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require pets to be spayed or neutered
Mar 1, 2007

PLEASE 3 minutes to read this and 5 minutes to act! There is a new bill being introduced to the California Assembly – FACT: According to shelter statistics from the fiscal year July 1, to June 30, 2006 the Madera County shelter took in a total of 8,436 animals. Of those 1,296 were adopted, 1,159 went to other rescue groups, and 5,071 were euthanized or destroyed. "This number is continuously climbing each year," Gross said. "That's way too many that don't make it. In spite of all our efforts, 5,000-plus animals still lost their lives here in 2006." On average Madera county shelter takes in at least 650 animals each month. This includes animals abandoned, captured by animal control officers or those dropped off at the shelter at all hours of the day and night. The shelter has room to house 150 animals, and has an average euthanasia rate of 70 percent. My Friends, this is ONE SHELTER that I and many rescue groups work with. There are literally HUNDREDS just like this one. Killing over 500,000 HEALTHY, ADOPTABLE dogs and cats in California. Millions around the country. WE CAN DO SOMETHING. The new bill AB 1634, will mean that all pets must be spayed or neutered. There are of course exceptions that make sense. BUT TO HELP US... YOU CAN EMAIL: Emails should have as the subject line: In Support of AB 1634, the California Healthy Pets Act and state your reasons why s/he thinks it should become law. It is critical that letters be supportive of AB 1634 without being confrontational or negative in their tone. TIMING IS CRITICAL. There is a hearing set for March 10 for the Assembly Business and Professions Committee. AB 1634 must have enough support at that hearing or it will be endangered at best. There has been a huge amount of opposition for the bill, - BREEDERS – and they are making their views known. We must do the same. THE TIME TO ACT IS NOW. LLOYD LEVINE'S EMAIL ADDRESS: Assemblymember.levine@assembly.ca.gov CALIFORNIA ASSEMBLY BUSINESS AND PROFESSIONS COMMITTEE MEMBERS AND EMAIL ADDRESSES: Mike Eng, Chair assemblymember.Eng@assembly.ca.gov Bill Emmerson, Vice Chair assemblymember.emmerson@assembly.ca.gov Karen Bass Assemblymember.Bass@assembly.ca.gov Wilmer Amina Carter Assemblymember.Carter@assembly.ca.gov Mary Hayashi Assemblymember.Hayashi@assembly.ca.gov Edward P. Hernandez Assemblymember.Hernandez@assembly.ca.gov Shirley Horton Assemblymember.Shirley.Horton@assembly.ca.gov Bill Maze Assemblymember.maze@assembly.ca.gov Curren D. Price Assemblymember.Price@assembly.ca.gov Alberto Torrico Assemblymember.Torrico@assembly.ca.gov Thanks for sending out emails to these people.... and please forward to as many people you know who might help as possible. It will take a large grassroots effort to get this passed. Here is the actual Bill for those of you interested! BILL NUMBER: AB 1634 INTRODUCED BILL TEXT INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Levine (Principal coauthor: Senator Padilla) (Coauthor: Assembly Member Nava) FEBRUARY 23, 2007 An act to add Chapter 9 (commencing with Section 122336) to Part 6of Division 105 of the Health and Safety Code, relating to pets. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST AB 1634, as introduced, Levine. California Healthy Pets Act. Existing law sets forth provisions relating to veterinary publichealth and safety and provides for or regulates spay, neuter, andbreeding programs for animals. This bill would prohibit any person from owning or possessing any unaltered cat or dog over the age of 4 months, unless that person possesses an intact permit, as specified. The bill would establish anintact permit fee in an amount to be determined by a localjurisdiction, as defined, and would require the revenue from thesefees to be used for the administration of the local jurisdiction'spermit program. The bill would make a violation of these provisions punishable by a prescribed fine. The bill would require all revenues derived from these fines to beused for funding free and low-cost spay and neuter programs, andoutreach efforts for these programs, which would be required to be established by each local animal control agency, to the extent that funding is available, and for the enforcement of these provisions. By increasing the enforcement responsibility of local agencies,this bill would create a state-mandated local program. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse localagencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by thestate. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by thisact for a specified reason. 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. This act shall be known and may be cited as theCalifornia Healthy Pets Act. SEC. 2. Chapter 9 (commencing with Section 122336) is added toPart 6 of Division 105 of the Health and Safety Code, to read: CHAPTER 9. SPAY AND NEUTER PROGRAM FOR CATS AND DOGS Article 1. Definitions 122336. For purposes of this chapter, the following definitionsshall apply: (a) "Alter" means to spay or neuter an animal, as performed by aCalifornia licensed veterinarian. (b)"Intact permit" means a document issued annually by a localjurisdiction that authorizes a person to own or possess within thatlocality an unaltered cat or dog. (c) "Local animal control agency" means the municipal or countyanimal control agency or other entity responsible for enforcinganimal-related laws. (d) "Local jurisdiction" means any city, county, or city and county. Article 2. General Provisions 122336.1. (a) A person shall not own or possess within the stateany cat or dog over the age of four months that has not been spayed or neutered, unless that person possesses an intact permit, asdefined in subdivision (b) of Section 