bears to be hunted,

in junior hunts, and in archery hunts. Trappers want a longer bobcat season

and want to establish a red fox trapping season.

Write to: California Fish and Game Commission. Tell the Commissioners

that they should represent all Californians, not just hunters and trappers.

Children should be taught to respect and appreciate wildlife, not to exploit

and kill. Also, tell them that trappers should not be allowed to kill

animals by any method not approved by the American Veterinary Medical

Association.

Also write to: Governor Gray Davis. Tell him to appoint wildlife

advocates to the Commission, which has two vacancies.

 

Regulations on Wild Animals in Captivity

Animal Protection Institute and The Fund for Animals have sued the

California Department of Fish and Game in California Superior Court to

require them to enforce existing laws and regulations on captive wildlife

(circuses, zoos, dealers, sanctuaries) by convening an advisory committee

and entering into ³memorandums of understanding² with local agencies such as

humane societies to inspect permittees.

Write to: The California Fish and Game Commission and Robert Hight,, Department of Fish and Game. Ask them to enforce existing laws and

regulations on captive wildlife. Tell them that our California laws and

regulations are strong but useless unless enforced.

 

Fish and Game Commission Meetings: Friday, February 8, 10 A.M. and Saturday,

February 9, 8:30 A.M., Resources Building Auditorium, 1416 Ninth St.,

Sacramento. On February 9, the Commission will take comments and suggestions

on the upcoming regulations. Call The Fund for Animals (415/474-4020) for

more information.

 

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California Food and Agriculture Department:

 

 

Fallow Deer Farm Regulations Oppose

Adopted regulations for ³Safe and Humane Handling and Transportation of

Fallow Deer to Custom Livestock Slaughter Establishments.² They include a

prohibition on electric prods and mandate space for lying down after one

hour of transport. AB 1173 (2000) required these regulations as well as

regulations for the slaughter and processing of fallow deer meat. By

changing ³shall² to ³should,² the Department eliminated and weakened

previously proposed mandates to provide socialization (introducing the deer

to one another before loading to minimize fighting), direct routes to the

final destination without delay, sand for secure footing, and immediate

unloading.

 

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Updates: (Bills are usually dropped because they would fail if taken to a

vote.)

 

AB 168 by Assemblyman Joe Nation. Agriculture Classes. Support. DROPPED

Would have eliminated the exemption of agriculture classes from the

prohibition against causing pain and injury to animals in elementary and

high schools. AB 168 was dropped when a Memorandum of Under-standing was

signed by The Humane Society of the United States and the Agricultural

Teachers Association in which the Association agreed to follow the

California Food and Agriculture Code. The stated purpose is ³to ensure that

humane and industry-accepted standards of animal husbandry are followed as

part of the instructional program in agricultural education in California.²

AB 168 is being changed to another subject.

 

SB 430 by Senator Edward Vincent. Income Tax Credit. Support. DROPPED

Would have allowed a credit up to $100 per animal for the actual cost of

spaying/neutering a cat or dog adopted from a shelter, rescue group,

breeder, or pet store in California until December 1, 2006.

 

SB 550 by Senator Jim Costa. Endangered Species. Oppose. DROPPED

Would have extended indefinitely the exemption from the California

Endangered Species Act of the accidental killing of candidate, threatened,

or endangered species resulting from negligence on a farm in the course of

otherwise lawful activities.

 

SB 889 by Senator Richard Polanco. Wild Animals. Support. DROPPED

Would have prohibited anyone from owning, transporting, buying, selling, or

transferring birds, fish, and reptiles listed under Fish and Game Code

Section 2118 for the purposes of injuring or killing them for gain,

amusement, or sport.

 

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To express support or opposition, write a brief letter or postcard to the

legislators listed under the bill, especially to your own legislator if s/he

is on the committee hearing a bill. Write on one bill per letter. You may

enclose several letters to the same legislator in one envelope. Please send

us responses you receive; the feedback is very important. If you represent

an organization, send us your letters of support or opposition and we will

distribute them for you if you like.

 

You're welcome to call us for last-minute developments. We also have copies

of all bills listed. Write to The Fund for Animals, or call Virginia Handley

(415/474-4020) or Rose Lernberg (510/527-2194).

 

You can obtain official legislative information by going to web site

http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/bilinfo.html

By entering the number of the bill, you can access the bill text, the status

of the bill, committee analyses, and roll call votes.

 

To receive timely e-mail action alerts, send a message to:

<vhandley with subject: alert. Include your full name,

snail mail address, phone, and the animal organization you represent, if

any. Alerts are usually e-mailed weekly while the Legislature is in session.

 

To find the names of your State Assembly Member and State Senator, call us

or (916)319-2856, (916)445-4251, or your County Registrar of Voters, or

check the web at <http://www.fund.org/action/lac>, or look in front of your

local phone book under California Assembly and California Senate.

 

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For free presentations to groups anywhere in California on animal

legislation and the legislative process, contact Virginia Handley of The

Fund for Animals (415/474-4020).

 

For a 2001 voting record of the State Legislature, contact Paw PAC, P.O. Box

475012, San Francisco, CA 94147-5012 (415/646-0622)

 

For a postcard alert when your state legislator is hearing a bill targeted

by the Humane Legislative Network, contact the Humane Legislative Network,

P.O. Box 3110, San Diego, CA 92163-1110 (619/296-7409). HLN¹s web site:

www.cahln.org

 

This alert will be posted on the Humane Legislative Network's web site. See

previous item.

 

If you belong to a group, ask them to join the California Federation for

Animal Legislation, 9 Agoura Court, Sacramento, CA 95838 (916/922-8285).

 

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THE END