2014 Legislation
Jun 24, 2014
Updated January 6, 2015:
FEDERAL: Big Cats and Public Safety Protection Act (HR 1998/S 1381). Bans breeding and possession of prohibited wildlife species.
Status HR 1998: DEAD
S 1381: DEAD
FEDERAL: Captive Primate Safety Act (HR 2856/S 1463). Will prohibit public contact with all prohibited wildlife species.
Status HR 2856: DEAD
S 1463: DEAD
FEDERAL: Invasive Fish and Wildlife Prevention Act (HR 996/S 1153). Allows the department to more easily add species as injurious.
Status HR 996: DEAD
S 1153: DEAD
FEDERAL: Agency Rule – Petition to amend Animal Welfare Act regulations to prohibit public contact with big cats, bears, and nonhuman primates (APHIS 2012-0107-0002).
Status: Comments due November 18, 2013.
FEDERAL: Traveling Exotic Animal Protection Act (HR 4525).
Status: DEAD
ALABAMA: Regulation of public exhibition of wildlife, additional fee authorized, exemptions revised (HB 420/SB 393).
Status HB 420: DEAD
SB 393: DEAD
ARIZONA: Agency Rule – Article 4 Live Wildlife – Amends entire article.
Status: Adopted December 5, 2014.
CALIFORNIA: Citizen Petition – Petition to Ban Hybrid Cats. Petition to California Fish and Wildlife by certain groups to ban hybrid cats.
Status: REJECTED during October 8, 2014 meeting.
GEORGIA: Wild animals; Certain hybrid offspring of Asian leopard cats and domestic cats at least four generations from Asian leopard cat shall not be a wild animal for which permit is required; provide (HB 462).
Status: DEAD
ILLINOIS: Criminal Code – Dangerous animals (HB 5940). Limit zoos to AZA and only exempts USDA exhibitors for animals held on June 1
Status: DEAD
INDIANA: Agency Rule � Wild animal possession permits. Reclassifies smaller cat species as Class II and revises rules for the different classes.
Status: Adopted January 21, 2014.
INDIANA: Agency Rule – Permit Commercial License Rule. Amends wild animal rehab permits and 1st permit to possess wild animal parts.
Status: Preliminary meeting on September 16, 2014. Public comments open.
INDIANA: Wild animal permits (HB 1090). Removes commercial animal dealer exemption.
Status: DEAD
INDIANA: Wild animal permits (SB 230). Removes commercial animal dealer exemption and allows single permit for all animals.
Status: DEAD
IOWA: Wild animal care in commercial establishments (HF 254/SF 236). Prohibits non AZA zoos from maintaining dangerous wild animals.
Status HF 254: DEAD
SF 236: DEAD
IOWA: Providing for an Iowa individual income tax checkoff for qualified Iowa zoos (HF 47). Creates an Iowa AZA zoo fund and adds a check off on individual income tax returns to donate to the fund.
Status: DEAD
KANSAS: Amending statutes concerning dangerous regulated animals (HB 2737). Adds primates and wolves to list and amends grandfathering requirements.
Status: DEAD
LOUISIANA: Animals: Exempts certain persons from the requirements of the big exotic cats rules (SB 250). Adds USDA Class C exemption
Status: Signed into law 6/18/2014.
LOUISIANA: Agency Rule – Possession of Potentially Dangerous Wild Quadrupeds, Big Exotic Cats, and Non-Human Primates. Adds other zoos definition, revises big exotic cat inspections, and deletes cougar enclosure requirements.
Status: Comments due August 30, 2014.
LOUISIANA: Agency Rule – Possession of Potentially Dangerous Wild Quadrupeds, Big Exotic Cats and Nonhuman Primates – Rule to comply with SB 250.
Status: Adopted December 2014.
MARYLAND: Criminal Law – Possession of dangerous or wild animal (SB 827). Revises exemptions.
Status: Signed into law with amendments 4/14/2014.
MARYLAND: Criminal Law – Possession of dangerous or wild animal (HB 1124). Similar to SB 827
Status: Signed into law 4/14/2014.
MICHIGAN: Agriculture; animals; persons allowed to breed large carnivores; expand. (HB 5163). Adds exemption for zoos, USDA Class C, and US FWS CBW to transfer and breed large carnivores.
Status: DEAD
MICHIGAN: Animals; other; facilities accredited by the American zoo and aquarium association or the zoological association of America; exempt from certain provisions of large carnivore act (SB 538). Limits USDA exemption to AZA, ZAA, and ASA
Status: DEAD
MICHIGAN: Animals; other; facilities accredited by the American zoo and aquarium association; exempt from certain provisions of the large carnivore act (SB 1065). Amends sections from which AZA, ASA, Association of Sanctuaries to delete section 6 (tethering, signs, checkup) and adding section 3 (ban on owning, breeding, transferring).
Status: DEAD
MINNESOTA: Dog and cat breeders standard of care (HF 84/SF 36). Affects commercial breeders, hobby breeders, brokers and pet dealers of domestic hybrid cats
Status HF 84: DEAD
SF 36: DEAD
MINNESOTA: Dog and cat breeders standard of care (HF 1005/SF 955). Affects commercial breeders, hobby breeders, brokers and pet dealers of domestic hybrid cats
Status HF 1005: DEAD
SF 955: DEADNEBRASKA: Name and change the Exotic Animal Auction and Swap Meets Act and change the Livestock Auction Market Act (LB 884).