122336. (b) Any person who violates subdivision (a) shall be subject tothe following: (1) Unless paragraph (2) applies, a person in violation ofsubdivision (a) shall have his or her cat or dog spayed or neuteredwithin 30 days from the date of compliance as required under this section or Article 3 (commencing with Section 122336.2), whichever isapplicable. (2) If a person in violation of subdivision (a) provides a letterfrom a California licensed veterinarian indicating that due to age,poor health, or illness, it is unsafe to spay or neuter the cat or dog within 30 days from the date of compliance under this section orArticle 3 (commencing with Section122336.2), whichever is applicable, and indicating that arrangements have been made to alterthe cat or dog within 75 days from that date of compliance, he or sheshall have his or her cat or dog spayed or neutered within that 75-day period. (3) Any person who violates subdivision (a) shall, for each animalfor which a violation has occurred, be subject to a civil penalty offive hundred dollars ($500) for each applicable period of noncompliance, as set forth in paragraphs (1) and (2). This penaltyshall be imposed in addition to any other civil or criminal penaltiesimposed by the local jurisdiction. (c) Any fines imposed under subdivision (b) shall be waived by thelocal jurisdiction if the person in violation provides proof that his or her cat or dog has been spayed or neutered by a Californialicensed veterinarian or provides proof that he or she has obtainedan intact permit for the cat or dog. Article 3. Permits 122336.2. (a) A local jurisdiction shall issue an intact permit,as defined in subdivision (b) of Section 122336, if all of thefollowing conditions are met: (1) The cat or dog is registered as a purebred with a pedigreewith any of the following organizations: (A) The American Kennel Club. ( The United Kennel Club. (C) The American Dog Breeders Association. (D) The International Cat Association. (E) A recognized registry approved by the local animal controlagency. (2) The dog is appropriately trained and meets the definition ofguide dog, service dog, or signal dog, as set forth in subdivisions(d), (e), and (f) of Section 365.5 of the Penal Code. (3) The dog is documented as having been appropriately trained and actively used by law enforcement agencies for law enforcement andrescue activities. (4) The owner of a cat or dog provides a letter to the local jurisdiction from a California licensed veterinarian stating that due to age, poor health, or illness, it is unsafe to spay or neuter the cat or dog. This letter shall include the veterinarian's license number and shall be provided, upon request, to the local animal control agency. (b) An unaltered cat or dog for which an intact permit was issued who ceases to meet the requirements of subdivision (a) is subject tothe spay and neuter requirements set forth in Section 122336.1. (c)The amount of the fee for an intact permit shall be determinedby the local jurisdiction, and shall be no more than what is reasonably necessary to fund the administration of that jurisdiction's intact permit program. Article 4. Funding 122336.3. (a) To the extent that funding is available pursuant to this chapter, a local animal control agency shall establish a free and low-cost spay and neuter program for low-income individuals. The agency shall undertake outreach efforts to inform qualified persons about these programs. (b) All fines collected pursuant to paragraph (3) of subdivision (b) of Section 122336.1 shall be used for funding free and low-costspay and neuter programs and outreach efforts in the jurisdiction where the violation occurred, and for the enforcement activities setforth in Article 5 (commencing with Section 122336.4). Article 5. Enforcement 122336.4. A local animal control agency shall be responsible forenforcing and administering this chapter. SEC. 3. No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant toSection 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because a local agency or school district has the authority to levy service charges, fees, or assessments sufficient to pay for the program orlevel of service mandated by this act, within the meaning of Section17556 of the Government Code.
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Posted: Thursday March 1, 2007, 5:35 pm
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Paige T. (14) 		Thursday March 1, 2007, 6:19 pm
Here's my letter as a sample:
Sent to:
assemblymember.Eng@assembly.ca.gov,
assemblymember.emmerson@assembly.ca.gov,
Assemblymember.Bass@assembly.ca.gov,
Assemblymember.Carter@assembly.ca.gov,
Assemblymember.Hayashi@assembly.ca.gov,
Assemblymember.Hernandez@assembly.ca.gov,
Assemblymember.Shirley.Horton@assembly.ca.gov,
Assemblymember.maze@assembly.ca.gov,
Assemblymember.Price@assembly.ca.gov,
Assemblymember.Torrico@assembly.ca.gov

Dear Assemblymember,
Bill number: AB 1634, will mean that all pets must be spayed or neutered.
I am in support of this bill. It will save valuable tax dollars and help control the animal over population.
Again I am in Support of AB 1634, the California Healthy Pets Act and I hope you agree that this is an important bill to pass.
Thank you.

Sincerely, Me, my address, city, state, zip code

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Paige T.
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female, age 44, single
San Francisco, CA, USA
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Many dog bites are blamed on Pits and Pit-mixes, especially by the media. This test shows how easilly other breeds can be mistaken for Pittbulls. The site takes awhile to load, but it's fun and worth it! http://www.pitbullsonthew eb.com/petbull...


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