Agriculture, Horticulture and Food

Passed

P HB1598

Confinement of animals exposed to rabies. Reduces the confinement period for exposure to rabies for dogs and cats that are currently vaccinated for rabies from 90 days to 45 days. The Center for Disease Control recommends dogs and cats with current vaccinations be kept under observation for 45 days if they are exposed to rabies.
Patron - Morgan

P HB1831

Dogs injuring or killing other companion animals. Adds to the definition of "dangerous dog" a dog that attacks or bites another dog and causes serious physical injury to the other dog. Dogs that injure (i) dogs owned by the same person, (ii) dogs engaged in lawful hunting, or (iii) dogs participating in an organized, lawful handling event are excluded. In localities that regulate dangerous dogs, owners of dogs found to be dangerous must obtain a special registration certificate, confine the dog in a specified way, and follow other requirements. The current definition of "dangerous dog" includes dogs that attack companion animals other than dogs. This bill entitles the owner of any companion animal that is injured or killed by a dog to recover damages if (i) the injury occurred on the companion animal owner's premises and (ii) the owner of the offending dog did not have permission from the companion animal's owner to have his dog on the premises.
Patron - Morgan

P HB1861

Dangerous or vicious dogs. Adds animal control officers' previous findings of dangerous dogs to the list of factors in determining if a dog is a vicious dog. This bill removes the $50 cap on the dangerous dog registration fee and authorizes the localities to set the fee at an amount not to exceed the costs of administering the dangerous dog ordinance. The bill also increases from $50,000 to $100,000 the amount of liability insurance that a locality could require for animal bites if it has adopted the permissive insurance provision as part of its dangerous dog ordinance.
Patron - O'Bannon

P HB1865

Abandoning or dumping companion animals. Removes abandoning and dumping any companion animal as animal cruelty. The bill adds disposal of a companion animal to the littering section of the highway laws, which carries a penalty of confinement in jail for not more than 12 months and a fine of not less than $250 or more than $2,500, either or both. However, the court may suspend the imposition of any sentence on the condition that the defendant volunteer his services to remove litter from the highway.
Patron - O'Bannon

P HB1866

Possession and ownership of companion animals. Gives judges the authority to ban any person convicted of animal cruelty from owning other companion animals.
Patron - O'Bannon

P HB2074

Food inspections. Exempts nonprofit organizations holding one-day food sales from inspections by the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.
Patron - Dudley

P HB2527

Virginia Organic Food Act. Repeals the Virginia Organic Food Act to comply with a recent federal law prohibiting states from having separate organic standards.
Patron - Orrock

P HB2536

Enforcement of requirements for tobacco product manufacturers; penalty. Includes a number of procedural enhancements in order to aid enforcement and thereby prevent violations of the Model Act. The enhancements include: (i) a requirement that every tobacco product manufacturer whose cigarettes are sold in the Commonwealth certify to the Tax Commissioner and Attorney General that it is either a participating manufacturer for purposes of the Master Settlement Agreement or is in full compliance as a nonparticipating manufacturer; (ii) a requirement that the Attorney General develop and publish on the Attorney General's website a directory listing all tobacco product manufacturers that have provided current and accurate certifications; (iii) a prohibition against stamping, selling, or importing cigarettes not in the directory; (iv) the appointment of an agent in the Commonwealth for service of process for any nonresident or foreign nonparticipating manufacturer and notice of such agent's termination; (v) reporting quarterly information by the stamping agent as the Tax Commissioner and Attorney General require to facilitate compliance with this act; (vi) proof from the financial institutional that the nonparticipating manufacturer has established a qualified escrow fund; and (vii) a penalty not to exceed the greater of 500 percent of the retail value of the cigarettes sold or $5,000, for any violation involving stamping, selling or importing cigarettes not in the directory.
Patron - Byron

P HB2641

Avian influenza. Authorizes the State Veterinarian to require that any chicken, turkey, waterfowl, game bird, or other avian that is susceptible to avian influenza be tested for avian influenza before importation into Virginia from another state if (i) avian influenza has been found in that state, (ii) conditions in that state render the importation of any specific type of subject avian a menace to the health of any animal in the Commonwealth, or (iii) the protection of any animal in the Commonwealth from avian influenza so requires. This bill establishes a testing protocol for such birds, and provides several exemptions from testing requirements. This bill is identical to SB 1249.
Patron - Weatherholtz

