Legislative Alerts

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ASA Action Alert

PAWS Amendment Update

As often happens in the legislative process, things change from one moment to the next. Indications were that Senator Durbin was moving forward with placing Amendment 3723 into the discussion in the U.S. Senate on the Farm Bill. In an effort to notify our membership of this development, ASA sent out an Action Alert to our membership. Since that time, the amendment has not been included in the Farm Bill. However, Senator Durbin has indicated that he will bring the legislation back in some form at some time. The ASA Legislative Team will keep an eye on this and will call for action if the issue arises again.

Amendment 3723 was a concern because it is a revised PAWS bill, with all the problems of the original bill - the addition of third party inspectors and a new definition of retail pet stores which would include many private individuals selling animals to the public - whether these animals are dogs, cats, birds, or hamsters! Congress never intended to regulate these types of sales under the Animal Welfare Act.

In continuing its commitment to defending the right for aviculturists to keep birds,
The Avicultural Society of America will monitor for any sign that the PAWS bill is being revived. If it becomes necessary, we will post information on how to take action here.

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