BILL ANALYSIS SB 250 Page 1 SENATE THIRD READING SB 250 (Florez) As Amended August 31, 2009 Majority vote SENATE VOTE :21-16 BUSINESS & PROFESSIONS 6-4 APPROPRIATIONS 9-5 ----------------------------------------------------------------- |Ayes:|Hayashi, Eng, Hernandez, |Ayes:|De Leon, Ammiano, Coto, | | |Nava, | |Fuentes, John A. Perez, | | |John A. Perez, Ruskin | |Skinner, Solorio, | | | | |Torlakson, Hill | | | | | | |-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------| |Nays:|Emmerson, Conway, Niello, |Nays:|Conway, Charles Calderon, | | |Smyth | |Miller, Nielsen, Audra | | | | |Strickland | ----------------------------------------------------------------- SUMMARY : Restricts the ownership of unsterilized dogs and cats and requires surgical sterilization of the animal in specified circumstances. Specifically, this bill : 1)Requires a dog owner to obtain a license for their dog pursuant to current law or as required by the local licensing agency. 2)Prohibits a person from owning, keeping, or harboring an unsterilized dog in violation of this bill. 3)Requires an owner or custodian of an unsterilized dog to have the dog sterilized by the age of six months, obtain a certificate of sterility, or, as provided by an ordinance of the responsible city, county, or city and county, to obtain an unaltered dog license in accordance with this bill, as specified. 4)Exempts from the requirements of this bill any dog with a high likelihood, due to age or infirmity, of suffering serious bodily harm or death if surgically sterilized and the owner or custodian shall obtain written confirmation of this fact from a veterinarian licensed in this state. Additionally, if the SB 250 Page 2 dog is able to be sterilized at a later date, that date shall be stated in the written confirmation; however, if the date is more than 30 days after the date that the owner or custodian receives that confirmation, the owner or custodian shall apply for an unaltered dog license pursuant to any applicable city, city and county, or county ordinance. 5)Authorizes the licensing agency to utilize its existing procedures or establish procedures for the denial or revocation of an unaltered dog license and may deny or revoke a license for one or more of the following reasons: a) The owner, custodian, applicant or licensee is not in compliance with all of the requirements of this bill; b) The owner, custodian, applicant, or licensee has violated a state law, or city, county, or other local governmental provisions relating to the care and control of animals; c) Any unaltered dog license held by the applicant has been revoked for violating a state law, or a city, county, or other local government provisions relating to the care or control of animals; d) The license application is discovered to contain a material misrepresentation or omission of fact; or, e) If the owner or custodian of a dog with an unaltered dog license is cited for permitting the dog to roam at large, the license of the dog shall not be subject to revocation for a first violation, if at the time the dog roams at large the dog possess a current license, as specified. 6)Authorizes the licensing agency to utilize its existing procedures or establish procedures for any appeal of a denial or revocation of an unaltered dog license, which appeal procedure may include written notice of the denial or revocation and a reasonable opportunity for the owner or custodian to respond. 7)Authorizes the licensing agency to assess a fee for the procedures related to the issuance, denial, or revocation of an unaltered dog license consistent with this bill. SB 250 Page 3 8)Requires an owner or custodian who offers any unsterilized dog for sale, trade, or adoption to notify the licensing agency of the name and address of the transferee within 10 days after the transfer, as specified. 9)Specifies that any authorized penalty may be imposed upon an owner or custodian of an unlicensed, unaltered dog for a violation of this bill only if the owner or custodian has concurrently violated one or more of the following: a) Permitting the subject dog to roam at large; b) Failure to provide adequate care for the subject dog in violation of animal cruelty provisions; c) Rabies quarantine violations of the subject dog; d) Fighting dog activity in violation of the Penal Code, as specified; e) Failure to comply with the local jurisdiction's requirements for the keeping of a dog that has been adjudicated by a court or an agency of appropriate jurisdiction to be potentially dangerous, dangerous, or vicious; and, f) Failure to possess an unaltered dog license. 10)Requires any owner or custodian of an unaltered dog who is found to be subject to certain penalties to surgically sterilize the unaltered animal in accordance with this bill, and provide the licensing agency written verification from a licensed veterinarian that the dog has been sterilized. Authorizes the licensing agency to utilize existing procedures on the effective date of this bill for any appeal of this requirement. 