WASHINGTON STATE ALERT ON BEHALF OF PIJAC – STATEWIDE PET STORE BAN
Special Alert on Behalf of Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council
Washington State – Statewide Pet Store Puppy Ban Legislation – HB 1424
What It Means:
As written, the bill would prohibit any future pet stores from selling any dog or cat and “grandfathers” existing pet stores’ ability to sell dogs or cats with sourcing restrictions. This bill will limit consumer choice by making it illegal for future pet stores to sell dogs or cats, and this will do nothing to stop inhumane breeding. Pet sale bans drive prospective pet owners to the unregulated market where there is zero oversight and no system in place to protect animal welfare, where they could be left with an unhealthy or diseased dog, huge veterinary costs, and no legal recourse. This legislation also puts the future of pet stores in jeopardy since “grandfathering” existing pet stores severely limits the store owner’s ability to sell or pass the business down to family, or even move the business to another location.
This act would prohibit future pet stores from selling any dog or cat, and only allow “grandfathered” or existing pet stores to sell dogs and cats with certain sourcing restrictions.
NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. A new section is added to chapter 16.52 RCW to read as follows:
(1) Except as provided in this section, a retail pet store may not sell or offer for sale any dog or cat.
(2) A retail pet store that sold or offered for sale any dog prior to the effective date of this section may sell or offer for sale a dog only if the retail pet store meets the following requirements:
(a) Any dog sold or offered for sale must be sold or offered for sale only at the address identified as the location address on the retail pet store’s business license, as defined in RCW 19.02.020, as of the effective date of this section;
(b) Any dog sold or offered for sale must be obtained directly from a breeder who, on the date the dog is obtained, is licensed by the United States department of agriculture pursuant to the federal animal welfare act, 7 U.S.C. Sec. 2131 et seq.;
(c) All dogs sold or offered for sale by a retail pet store must be obtained directly from a breeder who, whether located in state or out of state, has maintained compliance with RCW 16.52.310 throughout the three-year period ending on the date each dog was obtained from the breeder;
(d) A retail pet store must, prior to obtaining a dog from a breeder, obtain all inspection reports for the breeder created by the United States department of agriculture within the previous three years. A retail pet store must maintain and, upon request, produce the records for a period of five years following the sale of a dog obtained from the breeder after the effective date of this section; and
(e) A retail pet store must disclose the full name and United States department of agriculture license number of the breeder from which the dog was obtained by posting the information prominently on the cage or enclosure of each dog offered for sale and on any advertisement for the sale of a dog, whether the advertisement appears on the internet or in any other form, forum, or media.
(3) Local animal care and control agencies are responsible for enforcement of this section. A retail pet store that violates this section is subject to a class 1 civil infraction under RCW 7.80.120, for its first violation. Second and subsequent violations by a retail pet store are subject to a monetary penalty of $500. Any retail pet store with three or more violations is prohibited from selling or offering to sell any dogs. Each dog or cat offered for sale or sold by a retail pet store in violation of this section constitutes a separate violation.
(4) For the purposes of this section, “retail pet store” means a for-profit place of business that sells or offers for sale pet supplies or pets. A person who offers for sale, directly to the public, only animals that the person bred and raised, is not considered a retail pet store.
What You Can Do:
Please contact the committee members immediately, asking them to OPPOSE HB 1424 which would ban any future pet stores from selling dogs or cats and “grandfathers” existing pet stores’ ability to sell dogs or cats, with sourcing restrictions. The committee is scheduled to discuss this bill on Thursday, February 11 at 10AM Pacific.
1. Send emails to the committee NOW supporting Washington’s responsible pet stores. Click Here to use PIJAC’s automated form: Send a Message (cqrcengage.com)
2. Contact EVERYONE you know in Washington or in the pet trade and urge them to send emails to these legislators. The more that lawmakers realize how many people oppose this bill, and why, the better chance we have to make sure it is stopped in its tracks.
In addition, Washington residents can register to testify remotely at the hearing BY CLICKING HERE:
- Be advised: Registering to testify does not guarantee you a chance to speak or speak at specific times. Time constraints, technical issues, changes to committee schedules, etc. could affect your ability to testify.
- The committee Chair may limit public testimony (for example, one minute per testifier) due to time constraints. Be prepared to testify at any point during the hearing.
- Maintain proper committee protocol, which includes waiting to be acknowledged by the committee Chair before speaking, ensuring testimony and any objects appearing in the background of video feeds are respectful and professional, and following rules for testimony established by the Chair. Testifiers may include the name of their organization in a Zoom background, but Zoom backgrounds that include a slogan or any other material, including material that is campaign-related, offensive, or otherwise defamatory, will not be permitted.
Alert sent out by Protect The Harvest on behalf of PIJAC
Contact:
Joshua Jones | Deputy Director, Government Affairs
Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council | 202.452.1525 x1040
