A
notorious puppy mill case that sent a breeder to
jail and enlisted dozens of volunteers and thousands
of taxpayer dollars to help care for the seized
animals is the impetus for proposed legislation that
would require dog and cat dealers to be licensed and
inspected.
But the
bill may be killed before it even sees a vote
because the sponsor, state Sen. Curtis Person Jr.,
R-Memphis, says he has taken too much heat for how
he proposes paying for the added oversight. A $2 per
ton fee on pet-food sales to support the program has
drawn the ire of the pet-food industry both locally
and nationally.
|
Jennifer Siliski
|
Williamson
County spent more than $100,000 to shelter hundreds
of dogs seized from a Maltese breeder in 2004. The
breeder, Jennifer Siliski, was convicted of animal
cruelty for keeping more than 230 animals in
unsanitary conditions. She served time in jail after
violating probation by taking more dogs into her
home.
Several
animal activists, including Williamson County
resident Laura Turner, sought such legislation after
getting involved in the case.
"Not only
will this help to monitor these potentially abusive
situations, but these breeders need to recognize
this as a cost of doing business in the state,"
Turner wrote in a January 2005 letter to Person.
More than
a year later, Person says he is having such trouble
with the funding for the legislation that he may
pull it from consideration before it's up for a vote
in the Senate. It was to be voted on Wednesday but
was rescheduled for Tuesday. Even if it passes the
Senate, the bill isn't moving in the House, where a
version has been amended to remove the pet-food tax.
Person has
received letters from at least seven pet-food
manufactures, stating that the proposed tax was
"unfair."
A
self-proclaimed animal lover, Person said he is
faced with a "tough decision" in deciding whether to
pull the bill, because he might not have the votes
needed to push it through.
He said he
is "extremely upset with the opposition" the bill
received from the pet-food industry, and that the
tax could have easily been passed on to consumers.
He said it would have added as much as 5 cents to a
50-pound bag of pet food.
This has
been the second year Person has pushed for such
legislation.
|
State
Sen. Curtis Person Jr.,
R-Memphis
|
"Consumers
would never balk at paying pennies to protect
animals," Person said.
On the
other hand, the $2 per ton tax would be the nation's
highest tax on pet food, said Stephen Payne,
spokesman for the Pet Food Institute in Washington.
"The idea
of the bill is a good one," Payne said. "We do a lot
to support animal welfare, but our biggest concern
is the funding mechanism of a brand-new tax on pet
food to fund a breeder program when the breeders
should be paying more."
An
amendment to the bill offered by Sen. Mae Beavers,
R-Mt. Juliet, removes the tax. Beavers said she
thinks a bill to regulate pet dealers should be
funded by dealer fees.
There are
hundreds of unlicensed dog and cat dealers in
Tennessee, according to the Department of
Agriculture. A fiscal impact statement attached to
the bill states that an average of 450 licenses
would be issued each year should proposed
regulations be approved.
The bill
calls for dealers who sell as many as 50 animals a
year to pay a $125 fee. Dealers selling more than
1,000 animals a year would pay $1,000 for a license.
It would
cost approximately $270,000 a year to pay for a
five-member team that would enforce the proposed
regulations and inspect pet dealers, said Jimmy
Hooper, director of regulatory services for the
Tennessee Department of Agriculture.
"That cost
doesn't include if we had to confiscate animals,"
said Tom Womack, department spokesman.
Person
said he has suggested the creation of a trust fund
to which people could contribute should the need to
shelter seized animals arise.
|
Ann
Logan and Manny |
Ann Logan
of Franklin adopted a Maltese dog that was born at
Williamson County's Animal Shelter. The dog's mother
had been confiscated from Siliski's home. Logan said
she supports Person's bill and hopes that if it
doesn't become law this year, it will soon after.
Person said a different version of the bill would
need to be presented if this one is discarded.
"Whenever
we can get it passed will be a good thing," Logan
said. "It can provide some protection for animals in
the puppy mills being very badly treated. It will
also protect consumers against fraud and local
taxpayers who have to bear the huge cost and burden
of dealing with things like (the Siliski case)."
Breeders
such as Jerry Lane in Dickson are not in favor of
any more government control. Lane, who sells small
dogs such as Yorkshire terriers, said he thinks
there is "too much government already." Lane said
it's hard to make money in the dog-breeding business
and doesn't need any more expenses.
"I make a
little extra money at it," Lane said. "But just
think, you have to feed and take care of them until
you sell them. If they aren't selling, you got to
keep feeding them and keep them clean."
Jean
Burchett, a dog breeder in Springfield, said she
wouldn't mind it if anyone came to inspect her
family's operation. Burchett said she has been
selling dogs for 15 years and keeps her kennels
clean.
"It would
be fine by me if they came," she said. "I just wish
they let us know ahead of time." •
Published: Thursday, 05/18/06
