This morning I spoke to a group of animal welfare advocates from around the world gathered in Orlando, Fla., for The HSUS’s 20th anniversary Animal Care Expo, the largest trade show for animal care and sheltering professionals. Several leaders in the field looked back over two decades and reported on progress that has been made for animal welfare. I offered some observations on the advances for animal protection legislation over the past 20 years.
This week the Missouri House of Representatives voted to repeal most of Proposition B, the Puppy Mill Cruelty Prevention Act, just five months after Missouri voters approved common-sense standards for the care of dogs in large-scale commercial breeding facilities.
We are now two full months into 2011, and state legislatures around the country have been active on animal protection issues. We have many defensive battles, such as blocking Missouri politicians from defying the will of the voters and dismantling Proposition B, but we are also advancing our proactive agenda for animal welfare in many state capitols.
A handful of Missouri politicians are feverishly trying to repeal or gut Proposition B, the Puppy Mill Cruelty Prevention Act, which voters passed in November. The issue may come up for debate in the state Senate as early as next week, and two of the leaders of the repeal effort who are working hard to dismantle the will of the people are Senators Bill Stouffer, R-21, and Mike Parson, R-28.
A few Missouri politicians are busy trying to repeal or dismantle Proposition B, the voter-approved Puppy Mill Cruelty Prevention Act, which sets humane standards for large-scale dog breeding operations.
Ever since Missouri citizens voted in favor of Proposition B—the Puppy Mill Cruelty Prevention Act—in November, a few politicians have been thumbing their noses at voters and talking about overturning the will of the people. One bill has already been pre-filed to repeal Prop B in its entirety, and others are expected to severely weaken or gut the core provisions of the measure.
There are still a few congressional races to be decided with absentee and provisional votes being counted, but the broader results are in and it's an opportunity to take stock of how animal advocates fared on the ballot. And one of the markers of our progress is to compare how our endorsed candidates did with those of other political adversaries.
Just days after a majority of Missouri voters approved Proposition B to crack down on puppy mill abuses in the nation’s largest puppy mill state and while provisional ballots are still being counted, a few Missouri politicians have pledged to work to overturn the initiative and to substitute their own judgment for the wisdom of the people. There is talk of a flurry of bills to be introduced in January to repeal the law.
In less than 24 hours, voters will head to their polling precincts and cast their ballots on candidates and issues across the country. There is much at stake for animal protection in tomorrow’s contests, including whether some of our leading animal advocates in Congress will return to Washington in 2011, and whether voters will decide to ban canned hunts and crack down on puppy mill abuses.
