BILL ANALYSIS Ó AB 317 Page 1 Date of Hearing: April 21, 2015 ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON BUSINESS AND PROFESSIONS Susan Bonilla, Chair AB 317 (Maienschein) - As Amended March 26, 2015 SUBJECT: Veterinary medicine: temporary shelter facility. SUMMARY: Exempts an organization, that establishes a temporary shelter facility for the purpose of providing veterinary medical care, shelter and food and water during a state of emergency by a veterinarian licensed in another state, from a premises registration permit if the shelter meets certain conditions, including posting a notice about the use of a temporary shelter, complying with sanitary standards and ceasing operation within 60 days of establishment. EXISTING LAW: 1)Permits a health care practitioner licensed in another state or territory of the United States (US) who offers or provides health care for which he or she is licensed, if the health care is provided only during a state of emergency as specified, when an emergency overwhelms the response capabilities of California health care practitioners and only upon the request of the Director of the State Emergency Medical Services Authority (EMSA). (Business and Professions Code (BPC) Section 900) 2)Requires all premises where veterinary medicine, veterinary AB 317 Page 2 dentistry and veterinary surgery are being practiced to be registered with the Veterinary Medical Board (VMB). (BPC Section 4853) 3)Defines "premises" as a building, kennel, mobile unit or vehicle as specified. (BPC Section 4853) 4)Requires all premises where veterinary medicine, veterinary dentistry or veterinary surgery is practiced, and all instruments, apparatus and apparel used in connection with those practices, to be kept clean and sanitary at all times and conform to minimum standards established by the VMB. (BPC Section 4854) 5)Authorizes the VMB to suspend or revoke registration of a veterinary premise when the licensee manager, as specified, ceases to become responsible for management of the registered premises and no substitution is available, or when the licensee manager's license has been suspended or revoked. (BPC Section 4853.6(a)(b)) 6)Permits the VMB to inspect, at any time, the premises on which veterinary medicine, veterinary dentistry or veterinary surgery is practiced. However, the VMB's inspection authority does not extend to premises that are not registered with the VMB. (BPC Section 4809.5) 7)Defines "State of war emergency" to mean the condition which exists immediately, with or without a Governor's proclamation, whenever the state or nation is attacked by an enemy of the US or upon a warning from the federal government indicating that such an enemy attack is probable or imminent. (Government Code (GC) Section 8558). AB 317 Page 3 8)Defines "State of emergency" to mean the duly proclaimed existence of conditions of disaster or extreme peril to the safety of persons and property within the state caused by such conditions as air pollution, fire, flood, storm, epidemic, riot, drought, sudden and severe energy shortage, plant or animal infestation or disease, the Governor's warning of an earthquake or volcanic prediction, an earthquake, or other conditions, other than conditions resulting from a labor controversy or conditions causing a "state of war emergency," which, by reason of their magnitude, are or are likely to be beyond the control of the services, personnel, equipment, and facilities of any single county, city and county, or city and require the combined forces of a mutual aid region or regions to combat, or with respect to regulated energy utilities, a sudden and severe energy shortage requires extraordinary measures beyond the authority vested in the California Public Utilities Commission. (GC Section 8558) 9)Defines "Local emergency" to mean the duly proclaimed existence of conditions of disaster or of extreme peril to the safety of persons and property within the territorial limits of a county, city and county, or city, caused by such conditions as air pollution, fire, flood, storm, epidemic, riot, drought, sudden and severe energy shortage, plant or animal infestation or disease, the Governor's warning of an earthquake or volcanic prediction, an earthquake, or other conditions, other than conditions resulting from a labor controversy, which are or are likely to be beyond the control of the services, personnel, equipment, and facilities of that political subdivision and require the combined forces of other political subdivisions to combat, or with respect to regulated energy utilities, a sudden and severe energy shortage requires extraordinary measures beyond the authority vested in the California Public Utilities Commission. (GC Section 8558) AB 317 Page 4 THIS BILL: 1)Exempts an organization that establishes a temporary shelter facility, in order to provide veterinary medical care, shelter, and food and water during a state of emergency by a veterinarian, who is regularly licensed from another state, from a premises registration requirement if the following conditions are met: a) A notice is posted in a conspicuous location stating that the temporary shelter facility is being used for the diagnosis and treatment of animals affected by the state of emergency and that the diagnosis and treatment is provided by a veterinarian who is licensed in another state or territory of the US; b) The temporary shelter facility complies with sanitary requirements, as specified; and, c) The temporary shelter ceases operations within 60 days after its establishment unless the VMB grants an extension of this date to protect the public health and safety of the animals within the temporary shelter. FISCAL EFFECT: Unknown. This bill is keyed fiscal by the Legislative Counsel. COMMENTS: 1)Purpose. This bill is sponsored by the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA). According to AB 317 Page 5 the author, "?an overwhelming number of Americans reported on a recent poll that they would not evacuate their homes during a disaster if it means leaving their pets behind. It is important that we authorize animal welfare responders to establish temporary facilities to ensure the health and safety of Californians as well as their animals. Mid-disaster is no time to try to grapple with these logistical issues - [this bill] will make California prepared to evacuate every person and every pet when confronted by our next wildfire, flood, mudslide or other major disaster." 