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| 2 | 2 | | HOUSE . . . . . . . No. 4919 |
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| 3 | 3 | | The Commonwealth of Massachusetts |
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| 4 | 4 | | ______________________________________ |
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| 5 | 5 | | HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, July 25, 2024. |
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| 6 | 6 | | The committee on Ways and Means, to whom was referred the Bill to |
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| 7 | 7 | | increase kennel safety, aka Ollie's Law (House, No. 4564), reports |
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| 8 | 8 | | recommending that the same ought to pass with an amendment |
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| 9 | 9 | | substituting therefor the accompanying bill (House, No. 4919). |
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| 10 | 10 | | For the committee, |
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| 11 | 11 | | AARON MICHLEWITZ. 2 of 9 |
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| 12 | 12 | | FILED ON: 7/25/2024 |
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| 13 | 13 | | HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 4919 |
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| 14 | 14 | | The Commonwealth of Massachusetts |
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| 15 | 15 | | _______________ |
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| 16 | 16 | | In the One Hundred and Ninety-Third General Court |
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| 17 | 17 | | (2023-2024) |
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| 18 | 18 | | _______________ |
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| 19 | 19 | | An Act to increase kennel safety, aka Ollie's Law. |
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| 20 | 20 | | Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority |
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| 21 | 21 | | of the same, as follows: |
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| 22 | 22 | | 1 SECTION 1. Section 136A of chapter 140 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2022 |
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| 23 | 23 | | 2Official Edition, is hereby amended by striking out, in lines 2 and 7, the figure “174F”, each time |
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| 24 | 24 | | 3it appears, and inserting in place thereof, in each instance, the following figure:- 174G. |
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| 25 | 25 | | 4 SECTION 2. Said section 136A of said chapter 140, as so appearing, is hereby further |
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| 26 | 26 | | 5amended by inserting, after the definition of “Kennel”, the following definition:- |
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| 27 | 27 | | 6 “Licensee”, a person who owns and maintains a kennel that has received a kennel license |
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| 28 | 28 | | 7from the relevant licensing authority. |
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| 29 | 29 | | 8 SECTION 3. Section 137A of said chapter 140, as so appearing, is hereby amended by |
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| 30 | 30 | | 9striking out subsections (a) and (b) and inserting in place thereof the following 2 subsections:- |
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| 31 | 31 | | 10 (a) A person maintaining a kennel shall obtain a kennel license. A licensing authority |
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| 32 | 32 | | 11shall issue, suspend, renew and revoke kennel licenses as specified in this chapter and any other 3 of 9 |
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| 33 | 33 | | 12law. In the case of an applicant for initial licensure and license renewal, a licensing authority |
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| 34 | 34 | | 13shall deny a kennel license until a kennel has passed inspection by an animal control officer. |
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| 35 | 35 | | 14 (b)(1) The issuing city or town shall determine the period of time for which a kennel |
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| 36 | 36 | | 15license shall be valid, including the date of issuance of the license through the date on which the |
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| 37 | 37 | | 16license expires, inclusive, and shall further determine the fee for the issuance and renewal of the |
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| 38 | 38 | | 17license. To determine the amount of the license fee for a kennel, a dog under the age of 3 months |
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| 39 | 39 | | 18shall not be counted in the number of dogs kept in a kennel. The name and address of the owner |
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| 40 | 40 | | 19of each dog kept in a kennel, if other than the person maintaining the kennel, shall be kept at the |
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| 41 | 41 | | 20kennel and available for inspection by an animal control officer, natural resource officer, deputy |
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| 42 | 42 | | 21natural resource officer, fish and game warden or police officer. A kennel that owns or keeps a |
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| 43 | 43 | | 22dog over the age of 6 months shall comply with section 145B. |
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| 44 | 44 | | 23 (2) A commercial boarding or training kennel shall maintain records of individual dog |
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| 45 | 45 | | 24licenses, as required in section 137, for all dogs in its care. |
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| 46 | 46 | | 25 SECTION 4. Said section 137A of said chapter 140, as so appearing, is hereby further |
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| 47 | 47 | | 26amended by striking out subsection (d) and inserting in place thereof the following 3 |
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| 48 | 48 | | 27subsections:- |
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| 49 | 49 | | 28 (d) The licensing authority shall specify the type of kennel and the maximum number of |
