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SUMMARY:

SEMINERIO, SEDDIO, KLEIN; M-S: Brown, Calhoun, Clark, Hooper, Koon, McEneny, Robach, Sweeney, Thiele, Wirth 
Amd S353, add S353-b, Ag & Mkts L 
Imposes a duty on owners or persons having custody of animals to provide necessary shelter therefor in extreme temperature conditions; provides that any person violating these provisions shall be guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment and/or fine or by both. 
CRIMINAL SANCTION IMPACT.
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 BILL TEXT:
 

                STATE OF NEW YORK
       ________________________________________________________________________

                                          883

                              2001-2002 Regular Sessions

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                    January 8, 2001
                                      ___________

       Introduced by M. of A. SEMINERIO, SEDDIO, KLEIN -- Multi-Sponsored by --
         M.  of  A. BROWN, CALHOUN, CLARK, HOOPER, KOON, McENENY, ROBACH, SWEE-
         NEY, THIELE, WIRTH -- read once and referred to the Committee on Agri-
         culture

       AN ACT to amend the agriculture and markets law, in relation to  requir-
         ing appropriate shelter for animals

         The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
       bly, do enact as follows:

    1    Section 1. Section 353 of the agriculture and markets law, as  amended
    2  by chapter 458 of the laws of 1985, is amended to read as follows:
    3    § 353. Overdriving, torturing and injuring animals; failure to provide
    4  proper  sustenance.  A  person  who  overdrives,  overloads, tortures or
    5  cruelly beats or unjustifiably injures, maims, mutilates  or  kills  any
    6  animal,  whether  wild  or  tame, and whether belonging to himself or to
    7  another, or deprives any animal  of  necessary  sustenance,  food  [or],
    8  drink  or  shelter, or neglects or refuses to furnish it such sustenance
    9  or drink, or causes, procures or permits any animal  to  be  overdriven,
   10  overloaded,  tortured, cruelly beaten, or unjustifiably injured, maimed,
   11  mutilated or killed, or to be deprived of necessary food [or], drink  or
   12  shelter, or who wilfully sets on foot, instigates, engages in, or in any
   13  way  furthers  any  act  of cruelty to any animal, or any act tending to
   14  produce such cruelty, is guilty of a misdemeanor, punishable  by  impri-
   15  sonment  for  not  more than one year, or by a fine of not more than one
   16  thousand dollars, or by both.
   17    Nothing herein contained shall be construed to prohibit  or  interfere
   18  with  any  properly  conducted scientific tests, experiments or investi-
   19  gations, involving the use of living animals, performed or conducted  in
   20  laboratories  or  institutions, which are approved for these purposes by
   21  the state commissioner of health. The state commissioner of health shall
   22  prescribe the rules under which such approvals shall be granted, includ-
   23  ing therein standards regarding the  care  and  treatment  of  any  such

        EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                             [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                  LBD04684-01-1

       A. 883                              2

    1  animals.  Such rules shall be published and copies thereof conspicuously
    2  posted in each such laboratory or institution. The state commissioner of
    3  health or his duly authorized representative shall  have  the  power  to
    4  inspect such laboratories or institutions to insure compliance with such
    5  rules  and  standards. Each such approval may be revoked at any time for
    6  failure to comply with such rules and in any case the approval shall  be
    7  limited to a period not exceeding one year.
    8    §  2.  The  agriculture  and  markets  law  is amended by adding a new
    9  section 353-b to read as follows:
   10    § 353-b. Shelter for animals.  Necessary shelter within the meaning of
   11  section three hundred fifty-three of this article shall be determined by
   12  consideration of all of the surrounding circumstances, including but not
   13  limited to, the weather conditions - such as temperature, moisture, wind
   14  velocity, wind chill or humidity - at the time and place of the  alleged
   15  violation, the physical condition and any special needs of the animal at
   16  the  relevant  time  and,  whether  confinement of the animal, either by
   17  tying, chaining or any other method, limited or prevented its access  to
   18  adequate shelter.
   19    §  3.  This  act  shall take effect on the first day of September next
   20  succeeding the date on which it shall have become a law.
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SPONSORS MEMO:

NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY
MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION
submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(e) 

Memo Text Not Found
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 SPONSOR: Seminerio (MS)