BILL ANALYSIS
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|Hearing Date:August 10, 2006 |Bill No:AB |
| |2862 |
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SENATE COMMITTEE ON BUSINESS, PROFESSIONS AND ECONOMIC
DEVELOPMENT
Senator Liz Figueroa, Chair
Bill No: AB 2862Author:Ridley-Thomas
As Amended:August 7, 2006Fiscal: Yes
SUBJECT: Sale of animals at retail animal outlets.
SUMMARY: Establishes standards governing the care and
maintenance of animals in pet stores, and places certain
reporting and consumer notification requirements on pet
store operators.
Existing law:
1)Requires pet shops, as defined, to do all of the
following:
a) Maintain sanitary pet housing facilities;
b) Provide proper heating and ventilation for housing
facilities;
c) Provide adequate nutrition and humane care and
treatment of animals;
d) Take reasonable care to release for sale, trade, or
adoption only those pet animals that are free of
disease or injuries;
e) Provide adequate space appropriate to the size,
weight, and species of pet animals; and,
f) Provide buyers of pet animals with general written
recommendations for the generally accepted care of the
class of pet animal sold in a form determined by the
pet shop.
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2)Prohibits a pet shop from selling an unweaned bird.
3)Requires pet dealers, as defined, to do all of the
following:
a) Maintain sanitary facilities for dogs;
b) Provide dogs with adequate nutrition and potable
water;
c) Provide adequate space appropriate to that dog;
d) Provide dogs housed on wire flooring with a rest
board, floormat, or similar device that can be
maintained in a sanitary condition;
e) Provide dogs with adequate socialization and
exercise; defined as physical contact with other dogs
or with human beings;
f) Maintain either a fire alarm system that is
connected to a central reporting station that alerts
the local fire department in case of fire, or a fire
suppression sprinkler system; and,
g) Provide veterinary care, without delay, when
necessary.
4)Prohibits the possession of any live chicks, rabbits,
ducklings, or other fowl for the purpose of sale or
display without adequate facilities for supplying food,
water and temperature control needed to maintain the
health of such fowl or rabbit.
5)Prohibits a pet dealer from possessing a dog that is less
than eight weeks old.
6)Requires pet dealers to provide to the purchaser of each
dog and cat at the time of sale a written statement in a
standardized form prescribed by the Department of
Consumer Affairs (DCA), containing certain information
regarding the breeder, the animal, medical history, for
dogs a record of veterinarian treatment, a statement that
the dog is free from disease or a record of any known
disease.
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7)Requires at the time of sale, the purchaser of a dog and
the pet dealer selling the dog, to sign a written
statement acknowledging receipt and accuracy of the
information contained on the DCA form.
8)Requires pet dealers to maintain a written record on the
health, status, disposition of each dog and each cat, and
all other information required to be disclosed to the
consumer or prospective consumer, for at least one year
after disposition of the dog or cat. The records must be
made available to humane officers, animal control
officers, and law enforcement officers for inspection
during normal business hours.
9)Requires retail dealers, as defined, to post
conspicuously on the cage of each dog offered for sale a
notice indicating the state where the dog was bred and
brokered.
10)Requires pet dealers to post conspicuously within close
proximity to the cages of dogs offered for sale, a notice
stating that information on the source of the dogs and
veterinary treatments received is available for review.
11)Provides that animal control officers are not peace
officers but may exercise the powers of arrest of a peace
officer and the power to serve warrants during the course
and within the scope of their employment, if they meet
specified criteria.
12)Provides that any person who maliciously and
intentionally maims, mutilates, tortures, or wounds a
living animal, or maliciously and intentionally kills an
animal is guilty of an offense punishable by imprisonment
in the state prison, or by a fine of not more than
$20,000, or by both the fine and imprisonment; or,
alternatively, by imprisonment in a county jail for not
more than one year, or by a fine of not more than
$20,000, or by both the fine and imprisonment.
