STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
10493
IN ASSEMBLY
May 29, 2012
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Introduced by M. of A. PAULIN, P. RIVERA, TITONE, ROBERTS -- Multi-Spon-
sored by -- M. of A. ABBATE, SWEENEY, THIELE, WEISENBERG -- read once
and referred to the Committee on Agriculture
AN ACT to amend the agriculture and markets law and the general business
law, in relation to the sale of animals
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Section 403 of the agriculture and markets law is amended
2 by adding a new subdivision 10-a to read as follows:
3 10-a. Any fines imposed upon a pet dealer in accordance with this
4 article and article thirty-five-D of the general business law shall be
5 satisfied prior to the issuance of a license or renewal thereof pursuant
6 to this article and article thirty-five-D of the general business law.
7 § 2. Subdivision 2 of section 406 of the agriculture and markets law,
8 as added by chapter 259 of the laws of 2000, is amended to read as
9 follows:
10 2. Violation of any provision of this article, is a civil offense, for
11 which a penalty of not less than [fifty] one hundred fifty dollars and
12 not more than one thousand dollars for each violation may be imposed.
13 § 3. Subdivision 1 of section 753 of the general business law, as
14 added by chapter 431 of the laws of 1988, the opening paragraph as
15 amended and such section as renumbered by chapter 68 of the laws of
16 1993, is amended to read as follows:
17 1. If, within [fourteen business] one hundred eighty calendar days
18 following the sale of an animal subject to this article or receipt of
19 the written notice required by section seven hundred fifty-four of this
20 article, whichever occurred last, a veterinarian of the consumer's
21 choosing, licensed by a state certifies such animal to be unfit for
22 purchase due to illness, a congenital malformation which adversely
23 affects the health of the animal, or the presence of symptoms of a
24 contagious or infectious disease, the pet dealer shall afford the
25 consumer the right to choose one of the following options:
26 (a) The right to return the animal and receive a refund of the
27 purchase price including sales tax and reasonable veterinary costs
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD15651-02-2
A. 10493 2
1 directly related to the veterinarian's certification that the animal is
2 unfit for purchase pursuant to this section;
3 (b) The right to return the animal and to receive an exchange animal
4 of the consumer's choice of equivalent value and reasonable veterinary
5 costs directly related to the veterinarian's certification that the
6 animal is unfit for purchase pursuant to this section; or
7 (c) The right to retain the animal and to receive reimbursement from a
8 pet dealer for veterinary services from a licensed veterinarian of the
9 consumer's choosing, for the purpose of curing or attempting to cure the
10 animal. The reasonable value of reimbursable services rendered to cure
11 or attempting to cure the animal shall not exceed the purchase price of
12 the animal. The value of such services is reasonable if comparable to
13 the value of similar services rendered by other licensed veterinarians
14 in proximity to the treating veterinarian. Such reimbursement shall not
15 include the costs of initial veterinary examination fees and diagnostic
16 fees not directly related to the veterinarian's certification that the
17 animal is unfit for purchase pursuant to this section.
18 The commissioner by regulations shall prescribe a form for, and the
19 content of, the certification that an animal is unfit for purchase,
20 which shall be provided by an examining veterinarian to a consumer upon
21 the examination of an animal which is subject to the provisions of this
22 section. Such form shall include, but not be limited to, information
23 which identifies the type of animal, the owner, the date and diagnosis
24 of the animal, the treatment recommended if any, and an estimate or the
25 actual cost of such treatment. Such form shall also include the notice
26 prescribed in section seven hundred [forty-three] fifty-four of this
27 article.
28 The commissioner by regulations shall prescribe information which
29 shall be provided in writing by the pet dealer to the consumer upon the
30 sale of the animal. Such information shall include, but not be limited
31 to, a description, including breed of the animal, the date of purchase,
32 the name, address and telephone number of the consumer, and the amount
33 of the purchase. The pet dealer shall certify such information by sign-
34 ing the document in which it is contained.
35 § 4. Section 753-b of the general business law, as added by chapter
36 259 of the laws of 2000, paragraph (f) of subdivision 2 as added by
37 chapter 598 of the laws of 2008, is amended to read as follows:
38 § 753-b. Information statement for purchaser. Every pet dealer shall
39 deliver to the purchaser of an animal, at the time of sale, a written
40 statement in a standardized form prescribed by the commissioner of agri-
41 culture and markets containing the following information:
42 1. For cats:
43 (a) The breeder's and, if applicable, broker's name and address, if
44 known, or, if not known, the source of the cat. If the person from whom
45 the cat was obtained is a dealer licensed by the United States depart-
46 ment of agriculture, the person's name, address, and federal identifica-
47 tion number;
48 (b) The date of the cat's birth, unless unknown because of the source
49 of the cat, the date the pet dealer received the cat, and the location
50 where the cat was received;
51 (c) A record of immunizations and worming treatments administered, if
52 any, to the cat as of the time of sale while the cat was in the
53 possession of the pet dealer, including the dates of administration and
54 the type of vaccines or worming treatments administered;
55 (d) A record of any known disease, sickness, or congenital condition
56 that adversely affects the health of the cat at the time of sale;
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1 (e) A record of any veterinary treatment or medication received by the
2 cat while in the possession of the pet dealer and either of the follow-
3 ing:
4 (i) A statement, signed by the pet dealer at the time of sale, indi-
5 cating all of the following: (1) The cat has no known disease or
6 illness; (2) The cat has no known congenital or hereditary condition
7 that adversely affects the health of the cat at the time of sale; or
8 (ii) A record of any known congenital or hereditary condition,
9 disease, or illness that adversely affects the health of the cat at the
10 time of sale, along with a statement signed by a licensed veterinarian
11 that authorizes the sale of the cat, recommends necessary treatment, if
12 any, and verifies that the condition, disease or illness does not
13 require hospitalization or [nonelective] non-elective surgical proce-
14 dures, and is not likely to require hospitalization or [nonelective]
15 non-elective surgical procedures in the future. A veterinarian statement
16 is not required for intestinal or external parasites unless their pres-
17 ence makes the cat clinically ill or is likely to make the cat clin-
18 ically ill. The statement shall be valid for fourteen business days
19 following examination of the cat by the veterinarian.
