Bill Text: NY A00658 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced


Bill Title: Prohibits persons who have been convicted of animal cruelty from working at an animal shelter; makes such violation a class A misdemeanor.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 11-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-01-08 - referred to agriculture [A00658 Detail]

Download: New_York-2019-A00658-Introduced.html


                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                           658
                               2019-2020 Regular Sessions
                   IN ASSEMBLY
                                       (Prefiled)
                                     January 9, 2019
                                       ___________
        Introduced  by  M.  of  A.  PAULIN,  GUNTHER,  GALEF, MOSLEY, ZEBROWSKI,
          L. ROSENTHAL, OTIS, HEVESI -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of  A.  COLTON,
          COOK, THIELE -- read once and referred to the Committee on Agriculture
        AN ACT to amend the agriculture and markets law, in relation to limiting
          the right of a person who has violated certain animal cruelty statutes
          from working at an animal shelter
          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
     1    Section 1. Section 353-a of the agriculture and markets law is amended
     2  by adding a new subdivision 4 to read as follows:
     3    4. No person who is convicted of a violation of this section shall  be
     4  allowed  to  accept  or  remain  in a position as a dog control officer,
     5  animal control officer, or as  a  paid  employee  or  volunteer  at  the
     6  following types of establishments: an animal shelter, pound, duly incor-
     7  porated humane society, duly incorporated animal protective association,
     8  or  duly  incorporated society for the prevention of cruelty to animals,
     9  on and after the effective date of this subdivision.   For the  purposes
    10  of  this  subdivision,  the  term  "volunteer"  shall not include anyone
    11  required by court order to fulfill a community  service  requirement  in
    12  service  at any animal shelter, pound, duly incorporated humane society,
    13  duly incorporated animal protective association,  or  duly  incorporated
    14  society for the prevention of cruelty to animals.  Any dog control offi-
    15  cer,  animal  control  officer  or  paid  employee or volunteer found in
    16  violation of this subdivision shall be guilty of a class A misdemeanor.
    17    § 2. Section 353 of the agriculture and markets  law,  as  amended  by
    18  chapter  458 of the laws of 1985 and the opening paragraph as amended by
    19  chapter 523 of the laws of 2005, is amended to read as follows:
    20    § 353. Overdriving, torturing and injuring animals; failure to provide
    21  proper sustenance. 1. A person who overdrives,  overloads,  tortures  or
    22  cruelly  beats  or  unjustifiably injures, maims, mutilates or kills any
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD02744-01-9

