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Laws for Paws e-Newslett
er
February 2018
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ANIMALS NEED YOUR HELP!
SENATE BILL 918 WOULD PROHIBIT COUNTIES AND MUNICIPALITIES FROM BANNING CRUEL ANIMAL EVENTS
SB 918 WOULD ALLOW HOG-DOG CONTESTS, HORSE TRIPPING, BLOODLESS BULLFIGHTS AND OTHER CRUEL EVENTS IN YOUR COMMUNITY
PLEASE CONTACT YOUR STATE SENATOR
TODAY!
ASK FOR A NO VOTE ON SB 918
You can find out who YOUR state senator is (and contact info) at:
MY LEGISLATOR
SB 918 prohibits laws banning cruel animal events and
also severely restricts ordinances regulating puppy mills and factory farms.
SENATE BILL 918 THREATENS THE WELFARE OF ALL ANIMALS IN MISSOURI
THIS BILL COULD BE VOTED ON AT ANY TIME
PLEASE CONTACT YOUR SENATOR TODAY!
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ANIMALS UNDER ATTACK IN MISSOURI LEGISLATURE
Animal Industries Seek to Dismantle Animal Welfare Laws
Organizations representing factory farms, puppy mills, and other agricultural industries have been relentless this year in their efforts to severely weaken our state laws protecting animals.
In addition to SB 918 as reported above, there are three other bills this year that are of grave concern:
SB 797 and HB 1828:
Usurps the Rights of Animal Welfare Organizations to Advocate for Animals and to Educate Law Enforcement on Animal Cruelty & Neglect Laws
Among other things, this legislation places the Department of Agriculture in charge of all animal welfare organizations in reference to the training they perform regarding the Animal Care Facilities Act and the Canine Cruelty Prevention Act for law enforcement personnel. In essence, these bills would give the Dept of Agriculture absolute and total authority over the training programs conducted by animal welfare organizations on laws protecting animals in puppy mills. This could preclude law enforcement from being properly educated on our laws to protect animals. It would allow for regulations to be implemented that would place "state monitors" in classrooms across the state to control how animal welfare groups advocate for animals.
This is GOVERNMENT OVERREACH at its worst.
HB 1945:
Allows Abused & Neglected Animals to Remain in the Hands of Their Abusers
This bill would effectively eliminate the disposition process for abused and neglected animals and allow the animals to remain in the hands of their abusers until the conclusion of a criminal trial. It also eliminates the authority of Animal Control Officers from rescuing abused and neglected animals.
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Please stay tuned as we will be asking you to contact your legislators when these bills proceed to the Floor for a vote.
WHAT YOU CAN DO:
- In the interim, you can follow all animal legislation on our Legislation page online at our website: LEGISLATION
- You can also sign up to receive our updated Legislation link every Friday, by contacting admin@maal.org
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Legislature Refuses to Protect Police Dogs
Cass County Sheriff's dog Champ survived his attack while apprehending a suspect
Police dogs also bore the consequences of a very antagonistic Legislature this year. A bill to increase penalties for harming a police dog (HB 1649) was defeated last week in the House of Representatives. Even dogs that provide a valuable service to the public were denied protection by our state lawmakers.
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Legislation Introduced to Allow Animals to be Placed on Domestic Orders of Protection
One of the few bright spots of the legislative session is the introduction of HB 2374 by Representative David Gregory. This bill would afford protection to animals in domestic abuse cases.
Household pets often become pawns in the game of power and control that batterers use to coerce, control and intimidate their victims. In a nationwide study, 76% of battered women reported that their abusers had harmed, killed or threatened their animals.
HB 2374 adds a new section to our domestic abuse law defining "intimidation" as "injuring, killing, or threatening to injure or kill an animal if such act is done to coerce, control, punish, or as an act of revenge against a household member."
Another positive bill that was introduced this year was HB 2359. This legislation would allow the Court to order psychological or psychiatric evaluation and treatment of individuals who abuse animals. It also provides immunity to any person, including a veterinarian, teacher and school personnel, who reports animal abuse to a law enforcement agency.
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How DOES the Legislative Process Work?
Now that we are in the throes of our 2018 Legislative Session, it's a great time to refresh yourself on the life cycle of a bill. We have a page that illustrates this process here: Legislative Process
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Our "
Wine & Whiskers
" themed
Open Your Heart
gala fundraiser is right around the corner -
Sunday, February 25
, 2018 at Lucas Park Grille. The evening is open to all animal lovers and you can count on great food and drink.
This year we're excited to offer a number of fun activities for guests including tarot card reading, pet sketching, wine tasting, and our silent and live auctions. And of course, our executive director and board president will be on hand to give an update on legislative issues.
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HUMANE DAY AT THE CAPITOL!
Tuesday, April 10th
The Alliance is hosting its annual Humane Day at the Capitol on Tuesday, April 10, 2018
Humane Day is an important way for organizations and individuals to advocate for animals by visiting with our legislators in Jefferson City.
Animal welfare organizations from all parts of Missouri set up displays in the 3rd Floor Rotunda in order to provide legislators and event attendees with information about efforts and issues related to animal welfare.
Individuals attending are invited to visit with these organizations, receive information from the Alliance on current legislation being considered in the General Assembly, and meet with their legislators.
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Help the Alliance continue to
fight for the animals.
Please consider a donation today!
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