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| 50 | 50 | | 29animals that may be maintained by the licensee on the license. Such number shall be determined |
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| 51 | 51 | | 30by the licensing authority and the animal control officer following the required inspection. For |
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| 52 | 52 | | 31commercial boarding or training kennels, the number of animals shall be determined following |
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| 53 | 53 | | 32the required inspection and in accordance with regulations promulgated pursuant to section 174G |
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| 54 | 54 | | 33to ensure the property can support the number of animals while ensuring their health and safety. 4 of 9 |
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| 55 | 55 | | 34 (e)(1) Annually, not later than June 1, the licensing authority shall send to the department |
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| 56 | 56 | | 35a list of all kennels and their addresses licensed by the city or town under this section. |
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| 57 | 57 | | 36 (2) The department shall annually review the list of kennels submitted as required by this |
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| 58 | 58 | | 37section to evaluate for compliance of municipalities issuing kennel licenses in accordance with |
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| 59 | 59 | | 38this chapter. |
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| 60 | 60 | | 39 (f) A person who violates this section shall be assessed by the licensing authority a fine of |
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| 61 | 61 | | 40$500 for a first offense and a fine of not more than $1,000 for a second or subsequent offense. |
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| 62 | 62 | | 41 SECTION 5. Said chapter 140 is hereby further amended by striking out section 137C |
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| 63 | 63 | | 42and inserting in place thereof the following section:- |
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| 64 | 64 | | 43 Section 137C. (a) The mayor of a city, the select board of a town, the town manager of a |
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| 65 | 65 | | 44town, the police commissioner in the city of Boston, a chief of police or an animal control officer |
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| 66 | 66 | | 45shall inspect a kennel or cause the inspection of a kennel at least 1 time per year. If a licensee or |
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| 67 | 67 | | 46a person applying for a license to maintain a kennel refuses to allow an inspector to enter and |
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| 68 | 68 | | 47inspect a kennel, the refusal shall be grounds for denial, suspension or revocation of the license. |
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| 69 | 69 | | 48 Twenty-five citizens of a city or town may file a petition with the mayor of a city, the |
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| 70 | 70 | | 49select board of a town or the police commissioner in the city of Boston, as the case may be, |
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| 71 | 71 | | 50stating that they are aggrieved or annoyed to an unreasonable extent that constitutes a nuisance |
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| 72 | 72 | | 51by a dog maintained in the city or town due to excessive barking or other conditions connected |
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| 73 | 73 | | 52with a kennel. The mayor, select board, town manager or police commissioner in the city of |
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| 74 | 74 | | 53Boston, as the case may be, shall not more than 7 days after the filing of petition, give notice to |
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| 75 | 75 | | 54all interested parties of a public hearing. The hearing shall be held not more than 14 days after |
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| 76 | 76 | | 55the date of the notice. The mayor, select board, town manager or police commissioner in the city 5 of 9 |
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| 77 | 77 | | 56of Boston shall, not more than 7 days after the public hearing, investigate or cause to be |
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| 78 | 78 | | 57investigated the subject matter of the petition and shall, by order: (i) suspend the license; (ii) |
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| 79 | 79 | | 58revoke the license; (iii) further regulate the kennel; or (iv) dismiss the petition. |
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| 80 | 80 | | 59 (b) A written notice under subsection (a) of an order revoking or suspending the license, |
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| 81 | 81 | | 60further regulating the kennel or dismissing the petition shall be mailed immediately to the |
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| 82 | 82 | | 61licensee and to the officer that issued the license. Not more than 10 days after the written notice |
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| 83 | 83 | | 62of the order, the licensee may file a petition in the district court in the judicial district in which |
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| 84 | 84 | | 63the kennel is maintained seeking review of the order. After notice to all parties as the court may |
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| 85 | 85 | | 64consider necessary, the court shall review the action, hear the witnesses and affirm the order |
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| 86 | 86 | | 65unless it shall appear that it was made without proper cause or in bad faith, in which case the |
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| 87 | 87 | | 66order shall be reversed. The decision of the court shall be final and conclusive upon the parties. |
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| 88 | 88 | | 67A person maintaining a kennel after the license to maintain a kennel has been revoked or |
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| 89 | 89 | | 68suspended shall be assessed by the licensing authority a fine of not more than $250 for a first |
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| 90 | 90 | | 69offense, by a fine of not less than $500 for a second offense and by a fine of not more than |