        A. 658                              2
     1  animal, whether wild or tame, and whether belonging  to  himself  or  to
     2  another,  or deprives any animal of necessary sustenance, food or drink,
     3  or neglects or refuses to furnish it such sustenance or drink, or  caus-
     4  es,  procures  or  permits  any  animal  to  be  overdriven, overloaded,
     5  tortured, cruelly beaten, or unjustifiably injured, maimed, mutilated or
     6  killed, or to be deprived of necessary food or drink,  or  who  wilfully
     7  sets  on foot, instigates, engages in, or in any way furthers any act of
     8  cruelty to any animal, or any act tending to produce  such  cruelty,  is
     9  guilty  of  a  class  A misdemeanor and for purposes of paragraph (b) of
    10  subdivision one of section 160.10 of the criminal procedure  law,  shall
    11  be treated as a misdemeanor defined in the penal law.
    12    2.  Nothing  herein contained shall be construed to prohibit or inter-
    13  fere with any properly conducted scientific tests, experiments or inves-
    14  tigations, involving the use of living animals, performed  or  conducted
    15  in  laboratories  or institutions, which are approved for these purposes
    16  by the state commissioner of health. The state  commissioner  of  health
    17  shall  prescribe  the rules under which such approvals shall be granted,
    18  including therein standards regarding the care and treatment of any such
    19  animals. Such rules shall be published and copies thereof  conspicuously
    20  posted in each such laboratory or institution. The state commissioner of
    21  health  or  his  duly  authorized representative shall have the power to
    22  inspect such laboratories or institutions to insure compliance with such
    23  rules and standards. Each such approval may be revoked at any  time  for
    24  failure  to comply with such rules and in any case the approval shall be
    25  limited to a period not exceeding one year.
    26    3. No person who is convicted of a violation of this section shall  be
    27  allowed  to  accept  or  remain  in a position as a dog control officer,
    28  animal control officer, or as  a  paid  employee  or  volunteer  at  the
    29  following types of establishments: an animal shelter, pound, duly incor-
    30  porated humane society, duly incorporated animal protective association,
    31  or  duly  incorporated society for the prevention of cruelty to animals,
    32  on and after the effective date of this subdivision.   For the  purposes
    33  of  this  subdivision,  the  term  "volunteer"  shall not include anyone
    34  required by court order to fulfill a community  service  requirement  in
    35  service  at any animal shelter, pound, duly incorporated humane society,
    36  duly incorporated animal protective association,  or  duly  incorporated
    37  society for the prevention of cruelty to animals.  Any dog control offi-
    38  cer,  animal  control  officer  or  paid  employee or volunteer found in
    39  violation of this subdivision shall be guilty of a class A misdemeanor.
    40    § 3. Section 351 of the agriculture and  markets  law  is  amended  by
    41  adding a new subdivision 7 to read as follows:
    42    7.  No person who is convicted of a violation of this section shall be
    43  allowed to accept or remain in a position  as  a  dog  control  officer,
    44  animal  control  officer,  or  as  a  paid  employee or volunteer at the
    45  following types of establishments: an animal shelter, pound, duly incor-
    46  porated humane society, duly incorporated animal protective association,
    47  or duly incorporated society for the prevention of cruelty  to  animals,
    48  on and after the effective date of this subdivision. For the purposes of
    49  this subdivision, the term "volunteer" shall not include anyone required
    50  by  court order to fulfill a community service requirement in service at
    51  any animal shelter, pound, duly incorporated humane society, duly incor-
    52  porated animal protective association, or duly incorporated society  for
    53  the  prevention  of cruelty to animals.  Any dog control officer, animal
    54  control officer or paid employee or volunteer found in violation of this
    55  subdivision shall be guilty of a class A misdemeanor.

        A. 658                              3
     1    § 4. Section 355 of the agriculture and markets  law,  as  amended  by
     2  chapter 458 of the laws of 1985, is amended to read as follows:
     3    § 355. Abandonment  of animals. 1. A person being the owner or posses-
     4  sor, or having charge or custody of an animal, who abandons such animal,
     5  or leaves it to die in a street, road or public  place,  or  who  allows
     6  such  animal,  if it become disabled, to lie in a public street, road or
     7  public place more than three hours after he receives notice that  it  is
     8  left  disabled,  is  guilty of a misdemeanor, punishable by imprisonment
     9  for not more than one year, or by a fine of not more than  one  thousand
    10  dollars, or by both.
    11    2.  No person who is convicted of a violation of this section shall be
    12  allowed to accept or remain in a position  as  a  dog  control  officer,
    13  animal  control  officer,  or  as  a  paid  employee or volunteer at the
    14  following types of establishments: an animal shelter, pound, duly incor-
    15  porated humane society, duly incorporated animal protective association,
    16  or duly incorporated society for the prevention of cruelty  to  animals,
    17  on and after the effective date of this subdivision. For the purposes of
    18  this subdivision, the term "volunteer" shall not include anyone required
    19  by  court order to fulfill a community service requirement in service at
    20  any animal shelter, pound, duly incorporated humane society, duly incor-
    21  porated animal protective association, or duly incorporated society  for
    22  the  prevention  of cruelty to animals.  Any dog control officer, animal
    23  control officer or paid employee or volunteer found in violation of this
    24  subdivision shall be guilty of a class A misdemeanor.
    25    § 5. This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day  after  it  shall
    26  have become a law.
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