Les Knapp, MACo Legal and Policy Counsel, testified in opposition to HB 876, Agriculture – Animal Shelters – Uniform Standards of Operation and Care(Animal Shelter Standards Act of 2015), to the House Environment and Transportation Committee on March 4, 2015. This bill sets exhaustive mandates on animal shelters associated with local government.

The written testimony explains:

HB 876 establishes a comprehensive state-wide set of standards regarding animal care that include the handling and destination of animals, euthanasia, loaning of humane animal capture traps to the public, and recordkeeping. Local governments largely regulate and fund animal shelters. Each jurisdiction manages whether they operate a shelter or contract with an entity to operate a shelter. Therefore, animal shelters vary in size, budget, and scope of services.

Currently, each local government has regulations for the animal shelters found in that jurisdiction. This is the most effective method for monitoring shelters, because it allows each jurisdiction to cater to the specific circumstances that are present in their jurisdiction and may not be present in others.

For more on MACo’s 2015 legislation, visit the Legislative Database.