Homestead mailing list

["Lynda" <lurine AT softcom.net>]

Since we've been talking about Big Brother, Orwell, etc. and we've minimally 
discussed NAIS and PAWS in the past, thought this was something to think 
about.  Since not everything starts in CA <g>, and a whole bunch of very 
nasty stuff seems to start in the Monarchy of Kennedy, thought y'all might 
want to think about this before it spreads.

Lynda

Permission to cross post.
Sheila Leonard
*****************
Dog Owners in Massachusetts
Face Legislative Sucker Punch

by JOHN YATES
American Sporting Dog Alliance
http://www.americansportingdogalliance.org
asda AT csonline.net

SPRINGFIELD, MA - Animal rights advocates in Massachusetts reached
into their bag of political dirty tricks last week to pave the way
for legislation that would be devastating to dog owners and
circumvent public participation in the process.

The legislation, which will be unveiled as House Bill 5092, would:

· Mandate spaying and neutering of all dogs at age 12 months.

· Create $500 annual "intact permits" for each dog that is not
sterilized, if they can meet almost impossible requirements to
obtain a permit.

· Essentially eliminate the breeding or keeping of intact dogs
that are registered with several major registries, including the
Field Dog Stud Book, the American Dog Breeders Association and
numerous rare breed organizations. A registry also would have to be
specifically approved by each municipality in the state.

· Limit intact permits only to dogs that have the physical
appearance of the show dog standard set by the American Kennel Club
or the United Kennel Club. Few purebred performance dogs of the
sporting or herding breeds physically resemble their show dog
counterparts.

· Grant intact permits to dogs used in competition only if the
local municipality approves the dog's registry. To get a permit, a
dog owner would have to be a "member" of a registry. Registries do
not offer memberships. Registries also would have to have a "code of
ethics" that prohibits breeding dogs with "genetic defects." This is
not defined and thus is open to interpretation without clear
guidelines. Genetic tests are not available for most hereditary
problems. No registry can meet this standard, because of potential
liability for matings over which they have no control.

· Establish unreasonable nuisance definitions that will give
complete discretion to animal control officers to order the seizure,
destruction or banishment of a dog for even a single leash law
violation, noise complaint or trespass on another person's property.
There are no guidelines in the bill. The legislation strictly limits
the right of appeal by requiring a dog owner to show that a citation
was unreasonable or in bad faith. A magistrate "may" grant a hearing
on those grounds only, but is not required to do so. In addition,
unlike with other laws, a dog owner cannot appeal the magistrate's
ruling to a higher court.

· Ban the tethering of all dogs, except for brief periods.

· Give broad powers to every municipality to ban or restrict
specific breeds of dogs, and to seize, ban or kill any dog that can
be deemed dangerous simply by briefly chasing another animal
(chasing could be construed as an "attack"). There is an appeal to a
three-person board of political appointees, including the animal
control officer and an "expert" in the field of animals.

· Require anyone who applies for an intact permit to attend
training classes on "responsible pet ownership."

· Require anyone who sells a dog or puppy to turn in the
names, addresses and phone numbers of each buyer.

· And, impose fines and penalties, including possible
imprisonment, for violations.

The American Sporting Dog Alliance urges Massachusetts dog owners to
be aware that this is not simply another piece of legislation.
Allies of animal rights groups in the Legislature used a legal trick
to rush this bill through without the usual requirements for talking
testimony from the public or holding public hearings.

Here's how it was done.

HB 1948, which was a reasonable bill aimed at regulating dangerous
dogs sponsored by Rep. Brad Hill, had been sent to the Joint
Municipalities Committee and sent to a file for "study." That
usually means the legislation is dead for the current session. But
the committee brought back the bill, gutted it and replaced it with
HB 5092. This new bill contains the requirements described above. In
turn, on Sept. 8, this completely rewritten bill was sent to the
House Steering, Policy, and Scheduling Committee, which schedules
legislation for a vote of the full House.

The House Steering, Policy, and Scheduling Committee can send HB
5092 to the House floor for a vote at anytime, with no advance
notice required. This procedural move eliminates requirements for a
committee vote on the bill or for a public hearing.

This process was confirmed on the committee website, under the
status of HB 5092. However, the veil of secrecy was intensified
because the actual text of the legislation was not provided on the
House website. A search yields only the original bill that was
sponsored by Rep. Hill.

It is not known if Rep. Hill supports or opposes the gutted and
completely revised legislation, or if he played any role in the
political chicanery in making the switch. Hill did not respond to
inquiries from the American Sporting Dog Alliance.

The American Sporting Dog Alliance is urging all Massachusetts dog
owners to immediately take steps to fight against this dangerous and
burdensome legislation.

Please read this legislation for yourself. You can see it at
http://www.akc.org/pdfs/canine_legislation/MA_ht05092_3_.pdf.

