Bill Summary – FastDemocracy

H.B. 600
                          GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA
                                                                                             Apr 13, 2023
                                      SESSION 2023                                     HOUSE PRINCIPAL CLERK
     H                                                                                                D
                                   HOUSE BILL DRH10302-MH-112
     Short Title:   Regulatory Reform Act of 2023.                                              (Public)
     Sponsors:      Representative Riddell.
     Referred to:
                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 AN ACT TO PROVIDE FURTHER REGULATORY RELIEF TO THE CITIZENS OF NORTH
    CAROLINA.
 The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
 5
 AMEND LAWS FOR DISPOSAL OF ANIMALS SURRENDERED TO AN ANIMAL
 SHELTER
              SECTION 1.(a) G.S. 19A-32.1 reads as rewritten:
 "§ 19A-32.1. Minimum holding period for animals in animal shelters; public viewing of
              animals in animal shelters; disposition of animals.
     (a)      Except as otherwise provided in this section, all animals received by an animal shelter
 or by an agent of an animal shelter shall be held for a minimum holding period of 72 hours, or
 for any longer minimum period established by a board of county commissioners, prior to being
 euthanized or otherwise disposed of.
     (a1) Healthy cats impounded at a shelter without discernible indicia of ownership may be
 sterilized, ear-tipped, vaccinated for rabies, administered other vaccinations as recommended by
 the treating veterinarian, and returned to the location where trapped with no minimum hold
 requirements under this section.
     …
     (j)      Animal shelters shall maintain a record of all animals impounded at the shelter, shall
 retain those records for a period of at least three years from the date of impoundment, and shall
 make those records available for inspection during regular inspections pursuant to this Article or
 upon the request of a representative of the Animal Welfare Section. Animal shelters shall also
 maintain a record of cats disposed of as set forth in subsection (a1) of this section. These records
 shall contain, at a minimum:
              (1)     The date of impoundment.
              (2)     The length of impoundment.
              (3)     The disposition of each animal, including the name and address of any person
                      to whom the animal is released, any institution that person represents, and the
                      identifying information required under subsection (i) of this section.
              (4)     Other information required by rules adopted by the Board of Agriculture."
              SECTION 1.(b) G.S. 19A-65 reads as rewritten:
 "§ 19A-65. Annual Report Required From Every Animal Shelter in Receipt of State or
              Local Funding.
     Every county or city animal shelter, or animal shelter operated under contract with a county
 or city or otherwise in receipt of State or local funding shall prepare an annual report in the form
                                   *DRH10302-MH-112*
     General Assembly Of North Carolina                                                    Session 2023
 required by the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services setting forth the numbers, by
 species, of animals received into the shelter, the number adopted out, the number returned to
 owner, the number of cats returned to the location where trapped under G.S. 19A-32.1(a1), and
 the number destroyed. The report shall also contain the total operating expenses of the shelter
 and the cost per animal handled. The report shall be filed with the Department of Agriculture and
 Consumer Services by March 1 of each year. A city or county that does not timely file the report
 required by this section is not eligible to receive reimbursement payments under G.S. 19A-64
 during the calendar year in which the report was to be filed."
             SECTION 1.(c) G.S. 130A-190(a) reads as rewritten:
     "(a) Issuance. – A person who administers a rabies vaccine shall issue a rabies vaccination
 tag to the owner of the animal. The rabies vaccination tag shall show the year issued, a
 vaccination number, the words "North Carolina" or the initials "N.C." and the words "rabies
 vaccine." Dogs shall wear rabies vaccination tags at all times. Cats and ferrets must wear rabies
 vaccination tags unless they are exempt from wearing the tags by local ordinance.ordinance, or
 are unowned outdoor cats that have been eartipped to indicate sterilization and vaccination as set
 forth in G.S. 130A-192."
             SECTION 1.(d) G.S. 130A-192 reads as rewritten:
 "§ 130A-192. Animals not wearing required rabies vaccination tags.
     (a)     The Animal Control Officer shall canvass the county to determine if there are any
 animals not wearing the required rabies vaccination tag. If an animal required to wear a tag is
 found not wearing one, the Animal Control Officer shall check to see if the owner's identification
 can be found on the animal. animal, or if the animal is a cat with a tipped ear. A cat with a tipped
 ear indicating that the cat has been sterilized and vaccinated is exempt from the requirement to
 wear a rabies tag. If the animal is wearing an owner identification tag with information enabling
 the owner of the animal to be contacted, or if the Animal Control Officer otherwise knows who
 the owner is, the Animal Control Officer shall notify the owner in writing to have the animal
 vaccinated against rabies and to produce the required rabies vaccination certificate to the Animal
 Control Officer within three days of the notification. If the animal is not wearing an owner
 identification tag and the Animal Control Officer does not otherwise know who the owner is, the
 Animal Control Officer may impound the animal. The duration of the impoundment of these
 animals shall be established by the county board of commissioners, but the duration shall not be
 less than 72 hours. Healthy cats without discernable indicia of ownership may be sterilized,
 ear-tipped, vaccinated for rabies, administered other vaccinations as recommended by the
 treating veterinarian, and returned to the location where they were trapped without any minimum
 impoundment period under this section. During the impoundment period, the Animal Control
 Officer shall make a reasonable effort to locate the owner of the animal. If the Animal Control
 Officer has access at no cost or at a reasonable cost to a microchip scanning device, the Animal
 Control Officer shall scan the animal and utilize any information that may be available through
 a microchip to locate the owner of the animal, if possible. If the animal is not reclaimed by its
 owner during the impoundment period, the animal shall be disposed of in one of the following
 manners: returned to the owner; adopted as a pet by a new owner; sterilized, ear-tipped,
 vaccinated for rabies and administered other vaccinations as recommended by the treating
 veterinarian, and returned to the location where it was trapped; or put to death by a procedure
 approved by rules adopted by the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services or, in the
 absence of such rules, by a procedure approved by the American Veterinary Medical Association,
 the Humane Society of the United States or of the American Humane Association.
