BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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THIRD READING
Bill No: SB 917
Author: Lieu (D), et al
Amended: 5/16/11
Vote: 21
SENATE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE : 5-2, 4/12/11
AYES: Hancock, Calderon, Liu, Price, Steinberg
NOES: Anderson, Harman
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : Senate Rule 28.8
SUBJECT : Animal abuse
SOURCE : American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty
to Animals
spcaLA
The Humane Society of the United States
DIGEST : This bill conforms the misdemeanor penalty for
overloading, torturing, tormenting, et cetera, an animal to
other subdivisions within the same section thus allowing
for up to one year in jail for the misdemeanor portion of
the existing wobbler and to make it unlawful for any person
to sell an animal as part of a commercial transaction on
any street, parking lot, carnival, et cetera, as specified.
Senate Floor Amendments of 5/16/11 (1) exempts specified
pet stores from the sales prohibitions; (2) adds double
jointing language with AB 109 (Assembly Budget Committee);
and (3) adds co-authors.
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ANALYSIS :
I. Animal neglect/torturing provision
Existing law provides that any person who does any of the
following is guilty of a felony and is punishable by
imprisonment in a state prison for 16 months, two or three
years, or by a fine not to exceed $50,000, or by both such
fine and imprisonment:
Owns, possesses, keeps, or trains any dog, with
the intent that the dog shall be engaged in an
exhibition of fighting with another dog.
For amusement or gain, causes any dog to fight
with another dog, or causes any dogs to injure each
other.
Permits any of the above acts to be done on any
premises under his/her control, or aid or abets that
act. (Penal Code Section 597.5(a).)
Existing law states that any person who is knowingly
present, as a spectator, at any place, building, or
tenement where preparations are being made for an
exhibition of the fighting of dogs, with the intent to be
present at those preparations, or is knowingly present at
the exhibition, fighting or injuring with the intent to be
present at the exhibition, fighting, or injuring is guilty
of a misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment in a county
jail not to exceed one year, or by a fine not exceeding
$5,000, or by both. (Penal Code Section 597.5(b).)
Existing law provides that any person who causes any
animal, not including a dog, to fight with another animal,
or permits the same to be done on any property under his or
her control, or aids or abets the fighting of any animal is
guilty of a misdemeanor, punishable by up to one year in
the county jail or by a fine not to exceed $5,000, or both.
(Penal Code Section 597b(a).)
Existing law provides that any person who causes a cock to
fight with another cock, or permits the same to be done on
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any property under his or her control, and any person who
aid or abets the fighting of any cock or is present as a
spectator is guilty of a misdemeanor, punishable by
imprisonment in the county jail not to exceed one year, or
by a fine not to exceed $5,000, or by both. (Penal Code
Section 597b(b).)
Existing law provides that any person who is knowingly
present as a spectator at any place, building, or tenement
for an exhibition of animal fighting, or who is knowingly
present at that exhibition, or is knowingly present where
preparations are being made for the exhibition, fighting,
or injuring of an animal is guilty of a misdemeanor
punishable by imprisonment in a county jail not to exceed
six months, or by a fine not exceeding $1,000, or by both.
(Penal Code Section 597c.)
Existing law provides that any person who owns, possesses,
keeps or trains any bird or other animal with the intent
that that it be used in an exhibition of fighting is guilty
of a misdemeanor, punishable by imprisonment in the county
jail not to exceed one year, by a fine not to exceed
$5,000, or by both. (Penal Code Section 597j.)
Existing law provides that every person who maliciously and
intentionally maims, mutilates, tortures, or wounds a
living animal or maliciously and intentionally kills an
animal is guilty of either a misdemeanor or felony,
punishable by imprisonment in a county jail for up to one
year and/or by a fine up to $20,000, or by imprisonment in
state prison for 16 months, two or three years and/or a
fine up to $20,000. (Penal Code Section 597(a).)
Existing law provides that every person who maliciously and
intentionally maims, mutilates, or tortures any mammal,
bird, reptile, amphibian, or fish is guilty of either a
misdemeanor or felony, punishable by imprisonment in a
county jail for up to one year and/or by a fine up to
$20,000, or by imprisonment in state prison for 16 months,
two or three years and/or a fine up to $20,000. (Penal
Code Section 597(c).)
Existing law states that every person who overdrives,
overloads, overworks, tortures, torments, deprives of
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drink, cruelly beats, or mutilates an animal is guilty of
either a misdemeanor or felony, punishable by imprisonment
in a county jail for up to six months and/or by a fine up
to $20,000, or by imprisonment in state prison for 16
months, two or three years and/or a fine up to $20,000.
