House File 474 - Introduced HOUSE FILE 474 BY GASKILL A BILL FOR An Act relating to animals, including dogs, that are subject 1 to certain health and safety regulations, including 2 by providing for rabies control, and the confiscation, 3 impoundment, and disposition of such animals, providing a 4 criminal penalty, and making penalties applicable. 5 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: 6 TLSB 2287YH (8) 88 da/rn

H.F. 474 Section 1. NEW SECTION . 351.1 Definitions. 1 As used in this chapter, unless the context otherwise 2 requires: 3 1. “Department” means the department of agriculture and land 4 stewardship. 5 2. “DNA” means deoxyribonucleic acid. 6 3. “Local board of health” means the same as defined in 7 section 137.102. 8 4. “Police service dog” means a dog specially trained 9 to assist a peace officer as defined in section 801.4 or a 10 correctional officer in the performance of the officer’s 11 duties. 12 5. “Qualified laboratory” means a laboratory accredited 13 by the American association of veterinary laboratory 14 diagnosticians, the national veterinary services laboratories 15 located in Ames, Iowa, or a diagnostic laboratory recognized 16 by the department. 17 6. “Veterinarian” means a person who is licensed to practice 18 veterinary medicine in this state under chapter 169. 19 Sec. 2. Section 351.25, Code 2019, is amended to read as 20 follows: 21 351.25 Dog as property. 22 All dogs under A dog shall be deemed property only if the dog 23 is any of the following: 24 1. Less than six months of age , and all dogs over said 25 age and wearing a collar with a valid rabies vaccination tag 26 attached to the collar, shall be deemed property. Dogs not 27 provided with a rabies vaccination tag shall not be deemed 28 property . 29 2. Owned by a person as evidenced by proof of identification 30 which shall be limited to any of the following: 31 a. A rabies prevention credential as provided in section 32 351.35. 33 b. A tattoo imprinted on the dog’s skin that may be visually 34 observed. 35 -1- LSB 2287YH (8) 88 da/rn 1/ 9

H.F. 474 c. A device implanted under the dog’s skin that stores 1 information in an electronic format accessible by a computer. 2 d. A DNA profile that describes the dog’s unique genetic 3 identity when an analysis is performed comparing a DNA sample 4 with a record stored in a recognized database. 5 Sec. 3. Section 351.26, Code 2019, is amended to read as 6 follows: 7 351.26 Right and duty to kill untagged dog. 8 1. It shall be lawful for any person, and the duty of all 9 peace officers within their respective jurisdictions , unless 10 such jurisdiction shall have otherwise provided for the seizure 11 confiscation and impoundment of dogs, to kill any a dog for 12 which a rabies vaccination tag is required, when the dog is not 13 wearing a collar with rabies vaccination tag attached if any 14 of the following apply: 15 a. The dog is pursuing, threatening, attempting to injure, 16 or injuring an individual . 17 b. The dog is pursuing, injuring, or killing a domestic 18 animal or domestic fowl not owned by the owner of the dog. 19 2. This subsection does not apply to any of the following: 20 a. A police service dog while the police service dog is on 21 duty or performing an official function. 22 b. A dog taking an action to protect the property, life, or 23 safety of the dog’s owner or an immediate family member of the 24 owner. 25 c. A dog engaged in performing a task for which the dog 26 has been trained or is being trained, so long as the task is 27 otherwise lawful. 28 Sec. 4. Section 351.33, Code 2019, is amended to read as 29 follows: 30 351.33 Rabies vaccination prevention —— prohibition . 31 1. Every owner of a dog shall obtain a rabies vaccination 32 for such animal. It shall be unlawful for any A person 33 to shall not own or have possess a dog in the person’s 34 possession, six months of age or over older , which has not been 35 -2- LSB 2287YH (8) 88 da/rn 2/ 9

H.F. 474 vaccinated against unless the person obtains rabies vaccination 1 credentials for the dog pursuant to section 351.35 . Dogs 2 2. Subsection 1 does not apply to a dog kept in kennels and 3 a kennel if such dog is not allowed to run at large shall not be 4 subject to these vaccination requirements . 5 Sec. 5. Section 351.35, Code 2019, is amended to read as 6 follows: 7 351.35 How and when Rabies prevention —— requirements and 8 credentials . 9 1. The A rabies vaccination required by section 351.33 , 10 including an initial vaccination and any revaccination, shall 11 be an injection of antirabies vaccine approved by the state 12 department of agriculture and land stewardship, and the . The 13 frequency of administering a revaccination necessary for 14 approved vaccinations shall be as established by such the 15 department. The vaccine shall be administered by a licensed 16 veterinarian and shall be given as administered in a manner 17 approved by the state department of agriculture and land 18 stewardship . The Upon administering the vaccination, the 19 veterinarian shall issue a tag with the following rabies 20 prevention credentials to the dog’s owner: 21 a. A rabies vaccination certificate of vaccination, and 22 such . 23 b. A rabies vaccination tag . The tag shall at all times be 24 attached to the a collar of which shall be worn by the dog. 25 2. A veterinarian may determine that a dog does not require 26 a vaccination based on an evaluation of a report prepared 27 by a qualified laboratory that performed a rabies antibody 28 titer test using a sample of the dog’s blood serum. If the 29 veterinarian makes such determination, the veterinarian shall 30 issue the following rabies prevention credentials to the dog’s 31 owner: 32 a. A rabies antibody titer test certificate. 33 b. A rabies antibody titer test tag. The tag shall at all 34 times be attached to a collar which shall be worn by the dog. 35 -3- LSB 2287YH (8) 88 da/rn 3/ 9

