LEGISLATIVE FISCAL ESTIMATE
SENATE, No. 1803
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
220th LEGISLATURE
DATED: OCTOBER 10, 2023
SUMMARY
Synopsis: Prohibits surgical declawing of cats and other animals.
Type of Impact: Annual revenue and expenditure increases to municipalities. Annual
expenditure increases to counties. Annual State expenditure increases.
Agencies Affected: The Judiciary; Department of Law and Public Safety; Department of
Health; Office of the Public Defender; County and Municipal
Governments
Office of Legislative Services Estimate
Annual Fiscal Impact
Local Cost Increase Indeterminate
Local Revenue Increase Indeterminate
State Cost Increase Indeterminate
 The Office of Legislative Services (OLS) determines that municipalities would incur
indeterminate annual expenditure increases related to additional law enforcement and judicial
actions arising from violations of the bill’s provisions. Disorderly persons cases are
adjudicated in municipal court.
 Annual county expenditures would increase if any defendants were sent to county jails for
disorderly persons offenses.
 Municipal and county revenues could increase by an indeterminate amount from additional
court filing fees and penalties.
 The State may incur marginal annual expenditure increases for certain administrative tasks the
Department of Health will perform under the bill along with an increase in costs to the State
Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners to handle additional disciplinary actions.
Office of Legislative Services Legislative Budget and Finance Office
State House Annex Phone (609) 847-3105
P.O. Box 068 Fax (609) 777-2442
Trenton, New Jersey 08625 www.njleg.state.nj.us
 FE to S1803
2
BILL DESCRIPTION
This bill would prohibit a person from performing, or causing to be performed, an
onychectomy (declawing) or flexor tendonectomy procedure by any means on a cat or other
animal, unless the procedure is deemed necessary for a therapeutic purpose by a licensed
veterinarian. Any person who violates this provision would be guilty of a disorderly persons
offense, which is punishable by a fine of up to $1,000, a term of imprisonment of up to six months,
or both. A violator would also be subject to a civil penalty of between $500 and $2,000.
Under the bill, whenever a licensed veterinarian determines that an onychectomy or flexor
tendonectomy is necessary for a therapeutic purpose, the veterinarian would be required to file a
written statement with the Department of Health, and provide a copy of that statement to the owner
of the animal. A veterinarian who fails to comply with this provision would be subject to
disciplinary action by the State Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners.
FISCAL ANALYSIS
EXECUTIVE BRANCH
None received.
OFFICE OF LEGISLATIVE SERVICES
The OLS determines that municipalities would incur indeterminate annual expenditure
increases related to additional law enforcement and judicial actions arising from violations of the
bill’s provisions, any of which would be adjudicated in municipal court.
The bill also may result in annual county expenditure increases, as individuals could be sent to
county jails for disorderly persons offenses. A disorderly persons offense is punishable by a fine
of up to $1,000, a term of imprisonment of up to six months, or both. The costs for housing
inmates in a county jail vary, but according to certain estimates, it could be more than $100 per
day. For example, in 2021 when Union County closed its county jail and moved its inmates to the
Essex County jail, Union County decided on a daily rate of $104 per person.
Additional annual county and municipal revenue also would be realized in the form of
additional court filing fees and penalties. The OLS lacks sufficient information to quantify the net
fiscal impact of this bill on local government units, as it is unclear as to how many individuals
would be guilty of violating the provisions of the bill in any given fiscal year.
The State would incur marginal annual expenditure increases for certain administrative
tasks the Department of Health will perform under the bill along with an increase in costs to
the State Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners to handle additional disciplinary actions.
The OLS lacks sufficient information to quantify the fiscal impact of this bill, as it is unclear
as to how many individuals would be found guilty of violating its provisions in any given fiscal
year. According to data made available by the Humane Society of the United States, an estimated
94.2 million cats were living as pets in family homes in 2017-2018 nationwide. Certain estimates
put the number of declawed cats at between 19 to 46 percent.
Section: Judiciary
Analyst: Anuja Pande Joshi
Senior Fiscal Analyst
Approved: Thomas Koenig
Legislative Budget and Finance Officer
 FE to S1803
3
This legislative fiscal estimate has been produced by the Office of Legislative Services due to the
failure of the Executive Branch to respond to our request for a fiscal note.
This fiscal estimate has been prepared pursuant to P.L.1980, c.67 (C.52:13B-6 et seq.).