11)Authorizes the licensing agency to provide the owner or custodian information as to the availability of sterilization services for free or at a reduced cost, at the time a citation is issued. 12)Specifies that if an unlicensed unaltered dog or cat is SB 250 Page 4 impounded pursuant to state or local law, in addition to satisfying applicable requirements of the release of the animal, including, but not limited to, payment of impound fees, the owner or custodian shall: a) Provide written proof of the dog or cat's prior sterilization, if conditions cannot or do not make this assessment obvious to the licensing agency personnel; b) Have the dog or cat surgically sterilized by a veterinarian associated with the licensing agency at the expense of the owner or custodian, which may include additional fees due to any extraordinary care required; c) Have the dog or cat surgically sterilized by another veterinarian licensed in this state; or, d) Pay a refundable deposit, or sign a statement under penalty of perjury that the dog or cat will be surgically sterilized within 10 days of the dog's or cat's release, at the discretion of the licensing agency, as specified. 13)Authorizes the licensing agency to waive any impoundment fee, cost, or fine, if upon the first impoundment the owner or custodian of the unlicensed unaltered dog: a) Secures a license for the subject dog, as specified; and, b) Sterilizes the subject dog in accordance with this bill. 14)Authorizes the licensing agency to impose any existing fine or penalty, consistent with this bill, against the owner or custodian of the subject dog for failure to provide any required sterilization information, including denial of an unaltered license. Permits the licensing agency to utilize procedures as they exist on the effective date of this bill for any appeal of this requirement. 15)Specifies that the owner or custodian of the unaltered dog or cat shall be responsible for the established costs of impoundment, which may include daily board costs, vaccination, medication, and any other diagnostic or therapeutic applications as required by this bill. SB 250 Page 5 16)Specifies that any fee imposed pursuant to this bill shall still be applicable to an owner or custodian who surrenders a dog subject to this bill. 17)Specifies that all costs and fines collected pursuant to this bill shall be paid to the licensing agency for the purpose of defraying the cost of the implementation and enforcement of this bill. 18)Specifies that this bill shall not be construed to prevent any local governing body from adopting requirements that are more stringent than those set forth in this bill. 19)Exempts the following from the provisions of this bill, provided the subject dog is licensed as specified: a) Any owner or breeder of a dog used in the business of shepherding, herding, or guarding livestock; b) Any owner or breeder of a dog used in the business of cultivating agricultural products; c) Any owner or breeder of a dog used for hunting or for purposes of field trials, provided the owner or breeder has lawfully purchased a hunting license; d) Any owner or trainer of a guide dog, signal dog, or service dog; and, e) Any owner or trainer of a peace officer's or firefighter's dog. 20)Prohibits any person who owns, keeps, or harbors any unsterilized cat six months of age or older to allow or permit that unsterilized cat to roam at large. 21)Requires an owner or custodian of an unsterilized cat who permits that cat to roam at large to have the animal sterilized, or obtain a certificate of sterility. 22)Exempts these requirements from a cat with a high likelihood, due to age or infirmity, of suffering serious bodily harm or death if sterilized, if the owner or custodian obtains written SB 250 Page 6 confirmation of this fact from a veterinarian licensed in this state, as specified. 23)Requires an owner or custodian who offers any unsterilized cat for sale, trade, or adoption to notify the licensing agency, if the jurisdiction requires the licensing of cats, of the name and address of the transferee within 10 days of the transfer, including microchip or license information, as specified. 24)Requires the owner or custodian of a subject cat requiring surgical sterilization under this bill to provided written verification from a licensed veterinarian that the subject cat has been sterilized, and authorizes the licensing agency to impose a penalty not to exceed $100 per day, in addition to any other existing penalty against the owner or custodian if the owner or custodian fails to provide the required sterilization information. Authorizes the licensing agency to utilize procedures as they exist on the effective date of this bill for any appeal of this requirement. 