H.F. 474 Sec. 6. Section 351.36, Code 2019, is amended to read as 1 follows: 2 351.36 Enforcement. 3 Local A local board of health and law enforcement officials 4 offical shall enforce the provisions of sections 351.33 , 5 351.35 , this section , and sections 351.37 through 351.43 6 relating to vaccination and impoundment of dogs a dog . Such 7 public officials The official shall not be responsible for any 8 accident or disease of a dog resulting from the enforcement of 9 the provisions any provision of said those sections. 10 Sec. 7. Section 351.37, Code 2019, is amended to read as 11 follows: 12 351.37 Dogs running at large —— impoundment —— disposition 13 confiscation, impoundment, and disposition . 14 1. A dog shall be apprehended confiscated and impounded 15 by a local board of health or law enforcement official if the 16 dog is running at large and the dog is not wearing a valid 17 rabies vaccination tag or a rabies vaccination certificate is 18 not presented to the local board of health or law enforcement 19 official the dog is not immediately identifiable as property of 20 an owner pursuant to section 351.25 . 21 2. a. The local board of health or law enforcement official 22 shall provide written notice to the dog’s owner if the local 23 board of health or law enforcement official can reasonably 24 determine the owner’s name and current address by accessing a 25 tag or other device that is on or a part of the dog . The notice 26 shall be sent to the dog’s owner within two days after the dog 27 has been impounded. The notice shall provide that if the owner 28 or the owner’s agent does not redeem the dog within seven days 29 from the date that the notice is delivered, the dog may be 30 humanely destroyed or otherwise disposed of in accordance with 31 law subject to disposition as provided in subsection 4 . 32 b. For purposes of this section paragraph “a” , a notice is 33 delivered when the local board of health or law enforcement 34 official mails the notice which may be by regular mail. 35 -4- LSB 2287YH (8) 88 da/rn 4/ 9

H.F. 474 3. a. An owner may redeem a an impounded dog by having it 1 immediately vaccinated and paying the cost of impoundment. 2 b. If an owner cannot furnish rabies prevention credentials, 3 the owner must immediately obtain such credentials to furnish 4 to the local board of health or law enforcement official. 5 3. 4. If the owner of the impounded dog fails to redeem 6 the dog within seven days from the date of the delivery of the 7 notice to the dog’s owner as provided in this section , the 8 dog may be disposed of in accordance with law. If the dog is 9 destroyed, it must be destroyed by euthanasia as defined in 10 section 162.2 is subject to disposition by any of the following 11 methods: 12 a. Transfer to another person, including by sale or adoption 13 to a person or by relinquishing the dog to an animal shelter 14 as provided in section 162.20 . All property rights held by 15 the person who owned the dog prior to impoundment shall be 16 extinguished. If the dog is not to be destroyed, the local 17 board of health or law enforcement official shall obtain a 18 rabies prevention credential for the dog as provided in section 19 351.35. However, in lieu of obtaining a rabies prevention 20 credential for the dog, the local board of health may require 21 a person to whom the dog is being transferred to obtain the 22 rabies prevention credential. 23 b. The humane destruction of the dog by euthanasia as 24 defined in section 162.2. 25 Sec. 8. Section 351.38, Code 2019, is amended to read as 26 follows: 27 351.38 Owner’s duty. 28 It shall be the duty of the owner of any dog, cat or other 29 animal which has bitten or attacked a person or any person 30 having knowledge of such bite or attack to report this act to a 31 local board of health or law enforcement official. It shall be 32 the duty of physicians and veterinarians to report to the local 33 board of health the existence of any animal known or suspected 34 to be suffering from rabies. 35 -5- LSB 2287YH (8) 88 da/rn 5/ 9

