PRINTER'S NO. 1794
No. 1476 Session of 2005
INTRODUCED BY CASORIO, BELARDI, BEBKO-JONES, BUXTON,
CALTAGIRONE, CAPPELLI, CAWLEY, CRAHALLA, CREIGHTON, DALEY,
GEORGE, GERGELY, GILLESPIE, GOODMAN, GRUCELA, HESS, KOTIK,
LEDERER, MANN, MUNDY, O'NEILL, PISTELLA, READSHAW, REICHLEY,
ROEBUCK, RUBLEY, SCAVELLO, SCHRODER, SHAPIRO, TANGRETTI,
TRUE, YOUNGBLOOD AND ZUG, MAY 2, 2005
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON CONSUMER AFFAIRS, MAY 2, 2005
AN ACT
1 Amending the act of December 7, 1982 (P.L.784, No.225),
2 entitled, as amended, "An act relating to dogs, regulating
3 the keeping of dogs; providing for the licensing of dogs and
4 kennels; providing for the protection of dogs and the
5 detention and destruction of dogs in certain cases;
6 regulating the sale and transportation of dogs; declaring
7 dogs to be personal property and the subject of theft;
8 providing for the abandonment of animals; providing for the
9 assessment of damages done to animals; providing for payment
10 of damages by the Commonwealth in certain cases and the
11 liability of the owner or keeper of dogs for such damages;
12 imposing powers and duties on certain State and local
13 officers and employees; providing penalties; and creating a
14 Dog Law Restricted Account," further providing for
15 revocation, suspension or refusal of kennel licenses.
16 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
17 hereby enacts as follows:
18 Section 1. Section 211 of the act of December 7, 1982
19 (P.L.784, No.225), known as the Dog Law, amended December 11,
20 1996 (P.L.943, No.151), is amended to read:
21 Section 211. Revocation, suspension or refusal of kennel
22 licenses.
1 (a) General powers of secretary.--The secretary [may revoke
2 or suspend] shall revoke a kennel license or out-of-state dealer
3 license or refuse to issue a kennel license or out-of-state
4 dealer license for any one or more of the following reasons:
5 (1) the person holding or applying for a license has
6 made a material misstatement or misrepresentation in the
7 license application;
8 (2) the person holding or applying for a license has
9 made a material misstatement or misrepresentation to the
10 department or its personnel regarding a matter relevant to
11 the license;
12 (3) the person holding or applying for a license has
13 been convicted of any violation of this act[;
14 (4) the person holding or applying for a license has
15 failed to comply with any regulation promulgated under this
16 act; or] or any rules or regulations set by the department
17 governing the humane handling, transportation, veterinary
18 care, housing, breeding, socialization, feeding, watering or
19 other humane treatment of animals unless the secretary makes
20 a written finding that the violations were minor and
21 inadvertent, that the violations did not pose a threat to the
22 animals or that revocation is inappropriate for other good
23 cause. In the event that the secretary does make such a
24 written finding, he or she shall suspend a kennel license for
25 a period of at least 30 days; or
26 [(5)] (4) the person holding or applying for a license
27 has been convicted of any law relating to cruelty to animals.
28 (a.1) Noncompliance with regulation.--The secretary may
29 revoke or suspend a license or refuse to issue a kennel license
30 or out-of-state dealer license if the person holding or applying
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1 for a license has failed to comply with any regulation
2 promulgated under this act other than those for the humane
3 handling, transportation, veterinary care, housing, breeding,
4 socialization, feeding, watering or other humane treatment of
5 animals.
6 (b) Notice of action.--
7 (1) The secretary shall provide written notice of a
8 kennel license or an out-of-state dealer license revocation,
9 suspension or refusal to the person whose license is revoked,
10 suspended or refused. The notice shall set forth the general
11 factual and legal basis for the action and shall advise the
12 affected person that within ten days of receipt of the notice
13 he may file with the secretary a written request for an
14 administrative hearing. The hearing shall be conducted in
15 accordance with 2 Pa.C.S. (relating to administrative law and
16 procedure).
17 (2) Written notice of revocation, suspension or refusal
18 shall be served by personal service or by registered or
19 certified mail, return receipt requested, to the person or to
20 a responsible employee of such person whose license is
21 revoked, suspended or refused. Revocation or suspension shall
22 commence upon service of the written notice.
