The Massachusetts House of Representatives convenes a virtual formal session today at 2:30pm that will continue into tomorrow. “Nero’s Law” would allow emergency care and transportation for a police dog injured in the line of duty. On November 10, 2021, the Senate unanimously passed the bill as SB 2573.
WHAT YOU CAN DO: Although the state capitol is closed to the public, you can help get the bill to the Governor’s desk this year!
- Search “Massachusetts State Legislature”, then click the bottom left button, “Find My Legislator”.
- Identify your legislators by tapping the map where you live or entering your street address, city/town, and ZIP code.
- Click on your state representative’s name to get their email address.
- Send an email with the subject line, “Show thanks by protecting police K-9s” and these comments:
- Please show thanks for our police K-9s contributions to our communities by passing Nero’s Law.
- A police K-9 emergency could require immediate medical attention to any one of these 200 Massachusetts working dogs at any time.
- Three states have adopted these protections for police K-9s since Yarmouth Sgt. Sean Gannon was killed and his police K-9 Nero suffered career-ending injuries in 2018.
AKC Government Relations (GR) will continue providing updates on Nero’s Law as it progresses through the legislature. For more information on this or other legislative issues in Massachusetts, contact AKC GR at 919-816-3720 or doglaw@akc.org; or the Massachusetts Federation of Dog Clubs and Responsible Dog Owners at info@massfeddogs.org.