You are hereHow did your Legislators Vote in Committee?
How did your Legislators Vote in Committee?
Did you know that Maryland is a “committee-driven” state? That means that the House of Delegates and the Maryland State Senate tend to vote the way that their respective committees tell them to vote. If a bill makes it out of committee with a favorable report then it tends to pass the whole House or whole Senate, and it becomes law. That’s why it’s so important that we find out how our legislators are voting in the mysterious committees.
Here’s a list of some of the animal bills from the 2011 session of the Maryland General Assembly. Click on the link to see the actual form that the committee chair used to record the vote in his/her committee. It shows exactly how each committee member voted on that particular bill. Amazing! Finally, light is shown on the inner workings of Maryland’s ever-so-powerful legislative committees. Now we can use this information to politely push our legislators to vote for animal protection in committee – not against it – because they thought no one would know. Now we know.
2011 Animal Bills (that MVFA supported) with links to Committee Votes:
Puppy Mills, H.B. 940/S.B. 839: Requiring a person to obtain a kennel license if the person owns or has custody of 15 or more unspayed female dogs over the age of 6 months kept for the purpose of breeding the dogs and selling their offspring and sells dogs from six or more litters in a year; requiring each county to collect and maintain specified information for each kennel license issued; requiring each county to report specified information to the Department of Labor, Licensing, and Regulation on or before January 15 each year; etc.
- House Economic Matters Committee Votes
- Senate Education Health and Environmental Affairs Committee Votes
Animal Cruelty, H.B. 227/S.B. 115: Authorizing a court, as a condition of probation for specified violations concerning animal abuse, neglect, or cruelty, to prohibit the defendant from owning, possessing, or residing with an animal.
Spay/Neuter Task Force, H.B. 339/S.B. 639: Establishing a Task Force on the Establishment of a Statewide Spay/Neuter Fund; specifying the membership, chair, and staff of the Task Force; requiring the Task Force to review specified spay/neuter programs, develop a specified spay/neuter program, and make recommendations regarding a spay/neuter fund; requiring the Task Force to report its findings and recommendations to the Governor and specified committees of the General Assembly on or before January 1, 2012; terminating the Act at the end of June 30, 2012; etc.
- House Environmental Matters Committee Votes
- Senate Education Health and Environmental Affairs Committe Votes
Pet Protective Orders, S.B 747 /H.B. 407: Authorizing a District Court Commissioner, in a specified interim protective. order, and a judge, in a temporary protective order or final protective order, to award temporary possession of any pet of a person eligible for relief or a respondent.
Antifreeze Safety, H.B. 897: Prohibiting a person, after January 1, 2012, from selling or offering for sale engine coolant or antifreeze that contains more than 10% ethylene glycol unless it contains not less than 30 parts per million nor more than 50 parts per million denatonium benzoate; granting immunity from liability to persons that manufacture, process, distribute, recycle, or sell engine coolant or antifreeze with denatonium benzoate in concentrations required by the Act, except under specified circumstances; etc.
Poaching, H.B. 301: Authorizing the Department of Natural Resources to suspend for up to 5 years the hunting license or privileges of a person who is convicted of a State or federal hunting violation; requiring the Department to suspend for a minimum of 1 year and a maximum of 5 years the hunting license or privileges of a person who receives in any 12-month period a second conviction for specified hunting violations; etc.
Animal Cruelty 2, H.B. 294/S.B. 425: Prohibiting a person from inflicting unnecessary suffering or pain on an animal through the use of a rifle, a handgun, or a specified weapon; establishing a penalty for a violation of the Act; and altering a penalty for a specified offense of abuse or neglect of an animal.
- House Judiciary Committee Votes (no votes)
- Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee Votes (no votes)
Puppy Mills 2, H.B. 912: Requiring a retail pet store that sells dogs to post conspicuously on each dog's cage specified information about the dog; requiring a retail pet store to maintain a written record which contains specified information about each dog in the possession of the retail pet store; requiring a retail pet store to maintain a specified record for 1 year after the date of sale of a dog; and defining "retail pet store".
2011 Animal Bills (that MVFA opposed) with links to Committee Votes:
Maryland Livestock and Poultry Care and Advisory Board, SB 254 & HB 676: Establishing the Maryland Livestock and Poultry Care Advisory Board; establishing the membership and charge of the Board; requiring the Board to elect the chair of the Board; providing for the terms of the members and chair of the Board; etc.
- House Environmental Matters Committee Votes
- Senate Education Health and Environmental Affairs Committe Votes
Extended Sunday Hunting, SB 45 & HB 129: Repealing specified provisions of law authorizing a person to hunt deer on private property in specified counties on specified Sundays under specified circumstances; authorizing the Department of Natural Resources to allow a person to hunt deer on private property in specified counties on specified Sundays under specified circumstances; etc.
- House Environmental Matters Committee Votes (no committee vote on this bill)
- Senate Education Health and Environmental Affairs Committe Votes
welfare protection. The success of animal rights legislation was due in large part to the dedication and efforts of Maryland Votes for Animals."