23 (c) Seizure and constructive seizure.--
24 (1) Whenever the secretary revokes, suspends or refuses
25 a kennel license or an out-of-state dealer license, the
26 department [may] shall seize and impound any dog in the
27 possession, custody or care of the person whose license is
28 revoked, suspended or refused if there are reasonable grounds
29 to believe that the dog's health, safety or welfare is
30 endangered. Reasonable costs of transportation, care and
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1 feeding of a seized and impounded dog shall be paid by the
2 person from whom the dog was seized and impounded.
3 (2) (i) If the person whose kennel license or out-of-
4 state dealer license is revoked, suspended or refused and
5 whose dog has been seized and impounded provides the
6 secretary with satisfactory evidence or assurances that
7 the dog will receive adequate care and has paid all costs
8 of transportation, care and feeding related to the
9 seizure and impoundment of the dog, the person may
10 retrieve the seized and impounded dog.
11 (ii) If the owner of a seized and impounded dog is
12 someone other than the person from whom the dog was
13 seized and impounded, the dog owner may retrieve his dog
14 from impoundment upon payment of all transportation, care
15 and feeding costs applicable to the dog. The person from
16 whom the dog was seized and impounded shall be
17 responsible to reimburse the dog owner for the
18 transportation, care and feeding costs.
19 (3) The secretary shall allow a dog to remain in the
20 physical possession, custody or care of the person whose
21 kennel license or out-of-state dealer license is revoked,
22 suspended or refused upon any one or more of the following
23 findings, which he or she shall outline in a written letter
24 to the person, a copy of which shall be posted on the front
25 door of the facility:
26 (i) the secretary has no reasonable grounds to
27 believe that the health, safety or welfare of the dog is
28 endangered; or
29 (ii) the person whose license is revoked, suspended
30 or refused has provided satisfactory evidence or
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1 assurances that the dog will receive adequate care.
2 (4) Ownership of a dog which has been seized and
3 impounded or which is under constructive seizure may be
4 forfeited upon the written request of its owner.
5 (5) The secretary may direct that ownership of a
6 particular dog which is seized and impounded pursuant to
7 paragraph (1) is to be forfeited. The department shall serve
8 the owner of the affected dog with written notice of
9 forfeiture. The notice shall indicate that ownership of the
10 dog in question may be forfeited to some entity other than
11 the department. Notice of forfeiture shall be served by
12 personal service or by registered or certified mail, return
13 receipt requested, to the owner of the affected dog or a
14 responsible person at the kennel from which the dog was
15 seized and impounded. The notice shall specify an effective
16 date of forfeiture which shall be not less than ten days from
17 service of the notice. The notice shall further inform the
18 dog owner of his right to request an administrative hearing
19 on the issue of forfeiture by delivering a written request to
20 the department prior to the date of forfeiture. A written
21 hearing request shall act as a supersedeas of the forfeiture
22 action. At the administrative hearing, the department shall
23 have the burden of proving that the affected dog owner did
24 not adequately care for the subject dog, or that no
25 satisfactory evidence or assurances have been given to the
26 department that the subject dog will be adequately cared for
27 if it is returned to the owner, or that the owner has
28 abandoned the subject dog. Abandonment shall be presumed if
29 an owner fails to make timely payment of reasonable costs of
30 transportation, care and feeding of the seized and impounded
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1 dog after two written requests to do so have been served by
2 personal service or registered or certified mail, return
3 receipt requested, upon a responsible person at the kennel in
4 question or to the dog owner.
5 (d) Reimbursement of transportation, care and feeding
6 costs.--A person described in subsection (c)(1) and (2) who has
7 paid transportation, care and feeding costs with respect to a
8 dog seized under this section may make application to the
9 department for reimbursement of the costs if all persons cited
10 or charged with violations of this act as the result of the
11 conditions at the kennel at issue are acquitted of all charges
12 or violations.
13 (e) Department as guarantor of payment of certain costs.--A
14 kennel at which a dog is impounded by the department under the
15 authority of this section shall be compensated from the Dog Law
16 Restricted Account in the amount of $5 per dog for each day or
17 portion thereof that the dog is held at the kennel if:
18 (1) the kennel has attempted, without success, to obtain
19 payment for transportation, care and feeding costs from the
20 owner of the dog and the owner of the kennel from which the
21 dog was seized and impounded; and
22 (2) the kennel makes written application to the
23 department, setting forth the amount sought, details of a
24 good faith attempt at obtaining payment of the costs from the
25 dog owner and the kennel owner and the dates and number of
26 dogs justifying the amount sought.
27 (f) Prohibition.--No dog seized under this section shall be
28 sold or given freely for the purpose of vivisection or research
29 or be conveyed in any manner for these purposes or be conveyed
30 to a dealer.
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1 Section 2. This act shall take effect in 60 days.
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