BILL NUMBER: AB 258 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 20, 2011
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Hagman
(Coauthors: Assembly Members Atkins, Beth Gaines,
Garrick, Halderman, Mansoor, Perea, and Smyth)
FEBRUARY 7, 2011
An act to amend Section 121690 of the Health and Safety Code,
relating to rabies.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 258, as amended, Hagman. Rabies: vaccinations.
Existing law imposes various requirements upon dog owners in
rabies areas designated by the State Public Health Officer. Any
person who violates these requirements is guilty of an infraction,
punishable by a fine not exceeding $1,000. Violation of these
requirements also results in impounding of the dog by the local
jurisdiction. Among the requirements imposed under existing law is
that a dog 4 months of age or older must be vaccinated against
rabies.
This bill would exempt from the vaccination requirement a dog
whose life would be endangered due to disease or other considerations
that a veterinarian can verify and document if the dog
received the vaccine, as determined by a licensed veterinarian on an
annual basis. The bill would also require a dog that is exempt from
the vaccination requirement to be confined to the premises of the
owner, keeper, or harborer and would require, if the dog is off the
premises of the owner, keeper, or harborer, the dog to be on a leash
not to exceed 6 feet in length and to be under the direct physical
control of an adult.
Existing law authorizes a city, city and county, or county to
provide, by ordinance, for the issuance of a license for a dog that
has attained the age of 4 months or older and has been vaccinated
against rabies. Under existing law, the license period shall not
extend beyond the remaining period of validity for the current rabies
vaccination.
This bill would prohibit, in the event that a dog is exempted from
the vaccination requirement, the license period from extending
beyond one year.
By imposing a higher level of service upon local agencies and by
changing the definition of a crime, this bill would impose a
state-mandated local program.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local
agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the
state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that
reimbursement.
This bill would provide that with regard to certain mandates no
reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.
With regard to any other mandates, this bill would provide that,
if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains
costs so mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall
be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: yes.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 121690 of the Health and Safety Code is amended
to read:
121690. In rabies areas, all of the following shall apply:
(a) Every dog owner, after his or her dog attains the age of four
months, shall no less than once every two years secure a license for
the dog as provided by ordinance of the responsible city, city and
county, or county. License fees shall be fixed by the responsible
city, city and county, or county, at an amount not to exceed
limitations otherwise prescribed by state law or city, city and
county, or county charter.
(b) (1) Every dog owner, after his or her dog attains the age of
four months, shall, at intervals of time not more often than once a
year, as may be prescribed by the department, procure its vaccination
by a licensed veterinarian with a canine antirabies vaccine approved
by, and in a manner prescribed by, the department, unless a licensed
veterinarian determines, on an annual basis, that a rabies
vaccination would endanger the dog's life due to disease or other
considerations that the veterinarian can verify and document
. The responsible city, county, or city and county may specify
the means by which the dog owner is required to provide proof of his
or her dog's rabies vaccination, including, but not limited to, by
electronic transmission or facsimile.
(2) A request for an exemption from the requirements of this
subdivision shall be signed by the veterinarian
submitted on an approved form developed by the department
stating and shall include a signed statement
by the veterinarian explaining the inadvisability of the
vaccination, and shall include vaccination and
a signed statement by the dog owner affirming that the owner
understands the consequences and accepts all liability associated
with owning a dog that has not received the canine antirabies
vaccine. The request shall be submitted to the local health officer,
who may issue an exemption from the canine antirabies vaccine.
(3) The local health officer shall report exemptions issued
pursuant to this subdivision to the department.
(4) A dog that is exempt from the vaccination requirements of this
section shall be considered unvaccinated.
(5) A dog that is exempt from the vaccination requirements of this
section shall, at the discretion of the local public health officer
or the officer's designee, be confined to the premises of the owner,
keeper, or harborer and, when off the premises, shall be on a leash
the length of which shall not exceed six feet and shall be under the
direct physical control of an adult. A dog that is exempt from the
provisions of this section shall not have contact with a dog or cat
that is not currently vaccinated against rabies.
(c) All dogs under four months of age shall be confined to the
premises of, or kept under physical restraint by, the owner, keeper,
or harborer. Nothing in this chapter and Section 120435 shall be
construed to prevent the sale or transportation of a puppy four
months old or younger.
(d) Any dog in violation of this chapter and any additional
provisions that may be prescribed by any local governing body shall
be impounded, as provided by local ordinance.
(e) The governing body of each city, city and county, or county
shall maintain or provide for the maintenance of a pound system and a
rabies control program for the purpose of carrying out and enforcing
this section.
(f) Each city, county, or city and county shall provide dog
vaccination clinics, or arrange for dog vaccination at clinics
operated by veterinary groups or associations, held at strategic
locations throughout each city, city and county, or county. The
vaccination and licensing procedures may be combined as a single
operation in the clinics. No charge in excess of the actual cost
shall be made for any one vaccination at a clinic. No owner of a dog
shall be required to have his or her dog vaccinated at a public
clinic if the owner elects to have the dog vaccinated by a licensed
veterinarian of the owner's choice.
All public clinics shall be required to operate under antiseptic
immunization conditions comparable to those used in the vaccination
of human beings.
(g) In addition to the authority provided in subdivision (a), the
ordinance of the responsible city, city and county, or county may
provide for the issuance of a license for a period not to exceed
three years for dogs that have attained the age of 12 months or older
and have been either vaccinated against rabies or
one year for dogs exempted from the vaccination
requirement pursuant to subdivision (b). The person to whom the
license is issued pursuant to this subdivision may choose a license
period as established by the governing body of up to one, two, or
three years. However, when issuing a license pursuant to this
subdivision, the license period shall not extend beyond the remaining
period of validity for the current rabies vaccination and, if a dog
is exempted from the vaccination requirement pursuant to subdivision
(b), the license period shall not extend beyond one year. A dog owner
who complies with this subdivision shall be deemed to have complied
with the requirements of subdivision (a).
(h) All information obtained from a dog owner by compliance with
this chapter is confidential to the dog owner and proprietary to the
veterinarian. This information shall not be used, distributed, or
released for any purpose, except to ensure compliance with existing
federal, state, county, or city laws or regulations.
SEC. 2. No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to
Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution for
certain costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school
district because, in that regard, this act creates a new crime or
infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty
for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the
Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within the
meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California
Constitution.
However, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that this
act contains other costs mandated by the state, reimbursement to
local agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made
pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division 4 of
Title 2 of the Government Code.