FAKC'S LEGISLATIVE ADVOCACY

2022 FLOIRDA SENATE & HOUSE LEGISLATIVE SESSION

FROM PAT MIXON:

SB 448: Veterinary Telehealth

GENERAL BILL by Brodeur

Veterinary Telehealth; Citing this act as the “Providing Equity in Telemedicine Services (PETS) Act”; defining the term “telemedicine”; authorizing veterinarians to practice telemedicine; requiring veterinarians using telemedicine to establish a veterinarian/client/patient relationship and meet certain professional standards; authorizing employees, agents, or contractors of animal control authorities to administer rabies vaccinations under certain circumstances; providing that a supervising veterinarian assumes responsibility for any person vaccinating animals at the supervising veterinarian’s discretion or under his or her supervision, etc.

Effective Date: 7/1/2022
Last Action: 2/7/2022 Senate - On Committee agenda—Temporarily postponed today, Agriculture, 02/10/22, 8:30 am, 110 Senate Building --If Received
Bill Webpage

SB 614: Authorization of Restrictions Concerning Dangerous Dogs

GENERAL BILL by Garcia

Authorization of Restrictions Concerning Dangerous Dogs; Authorizing certain housing authorities to adopt certain ordinances, rules, or policies relating to dangerous dogs; removing an exemption for local ordinances adopted before a specified date which pertain to dogs that have bitten or attacked persons or domestic animals, etc.

Effective Date: 10/1/2022
Last Action: 2/7/2022 Senate - On Committee agenda-- Agriculture, 02/10/22, 8:30 am, 110 Senate Building
Bill Webpage

CS/HB 721 -  Authorization of Restrictions Concerning Dangerous Dogs

General Bill by Local Administration & Veterans Affairs Subcommittee and Buchanan (CO-SPONSORS) Rizo; Trabulsy

Authorization of Restrictions Concerning Dangerous Dogs: Authorizes certain housing authorities to adopt certain rules or policies relating to dangerous dogs; removes exemption for local ordinances adopted before specified date which pertain to dogs that have bitten or attacked persons or domestic animals.

Effective Date: October 1, 2022
Last Action: 2/8/2022 House - Favorable by Regulatory Reform Subcommittee
Bill Webpage

 HB 849: Pet Protection

GENERAL BILL by Fernandez-Barquin ; (CO-INTRODUCERS) Casello

Pet Protection; Requires licensure of pet stores; requires DBPR to adopt procedures for such licensure; regulates sale or transfer of household pets by pet stores; limits sources from which pet stores may acquire pets for sale; requires DBPR to conduct periodic inspections of pet stores & audit sales records; revises importation, sterilization, & reporting requirements of certain public or private entities.

Effective Date: 7/1/2022
Last Action: 1/11/2022 House - 1st Reading (Original Filed Version)
Bill Webpage

CS/SB 994: Pet Protection

GENERAL BILL by Regulated Industries ; Diaz ; (CO-INTRODUCERS) Powell

Pet Protection; Creating the "Florida Pet Protection Act"; requiring the licensure of retail pet stores; limiting the sources from which retail pet stores may acquire household pets for specified purposes; requiring the Department of Business and Professional Regulation to conduct periodic inspections of retail pet stores and to audit sales records; requiring the department to deny a retail pet store license under certain circumstances; prohibiting county and municipal ordinances and regulations from prohibiting or regulating the breeding, purchase, or sale of certain working dogs, etc.

Effective Date: 7/1/2022
Last Action: 1/18/2022 Senate - CS by Regulated Industries read 1st time -SJ 174
Bill Webpage

HB 1075: Tethering of Domestic Dogs and Cats

GENERAL BILL by Slosberg-King ; (CO-INTRODUCERS) Arrington ; Hunschofsky

Tethering of Domestic Dogs and Cats; Prohibits certain tethering domestic dogs & cats; provides penalties; provides for enforcement.
Effective Date: 7/1/2022
Last Action: 1/11/2022 House - 1st Reading (Original Filed Version)
Bill Webpage

SB 1508: Tethering Domestic Dogs and Cats

GENERAL BILL by Taddeo

Tethering Domestic Dogs and Cats; Citing this act as the "Penny Bautista Act"; specifying requirements for tethering domestic dogs and cats; providing applicability; providing civil penalties; providing for enforcement, etc.

