Assembly Bill 485, the Pet Rescue and Adoption Act, will be voted on by the full Assembly in the next few days after it passed last week in the Assembly Appropriations Committee.
The bill passed in the Assembly Appropriations Committee on May 17 with 10 ayes (Gonzalez Fletcher, Bloom, Levine, Bonta, Quirk, Eggman, Thurmond, Eduardo Garcia, Muratsuchi, Reyes), four noes (Bigelow, Fong, Gray, Obernolte) and 3 abstentions (Brough, Calderon, Gallagher). The vote will be submitted for full Assembly vote in the next few days. If the vote passes, it will move on to the Senate.
AB 485 was introduced and co-authored by Assembly Member O’Donnell (D-Long Beach) and is sponsored by nonprofit animal-rights organization Social Compassion in Legislation. The bill would require all dogs, cats and rabbits offered for retail sale in California pet stores to be obtained by an animal shelter or a nonprofit rescue organization.
California residents can call their Assembly representatives to give their thoughts and opinions. Contact information is available on this link.