13)Provides that any person who deprives of necessary
sustenance, drink, or causes or procures any animal to be
so deprived of necessary sustenance, drink, shelter, and
whoever, having the charge or custody of any animal,
either as owner or otherwise, subjects any animal to
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needless suffering, or inflicts unnecessary cruelty upon
the animal, or in any manner abuses any animal, or fails
to provide the animal with proper food, drink, or shelter
or protection from the weather, is guilty of a crime
punishable as a misdemeanor or as a felony.
14)Defines "Pet animals" as dogs, cats, monkeys and other
primates, rabbits, birds, guinea pigs, hamsters, mice,
snakes, iguanas, turtles, and any other species of animal
sold or retained for the purpose of being kept as a
household pet.
15)Defines "Pet shop" as every place or premises where pet
animals are kept for the purpose of either wholesale or
retail sale, excluding any place or premises where pet
animals are occasionally sold.
16)Defines "Pet shop," specific to the selling of birds, as
a retail pet shop location primarily engaged in retailing
pets, pet foods, and pet supplies, as defined by the
North American Industry Classification System.
17)Defines "pet dealer" as a person engaging in the
business of selling dogs and cats, or both, at retail,
with specified exemptions, including any entity that
breeds or rears dogs on the premises.
This bill:
1)Would define the following terms:
a) "Freedom of movement" means the opportunity for the
animal to move sufficiently to maintain normal muscle
tone and mass for the age, species, size, and
condition of the animal.
b) "Adequate space" means sufficient height and
sufficient floorspace for the caged animals to easily
stand up, sit down, and turn about freely using normal
body movements without the head touching the top of
the cage; lie in a natural position; and experience
necessary socialization with cage mates, if any.
However, when freedom of movement would endanger the
animal, temporarily and appropriately restricting
movement of the animal is considered provision of
adequate space.
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c) "Animal" means any nonhuman vertebrate species, and
includes rodents intended as food for reptiles.
d) "Enrichment" means providing objects or activities,
compatible with the needs of the species that
stimulate an animal and promote the animal's
well-being.
e) "Euthanasia" or "euthanize" means the humane
destruction of an animal accomplished by a method that
involves rapid unconsciousness and immediate death
with a minimum of pain and distress inflicted on the
animal, or by a method that involves anesthesia,
produced by an agent that causes painless loss of
consciousness, and death during the loss of
consciousness.
f) "Humane" means any action taken in consideration
of, and with the intent of providing for, the animal's
health and well-being.
g) "Impervious to moisture" means a surface that does
not permit the absorption of fluids, can be thoroughly
and repeatedly cleaned and disinfected, will not
retain odors, and from which fluids bead up and run
off or can be removed without their being absorbed
into the surface material.
h) "Intact" means an animal that retains its sexual
organs and has not undergone surgical sterilization by
a veterinarian.
i) "Person" means any individual, partnership, firm,
joint-stock company, corporation, association, trust,
estate, or other legal entity.
j) "Primary enclosure" means any structure used to
immediately restrict an animal or animals to a limited
amount of space and where the animal or animals will
reside until they are sold or transferred.
aa) "Pet store" means any retail establishment or
marketplace that has regular business hours and is
open to the public where animals are bought, sold,
exchanged, or offered for sale to the general public
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with the intent of making a profit where the animals
are intended as companions or household animals. This
term includes the keeping for transfer or the transfer
of animals at flea markets, department stores,
merchandise outlets, and discount outlets.
bb) "Pet store operator" or "operator of a pet store"
means any individual, firm, corporation, partnership,
other business unit, society, association, or other
legal entity, or public or private institution which
maintains, owns, or operates a pet store.
cc) "Rodent" means an animal of the Order Rodentia,
such as a guinea pig, rat, mouse, or hamster.
dd) "Sanitize" means to make physically clean and to
remove excreta, other waste material, dirt, and trash,
and to destroy to a practical minimum any agent that
is injurious to health.
ee) "Socialization" means physical contact with other
animals of the same species or with human beings.
ff) "Temporary enclosure" means any enclosure used to
house an animal when it is not in its primary
enclosure for a period not to exceed four hours. Any
use of an enclosure to house an animal for a period in
excess of four hours shall meet the requirements for a
primary enclosure.
gg) "Time of sale" means the calendar date the retail
purchaser removes the animal from the premises of the
pet store following the retail sale of that animal.
hh) "Veterinarian" means any person who is licensed by
the State of California under Chapter 11 (commencing
with Section 4800) of Division 2, or who is exempt
from licensing requirements pursuant to Section 4827
of the Business and Professions Code.
ii) "Veterinary treatment" means treatment by or on the
order of a licensed veterinarian.
jj) "Weaned" means any animal that does not require
hand feeding or human or animal assistance to sustain
at least 90 percent of its weight for a period of at
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least two weeks.