Effective Date: 7/1/2022
Last Action: 1/18/2022 Senate - Introduced -SJ 131
Bill Webpage

SB 1750: Sale of Dogs and Cats

GENERAL BILL by Wright

Sale of Dogs and Cats; Requiring that if a pet sale is terminated for certain reasons, a financing agreement must be terminated without penalty; deleting a limit on veterinary costs under certain provisions; requiring a mandatory waiting period between the purchase and receipt of an animal if the transaction is financed; providing that violations constitute an unfair method of competition or an unfair or deceptive act or practice in violation of specified provisions and subject to penalties, etc.

Effective Date: 7/1/2022
Last Action: 1/18/2022 Senate - Introduced -SJ 150
Bill Text: Web Page | PDF

HB 1061: Sale of Dogs and Cats

GENERAL BILL by Chaney ; (CO-INTRODUCERS) Killebrew

Sale of Dogs and Cats; Requires that if pet sale is terminated for certain reasons financing agreement be terminated without cost; removes limit on veterinary costs under certain provisions; requires mandatory waiting period between receipt of animal & purchase if transaction is financed; removes certain provisions relating to return of animal; requires dealer to provide copies of medical records; revises requirements for disclosures to consumer; provides that violations constitute an unfair method of competition or an unfair or deceptive act or practice.

Effective Date: 7/1/2022
Last Action: 1/11/2022 House - 1st Reading (Original Filed Version)
Bill Webpage

SB 1806: Animal Abusers

GENERAL BILL by Jones

Animal Abusers; Requiring the Department of Law Enforcement to post on its website by a specified date a publicly accessible animal abuser registry of persons convicted of animal abuse offenses; prohibiting the registry from including certain information; prohibiting certain persons and entities from selling, exchanging, or otherwise transferring the ownership of an animal to a registered abuser; authorizing courts, as a condition of probation, to prohibit persons convicted of certain animal cruelty or sexual activity with an animal violations from having certain responsibilities for or associations with an animal, etc.

Effective Date: 10/1/2022
Last Action: 1/18/2022 Senate - Introduced -SJ 154
Bill Webpage

SB 1804: Fees/Animal Abuser Registry

GENERAL BILL by Jones

Fees/Animal Abuser Registry; Requiring an animal abuser to pay a specified fee upon registration and annual renewal with the animal abuser registry; providing for the distribution of funds, etc.

Effective Date: On the same date that SB 1806 or similar legislation takes effect, if such legislation is adopted in the same legislative session or an extension thereof and becomes a law
Last Action: 1/18/2022 Senate - Introduced -SJ 154
Bill Webpage

HB 1341: Animal Abusers

GENERAL BILL by Arrington ; (CO-INTRODUCERS) Daley ; Hunschofsky ; Morales

Animal Abusers; Requires FDLE to post publicly accessible registry list on its website of persons convicted of specified animal abuse offenses; provides requirements for registry; prohibits specified acts by registered abusers; prohibits certain persons & entities from selling, exchanging, or otherwise transferring ownership of animal to registered abuser; authorizes courts to prohibit persons convicted of certain animal cruelty or sexual activity with animal violations from having responsibilities for or association with animal as condition of probation.

Effective Date: 10/1/2022
Last Action: 1/14/2022 House - Now in Criminal Justice & Public Safety Subcommittee
Bill Webpage

HB 1343: Fees/Registration with Animal Abuser Registry

GENERAL BILL by Arrington

Fees/Registration with Animal Abuser Registry; Requires animal abuser to pay certain fee upon registration & annual renewal with animal abuser registry; provides for distribution of funds.

Effective Date: on the same date that HB 1341 or similar legislation takes effect
Last Action: 1/14/2022 House - Now in Criminal Justice & Public Safety Subcommittee
Bill Webpage


Norway Lawsuit Banning Breeding of Cavalier King Charles Spaniels and English Bulldogs

The Norwegian Cavalier Club would like to emphasize that the club's breeders who have been summoned, this is due to the fact that they had positions in the club at the time, and not as a result of unethical breeding, this is also described carefully in the legal documents section 2.1.
The court said the following:

“The lawsuit has been filed to clarify whether the Animal Welfare Act §25 limits what kind of genetic material can be continued through breeding, and whether the genetic material for Bulldog and Cavalier exceeds this limit. The case is therefore filed at race level, not at individual or club level. The case does not depend on whether any of the defendants have or lack guilt or responsibility for the content of genetic material today. On the contrary, it is agreed that all parties are undoubtedly genuinely concerned about good animal welfare, that the Clubs have taken several measures to improve the situation, and that the breeders are not alleged to have made any”mistakes” in their activities. The lawsuit can therefore be perceived as both burdensome and unfair for some defendants. At the same time, the lawsuit is necessary to determine the scope of the Animal Welfare Act's breeding provision.”

Pat Mixon
FAKC Governmental Consultant