Legislative Alerts

An important bill for dogs and dog owners in Michigan continues to advance and could be considered by the Michigan Senate very soon.  House Bill 4035 would protect the rights of responsible dog owners in the state by prohibiting municipalities from enacting breed-specific laws. As House Bill 4035 is currently written, local governments would still […]

Yesterday, the Massachusetts Conference Committee of House and Senate members released SB 2963, a final 129-page compromise bill enacting law enforcement reforms.  In addition to certification training and standards for law enforcement personnel oversight, it creates decertification and other disciplinary measures for police misconduct.  The Massachusetts Legislature is expected to vote and send the bill […]

Every four years, Texas state agencies are required to review each of its rules and consider whether they should be re-adopted, revised, or repealed.  The Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR), the Texas state agency charged with carrying out enforcement of the state’s Dog or Cat Breeders Act, recently announced that it will begin […]

The North Carolina Veterinary Medical Board (NCVMB) is expected to have legislation filed in 2021 that would seek to amend the part of the state’s Veterinary Practice Act. Currently, North Carolina law (NC GS § 90-187.10) defines what parties are required to be licensed to practice veterinary medicine in the state.  That law also provides […]

In 2019, the Montana State Legislature passed House Bill 29, which changed the legal requirements for certain activities related to field trials and the training of dogs using captive-reared upland game birds.  In response, the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife, and Parks (FWP) worked with constituent groups, including representatives from most major sporting dog training […]

Yesterday, the Massachusetts Senate debated and decided numerous amendments to  SB 4, its version of the budget bill.   We are grateful to Senator Bruce Tarr for filing Amendment #331 and the continued support for “Nero’s Bill”.  Unfortunately, in agreement with the House of Representatives, the Senate decided not to attach the bill’s text to its […]

Reminder:  A revised proposed animal ordinance is scheduled for a final vote by the Aiken County Council today, November 17, 2020.  Please see AKC’s previous legislative alert on this measure. Among other requirements, the proposed ordinance seeks to require registration with the county as an offender by any person convicted of a dangerous dog violation […]

Thank you to those who contacted your state representative in support of working dogs last week!  Every year the legislature sends an annual budget to the Governor to fund government operations, and funding for training service dogs was adopted in the House. Now, as the Massachusetts Senate has begun debating their fiscal priorities in SB […]

While debating a bill to fund state operations next year, the Massachusetts House of Representatives voted to adopt Amendment #19 to HB 5150, which will provide that not less than $50,000 be expended for the NEADS, Inc. service dogs for veterans program to train service dogs for veterans. Unfortunately, Amendment #18, aka “Nero’s Bill”, which […]

The state of Washington’s Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) has proposed new rules to create a nonlethal enforcement program for the purpose of training dogs to assist in locating offending bear, cougar, and bobcat. The Fish and Wildlife Commission is authorized to allow the use of dogs to hunt or pursue bear, cougar, or […]