Lawmakers eye new animal adoption rule
Bid to bar animal abusers from getting pets
HARTFORD — An effort to block convicted animal abusers from adopting pets is again before the General Assembly.
The environment committee on Friday raised a bill sponsored by State Rep. Peter Tercyak, D-New Britain, that would prohibit anyone previously convicted of animal abuse from adopting an animal.
“Let’s have this conversation,” Tercyak said. “I want to see what folks have to say.”
The bill submitted to the committee contains only vague language calling for a prohibition. Previous bills that failed to become law called for an animal abuse registry that rescue groups, pet stores and shelters could use to check the background a person seeking buy or adopt a pet.
Tercyak said he’s not proposing a registry at this point, but said he’s open to ideas to accomplish the goal.
“This is a good place to start,” Tercyak said, referring to his bill.
“This is why we have public hearings,” Tercyak said. “We may make this with or without a registry. I’m putting forth an idea and we will have a public hearing and hear what will work.”
The bill follows highly publicized Fairfield County abuse cases in which dogs were found either dead or abused while the person responsible was working or volunteering in the animal rescue field.
Heidi Lueders was charged last year with animal cruelty after five dogs were found dead inside her Fairfield home. The dogs were assigned to Lueders by a local shelter and were under her care.
A registry bill previously passed the General Assembly but was vetoed by former Gov. Dannel P. Malloy, who opposed creating a registry.
State Rep. Fred Camillo, RGreenwich and a sponsor of earlier bills, said he supports Terycak’s effort and said some form of legislation is needed in wake of recent abuse cases.
“It’s similar,” Camillo said, referring to bills he sponsored. “I would support it. “
Camillo he’s hopeful Gov. Ned Lamont will view the issue differently than Malloy.
“You want something that’s workable,” Camillo said. “Passing something that’s hard to implement is a waste of time.”
Not so fast
Brenda Kupchick, R-Fairfield, said she supports the concept but said she’s not sure how to enforce the prohibition and is concerned about the cost and functionality of an animal abuse registry.
“It’s about how you make it work,” Kupchick said.
Kupchick said judges already have the authority to ban a convicted animal abuser from owning or adopting pets in the future.
“There would have to be a registry in every shelter,” Kupchick said. “They (shelters and pet sellers) can now go to a judicial website.”
Kupchick said a registry list may be too much of a financial burden.
“The state would be required to maintain a list and keep it updated,” Kupchick said. “In concept it’s a lovely idea, but in realty I’m not sure how to approve it.”
Kupchick said a coalition of legislators dedicated to animal welfare issues is not focused on Tercyak’s bill.
“We have a lot of animal welfare bills, and we focus on the bills with the greatest impact,” Kupchick said.
For and against
The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals opposes animal abuse registries.
“Although we appreciate that animal abuser registry proposals derive from a genuine motivation to take animal cruelty seriously, the ASPCA believes that this approach does little to protect animals or people and can have unintended consequences,” the organization said in a statement on its website.
The ASPCA said registry lists are expensive to maintain and create, have limited reach, are rarely used and can create a “vigilante” mentality among the public.
On the other hand, the National Anti-Vivisection Society said 10 states are moving ahead with legislation this year and many towns and cities already have the law on their books.
The Society noted that the first abuse registry list was passed in New York State in 2010. In 2014, Nassau County and New York City passed registries and in 2015, Tennessee became the first state to adopt a statewide animal abuser registry.
“Keeping companion animals out of the hands of convicted animal abusers continues to be a priority concern for animal advocates across the United States,” the Society said in a statement.
“Animal abuser registries are intended to provide a resource for police, shelters and adoption centers to identify convicted animal abusers who are trying to adopt or purchase an animal or who are involved in new allegations of abuse,” the society said.