2)Would require pet stores operators or agents to do all of
the following:
a) Be present at least once a day to care for animals,
ensure each animal is handled in a humane manner that
ensures proper socialization, space and freedom of
movement, and wash hands before and after handling
infectious animals.
b) Ensure that, except for aquatic animals, animals in
transit for less than four hours, and during brief
periods of time for enclosure cleaning, animals have
access to clean, potable water, unless withholding
water is required to provide health care on the
written advice of a veterinarian. Stipulates snow and
ice are not adequate.
c) Feed birds and mammals at least once a day, except
as dictated by hibernation, veterinary treatment,
normal fasts, or other professionally accepted
practices. Feed reptiles, amphibians, crustaceans,
and fish on a frequency according to the species and
conditions. Ensure food is non-contaminated and that
food receptacles are appropriately located and cleaned
daily.
3)Would establish requirements for animal primary
enclosures including that they be structurally sound,
well maintained, built to be impervious to moisture,
constructed to provide animals with freedom of movement
and to prevent injury to the animal's feet and legs.
4)Would require that enclosures be cleaned as necessary,
and that animals be removed from primary enclosures when
enclosure is being cleaned using steam, pressurized
water, or any chemical that is harmful to the animal is
used; and that empty cages be kept clean.
5)Would set requirements for primary enclosures, including:
a) For cats, based on the number of cats, the
inclusion of litter pans, scratching posts, resting
surfaces, and food containers.
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b) For dogs, based on the number of dogs, the
inclusion of food and water containers and enrichment
devices, and certain cage size standards.
c) For rabbits, the inclusion of litter pans and
gnawing items, and certain cage size standards.
d) For guinea pigs, the inclusion of a burrow log or
nest box and gnawing item, a limit of one male per
enclosure, and certain cage size standards.
e) For rats and mice, the inclusion of a climbing
ladder, gnawing item, nest box or burrow log
sufficient to accommodate all housed rats or mice, and
exercise wheel.
f) For hamsters, the inclusion of the inclusion of a
gnawing item, a nest box or burrow log, and exercise
wheel. Requires that only one hamster be housed per
enclosure.
g) For birds, the inclusion of perches, perch space,
one enrichment device per every two birds. Would
establish standards for cage sizes.
h) For ducks, chickens, and pheasants or other birds
that primarily stand on the floor, that enclosures be
strong enough to prevent the animal's feet from
passing through floor openings, and the inclusion of a
rest board and floor mat.
i) Requires aquariums and ponds be designed to
maintain a clean and healthful condition, that they be
inspected daily, and that dead fish be immediately
removed.
j) Requires that primary enclosures containing
infectious animals during and after each occupancy
with an effective disinfectant.
6)Would require pet store operators to ensure necessary
veterinary care is provided to ill or injured animals.
7)Would require pet stores to maintain, post, and abide by
written animal husbandry procedures, as outlined. Would
require employees caring for animals to review these
procedures. Would require stores to follow humane
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euthanasia protocols as established by the American
Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA).
8)Would require pet store operators to provide adequate
temperatures, lighting, inspection and cleaning for
animal housing, based on the animal.
9)Would prohibit a pet store from offering a life animal as
a prize or promotion.
10)Would prohibit pet store operators from selling dogs and
cats under the age of eight weeks, or dogs or cats that
are not weaned.
11)Would require pet store operators to keep records, for
at least two years after the date of acquisition, and to
be provided to the purchaser, regarding the spay or
neuter procedures, vaccines administered, and permanent
identification.
