Substitute House Bill No. 5027
AN ACT ESTABLISHING A TASK FORCE CONCERNING THE SALE OF CATS AND DOGS AT PET SHOPS.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Assembly convened:
Section 1. (Effective from passage) (a) There is established a task force to study the proliferation of dogs and cats sourced from inhumane origins and sold in Connecticut pet shops. Such study shall include, but not be limited to, an examination of how to amend the general statutes to provide for the reduction of such proliferation.
(b) The task force shall consist of the following members:
(1) Two appointed by the speaker of the House of Representatives, one of whom shall be a local breeder of dogs or cats and one of whom shall be a member of Connecticut Votes for Animals;
(2) Two appointed by the president pro tempore of the Senate, one of whom shall be a member of the Humane Society of the United States and one of whom shall be a member of the Senate;
(3) One appointed by the majority leader of the House of Representatives, who shall be a member of the House of Representatives;
(4) One appointed by the majority leader of the Senate, who shall be a member of the Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council;
(5) Two appointed by the minority leader of the House of Representatives, one of whom shall be a member of the Connecticut Veterinary Medical Association and one of whom shall be a member of the House of Representatives;
(6) Two appointed by the minority leader of the Senate, one of whom shall be a member of the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and one of whom shall be a member of the Senate; and
(7) The Commissioner of Agriculture, or the commissioner's designee.
(c) All appointments to the task force shall be made not later than thirty days after the effective date of this section. Any vacancy shall be filled by the appointing authority.
(d) One chairperson of such task force shall be a member of the majority party of the Senate and one chairperson of such task force shall be a member of the minority party of the House of Representatives. Such chairpersons shall schedule the first meeting of the task force, which shall be held not later than sixty days after the effective date of this section.
(e) The administrative staff of the joint standing committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to the environment shall serve as administrative staff of the task force.
(f) Not later than January 1, 2014, the task force shall submit a report on its findings and recommendations to the joint standing committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to the environment, in accordance with the provisions of section 11-4a of the general statutes. The task force shall terminate on the date that it submits such report or January 1, 2014, whichever is later.
Approved June 21, 2013