Bill Text: NY A00575 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Prohibits certain acts in rodeos; imposes penalties for the violation of such acts.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 8-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2024-01-03 - referred to agriculture [A00575 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-A00575-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                           575

                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                     January 9, 2023
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  M. of A. L. ROSENTHAL, WILLIAMS, PAULIN, LAVINE, COLTON,
          SIMON, GLICK -- read once and referred to the Committee on Agriculture

        AN ACT to amend the agriculture and markets  law,  in  relation  to  the
          prohibition of certain acts in rodeos

          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section 1. The agriculture and markets law is amended by adding a  new
     2  section 352 to read as follows:
     3    § 352. Use of animals in rodeos. 1. For the purposes of this section:
     4    (a) "Calf roping" shall mean capturing a calf with a lasso and binding
     5  its feet or allowing it to run free.
     6    (b)  "Electric  prod" shall mean a handheld device used to make cattle
     7  or other livestock move by striking or  poking  such  animal  with  such
     8  device  which  shocks such animal with a high voltage, low current elec-
     9  tric shock.
    10    (c) "Flank strap" or "bucking strap" shall mean a strap or rope  which
    11  is  tightly   cinched around the abdomen of a horse or bull causing such
    12  animal to buck.
    13    (d) "Person" shall mean any individual, partnership, limited liability
    14  company, corporation, joint venture, association, trust, estate  or  any
    15  other  legal  entity,  and  any  officer, member, shareholder, director,
    16  employee, agent or representative of any such  entity.
    17    (e) "Rodeo" shall mean a public exhibition in  which  skills  such  as
    18  riding bulls or broncos, or roping animals, are displayed.
    19    (f)  "Spur  with  a  fixed or sharpened rowel" shall mean a sharp prod
    20  fixed to the heel of the rider of an animal which is used to enhance  or
    21  increase the intensity of the bucking of the animal.
    22    2. No person in a rodeo shall:
    23    (a) engage in calf roping;
    24    (b)  use  flank  straps or bucking straps on horses, bulls, cattle, or
    25  other livestock;

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD00925-01-3
        A. 575                              2

     1    (c) use electric prods on horses, bulls, cattle, or  other  livestock;
     2  or
     3    (d) use spurs with fixed or sharpened rowels on horses, bulls, cattle,
     4  or other livestock.
     5    3. (a) Any person that violates the provisions of this section, or any
     6  rule or regulation promulgated pursuant thereto, may be assessed, by the
     7  commissioner,  a civil penalty of not more than ten thousand dollars for
     8  each such  violation.  Each  violation  and  each  day  during  which  a
     9  violation continues shall constitute a separate violation.
    10    (b)  Any  person  that  violates the provisions of this section, shall
    11  have any permit or license to operate as a rodeo revoked.
    12    4. Any venue that hosts a rodeo that violates the provisions  of  this
    13  section,  or  any rule or regulation promulgated pursuant thereto, shall
    14  lose its eligibility for any state tax abatements.
    15    § 2. This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day  after  it  shall
    16  have become a law.