Legislative Alerts

California Assembly Bill 1634, now known as the "California Responsible Pet Ownership Act," has been radically amended. The bill is now a responsible dog ownership act and addresses two major issues resulting from irresponsible dog ownership - dogs that are found roaming and dogs that are not licensed.  Existing California state law already requires all […]

Amendments to California Assembly Bill 1634, as made by the Senate Appropriations Committee, appeared in print today after several weeks of delay due to the legislative recess.  Now that the Senators have returned to Sacramento, work on bills has resumed.  Quick movement on bills is expected as the state constitution requires that all bills be […]

Yesterday, a vote by the Chicago City Council's Finance Committee, in consideration of a proposed mandatory spay/neuter ordinance, was put off by committee chairman Alderman Ed Burke.  After several hours of testimony, Alderman Burke delayed a vote to allow more testimony to be heard.  No new hearing date has been set. AKC's Government Relations Department […]

The Chicago City Council Committee on Finance will hold a joint hearing with the Committee on License and Consumer Protection on Tuesday July 29th to discuss a mandatory spay/neuter ordinance. It is vital that responsible dog owners and breeders attend the hearing to oppose this measure.   AKC Opposes Proposed Mandatory Spay and Neuter Ordinance […]

It has come to the attention of the Government Relations department that there has been some misinformation circulating that AKC has changed our position on AB 1634. The American Kennel Club remains firmly opposed to California Assembly Bill 1634 and we need your help to convince the California State Senate to stop this ineffective and […]

The Senate Appropriations Committee has determined that AB 1634 does not have a fiscal impact. Senate Rule 28.8 allows bills that do not have a cost to the state to be submitted directly to the floor. This determination was partly based on amendments offered by the author which remove Section 5 from the bill. This […]

AKC's Government Relations Department has learned that the Rockwood, Tennessee, City Council will discuss the topic of vicious dogs at its regular monthly meeting on Monday, July 21st, 2008. This meeting will be held at 7:00PM (Eastern) in the City Council Room, 110 Chamberlain Avenue in Rockwood. All concerned Rockwood dog owners are encouraged to […]

On Tuesday, the D.C. Council unanimously passed an amended version of its Animal Protection Amendment Act. While the amended and subsequently adopted version of the ordinance is currently unavailable, AKC's Government Relations Department has learned that the limit on ownership was raised from four to six animals. The Government Relations Department will provide a full […]

The Senate Appropriations Committee has determined that AB 1634 does not have a fiscal impact. Senate Rule 28.8 allows bills that do not have a cost to the state to be submitted directly to the floor. Due to this determination AB 1634 will NOT be heard in the Appropriations Committee on Monday. The AKC Government […]

On Thursday, June 26, after two days of debate and consideration, the House Agriculture and Rural Affairs Committee passed a significantly amended HB 2525 and sent it to the House Rules Committee. The bill is not expected to be acted on prior to the two-month long summer recess. The American Kennel Club will continue to […]