Florida Senate - 2012                        COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
       Bill No. SB 818
       
       
       
       
       
       
                                Barcode 902884                          
       
                              LEGISLATIVE ACTION                        
                    Senate             .             House              
                  Comm: RCS            .                                
                  01/23/2012           .                                
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       The Committee on Community Affairs (Bennett) recommended the
       following:
       
    1         Senate Amendment (with title amendment)
    2  
    3         Delete everything after the enacting clause
    4  and insert:
    5         Section 1. This act may be cited as the “Animal Rescue
    6  Act.”
    7         Section 2. Section 828.067, Florida Statutes, is created to
    8  read:
    9         828.067Animal shelters and animal control agencies;
   10  euthanization registry.—
   11         (1)As used in this section, the term:
   12         (a) “Animal control agency” means an organization operated
   13  by or under contract with the state or a political subdivision
   14  for the purpose of impounding or harboring seized, stray,
   15  homeless, abandoned, or unwanted animals.
   16         (b) “Animal rescue group or “rescue group” means a group
   17  of persons who hold themselves out as an animal rescue group and
   18  who accept or solicit dogs, cats, or other animals with the
   19  intent of finding permanent adoptive homes or providing lifelong
   20  care for such dogs, cats, or other animals and who use foster
   21  homes as the primary means of housing animals, or a group of
   22  persons formed for the prevention of cruelty to animals.
   23         (c) “Animal shelter” means a facility that is used for
   24  housing or containing dogs, cats, or other animals and that is
   25  owned, operated, or maintained by a humane society, an animal
   26  welfare society, a society for the prevention of cruelty to
   27  animals, or another nonprofit organization devoted to the
   28  welfare, protection, and humane treatment of dogs, cats, or
   29  other animals.
   30         (2) An animal control agency or animal shelter that
   31  euthanizes animals shall maintain a registry of animal rescue
   32  groups that are willing to accept animals that are subject to
   33  euthanization.
   34         (a) The euthanization registry must consist of any animal
   35  control agency, animal shelter, or animal rescue group that is
   36  designated as an agency meeting the qualifications of s.
   37  501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and that has requested
   38  that its name be placed on the euthanization registry. Such an
   39  agency, shelter, or rescue group must be included on the
   40  euthanization registry regardless of the geographical location
   41  of the agency, shelter, or rescue group and regardless of any
   42  other factor except as described in subsection (3).
   43         (b)The euthanization registry may include, at the
   44  discretion of the animal control agency or animal shelter, any
   45  person or animal rescue group that has not met the
   46  qualifications of s. 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.
   47         (3)An animal control agency or animal shelter may refuse
   48  to include a rescue group or person on the euthanization
   49  registry or may remove it or the person from the euthanization
   50  registry if a current director, officer, staff member, or
   51  volunteer of the rescue group has been convicted in a court of
   52  competent jurisdiction of a crime consisting of cruelty to
   53  animals or neglect of animals, or if such charges are pending,
   54  or if the rescue group is constrained by a court order that
   55  prevents the rescue group from taking in or keeping animals. An
   56  animal control agency or animal shelter may require the rescue
   57  group to disclose any convictions, charges, or legal impediments
   58  described in this subsection.
   59         (4)The euthanization registry must include the following
   60  information provided by the rescue group:
   61         (a) The name of the rescue group or person.
   62         (b) The mailing address and telephone number.
   63         (c) The website and e-mail address, if any.
   64         (d) The emergency contact information for the rescue group.
   65         (e) The types of animals about whom the rescue group wishes
   66  to be contacted, including species type and breed.
   67         (f) A statement as to whether the rescue group is willing
   68  and able to care for unweaned animals, sick or injured animals,
   69  or animals that have behavior problems.
   70         (5)An animal control agency or animal shelter may require
   71  that a rescue group provide monthly for public inspection
   72  information concerning the number of animals that:
   73         (a) Have been taken from an animal control agency or animal
   74  shelter and placed with the rescue group;
   75         (b) Have been adopted;
   76         (c) Have died or have been euthanized; or
   77         (d) Remain in the care of the rescue group.
   78  
   79  This information may be provided in an informal format, such as
   80  via electronic mail. An animal control agency or animal shelter
   81  may require additional information other than that described in
   82  this subsection as a prerequisite for including a rescue group
   83  on the euthanization registry or for continuing to maintain the
   84  rescue group on the registry.
   85         (6)An animal control agency or animal shelter may not
   86  euthanize an animal until the animal control agency or animal
   87  shelter has notified, or made a reasonable attempt to notify,
   88  all rescue groups or persons on the euthanization registry who
   89  have indicated a willingness to take an animal of that type.
   90         (a)The notification must take place at least 24 hours
   91  before the animal is scheduled to be euthanized.
   92         (b)At a minimum, the notification must include a
   93  verifiable electronic communication. Notification to each rescue
   94  group is considered complete when this has been accomplished.
   95         (c)An animal may not be euthanized if a rescue group or
