Today was a good day in Tallahassee for animals
May 4th, 2011 by admin
This evening, at 7:41pm to be exact, the Florida House of Representatives- with a unanimous 115-0 vote- passed a bill that makes sexual contact with animals a crime. The bill now heads to the desk of Gov. Rick Scott for his signature. When that happens, Florida will join the majority of U.S. states that protect animals from sexual predation.
Incredibly, this is the fourth year in a row that this bill has been introduced. Each year, the bill passed committees and the Florida Senate (in 2009 and 2010) with unanimous votes, but then failed to come up for a vote in the Florida House of Representatives before the session ended.
Senator Nan Rich has championed this bill since 2008. Please thank Senator Rich for her perseverance: rich.nan.web@flsenate.gov
Another important bill heading to the governor’s desk is Senate Bill 722, which will redefine the term “dangerous dog” to exclude dogs used for fighting. Today the bill passed the Florida House of Representatives by a vote of 99-17; yesterday it passed the Florida Senate 39-0.
Currently, dogs who are victims of dogfighting are automatically considered “dangerous.” This legislation will save lives by encouraging individual evaluation of dogs rescued from animal fighters, to determine if the dogs can be rehabilitated and adopted. Given a chance, many of these dogs make excellent companions.
Click here to send an email to Gov. Scott. Ask him to sign Senate Bill 722 (”Saving Dogs”) into law.