2)Background. The author notes that 2015 marks the 10th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. The disaster highlighted awareness across the nation about the need to deploy resources to provide services for displaced or lost animals including proper care and shelter during an emergency. According to the sponsor, in the event of Hurricane Sandy, many individuals had to move to temporary shelters which did not always allow animals. The ASPCA reports that it established temporary shelters to house those animals along with stray animals. This bill aims to make it clear that an organization seeking to establish a temporary shelter facility, for the purpose of animal care during a state of emergency, as determined by the appropriate authority, will be exempt from the current premises requirements for veterinary care facilities as long as specific conditions are met. Veterinary Medical Board. The VMB's mission is to protect consumers and animals through development and maintenance of professional standards, licensing of veterinarians, registered veterinary technicians and premises, and diligent enforcement of the Veterinary Medicine Practice Act. To that end, the VMB licenses and regulates veterinarians, registered veterinary technicians, veterinary hospitals and mobile practices. AB 317 Page 6 Under current law, BPC Section 4853 requires all premises where veterinary medicine is practiced to obtain a premises permit from the VMB. There are currently over 3000 licensed premises in California and more than 11,000 licensed veterinarians. In order to obtain the premises permit, applicants must submit an application which needs to include the type of practice, the number of employees, the business model, business owner information and a $200 registration fee. The VMB reports that the application process for a premises permit takes between three and four weeks. In the case of a declared state of emergency, this process could be viewed as prohibitive for organizations to apply for and receive the appropriate premises license currently required to provide veterinary services. In order to alleviate the potential barrier for organizations to establish temporary shelters for the sole purpose of veterinary medical care, shelter, food and water for emergency animal assistance, this bill would exempt organizations from having a premises permit as long as they post a notice that the shelter is temporary, it complies with the sanitation standards under existing law and the shelter ceases to exist within 60 days after its establishment unless the VMB grants a specific exemption. As highlighted on the website, http://www.ready.gov/caring-animals , most shelters for people do not allow animals due to public health reasons; therefore, pet emergency planning is necessary. As written, in order for a temporary shelter to be established without the proper premises permit, this bill would require a declaration of a state of emergency order as defined in GC Section 8858. Emergency Declarations. The Governor has the authority to AB 317 Page 7 issue emergency declarations for state of emergencies and state of war emergencies. Local emergencies are declared by the local governing body of a city, county or city and county. Under current law, emergencies may be declared for multiple reasons, including fires, floods, earthquakes, and storms or riots, among others. Under the provisions of this bill, an organization would be authorized to establish a temporary shelter and be exempt from the premises requirement for any state of emergency declaration ordered as defined in GC 8558. Disasters and Animals. As noted, the Hurricane Katrine disaster of 2005 heightened the awareness and need for effective emergency plans at the local, state and federal level, including emergency plans for pets. As a result, the Federal Pets Evacuation and Transportation Standards Act of 2006 was passed, which amended the Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act to include that state and local emergency preparedness planning address the needs of individuals with household pets and service animals following a major disaster or emergency. In addition, the need for pet care in the event of emergencies led several animal welfare and animal care organizations to establish disaster response teams to provide emergency assistance including the ASCPA and the Veterinary Medical Association among others. In the event of a declared state of emergency, this bill would authorize temporary shelter facilities for the purpose of providing veterinary medical care, shelter and food and water to operate in California for a limited period of time without a premises permit as required for all other animal veterinary care services. 3)Current Related Legislation. AB 316 (Maienschein) of the current legislative session, permits a veterinarian licensed in another state to be called into California by law AB 317 Page 8 enforcement, animal control or a humane officer, to attend to cases of animal cruelty or animal fighting as requested and permits the establishment of temporary shelters for the purpose of assisting in the investigation. STATUS: This bill is pending in the Assembly Committee on Business and Professions. 4)Previous Related Legislation. AB 1810 (Hayashi), Chapter 538, Statutes of 2010, exempted from liability veterinarians or registered veterinarian technicians who provide services during any state of war emergency, a state of emergency, or local emergency, among numerous other provisions. ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT: The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals writes in support, "[this bill] clarifies existing disaster response law to ensure that veterinarians licensed in another state that have been called on by California to respond to a declared emergency have the ability to establish temporary animal shelters. [BPC Section] 900 authorizes the CalEMSA to request health professionals from other states to assist during a declared emergency. However, it is unclear whether that section authorizes veterinarians to establish temporary shelters to house displaced animals." ARGUMENTS IN OPPOSITION: None on file. AB 317 Page 9 POLICY ISSUE: As currently written, this bill will exempt organizations that establish a temporary shelter facility to provide veterinary medical care, shelter, food and water during a state declared emergency by a veterinarian licensed in another state to be exempt from the premises permit required by existing law. However, it is unclear if an organization that establishes a temporary facility for veterinary medical care after a declared emergency would be exempt from the premises requirement if the organization used California-licensed veterinarians. The author may wish to consider clarifying that a temporary shelter established after a declaration of an emergency could be exempt from the premises permit if they used a California-licensed veterinarian as well. AMENDMENT: As currently written, this bill permits a temporary shelter to AB 317 Page 10 exist for the sole purpose of providing veterinary medical care in the event of a state-declared emergency and permits the care of those animals to be conducted by a veterinarian who is regularly licensed in another state. In order to make it clear that the veterinarian practicing from another state has an active license and has not been disciplined, the author may wish to include a provision that the veterinary license be in good standing and not be subject to disciplinary actions in another state. On page 2, line 7, after "licensed" insert: in good standing REGISTERED SUPPORT: American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (sponsor) Contra Costa Humane Society RedRover Tony La Russ's Animal Rescue Foundation AB 317 Page 11 REGISTERED OPPOSITION: None on file. Analysis Prepared by:Elissa Silva / B. & P. / (916) 319-3301