Stop BSL (Breed Specific Law) in Florida

FLORIDA BSL ALERT - SB 1276 hearing on March 4, 2010 at 1 PM

CROSS-POST!!!!!

Please oppose breed specific legislation in Florida Take Action!

Breed specific legislation never works and represents a step backwards

March 2, 2010

Important alert: SB 1276, the bill that seeks to remove the ban against BSL in Florida, will be given a hearing on March 4, 2010 at 1 PM in the Senate Community Affairs Committee. Try to attend this hearing and if you can not, it is imperative that you contact your senator and committee members to share your opposition to this bill. As you know, BSL has never been successful anywhere in the US, and actually slows progress in the fight to eliminate dangerous dogs and prevent harm to people and animals from irresponsibly owned dogs. Please share your expertise with lawmakers and offer to help them write an effective dangerous dog law that punishes irresponsible dog owners, not innocent dogs that happen to be of a specific breed.

It's time to fight BSL once again. The Florida Legislature is in session and we are seeing a few of the bad ideas that failed in past sessions. One such idea reappears this session as HB 543 and SB 1276. These identical House and Senate bills seek to eliminate language in Florida statute (Chapter 767.14) that prohibits a dog from being declared dangerous based on its breed.

This effort was derailed last year after an outpouring of opposition from concerned dog enthusiasts and experts. Unfortunately, we must once again make our voices heard on this important issue and encourage lawmakers to reject any law that would allow discrimination against certain breeds.

Click here to read SB 1276

NAIA Trust of Florida is opposed to any law that seeks to target, restrict or ban specific breeds. Breed-specific laws (BSL) fail because they do not take into consideration the reality that any dog, regardless of its physical characteristics, must be raised, trained and socialized properly to become a good pet and canine good citizen. Instead of passing laws that punish well-behaved dogs based simply on their breed, we believe that laws should punish irresponsible dog owners based on the misdeeds of their dogs. Please see the NAIA brochure on BSL. http://www.naiaonline.org/pdfs/bsl.pdf

Efforts to reduce dog bites fail because citizens, lawmakers, and humane groups tend to emphasize laws and policies that restrict dog ownership rather than ones that penalize irresponsible dog ownership or reward responsible dog owners. As a result, responsible dog owners can get trapped in the system along with those who are careless or negligent about training or confining their pets, and communities get no relief from problem dogs.

Find your legislator here http://capwiz.com/naiatrust/dbq/officials/ and then call or write. If your senator is on the committee below, it is doubly important for you to call today.
Committee on Community Affairs

Michael Bennett, Chair (850) 487-5078 (850) 487-5078
Gary Siplin, Vice Chair (850) 487-5190 (850) 487-5190
Thad Altman (850) 487-5053 (850) 487-5053
Ted Deutch (850) 487-5091 (850) 487-5091
Rudy Garcia (850) 487-5106 (850) 487-5106
Andy Gardiner (850) 487-5047 (850) 487-5047
Tony Hill (Bill author) 850) 487-5024 (850) 487-5024
Jeremy Ring 850) 487-5094 (850) 487-5094
Rhonda Storms (850) 487-5072 (850) 487-5072
John Thrasher (850) 487-5030 (850) 487-5030
Stephen Wise (850) 487-5027 (850) 487-5027

We also encourage you to send a copy of your message to Florida Senator Tony HiIll to remind him that there is still a strong tide of opposition to this concept coming from people in communities across the state:
Senator Tony Hill
Tallahassee Office
213 Senate Office Building
404 South Monroe Street
Tallahassee, FL 32399-1100
(850) 487-5024
Senate VOIP: 5024