(Penal Code Section 597(b).)
This bill makes the potential jail time for overloading,
overworking, et cetera, up to one year.
This bill reorganizes Penal Code Section 597 so penalties
are listed in one subsection.
Existing law provides that no slaughterhouse that is not
inspected by the United States Department of Agriculture
(USDA), stockyard, or auction shall buy, sell, or receive a
non-ambulatory animal. (Penal Code Section 599 f(a).)
Existing law provides that it is a misdemeanor punishable
by a fine of up to $1000 plus penalty assessments and/or up
to 90 days in jail for any person who operates a pet shop
to fail do all of the following:
Maintain the facilities used for the keeping of pet
animals in a sanitary condition.
Provide proper heating and ventilation for the
facilities used for the keeping of pet animals.
Provide adequate nutrition for, and humane care and
treatment of, all pet animals under his or her care
and control.
Take reasonable care to release for sale, trade, or
adoption only those pet animals that are free of
disease or injuries.
Provide adequate space appropriate to the size,
weight, and species of pet animals. (Penal Code
Section 597l(a).)
II. Pet selling provision
Existing law provides that sellers of pet animals shall
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provide buyers of a pet animal with general written
recommendations for the generally accepted care of the
class of pet animal sold, including recommendations as to
the housing, equipment, cleaning, environment, and feeding
of the animal. This written information shall be in a form
determined by the sellers of pet animals and may include
references to Web sites, books, pamphlets, videos, and
compact discs. Charges against a seller of pet animals for
a first violation of the provisions of this subdivision
shall be dismissed if the person charged produces in court
satisfactory proof of compliance. A second or subsequent
violation is an infraction punishable by a fine not to
exceed $250. (Penal Code Section 597l(b)(1).)
Existing law, the Lockyer-Polanco-Farr Pet Protection Act,
regulates the sale of dogs and cats by pet dealers and
provides for civil penalties in the amount up to $1000 for
violations of the Act. The civil penalty may be enforced
by the local district attorney or city attorney. (Health &
Safety Code Sections 122320, et seq.)
Existing law further provides that no pet dealer shall
knowingly sell a dog that is diseased, ill, or has a
condition, any one of which requires hospitalization or
surgical procedures. In lieu of the civil penalties
imposed pursuant to Section 122150, any pet dealer who
violates this section shall be subject to a civil penalty
of up to $1000, or shall be prohibited from selling dogs at
retail for up to 30 days, or both. If there is a second
offense, the pet dealer shall be subject to a civil penalty
of up to $2500, or a prohibition from selling dogs at
retail for up to 90 days, or both. For a third offense,
the pet dealer shall be subject to a civil penalty of up to
$5000, or a prohibition from selling dogs at retail for up
to six months, or both. For a fourth and subsequent
offense, the pet dealer shall be subject to a civil penalty
of up to $10,000, or a prohibition from selling dogs at
retail for up to one year, or both. For purposes of this
section, a violation that occurred over five years prior to
the most recent violation shall not be considered. An
action for recovery of the civil penalty and for a court
order enjoining the pet dealer from engaging in the
business of selling dogs at retail for the period set forth
in this section may be prosecuted by the district attorney
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for the county where the violation occurred, or the city
attorney for the city where the violation occurred, in the
appropriate court. (Health & Safety Code Section 122205.)
This bill provides that it shall be unlawful for any person
to do either of the following: (1) sell or give away as
part of a commercial transaction, a live animal on any
street, highway, public right-of-way, parking lot,
carnival, or boardwalk, (2) display or offer for sale, or
display or offer to give away as part of a commercial
transaction, a live animal, if the act of selling or giving
away the live animal is to occur on any street, highway,
public right-0-of-way, parking lot, carnival, or boardwalk.
The penalty shall be as follows:
" For a first offense, the person shall be guilty of an
infraction punishable by a fine not to exceed $250.
" A person who violates this section for the first time
and by that violation either causes or permits any
animal to suffer or be injured, or causes or permits
any animal to be placed in a situation in which its
life or health may be endangered, shall be guilty of a
misdemeanor punishable by a fine not to exceed $1000.
" A person who violates this section for a second or
subsequent time shall be guilty of a misdemeanor
punishable by a fine not to exceed $1000.
This bill provides that a notice describing the charge and
the penalty for a violation of this section may be issued
by any peace officer, animal control officer, as defined in
Section 830.9, or humane officer qualified pursuant to
Section 14502 or 14503 of the Corporations Code.
This bill provides that the section it creates shall not
apply to the following:
" Events held by 4-H Clubs, Junior Farmers Clubs, or
Future Farmers Clubs.
" The California Exposition and State Fair, or county
fairs.
