The list of recently enacted legislation is as follows:
A.8684-B L.Rosenthal (S.7388-B Tedisco) – establishes procedures that must be followed by the officer serving a notice of eviction on a tenant if there is a companion animal on the premises, to ensure the safe removal of the companion animal and their continuing care.
Status: Signed into Law 8/23/18, Chapter 205, Laws of 2018; effective 8/23/18.
A.62-A Paulin (S.4796-A Lanza) – a technical correction to that section of the Agriculture and Markets Law relating to the care of animals that have been seized as part of an animal cruelty prosecution, the bill clarifies the court in which the impounding organization can file a motion for security to provide resources to enable the organization to care for the animal during the pendency of the criminal case.
Status: Signed into Law 10/1/18, Chapter 289, Laws of 2018; effective 10/1/18.
S.7415-C Marcellino (A.10082-B Titone) – prohibits a purchase agreement or lease-purchase agreement for a companion animal from treating the animal as collateral that can be repossessed by the seller or lender if the purchaser becomes delinquent in required payments.
Status: Signed into Law 9/24/18, Chapter 272, Laws of 2018; effective 12/23/18.
S.7112 Lanza (A.4956 L.Rosenthal) – allows companion animals to board any public transportation operated by the Port Authority of NY-NJ (PATH trains) if a state of emergency is declared and evacuation ordered. This bill complements Chapter 378 of the Laws of 2017 (S.2589 Lanza) which enacted this requirement for commuter transportation operated by the MTA.
Status: Signed into Law 10/1/18, Chapter 284, Laws of 2018; effective 10/1/18.
S.177-C Marchione (A9907-B Jenne) – allows a humane society, SPCA, pound or shelter to put an unidentified and unclaimed cat up for adoption three days after it comes into its possession, provided that the locality in which the humane society, SPCA, pound or shelter is located has passed a local law allowing this reduced time period for adoption of an unidentified and unclaimed cat.
Status: Signed into Law 12/21/18, Chapter 421, Laws of 2018, effective on 3/21/2019.
H.R.724 — 116th Congress (2019-2020) – Public Law No: 116-72 (11/25/2019) – Preventing Animal Cruelty and Torture Act or the PACT Act – This bill revises and expands criminal provisions with respect to animal crushing. It retains existing criminal offenses that prohibit knowingly creating or distributing an animal crush video using interstate commerce. The bill also adds a new provision to criminalize an intentional act of animal crushing. A violator is subject to criminal penalties—a fine, a prison term of up to seven years, or both. It provides additional exceptions for conduct, or a video of conduct, including conduct that is (1) medical or scientific research, (2) necessary to protect the life or property of a person, (3) performed as part of euthanizing an animal, or (4) unintentional.
Please note: For more details on the recently enacted legislation above:
1. Go to the public access page (see link below)
2. Click on “Bill No.”
3. Select “Chapter No.”
4. Enter the Chapter Number (see above)
5. If you want to see the bill text, select the “Text” box at the top
CLICK HERE to go to the public access page