20 2. For dogs:
21 (a) The breeder's and, if applicable, broker's name and address, if
22 known, or if not known, the source of the dog. If the person from whom
23 the dog was obtained is a dealer licensed by the United States depart-
24 ment of agriculture, the person's name, address, and federal identifica-
25 tion number;
26 (b) The date of the dog's birth and the date and location the pet
27 dealer received the dog. If the dog is not advertised or sold as a pure-
28 bred, registered or registrable, the date of birth may be approximated
29 if not known by the seller;
30 (c) The breed, sex, color and identifying marks at the time of sale.
31 If the dog is from a United States department of agriculture licensed
32 source, the individual identifying tag, tattoo, or collar number for
33 that animal. If the breed is unknown or mixed, the record shall so indi-
34 cate. If the dog is being sold as being capable of registration, the
35 names and registration numbers of the sire and dam, and the litter
36 number, if known;
37 (d) A record of inoculations and worming treatments administered, if
38 any, to the dog as of the time of sale while the dog was in the
39 possession of the pet dealer, including dates of administration and the
40 type of vaccines and/or worming treatments administered;
41 (e) A record of any veterinary treatment or medication received by the
42 dog while in the possession of the pet dealer and either of the follow-
43 ing:
44 (i) A statement, signed by the pet dealer at the time of sale, indi-
45 cating all of the following: (1) The dog has no known disease or
46 illness; (2) The dog has no known congenital or hereditary condition
47 that adversely affects the health of the dog at the time of the sale; or
48 (ii) A record of any known congenital or hereditary condition, disease
49 or illness that adversely affects the health of the dog at the time of
50 sale, along with a statement signed by a licensed veterinarian that
51 authorizes the sale of the dog, recommends necessary treatment, if any,
52 and verifies that the condition, disease, or illness does not require
53 hospitalization or [nonelective] non-elective surgical procedures, and
54 is not likely to require hospitalization or [nonelective] non-elective
55 surgical procedures in the future. A veterinarian statement is not
56 required for intestinal or external parasites unless their presence
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1 makes the dog clinically ill or is likely to make the dog clinically
2 ill. The statement shall be valid for fourteen business days following
3 examination of the dog by the veterinarian.
4 (f) Notification that dogs residing in New York state must be
5 licensed, and that a license may be obtained from the municipality in
6 which the dog resides.
7 3. A disclosure made pursuant to subdivision one or two of this
8 section shall be signed by both the pet dealer certifying the accuracy
9 of the statement and the purchaser acknowledging receipt of the state-
10 ment. At the time of sale, each pet dealer shall provide the purchaser
11 with information on the value of spaying and neutering of dogs and cats.
12 4. Every pet dealer shall post conspicuously [within close proximity
13 to] on the cages of dogs and cats offered for sale, a notice containing
14 the following language in one hundred-point type: "Information on the
15 source of these dogs and cats and the veterinary treatments received by
16 these dogs and cats is available for review by prospective purchasers."
17 § 5. Subdivision 1 of section 755 of the general business law, as
18 amended by chapter 259 of the laws of 2000, is amended and a new subdi-
19 vision 1-b is added to read as follows:
20 1. In addition to the other remedies provided, whenever there shall be
21 a violation of this article, application may be made by the attorney
22 general in the name of the people of the state of New York to a court or
23 justice having jurisdiction by a special proceeding to issue an injunc-
24 tion, and upon notice to the defendant of not less than five days, to
25 enjoin and restrain the continuance of such violations; and if it shall
26 appear to the satisfaction of the court or justice that the defendant
27 has, in fact, violated this article, an injunction may be issued by such
28 court or justice, enjoining and restraining any further violation, with-
29 out requiring proof that any person has, in fact, been injured or
30 damaged thereby. In any such proceeding, the court may make allowances
31 to the attorney general as provided in paragraph six of subdivision (a)
32 of section eighty-three hundred three of the civil practice law and
33 rules, and direct restitution. Whenever the court shall determine that a
34 violation of this article has occurred, the court may impose a civil
35 penalty of not less than [fifty] one hundred fifty dollars and not more
36 than one thousand dollars. In connection with any such proposed applica-
37 tion, the attorney general is authorized to take proof and make a deter-
38 mination of the relevant facts and to issue subpoenas in accordance with
39 the civil practice law and rules.
40 1-b. Any fines imposed upon a pet dealer in accordance with this
41 section and sections four hundred four and four hundred six of the agri-
42 culture and markets law shall be satisfied prior to the issuance of a
43 license or renewal thereof under this article.
44 § 6. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
45 it shall have become a law.