25)Specifies that any fee imposed pursuant to this bill shall still be applicable to an owner or custodian who surrenders a cat subject to this bill. EXISTING LAW : 1)Prohibits public pounds and private shelters from selling or giving away any dog or cat that has not been spayed or neutered, as specified. 2)Provides, under certain circumstances, for the sale or giving away of a dog or cat that has not been spayed or neutered upon the payment of a refundable deposit, as specified. 3)Provides for the imposition of fines or civil penalties against the owner of a nonspayed or unneutered dog or cat that is impounded by a public pound or private shelter. 4)Immunizes cities and counties, societies for the prevention of cruelty to animals, and humane societies from an action by the owner of a dog or cat for spaying or neutering the dog or cat in accordance with the law. SB 250 Page 7 5)Makes a violation of any of these provisions an infraction, punishable as specified. FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Assembly Appropriations Committee, the Animal Adoption mandate currently costs more than $20 million annually to reimburse local government shelters' cost to care for impounded animals. Requiring owners of cats and dogs to sterilize their animals or pay for a more expensive unsterilized animal license, could result in more animals being abandoned or surrendered because of the owner's inability to afford sterilization or increased fees and fines. Under the current mandate, the state only reimburses shelters for the cost of caring for animals that are euthanized, not for the cost of caring for animals that are ultimately adopted. While exact figures are not available, studies show that at least 60% of animals that enter shelters are ultimately euthanized. A modest 2% increase in shelter costs could result in $400,000 in additional General Fund (GF) costs. To the extent conformance with the bill's requirements eventually reduces the number of cats and dogs impounded to animal shelters, local governments could realize savings and thus may reduce the GF reimbursement for the local mandate over the long term. The 2009-10 Budget suspended the current animal adoption mandate which requires local animal shelters to hold their pets for four to six days before euthanizing them. Due to the suspension, there are no potential GF costs or savings associated with this legislation in 2009-10. However, that suspension is for one year only. COMMENTS : According to the author's office, "It costs California taxpayers approximately $250 million each year to house and euthanize dogs and cats. Part of the problem is that there are few incentives for pet owners to license their animals - which would ensure fewer lost or roaming pets. In addition, local animal shelters are overwhelmed by the State's pet overpopulation problem (approximately 1 million dogs & cats enter our shelters each year) because there are few laws which discourage over-breeding and no existing laws that encourage sterilization of non-breeding animals. SB 250 Page 8 "SB 250 would help reduce the amount of unwanted pets that roam the streets and end up in our shelters and would encourage responsible pet ownership by requiring owners to license, sterilize their animals or purchase an unaltered license if they intend to keep their pets intact." Tackling the problems caused by dog and cat overpopulation requires the combined efforts of animal owners, pet breeders, veterinarians, private organizations, local officials, and state leaders. Many owners and breeders already control the number and sizes of their animals' litters. Many veterinarians contribute their services to free and low-cost spay and neuter programs. Private organizations actively educate the public about overpopulation problems and solutions. Local officials have adopted tough ordinances to curb dog and cat overpopulation. Yet despite these efforts and some successes, California still endures the problems caused by overpopulation. Not all animal owners are responsible, however. Uncontrolled litters result in inappropriate cross-breeding, feral cats, and unwanted dogs. Those who fail to take personal responsibility for their animals create expensive problems for all taxpayers. This bill confronts the problem of dog and cat overpopulation by imposing strict parameters on the owners of unaltered dogs and cats. Owning and caring for dogs and cats is deeply emotional for many people. Although most animal owners acknowledge the public health and public finance problems caused by dog and cat overpopulation, many oppose government requirements for spaying or neutering. While there is support for altering abandoned animals that will be released from public animal shelters, many oppose the mandatory spaying and neutering of owned animals. Some owners resent even the existing state and local limits on how they treat their animals, believing that these decisions are best left to the owners themselves. Analysis Prepared by : Rebecca May / B. & P. / (916) 319-3301 FN: 0002723