HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 1228        FILED ON: 1/18/2023

HOUSE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 826

 

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

_________________

PRESENTED BY:

Natalie M. Higgins and Kimberly N. Ferguson

_________________

To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
Court assembled:

The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:

An Act banning the retail sale of dogs, cats, and rabbits in new pet shops.

_______________

PETITION OF:

 

Name:

District/Address:

Date Added:

Natalie M. Higgins

4th Worcester

1/18/2023

Kimberly N. Ferguson

1st Worcester

1/18/2023

Jack Patrick Lewis

7th Middlesex

1/23/2023

Adam J. Scanlon

14th Bristol

1/23/2023

Lindsay N. Sabadosa

1st Hampshire

1/27/2023

Brian W. Murray

10th Worcester

1/30/2023

Ryan M. Hamilton

15th Essex

2/2/2023

Brian M. Ashe

2nd Hampden

2/3/2023

John Barrett, III

1st Berkshire

2/3/2023

Samantha Montaño

15th Suffolk

2/6/2023

Angelo J. Puppolo, Jr.

12th Hampden

2/6/2023

David Henry Argosky LeBoeuf

17th Worcester

2/6/2023

William C. Galvin

6th Norfolk

2/8/2023

Michelle M. DuBois

10th Plymouth

2/8/2023

Paul McMurtry

11th Norfolk

2/8/2023

Colleen M. Garry

36th Middlesex

2/9/2023

Hannah Kane

11th Worcester

2/9/2023

Patrick M. O'Connor

First Plymouth and Norfolk

2/14/2023

Denise C. Garlick

13th Norfolk

2/15/2023

Kathleen R. LaNatra

12th Plymouth

2/15/2023

Joseph D. McKenna

18th Worcester

2/17/2023

James K. Hawkins

2nd Bristol

2/24/2023

Marcus S. Vaughn

9th Norfolk

3/6/2023

Steven S. Howitt

4th Bristol

3/7/2023

James C. Arena-DeRosa

8th Middlesex

3/7/2023

Jessica Ann Giannino

16th Suffolk

3/7/2023

Bradley H. Jones, Jr.

20th Middlesex

3/7/2023

Carmine Lawrence Gentile

13th Middlesex

3/7/2023

Patrick Joseph Kearney

4th Plymouth

3/7/2023

Margaret R. Scarsdale

1st Middlesex

3/7/2023

Simon Cataldo

14th Middlesex

3/7/2023

Patricia A. Duffy

5th Hampden

3/10/2023

Rodney M. Elliott

16th Middlesex

3/10/2023

James Arciero

2nd Middlesex

3/10/2023

Carol A. Doherty

3rd Bristol

3/10/2023

Bruce J. Ayers

1st Norfolk

3/10/2023

Adrianne Pusateri Ramos

14th Essex

3/10/2023

James B. Eldridge

Middlesex and Worcester

3/12/2023

Jennifer Balinsky Armini

8th Essex

3/12/2023

Michael O. Moore

Second Worcester

3/15/2023

Josh S. Cutler

6th Plymouth

3/23/2023

Christine P. Barber

34th Middlesex

3/27/2023

Bruce E. Tarr

First Essex and Middlesex

4/3/2023

Jeffrey Rosario Turco

19th Suffolk

4/5/2023

Richard M. Haggerty

30th Middlesex

4/18/2023

Natalie M. Blais

1st Franklin

6/14/2023

Jonathan D. Zlotnik

2nd Worcester

6/14/2023

Steven Owens

29th Middlesex

7/27/2023

Tommy Vitolo

15th Norfolk

8/7/2023

Estela A. Reyes

4th Essex

10/30/2023

Tricia Farley-Bouvier

2nd Berkshire

10/30/2023

Michael P. Kushmerek

3rd Worcester

10/31/2023

Danillo A. Sena

37th Middlesex

11/3/2023

Adrian C. Madaro

1st Suffolk

11/7/2023

Mindy Domb

3rd Hampshire

11/13/2023

Judith A. Garcia

11th Suffolk

11/13/2023

William F. MacGregor

10th Suffolk

11/14/2023

Kenneth I. Gordon

21st Middlesex

11/27/2023

F. Jay Barrows

1st Bristol

11/27/2023

Paul J. Donato

35th Middlesex

11/30/2023

Steven Ultrino

33rd Middlesex

12/4/2023

John Francis Moran

9th Suffolk

1/4/2024

Smitty Pignatelli

3rd Berkshire

1/9/2024

Nick Collins

First Suffolk

1/20/2024

Carole A. Fiola

6th Bristol

1/31/2024

Erika Uyterhoeven

27th Middlesex

5/20/2024


HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 1228        FILED ON: 1/18/2023

HOUSE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 826

By Representatives Higgins of Leominster and Ferguson of Holden, a petition (accompanied by bill, House, No. 826) of Natalie M. Higgins, Kimberly N. Ferguson and others for legislation to further regulate the retail sale of certain domestic animals in new pet shops.  Environment and Natural Resources.

 

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

 

_______________

In the One Hundred and Ninety-Third General Court
(2023-2024)

_______________

 

An Act banning the retail sale of dogs, cats, and rabbits in new pet shops.

 

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:
 

SECTION 1. Section 39A of Chapter 129 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2020 Official Edition, is hereby amended by inserting before the word “Every”, in line 1, the letter:-

(a)

SECTION 2. Section 39A of Chapter 129 of the General Law, , is hereby further amended by striking out the word “section”, in line 13, and inserting in place thereof the following word:-

subsection

SECTION 3. Section 39A of Chapter 129 of the General Laws is hereby further amended by inserting after subsection (a) the following new subsections:-

(b) No person engaged in the business of operating a pet shop for which a license must be obtained pursuant to subsection (a); and are regulated under 330 CMR 12.00 shall sell or offer for sale a dog or cat, unless:

(1) the person engaged in the business of operating the pet shop received a Class A license from the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources on or before the effective date of this act; and

(2) such person only sells or offers for sale dogs or cats from the location licensed to sell or offer for sale dogs or cats under subsection (b) paragraph (1).

(c) No person engaged in the business of operating a pet shop for which a license must be obtained pursuant to subsection (a); and are regulated under 330 CMR 12.00 shall sell or offer for sale a rabbit, unless:

(1) the person engaged in the business of operating the pet shop sold rabbits on or before the effective date of this act; and

(2) such person only sells or offers for sale rabbits from the location licensed to sell or offer for sale animals under 330 CMR 12.00.

(d) Nothing in subsections (b) or (c) shall affect the authority of any town, city, or other locality to regulate or prohibit the sale of dogs, cats, or rabbits.

SECTION 4. Whereas, the deferred operation of this act would tend to defeat its purpose, which is to establish forthwith certain changes to pet shop licensing and operations law, therefore, it is hereby declared to be an emergency law, necessary for the immediate preservation of the public health.