PAWS: Outreach

PAWS 2005 Legislative Primer

The 2005 Legislative Session ended April 24, 2005. Here are the highlights:

Why you should bother contacting your Senators and Representatives?

It only takes a moment of your time.
Your representatives represent YOU and your local community. It is their duty to represent the concerns of their constituents when making decisions.
Representatives are bombarded by paid lobbyists all day long- they should be bombarded by the opinions of their constituents.
The old adage "for every person who writes, there are 100 more who agree" is TRUE!
Just try giving your representative's office a call. It's not scary! They are members of the community, just like you.

The following are bills PAWS cares about. Let your voice be heard in Olympia!

H.B. 1151 & S.B. 5377 - The Exotics Bill:
This legislation seeks to ban the possession of dangerous exotic animals including tigers, cougars, lions, bears, wolves, alligators and non-human primates as pets. Washington is one of just a few states that lack regulations to prohibit private ownership of wild animals.

Status:
2/15/05 Passed House Judiciary Committee and referred to Rules Committee. Passed Senate Judiciary Committee.
3/7/05 Passed in the House 67 to 31.
3/30/05 3:30pm, Scheduled hearing in Senate Judiciary Committee.
4/25/05 This bill was not passed in 2005.

For more information on H.B. 1151 and what you can do to help, click here.

H.B. 1499 & S.B. 5532 - Revise Washington's Animal Cruelty Laws:
This legislation will update several outdated or unclear portions of Washington law as it relates to animal cruelty. It would elevate animal cruelty in the first degree to a class B felony (maximum sentence = 10 years and/or $20,000 fine); animal cruelty in the second degree would be elevated to a class C felony (maximum sentence = 5 years and/or $10,000 fine). Owners and operators of animal fights would be charges with a class C felony (it is now a gross misdemeanor).

SB 5352 - Proposed Revisions to Washington State Animal Cruelty Law:
This bill adds that "a person is guilty in the first degree when, except authorized by law, the person, with criminal negligence, starves, dehydrates, or suffocates an animal and if it suffers unnecessary or unjustifiable physical pain or death as a result."

Status:
3/10/05 Passed Senate (47-2)
3/29/05 Scheduled for public hearing in the House Judiciary Committee, 10am
4/25/05 This bill was passed in 2005

HB 1304 - Revise Washington Animal Fighting Laws
Raises the crime of animal fighting from a gross misdemeanor to a class C felony and expands the crime to include a person who knowingly: Breeds, buys, sells, advertises, or offers for sale any animal with the intent that the animal will be used for fighting; Participates in, advertises, or performs any service in the furtherance of an animal fight; Transports spectators to an animal fight or accepts payment for admission to an animal fight; Keeps or uses a place for animal fighting or allows a place to be used for animal fighting; Serves as a stakeholder for any money wagered on an animal fight; and Takes or receives a stray or pet animal with the intent of using the stray animal or pet animal for animal fighting or for training or baiting for animal fighting. It removes the specific provision making it a crime to be a spectator at an animal fight (participation in an animal fight remains a criminal offense). It defines "animal" to mean dogs or male chickens.

Status: 4/14/05 Passed in the Senate (41 to 0)
4/19/05 Passed in the House (98 to 0)
4/25//05 This bill was passed in 2005

H.B. 2091 & S.B. 5977 - Special Spay/Neuter License Plate:
UPDATED 2/23/05: This legislation authorizes a special license plate to raise funds for spaying and neutering of more unaltered pets in Washington State. The plate says "We Love Our Pets!" and has a cute dog and cat cartoon created by nationally syndicated cartoonist Brian Bassett.

Please contact the House and Senate transportation committee members, especially if they are the representative for your district, and encourage them to pass H.B. 2091 and S.B. 5977.

Status:
Passed in the Senate 47-0 on 3/12/05.
Currently in House Rules Committee. Please contact committee members to voice your support.
4/19/05 Signed by Governor Gregoire

Senate Transportation Committee: Haugen, Chair; Jacobsen, Vice Chair; Poulsen, Vice Chair, Swecker; Benson; Eide; Esser; Kastama; Mulliken; Oke (sponsor); Spanel; Weinstein. House Transportation Committee: Murray, Chair; Wallace, Vice Chair; Woods; Appleton; Buck; Campbell; Curtis; Dickerson; Ericksen; Flannigan; Hankins; Hudgins; Jarrett; Kilmer; Lovick; Morris; Nixon; Rodne; Schindler; Sells; Shabro; Simpson; Skinner; Sullivan, B.; Takko; Upthegrove; Wood.

Remember you can access legislative information on www.leg.wa.gov.

S.B. 5229 & H.B. 1218 - Authorizing endangered wildlife license plates:
The department of Licensing will issue Endangered Wildlife license plates for the purpose of raising revenue to help pay for the preservation of endangered wildlife. In addition to all fees and taxes required to be paid upon application and registration of a motor vehicle, the holder of an Endangered Wildlife license plate will pay an initial fee of forty dollars. In addition to all fees and taxes required to be paid upon renewal of a motor vehicle registration, the holder of an Endangered Wildlife license plate will, upon application, pay a fee of thirty dollars.

Status:
Passed in the Senate 47-0 on 3/12/05
Passed in the House 46-0 4/13/05

S.B. 5230 - Creating wildlife license plate collection:
Signed by Gov. Christine Gregoire on April 13, 2005, to establish a Washington Wildlife license plate collection.

H.B. 1016 - Dog Breed-Specific Insurance Ban:
Mandates that insurers may not cancel, fail to renew, or deny application for homeowners insurance based on the ownership of a specific breed of dog.

Washington State residents who have experienced the denial, cancellation or refusal of homeowner's insurance by an insurance company solely based on the breed of dog that the applicant owns or harbors on the property are urged to email their experience to the Humane Society of the United States Pacific Northwest Regional office, pnrotemp@hsus.org or call 425-656-9797. Your experiences will be used to support this legislation.

Status:
12/28/04 Prefiled.
Passed House 3/14/05 (71-25)
Scheduled for Executive session on 3/24/05 in the Senate Financial Institution, Housing and Consumer Protection Committee.
4/25/05 This bill did not pass in 2005

To find out how this could affect you and your family, read this local woman's story www.komo4.com/news/story_m.asp?ID=35304

The following bills are ones PAWS does not support:

H.B. 1953 - Allow Cougar Killing:
Allows for counties throughout the state to hunt cougars with hound dogs, which was banned by voter initiative in 1996. In 2004 the legislature passed a bill to allow this but Governor Locke vetoed certain portions of the bill so hound hunting of cougars would only be allowed in four counties. This bill would expand hound hunting of cougars to the state in a pilot program.

Status:
2/11/05 referred to the House Natural Resources, Ecology & Parks Committee.
2/22/05 Public hearing in committee
4/25/05 This bill did not pass in 2005!

S.B. 5319 - Overturn Ban on Cruel Traps:
This bill would virtually reverse the current ban on using poison and cruel, inhumane traps that was passed by 55% of Washington voters in November of 2000.

Status:
1/20/05 Referred to Senate Natural Resources Committee.
4/25/05 This bill did not pass in 2005!

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