P HB2689

Dog fighting. Adds possessing, owning, training, transporting, or selling dogs for the purpose of dogfighting to the dogfighting prohibitions. These acts are Class 6 felonies, as are the acts currently included in the dogfighting section. Any person who violates the dogfighting statute is required to pay the costs incurred in housing or euthanizing the confiscated dogs. The bill also prohibits attendance at dogfighting events and subjects violators to a Class 1 misdemeanor.
Patron - Bell

P HB2703

Humane investigators. Phases out the humane investigator program but allows those appointed prior to July 1, 2003, to be reappointed for three-year terms by the circuit court. The bill also provides for circuit court appointment of humane investigators to fill vacancies when those appointed prior to July 1, 2003, are no longer willing or eligible to serve. A person may be eligible for such appointment if he (i) receives written recommendation from the local animal control administrative entity, (ii) passes a criminal background check, and (iii) completes an animal control course. The bill requires humane investigators to report to the local animal control administrative agency instead of the State Veterinarian.
Patron - Suit

P HB2705

Animal control officers. Authorizes animal control officers to obtain a felony warrant as necessary to enforce the Comprehensive Animal Laws provided that the execution of the warrant is carried out by a law-enforcement officer as defined by the Commonwealth Public Safety Title 9.1 of the Code of Virginia.
Patron - Suit

P HJ574

Secretariat of Agriculture and Forestry. Expresses the General Assembly's support for the creation of a Secretariat of Agriculture and Forestry as soon as fiscally prudent or through appropriate restructuring within state government.
Patron - Putney

P SB950

Animal rescues. Amends the Comprehensive Animal Laws by adding: (i) definitions of facility, foster care provider and home-based rescue; (ii) requirements for pounds and animal shelters to provide a signed statement to the State Veterinarian certifying that none of the directors, operators, staff, or animal caregivers has ever been convicted of animal cruelty, neglect, or abandonment; (iii) a section providing for the confinement and disposition of companion animals by entities other than pounds and animal shelters; (iv) requirements for foster homes; and (v) various notification requirements regarding found companion animals. This bill also clarifies the definition of animal shelter by specifically excluding residential dwellings and their surrounding property. This bill deletes language providing the State Veterinarian with the authority to conduct inspections of companion animal foster homes, the registration requirements for companion animal rescue agencies and foster homes, and all references to companion animal rescue agencies. This bill incorporates SB 895.
Patron - Quayle

P SB1045

Pounds and animal shelters; penalties. Amends sections of the Comprehensive Animal Laws to provide consistency and eliminate duplicative subsections. This bill changes who may assess civil penalties for animal shelters that violate the Comprehensive Animal Laws from the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services to the Board of Agriculture and Consumer Services, to be consistent with the penalties provided for pounds in § 3.1-796.96. This bill deletes the penalty and injunctive relief subsections in § 3.1-796.120 because they are duplicative of subsections E and F of § 3.1-796.96:2.
Patron - Hanger

P SB1048

Equine Liability. Expands the group of people afforded liability protection under the Equine Activity Liability Act to include any person, a corporation, partnership, or limited liability company. This bill limits liability for injury to a person resulting from the "intrinsic dangers of equine activities" and bars claims or recovery for injury, loss, damage, or death of a person resulting from the "intrinsic dangers of equine activities." "Intrinsic dangers of equine activities" is defined as those dangers or conditions that are an integral part of equine activities, including but not limited to, (i) the propensity of equines to behave in ways that may result in injury, harm, or death to persons on or around them; (ii) the unpredictability of an equine's reaction to such things as sounds, sudden movement, and unfamiliar objects, persons, or other animals; (iii) certain hazards such as surface and subsurface conditions; (iv) collisions with other animals or objects; and (v) the potential of a participant acting in a negligent manner that may contribute to injury to the participant or others, such as failing to maintain control over the equine or not acting within the participant's ability. Currently, equine activity sponsors and equine professionals are not liable for injury to a person who directly engages in an equine activity.
Patron - Hanger

P SB1052

Preservation of important farmlands. For the purposes of receiving federal funds, authorizes state agencies and local governments, with the cooperation of the United States Department of Agriculture, to designate state and locally important soils, which include prime, unique, and locally important farmland. The bill also defines farmland, prime farmland and unique farmland. In addition, the bill requires landowner consent for individual participation in any state program that is based on such designation.
Patron - Hanger

