New Jersey Senate Bill 2868, which seeks to create court-appointed legal advocates for animals, has been scheduled for a vote by the New Jersey Senate on Thursday, February 18, 2021. All New Jersey dog owners are urged to contact their elected members of both the New Jersey Senate and Assembly to respectfully request:
(1) S.2868 not be approved; or
(2) Amend the bill to explicitly state that the bill shall not change the legal classification of animals as property.
Please scroll down for talking points.
BACKGROUND:
S.2868 is similar to legislation considered in the last legislative session. However, section 1 of S.2868 features new legislative findings that justify providing to animals certain policy protections and considerations traditionally reserved for humans.
The American Kennel Club (AKC) strongly supports condemnations of animal cruelty. However, we believe that much of the introductory language in S.2868 is an explicit attempt to undermine the traditional legal classification of animals as property and to limit the rights of animal owners.
The creation of court-appointed animal advocates is likely to result in legal and pragmatic issues regarding who is responsible for an animal, and will ultimately impact the ability of dog owners to freely choose the most appropriate course of care and treatment for their pets.
For more background on this important issue, check out AKC’s Legal Status of Animals page in the Legislative Action Center.
Click here to read AKC’s Understanding the Difference Between Animal Rights and Animal Welfare.
PLEASE USE THESE TALKING POINTS TO URGE OPPOSITION TO S.2868:
- I join the American Kennel Club in abhorring any type of cruel treatment of or negligent injury to animals, and in supporting full enforcement of existing federal and state law.
- I am extremely concerned that S.2868 features animal rights language and reflects the radical animal rights agenda, rather than focusing on positive efforts to improve the welfare of animals. Not to be confused with animal welfare, animal rights is a radical philosophy that aims to end human use or ownership of animals in any way, even as companions. For animal rights groups, the ultimate goal is not to improve the wellbeing of animals, but to stop breeding and human interaction with animals. Animal rights groups typically utilize media and legislation like S.2868 to create false narratives to incrementally change perceptions about the human use of animals, and to advance the goal of ending animal use and ownership.
- Providing third-party advocates for animals in a legal dispute is a radical departure from current, mainstream legal thinking. Third party advocates are currently reserved for protecting the interests of minors or other people lacking legal capacity. As currently worded, S.2868 could impact the fundamental legal status of animals in the state, and undermine the rights and responsibilities of owners to provide appropriate care for their animals. Moreover, it does nothing to improve the wellbeing of animals.
- I believe the state is already capable of fairly adjudicating animal cruelty and other animal issues without assigning human rights to animals and without involving outside organizations and interests to influence the adjudication of individual cases. Current state law does not confuse the roles of animal owners and the government and is preferable because it does not create consequences that undermine pet owners’ rights and responsibilities.
- Instead of pursing radical legal changes, we urge the state to focus on improving enforcement of the state’s animal cruelty laws. An advocate in court representing an animal will not improve the ability of law enforcement officials to actually enforce animal cruelty laws. A more likely outcome is tying up court dockets and sowing confusion. Instead, we encourage the committee to improve enforcement of current laws against those who harm animals. Those already empowered to work in New Jersey’s justice system, like judges, prosecutors, and social service personnel, are better situated to address problematic behavior.
MAKE YOUR VOICE HEARD TODAY!
Concerned New Jersey dog owners are strongly encouraged to contact their elected members of both the Senate and the Assembly to express opposition to S.2868, and respectfully urge them to not approve the bill. Please feel free to personalize the talking points provided above, to more fully explain to the committee how S.2868 would impact you as an animal owner.
To find out who represents you, search by your New Jersey municipality at https://www.njleg.state.nj.us/districts/municipalities.asp.
AKC will continue to provide updates on the consideration of S.2868. For more information, contact AKC Government Relations at doglaw@akc.org.