EXCLUSIVE: NYS Animal Protection Federation Honors Hochul, Takes on Housing Discrimination and More in 2024 “Humane Agenda”
ALBANY — Members of the New York State Animal Protection Federation ventured to Albany last week to enumerate their priorities for the 2024 state legislative session, a.k.a. the NYSAPF “humane agenda.” Measures on this year’s wish list include fewer obstacles to investigating animal crimes, tougher penalties for animal cruelty convictions, and protections for bipedal New Yorkers who face pet-related housing discrimination.
Founded in 2010, the NYSAPF represents the interests of public and private companion animal care facilities statewide. A record number of its 110-plus members turned out for this year’s advocacy day at the capitol, which included a visit with Governor Kathy Hochul.
New York’s famously brutal housing market is as of late tighter than usual, with the number of available rentals in NYC — where 69 percent of households rent, rather than own — at a 50-year low, as rents reach record highs. Though the travails of upstate tenants don’t get as much airtime as those in the boroughs, more than half of all households in the state make monthly payments to a landlord, not a bank. And under current statutes, any New York tenant who has pets could have their renters insurance taken away — legally.
In 2021, thanks in part to NYSAPF advocacy, the legislature passed a law protecting homeowners from coverage denials and premium hikes “based solely upon harboring or owning any dog of a specific breed or mixture of breeds” — unless a dog is designated as “dangerous” under state agriculture laws. A bill sponsored by Assembly Member Linda Rosenthal and Senator Michael Gianaris, and endorsed by NYSAPF, would extend those protections to renters across the state.
“It’s time to stop breed discrimination for renters,” says an NYSAPF memo supporting the bills. “It is not only unfair to the dogs and their owners, it places additional financial burdens on the shelters who care for these dogs when they are given up.”
NYSAPF supports a number of measures this session that would strengthen laws against animal cruelty, and make such laws easier to enforce. A detailed list of bills, along with links, appears at the end of this story.
With the technical (if not actual) budget due date of April 1 fast approaching, NYSAPF has three state spending goals this year. One is the establishment of a $2.5 million animal crimes fund to help cover the costs of caring for “live evidence” seized for animal cruelty investigations, which can take years to resolve. Such expenses, including veterinary care, are currently borne in large part by shelters and rescues.
NYSAPF has also asked state lawmakers to maintain a $2 million budget for a companion animal welfare unit, operated by the state department of agriculture, and continue a $5 million allocation for the companion animal capital fund, which helps organizations pay for physical improvements to their facilities.
Funding for both the welfare unit and the capital fund would help shelters and rescues prepare for the implementation of state-level standards for licensing and inspection, which is set to begin in 2025.
This year’s NYSAPF advocacy day was on Tuesday, March 12. Around lunchtime, after a beautiful almost-spring morning spent ducking into one electeds’ office after another, members’ (somehow) already high spirits were further buoyed by a brief audience with the governor, who was presented an award by NYSAPF Executive Director Libby Post.
“Over the past ten years, the work of the Federation has been recognized by both the state’s animal welfare professionals and the state legislature as vital to the welfare of homeless companion animals,” Post told TSNY in an emailed statement. “This year’s Advocacy Day was a great success with Governor Hochul receiving the Federation’s Companion Animal Champion Award for her support of vital legislation such as the Puppy Mill Bill, the Companion Animal Care Standards Act for Shelters and Rescues and the Companion Animal Capital Fund.”
Below are some of the bills supported by NYSAPF for passage this year, with explanatory passages from memos issued in support of each.
Senate No. 8543 (Michael Gianaris)/Assembly No. 9215 (John McDonald): Establishes a civil (non-criminal) process for law enforcement to initiate animal forfeiture, in order to provide the animal(s) with proper care and a safe home.
NYSAPF says: “Often the people charged with [animal] crimes are mentally ill or are mentally or physically incapable of taking care of their animals. Holding these animals for long periods of time also means other homeless companion animals may have to be turned away from the shelter because of a lack of space[,] leaving these animals to fend for themselves.”
Senate No. 6913 (Joe Addabbo) / Assembly No. 7094 (John McDonald): Elevates penalties for causing injury to a companion animal with a deadly weapon.
NYSAPF says: “If a person shoots and kills a companion animal, the perpetrator is charged with a felony. If the same person shoots the companion animal and it survives, the perpetrator is only charged with a misdemeanor. This [legislation] ensures that those who try but fail to kill a companion animal will be punished just as those who kill an animal.”
Assembly No. 7989 (Jeffrey Dinowitz) / Senate No. 7160 (James Skoufis): Authorizes police and humane law enforcement officers to forego a desk appearance ticket and take suspects directly into custody “if the person is charged with a crime for which the court may order the posting of a security” pursuant to the Agriculture and Markets law.
NYSAPF says: “This [legislation] allows the police to seize live animals from the offender’s possession and place the animals into shelters. Shelters can exercise their legal right to petition the court to require the offender to post security which helps offset the significant costs that come with providing proper care for these animals.”
Assembly No. 7303 (Linda Rosenthal) / Senate No. 8471 (Skoufis): Strengthens penalties for animal fighting by making it chargeable under the state’s Penal Law Article 460 enterprise corruption statute, with more severe penalties for certain animal fighting offenses.
NYSAPF says: “[W]hile the Penal Law includes animal fighting as a class A misdemeanor, offenders charged with these class A misdemeanors often walk free after paying a fine.” (Enterprise corruption is a class B felony, punishable by up to 25 years in prison.)
Senate No. 1182 (Pete Harckham) / Assembly No. 1196 (Rosenthal): Gives humane law enforcement officers access to “live scan” fingerprinting tech.
NYSAPF says: “Not having access to LiveScan means humane law enforcement cannot determine whether [an] alleged offender has a criminal history or if he or she [has] any outstanding local, state or federal warrants. The lack of access to LiveScan creates more work for local law enforcement.”
Check the NYSAPF website for more on the group’s 2024 legislative goals.