Status: Signed into law 3/28.
NEBRASKA: Change and provide criminal sanctions regarding animals and animal facilities (LB 204). Bans false statements on application with intent to damage or interfere with operations of animal facility (zoos, breeders, etc).
Status: DEAD
NEW JERSEY: Requires liability insurance for permit to possess certain dangerous animals (S 381).
Status: Referred to Commerce 1/14/2014. To be carried into 2015
NEW JERSEY: Imposes civil penalty for the exhibition or use in performance of a living bear, elephant, lion or tiger (A 2153).
Status: WITHDRAWN from consideration 2/24/2014
NEW JERSEY: Imposes certain registration and reporting requirements to prevent illegal trade of tigers (S 678)
Status: Referred to Economic Growth 1/14/2014. To be carried into 2015
NEW JERSEY: “Licensed wildlife rehabilitator Act;” establishes licensure requirements for rehabilitators (A 3398/S 1576)
Status A 3398: Referred to Agriculture and Natural Resources 6/12/2014. Hearing 9/11 – CANCELLED. To be carried into 2015
Status S 1576: Referred to Commerce 2/27/2014.
NEW JERSEY: “Licensed Wildlife Rehabilitator Act;” establishes wildlife rehabilitation board and continuing education requirements and permit program for rehabilitators (S 1577)
Status: Referred to Commerce 2/27/2014.To be carried into 2015
NEW YORK: Recodifies the animal cruelty laws from the agriculture and markets law to the penal law and reclassifies certain penalties within; repealer (A 893).
Status: DEAD
NEW YORK: Recodifies the animal cruelty laws from the agriculture and markets law to the penal law (A 1659).
Status: DEAD
NEW YORK: Prohibits the ownership, possession or harboring of a wild animal or reptile (A 2869).
Status: DEAD
NEW YORK: Restricts the use of exotic and wild animals in traveling circuses and shows (A 5407/S 5971).
Status: DEAD
NEW YORK: Relates to prohibitions on circus performances (A 6368).
Status: DEAD
NEW YORK: Relates to taxation on circus admission; creates the animal cruelty compensation fund (A 8710/S 7336).
Status: DEAD
NEW YORK: Relates to public safety and wild animals; prohibits contact with wild animals (A 9004).
Status: Substituted with S 6903.
NEW YORK: Relates to public safety and wild animals; prohibits contact with wild animals (S 6903)
Status: Signed into law 8/11/2014.
NEW YORK: Establishes Haleys Act which prohibits direct contact between a big cat and a member of the public (S 509).
Status: DEAD
OKLAHOMA: Game and fish; clarifying statutory language relating to penalties for releasing exotic wildlife; effective date (HB 2521). Clarifies they may not be released in wilds of the STATE OF Oklahoma.
Status: DEAD
OKLAHOMA: Exotic cats; creating Oklahoma Responsible Exotic Cat Ownership Act (SB 178).
Status: DEAD
OREGON: Relating to applications for exotic animal permits; declaring an emergency (SB 1584). Gives owners who possessed an animal in 2010 a second chance to apply for a permit.
Status: Signed into law with amendment to just allow second chance for service animals.
PENNSYLVANIA: Banning future possession of certain exotic wildlife � redefinition of exotic wildlife and exotic wildlife dealer (SB 521).
Status: DEAD
PENNSYLVANIA: Banning personal ownership of exotic animals as pets in PA (HB 575).
Status: DEAD
SOUTH CAROLINA: Dangerous wild animals act (H 3985). Bans large cats as dangerous wild animals.
Status: DEAD
TENNESSEE: Requires that injury inflicted by any species of captive wildlife requiring medical treatment be reported to TWRA within 36 hours instead of within 48 hours (HB 900/SB 939).
Status HB 900: DEAD
SB 939: DEAD
VIRGINIA: Endangered and threatened species (SB 50). Allows the possession and transportation of endangered and threatened species as pets if the federal Endangered Species Act permits it.
Status: Signed into law 4/1/2014.
VIRGINIA: Wildlife Rehabilitators (SB 413). Exempts them from being licensed vet to treat native wildlife if properly trained.
Status: Signed into law 4/4/2014.
WEST VIRGINIA: Prohibiting possession of wild and exotic animals (SB 371). Bans wild/exotic animals with agencies to create list of animals that are included.
Status: DEAD
WEST VIRGINIA: Creating dangerous wild animals act (SB 428).
Status: DEAD
WEST VIRGINIA: Creating dangerous wild animals act (HB 4393).
Status: Signed into law 3/21/2014.
WEST VIRGINIA: Agency Rule – Dangerous Wild Animals Rule (61-30).
Status: Agency Adopted July 30, 2014. Legislative Rule-Making Review Committee approved with amendments to remove servals and other species 11/17.
WISCONSIN: Relating to: the possession of certain wild animals and providing a penalty (AB 703).
Status: DEAD
WYOMING: Agency Rules � Chapter 10 Live Wildlife, Chapter 25 Falconry, Chapter 33 Scientific Permits, Chapter 37 Raptor Propagation, and Chapter 45 Rehabilitation
Status: Adopted January 22, 2014 – effective March 28, 2014.