A01297 Summary:

BILL NOA01297A
 
SAME ASSAME AS S05084-A
 
SPONSORRosenthal
 
COSPNSRDinowitz, Mosley, Gottfried, Brindisi, Lavine, Galef, Raia, Murray, Lupardo, Quart, Seawright, Linares, Sepulveda, Santabarbara, Rivera
 
MLTSPNSRCeretto, Cook, Curran, Fitzpatrick, Garbarino, Glick, Kearns, Lupinacci, McDonough, Simon, Solages, Thiele, Weinstein
 
Add §380, Ag & Mkts
 
Relates to the prohibition of declawing of cats; makes such violation punishable by a civil penalty not to exceed $1,000.
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A01297 Actions:

BILL NOA01297A
 
01/09/2015referred to agriculture
01/06/2016referred to agriculture
06/03/2016amend (t) and recommit to agriculture
06/03/2016print number 1297a
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A01297 Memo:

NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY
MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION
submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
 
BILL NUMBER: A1297A
 
SPONSOR: Rosenthal
  TITLE OF BILL: An act to amend the agriculture and markets law, in relation to prohib- iting the declawing of cats   PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL: To prohibit the performance of declawing procedures on cats   SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS: Section one amends the agriculture and markets law by adding a new section 380. Section two sets forth the effective date.   JUSTIFICATION: Cats' claws play an important role in various aspects of their lives. Cats use their claws to assist in climbing and maintaining balance, to help them fully stretch, to relieve stress through kneading and to escape danger. When a person has its animal declawed, usually in an attempt to protect furniture, they do fundamental damage to that animal both physically and in behavioral ways. There are harmless ways to manage undesirable behavior through simple training and other estab- lished methods. Declawing, also known as onychectomy, involves the removal of all or most of the last bone of each of the toes of the front feet, and tendons, nerves and ligaments that allow for normal function of the paw are severed, resulting in intense and chronic pain and other serious medical issues. Flexor tendonectomy, in which cats' toes are cut so that claws cannot be extended also imperils their health and safety. Abscess- es often develop as the area comes into contact with dirt or litter, and sometimes regrowth can occur spontaneously resulting in sharp pain or infection. After the claws are removed, the animal tends to shift its gait and where it places most of its weight, causing strain on its leg joints and spine, which can lead to early onset arthritis and prolonged back and joint pain. Declawed cats often develop behavioral problems that lead to their being surrendered to animal shelters where they are, for the most part, not adoptable. Declawing is currently banned in nearly 10 cities in California and in many countries around the world, including Switzerland, Israel and the U.K. This bill seeks to ban such practice in New York State.   PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY: New bill.   FISCAL IMPLICATIONS: Undetermined.   EFFECTIVE DATE: This act shall take effect immediately.
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A01297 Text:



 
                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                         1297--A
 
                               2015-2016 Regular Sessions
 
                   IN ASSEMBLY
 
                                     January 9, 2015
                                       ___________
 
        Introduced by M. of A. ROSENTHAL, DINOWITZ, MOSLEY, GOTTFRIED, BRINDISI,
          LAVINE, GALEF, RAIA, MURRAY, LUPARDO, QUART, SEAWRIGHT, LINARES, GOLD-
          FEDER,  SEPULVEDA, SANTABARBARA, RIVERA -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of
          A.   CERETTO, COOK, CURRAN,  FITZPATRICK,  GARBARINO,  GLICK,  KEARNS,
          LUPINACCI,  McDONOUGH,  SIMON, SOLAGES, THIELE, WEINSTEIN -- read once
          and referred to the Committee on Agriculture  --  recommitted  to  the
          Committee on Agriculture in accordance with Assembly Rule 3, sec. 2 --
          committee  discharged,  bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and
          recommitted to said committee
 
        AN ACT to amend the agriculture and markets law, in relation to  prohib-
          iting the declawing of cats
 
          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 380 to read as follows:
     3    §  380.  Prohibition  of  the  declawing  of  cats. 1. No person shall
     4  perform an onychectomy (declawing), partial or complete phlangectomy  or
     5  tendonectomy  procedure  by  any  means on a cat within the state of New
     6  York, except when necessary for  a  therapeutic  purpose.    Therapeutic
     7  purpose means the necessity to address the physical medical condition of
     8  the  cat,  such as an existing or recurring illness, infection, disease,
     9  injury or abnormal condition in the  claw  that  compromises  the  cat's
    10  health.  Therapeutic  purpose  does  not  include  cosmetic or aesthetic
    11  reasons or reasons of convenience in keeping or handling the cat.
    12    2. Any person who performs an onychectomy, partial or complete  phlan-
    13  gectomy  or  tendonectomy  procedure  on any cat within the state of New
    14  York shall be guilty of a violation  of  this  section  which  shall  be
    15  punishable by a civil penalty not to exceed one thousand dollars.
    16    § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD04179-02-6
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