BILL NUMBER: S6733
SPONSOR: PALUMBO
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the penal law and the state finance law, in relation to
a fee for certain convictions to benefit animal shelters and establish-
ing the animal offenses assistance fund
 
PURPOSE:
To impose a surcharge for certain convictions establishing the Animal
Offenses Assistance Fund to support animal shelters for expenses
incurred rehabilitating animals seized by law enforcement.
 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1. Subdivision 1 of section 60.35 of the penal law is amended to
include an animal offense assistance fee of five dollars.
Section 2. State finance law is amended by adding a new subsection 98-
1. Establishes the Animal Offenses Assistance Fund in the custody of the
State Comptroller and the Commissioner of Taxation and Finance.
2. The monies will come from the animal offense fee.
3. a) Funds will be available to those shelters that incurred costs
while caring for animals seized because of abuse.
b) The Commissioner of the Department of Agriculture and Markets will
award funds through an application process for reimbursement of expenses
paid.
c) Defines animal shelter
4. Moneys will be available to the Commissioner of the Department of
Agriculture and Markets and will be paid out of the fund on the audit
and warrant of the State Comptroller through vouchers approved by the
Commissioner.
Section 3. Sets forth the effective date.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
Animal shelters in New York struggle daily to support operations and
day-to-day costs of housing, veterinary care and food for our beloved
animals. When abused animals are rescued through the criminal justice
system, the animals are often in need of extensive veterinary care and
the costs to nurture them back to health are extremely high. Law
enforcement must also immediately find a shelter capable of housing the
abused animals. In the recent case in Albany County, 102 animals were
living in squalor at a home that also doubled as an unregistered rescue.
In a combined effort between Humane Law Enforcement from the Mohawk
Hudson Humane Society and the Town of Colonic Animal Control, the
animals were rescued and 98 of them were placed with Mohawk Hudson. As a
result, Mohawk Hudson was required to spend $303,957.25 for only the
first 30 days of care. They sought relief from the Court, spent
$23,550.48 on legal fees and were granted only a $10,000 bond from the
Court that was eventually forfeited after the defendants were found not
guilty.
The New York State Animal Protection Federation conducted a survey and
found that of 47 cases, the cost of care was $4,426,250. The shelters
only received $795,337 in restitution, which is 18% of the total cost.
We know that these cases are just the tip of the iceberg. It should
also be noted that in many cases the shelter must also maintain the
animals as evidence and cannot offer the rehabilitated animal for
adoption until the criminal case is resolved, no matter how long it
takes to adjudicate the pending case.
Consequently, we need to create a mechanism to relieve this undue finan-
cial stress on our shelters and there is a simple solution. Our current
judicial system requires individuals and corporate entities who are
sentenced in court to pay mandatory surcharges to the courts, namely:
1. Penal Law felony convictions carry a $300 surcharge, plus a $25 crime
victims assistance fee
2. Penal Law misdemeanors $175 plus a $25 crime victims assistance fee
3. Penal Law violations $95 plus a $25 crime victims assistance fee
4. Vehicle and Traffic offenses carry various surcharges ranging from
$88 to thousands of dollars for Driving While Intoxicated matters
5. Certain convictions also require a DNA databank fee of $50, a Sex
Offender Registration Fee
This bill will simply create an additional five-dollar ($5) surcharge
that will be earmarked for an Animal Offense Assistance Fund to help
finance the costs of caring for surrendered animals. These shelters are
saving lives and providing necessary care for abused and neglected
animals, sometimes for months, and should not have to foot the bill for
the deplorable actions of others. The Animal Offense Assistance Fund
will provide a consistent funding stream, like the existing Crime
Victim's Fund, to keep our shelters solvent so they can provide the
necessary care, treatment and services desperately needed for abused
animals.
 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
New bill
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
TBD
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
Immediately