The first step to fight this legislation is to ask the members of
the House Steering, Policy, and Scheduling Committee to refuse to
send HB 5092 to the House floor for a vote. Please emphasize that
the text of the legislation has been completely changed, and that no
opportunity has been given for public participation on the new
legislation.

Here is contact information for each member of the committee:

Representative Paul J. Donato
RM. 185
State House
Boston, MA 02133
PHONE: 617-722-2960
FAX: 617-722-2713
Rep.PaulDonato AT hou.state.ma.us

Representative Joyce A. Spiliotis
RM. 236
State House
Boston, MA 02133
PHONE: 617-722-2430
Rep.JoyceSpiliotis AT hou.state.ma.us

Representative Paul C. Casey
RM. 238
State House
Boston, MA 02133
PHONE: 617-722-2380
Rep.PaulCasey AT hou.state.ma.us

Representative James B. Eldridge
RM. 33
State House
Boston, MA 02133
PHONE: 617-722-2060
Rep.JamesEldridge AT hou.state.ma.us

Representative Alice Hanlon Peisch
RM. 167
State House
Boston, MA 02133
PHONE: 617-722-2230
Rep.AlicePeisch AT hou.state.ma.us

Representative Denis E. Guyer
RM. 443
State House
Boston, MA 02133
PHONE: 617-722-2460
Rep.DenisGuyer AT hou.state.ma.us

Representative Tom Sannicandro
RM. 473F
State House
Boston, MA 02133
PHONE: 617-722-2210
FAX: 508-626-0692
Rep.TomSannicandro AT hou.state.ma.us

Representative James T. Welch
RM. 43
State House
Boston, MA 02133
PHONE: 617-722-2030
Rep.JamesWelch AT hou.state.ma.us

Representative Lori A. Ehrlich
RM. 540
State House
Boston, MA 02133
PHONE: 617-722-2090
Rep.LoriEhrlich AT hou.state.ma.us

Representative Bradford Hill
RM. 542
State House
Boston, MA 02133
PHONE: 617-722-2489
Rep.BradHill AT hou.state.ma.us

Representative Elizabeth A. Poirier
RM. 542
State House
Boston, MA 02133
PHONE: 617-722-2976
FAX: 617-626-0108
Rep.ElizabethPoirier AT hou.state.ma.us

Although emails usually are the least effective way to communicate
with legislators, we suggest starting with an email in this case
because this legislation may be moved very quickly. However, we also
ask you to fax, send a letter or phone in addition to sending an
email.

We also are asking Massachusetts residents to contact their own
state representatives and senators.

Here is a link for the representatives:
http://www.mass.gov/legis/memmenuh.htm.

Here is a link for the senators:
http://www.mass.gov/legis/memmenus.htm.

The American Sporting Dog Alliance is starting to see a pattern in
anti-dog-owner legislation that is being unveiled this summer, and
the Massachusetts bill fits this pattern.

Legislation is being promoted vigorously by the radical Humane
Society of the United States (HSUS) in states that the polls
indicate are likely to be won by Barrack Obama in the November
presidential election. The list includes Illinois, Indiana,
Michigan, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and now Massachusetts.

Regardless of the outcome nationally, an Obama victory in those
states would carry many liberal Democratic state senators and
legislators into office on his coattails. Liberal Democrats tend to
be the major supporters of animal rights legislation. The likely
goal of HSUS is to help liberal Democrats capture or hold onto
control of state legislatures in Obama-leaning states.

We can speculate that HSUS might be offering political support in
return for "yes" votes on animal rights legislation, or commitments
by candidates to support similar legislation next year. Obama
supported animal rights legislation during the primary campaign, but
has been silent on this issue in recent months.

HSUS is a radical animal rights group that is working to reduce and
ultimately eliminate the private ownership of animals in America.
HSUS does not operate animal shelters and has no relationship with
local "humane societies" that actually help animals. HSUS is a
political organization in the animal rights movement.

The American Sporting Dog Alliance represents owners, breeders and
professionals who work with breeds of dogs that are used for
hunting. We welcome people who work with other breeds, too, as
legislative issues affect all of us. We are a grassroots movement
working to protect the rights of dog owners, and to assure that the
traditional relationships between dogs and humans maintains its
rightful place in American society and life.

The American Sporting Dog Alliance also needs your help so that we
can continue to work to protect the rights of dog owners. Your
membership, participation and support are truly essential to the
success of our mission. We are funded solely by the donations of our
members, and maintain strict independence.

Please visit us on the web at
http://www.americansportingdogalliance.org. Our email is
ASDA AT csonline.net. Complete directions to join by mail or online are
found at the bottom left of each page.

PLEASE CROSS-POST AND FORWARD THIS REPORT TO YOUR FRIENDS