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| 91 | 91 | | 70$1,500 for a third or subsequent offense. |
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| 92 | 92 | | 71 SECTION 6. Said chapter 140 is hereby further amended by inserting after section 174F |
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| 93 | 93 | | 72the following section:- |
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| 94 | 94 | | 73 Section 174G. (a) The department shall promulgate rules and regulations for commercial |
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| 95 | 95 | | 74boarding or training kennels, including those located at a private residence, which shall include, |
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| 96 | 96 | | 75but not be limited to, licensing, inspection, compliance and enforcement, use of best practices |
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| 97 | 97 | | 76and operation, provider and staff to animal ratios, fire and emergency planning, injury reporting, |
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| 98 | 98 | | 77group sizes and supervision, minimum housing and care requirements, indoor and outdoor 6 of 9 |
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| 99 | 99 | | 78physical facility requirements, utilities, body language interpretation, breed familiarity, dog |
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| 100 | 100 | | 79handling, insurance, proper education and training of commercial boarding or training kennel |
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| 101 | 101 | | 80staff, including, but not limited to, dog daycare staff, operational safety standards, risk |
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| 102 | 102 | | 81management and consumer education and protection. |
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| 103 | 103 | | 82 (b)(1) Commercial boarding or training kennels shall report to the licensing authority |
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| 104 | 104 | | 83injuries to animals or people and the department or licensing authority shall investigate all |
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| 105 | 105 | | 84reports. The department shall develop a form for such reporting and a time frame for submitting |
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| 106 | 106 | | 85a report after an injury. The form shall be available on the department’s website for the public to |
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| 107 | 107 | | 86report injuries. |
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| 108 | 108 | | 87 (2) The department shall make investigative reports of injuries publicly available on its |
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| 109 | 109 | | 88website if the investigation results in the department bringing enforcement action against the |
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| 110 | 110 | | 89kennel. |
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| 111 | 111 | | 90 (c)(1) An inspection of a commercial boarding or training kennel to enforce the rules and |
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| 112 | 112 | | 91regulations promulgated pursuant to subsection (a) may be done by the commissioner or an |
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| 113 | 113 | | 92authorized inspector and shall take place between the hours of 7:00 am and 7:00 pm unless an |
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| 114 | 114 | | 93alternate time is mutually agreed upon by the inspector and the licensee. An authorized inspector |
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| 115 | 115 | | 94may include, but shall not be limited to, an animal control officer, the mayor of a city, the select |
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| 116 | 116 | | 95board of a town, the town manager of a town, the chief of police, the police commissioner in the |
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| 117 | 117 | | 96city of Boston or another designated official. The licensee or an authorized agent of the licensee |
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| 118 | 118 | | 97shall be present during the inspection. If a kennel regulated under this section is located at a |
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| 119 | 119 | | 98private residence, only the areas of the residence that are used for kennel purposes or for the |
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| 120 | 120 | | 99maintenance of kennel records shall be required to be available for inspection. 7 of 9 |
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| 121 | 121 | | 100 (2) If, in the judgment of the commissioner or an authorized inspector, a kennel is not |
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| 122 | 122 | | 101being maintained in a sanitary and humane manner or if records have not been properly kept as |
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| 123 | 123 | | 102required by law and in compliance with this section, the commissioner or authorized inspector, |
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| 124 | 124 | | 103shall, by order, suspend the license for the kennel depending on the severity of the offense or |
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| 125 | 125 | | 104issue to the licensee a written citation or notice which explains the noncompliant issue and |
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| 126 | 126 | | 105requires the licensee to come into compliance within a reasonable, specified timeframe. If the |
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| 127 | 127 | | 106licensee fails to come into compliance within the time period specified by the commissioner or |
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| 128 | 128 | | 107authorized inspector, the commissioner or authorized inspector shall, by order, revoke the license |
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| 129 | 129 | | 108for the kennel. |
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| 130 | 130 | | 109 (3) An enforcement under subsection (b) may be appealed within 21 days to the district |
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| 131 | 131 | | 110court in the judicial district in which the kennel is maintained. |
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| 132 | 132 | | 111 (4) In a municipality without an authorized inspector or when the department conducts |
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| 133 | 133 | | 112investigations and enforcements, the commissioner may, by order, suspend or revoke a license |