   96  person on the euthanization registry indicates a willingness to
   97  take possession of the animal.
   98         (d)The rescue group or person agreeing to take possession
   99  of the animal must do so within 2 business days after notifying
  100  the animal control agency or animal shelter that has possession
  101  of the animal.
  102         (e) The holding periods described in paragraphs (a) and (d)
  103  must run concurrently with any holding period required by a
  104  local ordinance or other provision of state law and are not in
  105  addition to those mandated holding periods. A holding period for
  106  a healthy animal may not, however, be less than a total of 3
  107  days as described in paragraphs (a) and (d).
  108         (f)The animal control agency or animal shelter may assess
  109  a fee, not to exceed the standard adoption fee, for each animal
  110  released to a rescue group.
  111         (7)The requirements of subsection (6) do not apply in the
  112  following cases:
  113         (a)An irremediably suffering animal may be euthanized
  114  without delay under s. 828.05.
  115         (b)A dangerous dog may be euthanized without delay under
  116  s. 767.13.
  117         (c)Upon the impoundment of an unweaned animal without its
  118  mother, an animal control agency or animal shelter that has not
  119  placed the animal into foster care or is not able to provide
  120  supplemental feeding shall immediately make an emergency appeal
  121  to a rescue group or person on the euthanization registry who
  122  has indicated a willingness to care for unweaned animals, and
  123  shall give the rescue group or person a reasonable amount of
  124  time, but not less than 8 hours, to respond to the appeal.
  125         (8)An animal control agency or animal shelter shall
  126  provide for public inspection a monthly and annual summary that
  127  includes the number of animals, by species type, during the
  128  previous month which were taken in by the animal control agency
  129  or animal shelter and which were:
  130         (a)Surrendered by the owner;
  131         (b)Picked up as a stray;
  132         (c)Confiscated by the animal control agency or animal
  133  shelter; or
  134         (d)Imported into the state.
  135         (9)An animal control agency or animal shelter shall
  136  provide for public inspection a monthly summary that includes
  137  the number of animals, by species type, during the previous
  138  month which:
  139         (a)Were impounded;
  140         (b)Were euthanized by the animal control agency or animal
  141  shelter;
  142         (c)Died, were lost, or were stolen while in the direct or
  143  constructive care of the animal control agency or animal
  144  shelter;
  145         (d)Were returned to their owners;
  146         (e)Were adopted;
  147         (f)Were transferred to other organizations or rescue
  148  groups; or
  149         (g) Remain in the custody of the agency or shelter.
  150         (10)Each animal control agency or animal shelter shall
  151  provide for public inspection an annual summary that includes
  152  the number of animals, by species type, during the previous
  153  calendar year which:
  154         (a)Were impounded;
  155         (b)Were euthanized by the animal control agency or animal
  156  shelter;
  157         (c)Died, were lost, or were stolen while in the direct or
  158  constructive care of the animal control agency or animal
  159  shelter;
  160         (d)Were returned to their owners;
  161         (e)Were adopted;
  162         (f)Were transferred to other organizations or rescue
  163  groups; or
  164         (g) Remain in the custody of the agency or shelter.
  165         Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2012.
  166  
  167  ================= T I T L E  A M E N D M E N T ================
  168         And the title is amended as follows:
  169         Delete everything before the enacting clause
  170  and insert:
  171                        A bill to be entitled                      
  172         An act relating to animal shelters and animal control
  173         agencies; creating the “Animal Rescue Act”; creating
  174         s. 828.067, F.S.; defining the terms “animal control
  175         agency,” “animal rescue group” or “rescue group,” and
  176         “animal shelter”; requiring any animal control agency
  177         or animal shelter that euthanizes animals to maintain
  178         a registry of animal rescue groups that are willing to
  179         accept animals that would otherwise be subject to
  180         euthanization; providing eligibility criteria for
  181         rescue groups and persons desiring to be on the
  182         euthanization registry; providing criteria under which
  183         an animal control agency or animal shelter may reject
  184         an applicant for the euthanization registry or remove
  185         a participant from the registry; requiring that
  186         certain specified information concerning an animal
  187         rescue group be included in the group’s application
  188         for inclusion on the euthanasia registry; authorizing
  189         an animal control agency or animal shelter to require
  190         a rescue group or person to provide specified data to
  191         the animal control agency or animal shelter each
  192         month; prohibiting an animal control agency or animal
  193         shelter from euthanizing an animal until the animal
  194         control agency or animal shelter has notified the
  195         appropriate animal rescue group or person listed on
  196         the euthanization registry; requiring that a rescue
  197         group or person agreeing to take possession of the
  198         animal do so within a specified time; providing for a
  199         required minimum holding period for a healthy animal;
  200         providing exceptions to the requirement to notify a
  201         rescue group and to abide by the minimum holding
  202         period; authorizing an animal control agency or animal
  203         shelter to assess a fee, not to exceed the standard
  204         adoption fee, for each animal released to a rescue
  205         group; requiring that each animal control agency or
  206         animal shelter provide for public inspection certain
  207         information on a monthly and annual basis; providing
  208         an effective date.