SENATE PANEL OKs ALCOHOL TAX INCREASE  The Senate Appropriations Committee has approved an amendment to HB 1604 (Rep. Phil GiaQuinta, D-Fort Wayne, and Sen. Tom Wyss, R-Fort Wayne) that would raise an estimated $40 million by raising taxes on alcohol statewide and on hotels and tickets in Indianapolis.  The tax increases would provide immediate aid to the Capital Improvements Board in Indianapolis which is facing a $47 million shortfall this year on the operation of Lucas Oil Stadium, Conseco Fieldhouse, Victory Field and the Indianapolis Convention Center as well as provide some additional revenue to cities and towns across the state.  The measure, which passed the committee by a vote of 8-2, has already been criticized by legislators from both parties as being to focused on Indianapolis and for raising taxes.  This will likely be a highly contentious issue the remainder of the session.

DOG BREEDER BILLS CONTINUE TO BE HEARD  This week saw action on animal cruelty and dog breeder bills in both the House and Senate.  In the House, the Judiciary Committee amended and approved SB 238 (Sen. Jim Merritt, R-Indianapolis, and Rep. Linda Lawson, D-Hammond) at the same time the Senate Committee on Corrections, Criminal & Civil Matters was considering HB 1468 (Rep. Lawson and Sen. Teresa Lubbers, R-Indianapolis).

After taking nearly three hours of testimony on the dog breeder language to be inserted into SB 238 on March 24, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Lawson decided not to include that in the bill considered by her committee this week.  She offered an amendment that incorporated provisions from several bills that addressed cruelty to animals, and the bill was amended and approved by a committee vote of 8-1.  In its latest version, SB 238 will authorize a court to restrict a person’s access to animals as a condition of parole, allow a veterinarian to report suspected incidents of animal cruelty without fear of legal repercussions, incorporate into the definition of neglect failure to provide reasonable medical care for an animal, increases the penalty for repeat violators of the animal cruelty law, and makes it a felony to kill a domestic animal without the consent of the animal’s owner.  This last provision would apply to farm animals but provides that killing someone else’s animal to protect your own property – including livestock – or to prevent injury to a person is a defense. 

Meanwhile, the Senate Corrections Committee accepted an amendment offered by Chairman Brent Steele (R-Bedford) and forwarded HB 1468 to the full Senate.  The bill still addresses the regulation and inspection of dog breeders in Indiana but is considerably less restrictive than the version approved by the House.  As amended, HB 1468 will authorize the State Board of Animal Health (BOAH) to establish a registry of commercial dog breeders and brokers in Indiana and incorporates into statute a schedule of registration fees based on the number of unaltered female dogs a breeder owns.  A broker would be subject to an annual fee of $1,000.  An individual who owns as many as 20 unaltered female dogs would be considered a “hobby breeder” under the bill and would not be subject to its registration requirements.  Individuals with more than 20 unaltered female dogs would be required to register with BOAH and would be subject to USDA regulations which are incorporated by reference in to the Indiana statute.  BOAH will not be required to enforce these regulations until there are sufficient funds in the newly established Commercial Dog Breeder & Broker Fund.  The amended version of HB 1468 also includes the provisions redefining neglect to include the failure to provide reasonable medical care to an ill or injured animal and allowing a vet to report suspected animal cruelty to law enforcement authorities.

No testimony was taken in the House Committee on SB 238 this week.  Farm Bureau’s Bob Kraft had testified against the bill in the hearing the previous week, and most of the language to which he objected has now been removed from the bill.  In the Senate committee, Kraft testified in support of the amended version of HB 1468 although he did offer a couple of suggestions that would address some concerns that Farm Bureau continues to have with the bill.  Specifically, he expressed concern that the responsibilities assigned to BOAH with respect to dog breeders not detract from the agency’s ability to perform its traditional responsibilities regarding animal agriculture.  He also expressed concern that the ability of the proposed Commercial Dog Breeder & Broker Fund to receive donations could lead to that function being inappropriately bankrolled by HSUS, PETA or a similar animal rights advocacy group.  And he also questioned the propriety of giving veterinarians the authority to blow the whistle on animal cruelty at the same time the animal cruelty statute, which includes neglect, was amended to include a provision that neglect includes withholding reasonable medical care.  This could lead to veterinarians referring an animal owner who refuses to treat his animal as the vet has recommended to the local prosecutor for alleged animal cruelty.  He pointed out that animal cruelty chapter of the code still retains exceptions which include acceptable farm management practices, pest control, hunting, fishing, veterinarian medicine, inspected slaughterhouses and research facilities, and he thanked the committee for leaving these in place.

There was considerable testimony in support of the amended version of HB 1468 from commercial dog breeders who are interested in keeping the “bad actors” out of their profession.  The amended bill was opposed by several individuals who characterized themselves as being concerned with “animal welfare.”  These individuals argued that the amended bill was too watered down and that it would not stop the operation of the “puppy mills” in Indiana.