12)Would require that for single-day animal adoption events
conducted by nonprofit organizations are excluded from
these provisions.
13)Would allow animal control, law enforcement and humane
officers to conduct investigations to ensure compliance,
and allow officers to issue correction notices requiring
violations to be remedied in 14 days, or 24 hours if
animal welfare is a concern.
14)Would make a violation of this chapter punishable as an
infraction (fine up to $250 per animal) or misdemeanor
(fine up to $1000 and/or six months in county jail).
15)Would provide that this chapter does not preclude
prosecution under state animal cruelty laws.
16)Contains an urgency clause that would make the
provisions of this bill operative immediately.
17)Makes the following uncodified findings and
declarations:
a) It is the intent of the Legislature to establish
standards of care for animals in pet stores.
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b) Standards of care for animals in pet stores are
essential to ensure the humane treatment of animals,
safeguard the public, and are in the public interest.
c) The Legislature does not intend, by adding Chapter
8 (commencing with Section 122340) to Part 6 of
Division 105 of the Health and Safety Code, to
regulate the care or handling of animals in or on
farms, ranches, livestock or horse auctions, livestock
markets, slaughtering facilities, or any place other
than pet stores as defined in that chapter.
FISCAL EFFECT: According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee, unknown, likely minor, non-reimbursable costs to
cities and counties for investigation, prosecution, and
potential incarceration, offset to some extent by fine
revenues.
COMMENTS:
1.Purpose. According to the Author, this bill is intended
to address concerns that California's existing laws
governing the care and treatment of animals in pet stores
are vague and include loopholes resulting in animals
suffering from injury and illness, due to lack of
veterinary treatment, spotty sanitation, and overcrowded
housing. The Author notes that existing laws also places
public health and consumer protection at risk due to the
lack of detailed standards.
The sponsor is the Animal Protection Institute (API).
According to API, twenty-seven states and the District of
Columbia have enacted laws that establish humane care
standards for animals kept in pet stores, and while
California's existing laws compare favorably to those
enacted in many other states, a recent investigation by
the sponsor revealed weaknesses. The sponsor argues that
in their study of state pet shops, they found existing
statutes governing veterinary treatment to be vague and
difficult to enforce, that several of the protections are
limited to dogs and cats, and that housing, sanitation,
and veterinary laws needed to be strengthened.
2.Background. Since 1966, the federal Animal Welfare Act
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has regulated the treatment of animals by dealers, in
exhibitions, in research, and in transport, but not in
pet stores. California law, within the Penal Code,
establishes general legal protections for animals in pet
stores, enforcement is complaint driven with local animal
control agencies as the primary enforcement agency. The
Health and Safety Code establishes additional protections
for cats and dogs. To some degree, the provisions
contained in this bill already apply to cats and dogs.
This bill proposes to extend similar protections, with
more precise definitions of appropriate care, to other
animals.
3.Adequacy of existing laws. PETCO and the Pet Industry
Joint Advisory Council (PIJAC) oppose this bill arguing,
in part, that existing laws already provide for tough
penalties in cases of abuse or neglect.
However, the Sponsor points to their internal undercover
investigation of California pet shops conducted in the
spring of 2005 which found, among other things, that 64%
of stores surveyed failed to provide required written
documentation on animal care and housing requirements to
consumers. Further, API found that many of the state's
laws fail to provide sufficient protection for the
animals. For example, API found 32% of stores keeping
animals in cages with unsanitary conditions, and 25% of
stores not providing sanitary food or water. The
opponents question the validity of the report and note
that this investigation was conducted by API and is not
an independent investigation.
As other evidence pet store problems, however, the
Sponsor points to the 2002 California Superior Court case
in which the city and county of San Francisco brought
charges against PETCO for failing to comply with numerous
animal welfare citations. Between 1999 and 2002 the San
Francisco Department of Animal Care and Control (ACC)
issued numerous notices and citations to PETCO for
various offenses, including failure to provide veterinary
treatment, placing animals in freezers as a euthanasia
practice, overcrowding animals in cages, failing to
provide water, overheating animals, and selling sick
animals.