P SB1249

Failed

F HB2474

Animal license fees. Allows localities to increase license fees (i) for nonneutered and nonspayed dogs and cats from $10 per year to up to $30 per year, and (ii) for kennels from $50 per year to up to $150 per year.
Patron - Crittenden

F HB2704

Holding period and methods of disposal for certain stray animals. Excludes "collar" as a form of identification for the purpose of determining the holding period for stray animals. This bill allows pounds to dispose of animals with collars, but not with tags, tattoos, or other forms of identification, after the initial five-day holding period. Also, this bill allows pounds to dispose of animals with collars, but no other form of identification, by sale or gift to a governmental agency, institution, or dealer, or to a humane society, animal shelter, or companion animal rescue agency in another state. The law currently limits these methods of disposal only to animals that did not bear a collar, tag, license, tattoo, or other form of identification when delivered to the pound.
Patron - Suit

F HB2805

Agricultural Enterprise Zone Act. Allows the Governor to establish agricultural enterprise zones upon application by localities with established agricultural or forestal districts, or purchase of development rights programs. "Qualified farm businesses" located in such zones may apply to the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services for certain state business tax credits and sales tax exemptions. "Qualified farm businesses" are businesses establishing agricultural or forestal operations and making a net investment of at least $250,000 and creating at least five new full-time jobs, or such operations already established if they have increased the number of full-time employees by at least 10 percent over the preceding two years.
Patron - Saxman

F SB895

Companion animal rescues. Amends the Comprehensive Animal Laws by: (i) clarifying the definition of animal shelter as a nonresidential facility; (ii) shortening the name of companion animal rescue agency to companion animal rescue; (iii) adding requirements for pounds and animal shelters to secure signed statements specifying that none of the directors, operators, staff, or animal caregivers has ever been convicted of animal cruelty, neglect, or abandonment; (iv) removing the State Veterinarian's authority to conduct inspections of companion animal rescue agencies and foster homes; (v) deleting registration requirements and fees for companion animal rescue agencies and foster homes; and (vi) stipulating that release of an animal from a pound to an animal shelter or companion animal rescue shall be considered a custody transfer and not an adoption in order to develop more accurate state records. This bill limits animal shelter notification and public accessibility requirements to those animal shelters that confine any animal not received from its owner or a releasing agency. This bill also limits companion animal rescue notification and public accessibility requirements to those companion animal rescues that confine any animal not received from its owner or a releasing agency. These requirements have been modified to clarify that such a companion animal rescue must (a) be accessible to the public at reasonable hours or at a mutually agreeable time; (b) post its name and contact telephone number in pounds in the localities it serves; and (c) respond to inquiries regarding lost or stolen animals within 48 hours. The current provision requiring companion animal rescues to list their address and telephone number in a telephone directory is removed. This bill clarifies that the Board of Agriculture and Consumer Services or its designee may assess civil penalties for pounds and animal shelters that violate the Comprehensive Animal Laws. This bill is incorporated into SB 950.
Patron - Watkins

F SB976

Virginia Cattle Industry Board; subsequent referenda. Increases the assessment on cattle sold in Virginia from 25 cents to 50 cents, subject to a referendum to be held by the Board of Agriculture and Consumer Services upon a petition by at least 10 percent of the cattle producers in the Commonwealth. Any such referenda would be for the consideration of continuing the Virginia Cattle Industry Board and for continuing the tax of 50 cents per head of cattle sold in Virginia. The tax, raised from 15 cents to 25 cents in 1983, does not apply to dairy cows going to farms for milk production or to cows selling for less than $20. Money collected from collection of the tax goes to the Virginia Cattle Industry Board, which was established in 1970 for the purpose of engaging in research, education, and promotion of the use and sale of beef and beef products.
Patron - Trumbo

F SB1109

Noxious weeds. Declares English ivy, and its hybrids and cultivars, a noxious weed and requires the Commissioner and the Board of Agriculture and Consumer Services to regulate the transport and sale of this weed under the Noxious Weed Law.
Patron - Whipple

F SB1300

English ivy. Adds English ivy to the list of invasive plant species that localities are authorized to control through abatement ordinances. The Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services is authorized to provide financial and technical assistance to, and enter into agreements with, any locality that adopts an ordinance for the control of English ivy.
Patron - Whipple

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General Assembly>Division of Legislative Services>Publications>Session Summaries>2003>Agriculture, Horticulture and Food

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