On Tuesday, March 21, a California Assembly committee will consider a bill to limit the use of police canines. California residents who wish to take action on this bill can do so with the information found below.
Summary:
Assembly Bill 742 would prevent the use of police canines for the purpose of arrest and apprehension. AKC recognizes the value of highly trained working K9s for a wide variety of jobs including detection, search and rescue, and other public safety functions. Rather than limiting the safety functions of highly trained working K9s that protect safety, AKC is strongly urging the bill’s author and the Assembly Public Safety Committee to focus instead on ensuring that all law enforcement canines and their handlers have the proper and up-to-date training and certifications they need to keep all Californians safe.
What You Can Do:
Public Hearing Information:
The Assembly Public Safety Committee will conduct a public hearing on March 21, 2023, at 9 am PST in room 126 of the California State Capitol in Sacramento, California.
The hearing will only be available in-person.
If you would like to have your voice heard, you are encouraged to contact members of the committee (contact info below) or to submit written testimony. If you would like to submit written testimony, please do so before 5 pm PST on Tuesday, March 14, to ensure it is included in the record.
For more information on submitting written testimony, click HERE.
Those who wish to contact members of the committee can do so by clicking on the Assemblymember’s name to submit a form through their website, by calling the district phone number, or sending a direct email. If you are a constituent of a member of the committee, please make sure to include that in your communication. Click HERE to find out who your assemblymember is.
Assembly Public Safety Committee Contact Information:
- Reginald Byron Jones-Sawyer (Chair)
213-744-2111
jones-sawyer@assembly.ca.gov - Juan Alanis (Vice Chair)
209-521-2201
assemblymember.alanis@assembly.ca.gov
- Mia Bonta
510-286-1670
bonta@assembly.ca.gov - Isaac Bryan
310-641-5410
bryan@assembly.ca.gov - Tom Lackey
661-267-7636
lackey@assembly.ca.gov - Liz Ortega
510-583-8818
ortega@assembly.ca.gov - Miguel Santiago
213-620-4646
santiago@assembly.ca.gov - Rick Chavez Zbur
310-450-0041
zbur@assembly.ca.gov
AKC Government Relations continues to monitor bills in California impacting dog owners and will provide updates. For questions or more information, contact AKC GR at doglaw@akc.org.