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" Stockyards with respect to which the Secretary of the
United States Department of Agriculture has posted
notice that the stockyards are regulated by the
federal Packers and Stockyards Act (7 U.S.C. Section
181, et seq.).
" The sale of cattle on consignment at any public cattle
sales market; the sale of sheep on consignment at any
public sheep sales market; the sale of swine on
consignment at any public swine sales market; the sale
of goats on consignment at any public goat sales
market; and the sale of equine on consignment at any
public equine sales market.
" Live animal markets regulated under Section 597.3.
" A public animal control agency or shelter, society for
the prevention of cruelty to animals shelter, humane
society shelter, or rescue group regulated under
Division 14 (commencing with Section 30501) of the
Food and Agricultural Code. For purposes of this
section, "rescue group" is a not-for-profit entity
whose primary purpose is the placement of dogs, cats,
or other animals that have been removed from a public
animal control agency or shelter, society for the
prevention of cruelty to animals shelter, or humane
society shelter, or that have been surrendered or
relinquished to the entity by the previous owner.
" The sale of fish or shellfish, live or dead, from a
fishing vessel or registered aquaculture facility at a
pier, wharf, or at a farmer's market by any licensed
commercial fisherman or an owner or employee of a
registered aquaculture facility to the public for
human consumption.
A cat show, dog show, or bird show provided that
all the following circumstances exist:
1. The show is validly permitted by the city or
county in which the show is held.
2. The show's a sponsor or permittee ensures
compliance with all federal, state and local animal
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control laws.
3. The participant has written documentation of
the payment of a fee for the entry of his or her
cat, dog, or bird in the show.
4. The sale of a cat, dog, or bird occurs only
on the premises and within the confines of the
show.
5. The show is a competitive event where the
cats, dogs, or birds are exhibited and judged by an
established standard or set of ideas established
for each breed or species.
6. A pet store defined in subdivision (1) of
Section 122350 of the Health and Safety Code.
This bill provides that nothing in the above provisions of
the bill shall be construed to in any way limit or affect
the application or enforcement of any other law that
protects animals or the rights of consumers, including, but
not limited to, the Lockyer-Polanco-Farr Pet Protection Act
contained in Article 2 (commencing with Section 122125) of
Chapter 5 of Part 6 of Division 105 of the Health and
Safety Code, or Sections 597 and 597l of the Penal Code.
This bill provides that nothing in the above provisions
limits or authorizes any act or omission that violates
Section 597 or 597l of the Penal Code, or any other local,
state, or federal law. The procedures set forth in this
section shall not apply to any civil violation of any other
local, state, or federal law that protects animals or the
rights of consumers, or to a violation of Section 597 or
597l of the Penal Code, which is cited or prosecuted
pursuant to one or both of those sections, or to a
violation of any other local, state, or federal law that is
cited or prosecuted pursuant to that law.
This bill is double jointed with AB 109 (Assembly Budget
Committee) to avoid chaptering problems.
Prior Legislation
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AB 2012 (Lieu) passed the Senate Floor on August 12, 2010
with a vote of 28-6, but was vetoed.
AB 1122 (Lieu) passed the Senate Floor on September 1, 2009
with a vote of 21-13, but was vetoed.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: Yes
SUPPORT : (Verified 5/17/11)
American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals
(co-source)
spcaLA (co-source)
The Humane Society of the United States (co-source)
Animal Placer
PAW PAC
Public Interest Coalition
State Humane Association of California
The SPCA for Monterey County
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : According to one of the sponsors
the Humane Society of the United States, this bill:
ÝC]orrects a deficiency in current California law
that results in lesser punishment for criminal
animal neglect than other forms of criminal animal
cruelty. Given the duration and degree of suffering
endured by animal victims of neglect at the hands of
their abusers, we strongly support SB 917's
provisions to create parity in the law.
Dogs, cats and other animals sold in such informal
settings often suffer in terrible conditions. These
animals often are kept in crowded pens or cages that
can be unsanitary, lacking food and/or water, and in
extreme heat and direct sunlight. They are handled
by shoppers and often purchased on impulse. Under
these prevalent circumstances, animals suffer and
those who purchase them may wind up heartbroken and
saddled with expensive veterinary bills. SB 917
addresses these issues head-on by prohibiting these
unscrupulous and unregulated sales channels that
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could never provide pets or consumers with the
welfare and protection they deserve.
The State Humane Association of California supports this
bill stating:
Roadside sales of animals present a special concern
for our member organizations as humane officers and
animal control officers often find animals that are
ill and/or diseased and kept in unsafe and/or
unsanitary conditions.
RJG:do 5/17/11 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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