The Sponsor argues that this bill will establish clear
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care standards for animals in pet stores, and will
provide needed enforcement tools for animal control
agencies.
4.Care requirements. Opponents argue that this bill
creates inappropriate standards that would be more
appropriate as regulations rather than codes. However,
as there is no state government oversight entity charged
with regulating the pet store industry, and enforcement
is governed by local jurisdictions and is complaint
driven, it is appropriate for California to enact
detailed statutes governing the industry.
Further, the Sponsor argues that existing law allows for
lack of sanitation which can "expose animals to deadly
bacteria, viruses, or fungi that can cause illness or
death and that can pose public health and safety risks to
humans." The Sponsor notes that diseases that can be
transmitted from animals in pet stores to humans include
salmonellosis, ringworm, scabies, psittacosis, and
lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus.
5.Record keeping requirements. Opponents originally argued
that this bill created burdensome record keeping
requirements that, in some cases, would be impossible for
pet store operators to meet. The requirements for record
keeping have been significantly reduced to only require
that stores keep records for two years after the sale on
the spay or neuter procedures, vaccines administered, and
permanent identification.
6.Breeders. There have been some concerns raised among
animal breeders, specifically bird breeders, that this
bill would place requirements on breeders. This bill
applies to pet stores and defines pet stores in such a
way that breeders would not be covered unless they also
maintained regular retail business hours and were open to
the public.
7.Arguments in Support. The Animal Protection Institute
(API) argues that their study of pet store issues found
that existing California laws do not protect against
abuse, neglect, and abandonment of animals in pet stores.
API argues that this bill creates clear, measurable
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standards to allow for better care of animals and
improved consumer protection.
Best Friends Animal Society notes that healthy,
well-socialized animals make better companions and tend
to stay with their human families for longer periods of
time, thereby benefiting families, improving animal
welfare, and reducing the pressure on animal rescues and
shelters.
8.Arguments in Opposition. The Pet Industry Joint Advisory
Council (PIJAC), a trade group representing over 500 pet
retails and products suppliers, argues that California
already has an extensive body of law dictating the
conduct of pet stores with respect to the sale and
keeping of live animals, and that the USDA maintains
strong laws governing transportation and care of animals.
PIJAC argues that this bill is overly restrictive, that
the policies on treatment and disease transmission and
euthanasia are expensive and time consuming, that the
housing standards and the rodent enrichments standards
are impractical, that avian requirements are unclear,
that the sale age limitations are inappropriate for some
animals, that the record keeping requirements are overly
burdensome, and that it is inappropriate to have
nongovernmental entities, which could include
competition, inspect retail stores.
PETCO shares many of the concerns noted above, and also
argues that the measure is substantially duplicative of
existing pet laws and regulations, that many parts of the
bill are ambiguous, and that what is needed is
enforcement of existing laws.
9.Technical Amendments. There are several provisions that
appear to be inadvertently duplicated within the bill.
Committee staff has spoken with the Sponsor and Author
about these duplications, and the Author/Sponsor has
agreed to take the needed technical amendments to
eliminate the duplications in the Senate Appropriations
Committee.
SUPPORT AND OPPOSITION:
Support:
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Animal Protection Institute (Sponsor)
American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals
Animal Legislative Action Network
Animal Switchboard
Association of Veterinarians for Animal Rights
Avian Welfare Coalition
Best Friends Animal Society
California Animal Association
California Animal Control Directors Association
California Federation for Animal Legislation
Channel Islands Animal Protection Association
Coalition for Pets and Public Safety
East Bay Animal Advocates
House Rabbit Society
Humane Society of the United States
In Defense of Animals
Indonesian Parrot Project/Project Bird Watch
Mickaboo Cockatiel Rescue
Parrots First
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals
Reigning Cats and Dogs
San Diego Animal Advocates
Sacramento SPCA
Tailwaggers Pet Food and Supplies
The Wild Connection
United Animal Nations
3 Individuals
Opposition:
American Federation of Aviculture, Inc
Avicultural Society of America
The Animal Council
Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council
PETCO Animal Supplies Inc.
Numerous Individuals
Consultant: Laura Metune