84R30317 AJZ-D
By: Menéndez, et al. S.B. No. 1781
(Minjarez, Oliveira)
Substitute the following for S.B. No. 1781: No.
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the euthanasia of animals in animal shelters located in
certain counties.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Subchapter C, Chapter 821, Health and Safety
Code, is amended by adding Section 821.0521 to read as follows:
Sec. 821.0521. EUTHANASIA OF CERTAIN ANIMALS PROHIBITED.
(a) This section applies only to a county:
(1) with a population of more than 1.5 million that
contains a municipality in which at least 75 percent of the county's
population resides; or
(2) that borders the United Mexican States and the
Gulf of Mexico.
(b) A person may not euthanize a dog, cat, or other animal in
the custody of an animal shelter if the animal could safely be
placed:
(1) in an empty cage, kennel, or other living
environment intended for animal habitation in the animal shelter;
or
(2) in a shared cage, kennel, or other living
environment intended for animal habitation in the animal shelter
with another animal of the same species.
(c) A cage, kennel, or other living environment described by
Subsection (b)(1) or (2) does not include a cage, kennel, or other
living environment in an animal shelter that is:
(1) not attached to the animal shelter or the premises
of the animal shelter; or
(2) restricted to the public and designated for the
provision of treatment and care to sick or injured animals.
(d) Subsection (b) does not apply to:
(1) an animal that is suspected of carrying and is
otherwise exhibiting signs of rabies as determined by a licensed
veterinarian;
(2) a dog that a court has determined to be a dangerous
dog under Subchapter D, Chapter 822;
(3) a dog that has bitten a person severely enough that
the person suffered an injury requiring more than minor medical
attention;
(4) a dog that has bitten a cat or another dog, causing
serious injury or death to the other animal;
(5) a dog that a certified animal behaviorist or
qualified shelter staff has determined is a threat to human safety;
or
(6) an animal that has a poor or grave prognosis for
being able to live without severe, unremitting pain, even with
comprehensive, prompt, and necessary veterinary care, as
determined by a licensed veterinarian.
(e) This section does not require a person who is an agent of
an animal shelter to:
(1) group dogs or cats together in a manner that does
not provide each animal the ability to turn freely or to easily
stand, sit, stretch, move the animal's head without touching the
top of the enclosure, lie in a comfortable position with limbs
extended, or move around to assume a comfortable posture for
feeding, drinking, urinating, and defecating;
(2) group sick animals with healthy animals; or
(3) group a dog that weighs more than 30 pounds with
another dog without prior approval of a shelter staff member that is
granted after the shelter staff member has supervised an
introduction of the dogs.
(f) This section does not prohibit a person who is an agent
of an animal shelter from euthanizing an animal to make a cage or
kennel space available for an additional animal, if the additional
animal is in the custody of the animal shelter or the agent and is
scheduled to arrive at the animal shelter within three hours.
SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2015.