     …
     (a3) The Animal Control Officer shall maintain a record of all animals impounded under
 this section which shall include the date of impoundment, the length of impoundment, the method
 of disposal of the animal and the name of the person or institution to whom any animal has been
     Page 2                                                                        DRH10302-MH-112
    General Assembly Of North Carolina                                          Session 2023
 released. The Animal Control Officer shall also maintain a record of any cats sterilized,
 ear-tipped, vaccinated, and returned to the location where trapped."
             SECTION 2. This act becomes effective October 1, 2023.
    DRH10302-MH-112                                                                   Page 3
Statutes affected: 
Filed: 19A-32.1, 19A-65, 130A-190, 130A-192
Edition 1: 19A-32.1, 19A-65, 130A-190, 130A-192
Edition 2: 19A-32.1, 19A-65, 130A-190, 130A-192, 143-214.7, 143-215.52, 143-215.56, 62-110, 130A-335, 143-214.26, 160D-702, 160A-307.1, 136-102.6, 143B-1333, 95-111.3, 95-111.12, 95-25.14, 90-414.4, 90-414.8, 131E-78.5, 90-624, 50B-1, 50B-2, 110-86
Edition 3: 19A-32.1, 19A-65, 130A-190, 130A-192, 143-214.7, 143-215.52, 143-215.56, 62-110, 130A-335, 143-214.26, 160D-702, 160A-307.1, 136-102.6, 143B-1333, 95-111.3, 95-111.12, 95-25.14, 90-414.4, 90-414.8, 90-414.6, 131E-78.5, 90-624, 50B-1, 50B-2, 110-86
Edition 4: 143-214.5, 143-214.7, 160A-314, 153A-277, 113-170.3, 113-229, 143-215, 143-215.73F, 113A-107, 113A-110, 113A-120, 143-215.1, 143-215.10C, 143-214.26, 130A-291.1, 130A-335, 130A-309.10, 130A-310.37, 143-215.52, 143-215.56, 62-110, 62-110.3, 160D-702, 162A-201, 162A-205, 162A-211, 95-25.14, 131E-78.5, 110-86, 143-138, 166A-19.3, 14-309.15, 95-111.3, 95-111.12, 143B-1405, 143B-1403, 143B-1407, 143B-1409
Edition 5: 143-214.5, 143-214.7, 160A-314, 153A-277, 113-170.3, 143-215, 143-215.73F, 113A-107, 113A-110, 113A-120, 143-215.1, 143-215.10C, 143-214.26, 130A-291.1, 130A-335, 130A-309.10, 130A-310.37, 143-215.52, 143-215.56, 62-110, 62-110.3, 160D-702, 162A-201, 162A-205, 162A-211, 95-25.14, 131E-78.5, 90-414.4, 110-86, 143-138, 166A-19.3, 14-309.15, 95-111.3, 95-111.12, 143B-1405, 143B-1403, 143B-1407, 143B-1409
Edition 6: 143-214.5, 143-214.7, 160A-314, 153A-277, 113-170.3, 143-215.73F, 113A-107, 113A-110, 113A-120, 143-215.1, 143-215.10C, 143-214.26, 130A-291.1, 130A-335, 130A-309.10, 130A-310.37, 143-215.52, 143-215.56, 62-110, 62-110.3, 160D-702, 95-25.14, 131E-78.5, 90-414.4, 110-86, 143-138, 166A-19.3, 14-309.15, 95-111.3, 95-111.12, 143B-1405, 143B-1403, 143B-1407, 143B-1409, 87-1, 87-14, 160D-1110, 44A-11.1, 89D-12
Ratified: 143-214.5, 143-214.7, 160A-314, 153A-277, 113-170.3, 143-215.73F, 113-229, 113A-107, 113A-110, 113A-120, 143-215.1, 143-215.10C, 143-214.26, 130A-291.1, 130A-309.10, 130A-310.37, 143-215.52, 143-215.56, 62-110, 62-110.3, 160D-702, 95-25.14, 131E-78.5, 90-414.6, 143B-1385, 90-414.4, 110-86, 143B-1333, 143-138, 166A-19.3, 115C-218.35, 150B-21.7, 143-129, 90D-7, 90D-8, 14-309.15, 95-111.3, 95-111.12, 143B-1405, 143B-1403, 143B-1407, 143B-1409, 20-116, 131E-13
SL 2023-137: 143-214.5, 143-214.7, 160A-314, 153A-277, 113-170.3, 143-215.73F, 113-229, 113A-107, 113A-110, 113A-120, 143-215.1, 143-215.10C, 143-214.26, 130A-291.1, 130A-309.10, 130A-310.37, 143-215.52, 143-215.56, 62-110, 62-110.3, 160D-702, 95-25.14, 131E-78.5, 90-414.6, 143B-1385, 90-414.4, 110-86, 143B-1333, 143-138, 166A-19.3, 115C-218.35, 150B-21.7, 143-129, 90D-7, 90D-8, 14-309.15, 95-111.3, 95-111.12, 143B-1405, 143B-1403, 143B-1407, 143B-1409, 20-116, 131E-13