PASSING THIS IMPORTANT INFO ALONG WITH THE REQUEST THAT YOU PLEASE HELP
contact info below
Shocking but true, Arizona legislators have passed through the House and Senate a bill that strips the animal cruelty laws. In a stealth attack and under heavy pressure from the meat and dairy industries, elected officials succumbed to the input from ranchers to slide this bill through. This bill now goes to the Governor for his consideration.
If turned into law, this bill would strip 11 acts of farm animal abuse, such as medical neglect and abandonment, effectively cutting this protection out of the current anti-cruelty code which has been protecting companion animals and farm animals for years.
Farm animals would be placed in their own, new cruelty code, separated from dogs and cats, and numerous cases of farm animal cruelty would no longer be crimes.
Arizona horses, cows, pigs, chickens and sheep will be left vulnerable and defenseless. Law enforcement will be helpless to prosecute, leaving people committing these abusive acts to go completely unpunished. For some other acts of cruelty, the penalty will lessen from a felony down to a misdemeanor.
Even if you have taken action on this bill before, please contact Arizona Governor Doug Ducey immediately and urge him to veto HB2150, the farm animal cruelty bill.
Get everyone you know to contact the Arizona Governor now, especially state residents.
Please be polite, but firmly let Governor Ducey know that you OPPOSE HB2150.
HB2150 also contains a dangerous “ag-gag” provision. It would require undercover investigators working on factory farms or slaughterhouses to notify the state Department of Agriculture Director “of any investigation of an alleged violation” of farm animal cruelty, thereby jeopardizing the investigations and exposing the whistleblowers.
Now HB2150 goes to Governor Ducey for his consideration. The Governor has 5 days to make his decision. If he doesn’t act on the bill in that 5 day window, the bill automatically becomes law. His other options are to sign the bill, at which point it becomes law, or, to veto the bill.
Contact Arizona Governor Doug Ducey immediately. Spread the word.
Urge him to veto HB2150, the farm animal cruelty bill.
By phone: M-F 8am-5pm MST; (602) 542-4331 Phoenix office; (520) 628-6580 Tucson office
(dropdown subject “Legislation/Bills”, “House”, Bill Number “2150”, OPPOSE)
By Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dougducey
By Twitter: @dougducey; https://twitter.com/dougducey
Optional sample language:
“I urge Governor Ducey to veto HB2150. This unnecessary, misrepresented bill would weaken our laws against animal abuse. It removes many acts of farm animal abuse, reduces felony penalties for some other acts of cruelty, and prevents local municipalities from enacting reasonable cruelty ordinances. If Arizona ’s agriculture industry cares about their animals, why are they pushing this bill? Arizonans don’t want the food on our plates to come from abused farm animals. Please veto HB2150. Thank you.”
Please email or call me with any questions, or if I may help you in any way. Let’s do this!
Warmest thanks,
Cathy LaSusa
(516) 459-5189 cell
p.s. Please spread the word far and wide, especially in Arizona .