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| 134 | 134 | | 113for a kennel in violation of this section. An enforcement under subsection (b) from the |
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| 135 | 135 | | 114commissioner may be appealed within 21 days to the division of administrative law appeals |
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| 136 | 136 | | 115pursuant to chapter 30A. |
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| 137 | 137 | | 116 SECTION 7. (a) Notwithstanding any general or special law or rule or regulation to the |
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| 138 | 138 | | 117contrary, there shall be a committee to advise the commissioner of agricultural resources on the |
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| 139 | 139 | | 118promulgation of regulations as required by section 174G of chapter 140 of the General Laws. |
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| 140 | 140 | | 119 (b)(1) The committee shall be appointed by the commissioner and shall consist of: 1 |
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| 141 | 141 | | 120representative from the department of agricultural resources; 1 owner of a licensed commercial |
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| 142 | 142 | | 121boarding or training kennel with a kennel license with a capacity of not more than 50 dogs; 1 8 of 9 |
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| 143 | 143 | | 122owner of a licensed commercial boarding or training kennel with a kennel license with a capacity |
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| 144 | 144 | | 123of 50 or more dogs in a kennel not located in a home; 2 animal control officers, 1 of whom shall |
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| 145 | 145 | | 124represent a municipality having 5 or more animal daycare facilities and 1 of whom shall |
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| 146 | 146 | | 125represent a municipality having fewer than 5 animal daycare facilities; 1 licensing authority |
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| 147 | 147 | | 126representative; 1 representative of a kennel association or an organization representing kennels; 1 |
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| 148 | 148 | | 127veterinarian or member of a veterinary medical association organized in the commonwealth; 1 |
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| 149 | 149 | | 128member of the general public with an interest in the well-being of dogs; 1 dog owner who uses |
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| 150 | 150 | | 129the services of a licensed commercial boarding or training kennel; 1 animal behaviorist certified |
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| 151 | 151 | | 130by International Association of Animal Behavior Consultants, Inc. or by a comparable certifying |
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| 152 | 152 | | 131entity approved by the department; 1 person with not less than 5 years of experience training |
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| 153 | 153 | | 132people on dog behavior; and 1 representative from a shelter or rescue organization licensed by |
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| 154 | 154 | | 133the department. |
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| 155 | 155 | | 134 (2) The commissioner shall consider diversity, equity and inclusion when appointing the |
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| 156 | 156 | | 135committee. Members of the committee shall be residents of the commonwealth or do business in |
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| 157 | 157 | | 136the commonwealth. Members shall reflect the geographic diversity of the commonwealth, |
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| 158 | 158 | | 137representing municipalities with different forms of government. The committee shall elect a |
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| 159 | 159 | | 138chair at the initial meeting. |
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| 160 | 160 | | 139 (c) The commissioner of agricultural resources shall appoint the members of the |
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| 161 | 161 | | 140committee to advise the commissioner on the promulgation of regulations, as required by section |
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| 162 | 162 | | 141174G of chapter 140 of the General Laws, not more than 90 days of the effective date of this act. |
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| 163 | 163 | | 142 SECTION 8. The department of agricultural resources shall promulgate the regulations |
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| 164 | 164 | | 143pursuant to section 174G of chapter 140 of the General Laws, inserted by section 6, not more 9 of 9 |
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| 165 | 165 | | 144than 18 months after the effective date of this act. The department shall provide an updated list of |
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| 166 | 166 | | 145the regulations under said section 174G of said chapter 140 and any relevant education or |
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| 167 | 167 | | 146training programs to local licensing authorities, animal control officers and any other applicable |
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| 168 | 168 | | 147local officials for the enforcement of the regulations. |
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| 169 | 169 | | 148 SECTION 9. Not later than July 1, 2025, the department shall file a report with the joint |
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| 170 | 170 | | 149committee on municipalities and regional government on the number of kennel licenses issued |
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| 171 | 171 | | 150throughout the commonwealth, the type of kennel licenses issued, municipalities not in |
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| 172 | 172 | | 151compliance with the license requirements and any related legislative recommendations. |
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| 173 | 173 | | 152 SECTION 10. Section 7 is hereby repealed. |
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| 174 | 174 | | 153 SECTION 11. Section 10 shall be effective on December 31, 2026. |
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