H.F. 474 Sec. 9. Section 351.39, Code 2019, is amended to read as 1 follows: 2 351.39 Confinement , confiscation, and impoundment . 3 1. If a local board of health receives information that 4 an animal has bitten a person or that a dog or an animal is 5 suspected of having rabies, the local board of health shall 6 order the animal’s owner to confine such animal in the manner 7 it directs. If the owner fails to confine such animal in the 8 manner directed, the animal shall be apprehended confiscated 9 and impounded by such the local board of health , and after 10 ten days the local board of health may humanely destroy the 11 animal by euthanasia as defined in section 162.2 only if it is 12 determined that the animal has been infected with the rabies 13 virus . The owner of a dog or the agency of the dog’s owner may 14 redeem the dog in the same manner provided in section 351.37, 15 if it is determined that the dog does not present a threat due 16 to a rabies virus infection. If such an animal is returned to 17 its owner, the owner shall pay the cost of impoundment. This 18 section 19 2. Subsection 1 shall not apply if to an animal, a police 20 service dog or a horse used by a law enforcement agency and , 21 if the animal is acting in the performance of its duties has 22 bitten a person . 23 Sec. 10. NEW SECTION . 351.45 Confiscation —— court order. 24 1. A local board of health or law enforcement official 25 shall not confiscate a dog under this chapter without obtaining 26 a court order. The court shall determine if a dog should be 27 impounded and placed in the custody of the local board of 28 health or law enforcement official. The dog’s disposition 29 shall be determined by court order after a hearing to determine 30 the dog’s ownership. The hearing may be held as part of a 31 dispositional proceeding conducted pursuant to section 717B.4. 32 2. If a dog is ordered to be impounded under subsection 1, 33 all of the following apply: 34 a. The dog shall not be placed in the custody of a private 35 -6- LSB 2287YH (8) 88 da/rn 6/ 9

H.F. 474 party. 1 b. The dog shall not be sterilized, including by the use of 2 any procedure described in section 162.20. 3 c. The dog shall be provided with a standard of care that 4 takes into account the breed, age, and health condition of the 5 dog. The dog must be provided with a standard of care that at 6 least meets the requirements of section 162.10A. 7 3. This section shall not apply to a dog that is not 8 property as provided in section 351.25. 9 Sec. 11. NEW SECTION . 351.46 Filing a false report —— 10 criminal penalty. 11 1. A person commits the offense of filing a false report 12 by providing incorrect or incomplete information to a local 13 board of health or law enforcement official, knowing that the 14 information is incorrect or incomplete and that the result 15 of providing such information will likely result in the 16 confiscation of a dog that is property under this chapter. 17 2. A person who commits the offense of filing a false 18 report is guilty of a simple misdemeanor. A person convicted 19 of the offense is subject to paying for costs associated with 20 impounding the dog. A county or city that has the duty to 21 prosecute the offense may recover costs of the prosecution from 22 a defendant who has been convicted of the offense. 23 Sec. 12. REPEAL. Section 351.27, Code 2019, is repealed. 24 EXPLANATION 25 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with 26 the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly. 27 GENERAL. This bill amends provisions in Code chapter 28 351 which provide for the prevention of rabies in dogs by a 29 licensed veterinarian (veterinarian) and the confiscation, 30 impoundment, and disposition of certain animals, including 31 dogs, by a local board of health or law enforcement official 32 (local authority) in part according to rules adopted by the 33 department of agriculture and land stewardship (department). 34 DOGS AS PROPERTY. The bill provides that a dog is considered 35 -7- LSB 2287YH (8) 88 da/rn 7/ 9

H.F. 474 property according to several forms of proof of ownership, 1 including a rabies prevention credential as described in the 2 bill, a tattoo on the dog’s skin, a device implanted under the 3 dog’s skin, or a DNA profile on record. Under current law, the 4 dog’s status as property is determined by its age and whether 5 it is wearing a collar attached with a rabies vaccination tag 6 (Code section 351.25). 7 RIGHT TO KILL DOG. The bill provides that a person may kill 8 a dog regardless of whether it is wearing a collar with an 9 attached rabies tag, if the dog is endangering an individual 10 or domestic animal or fowl. The provision does not apply to 11 a police service dog; a dog protecting the property, life, 12 or safety of the dog’s owner or immediate family; or the dog 13 is engaged in or being trained to be engaged in performing a 14 lawful task. Under current law, a person has a right to kill 15 a dog not wearing such collar (Code section 351.26); or a dog 16 wearing the collar if it is harassing a domestic animal or 17 fowl or attacking or attempting to bite a person (Code section 18 351.27). 19 RABIES PREVENTION. The bill requires the owner of a dog 20 to obtain evidence (credentials) that the dog is prevented 21 from contracting the rabies virus. This includes a rabies 22 vaccination certificate and rabies vaccination tag to be 23 worn on the dog’s collar. Otherwise, the credentials are a 24 rabies antibody titer test certificate and a rabies antibody 25 titer test tag that also must be worn on the dog’s collar. 26 Under current law, a dog that is over six months old must be 27 vaccinated and revaccinated according to rules adopted by the 28 department (Code sections 351.33 and 351.35). 29 CONFISCATION, IMPOUNDMENT, AND DISPOSITION. The bill 30 provides that a dog’s owner may redeem a dog confiscated and 31 impounded by a local authority if the owner furnishes rabies 32 prevention credentials. The local authority must arrange for 33 the disposition of an unredeemed dog by sale, transfer, or 34 relinquishment of title to an animal shelter. If an animal has 35 -8- LSB 2287YH (8) 88 da/rn 8/ 9

H.F. 474 been confiscated based on a suspected rabies infection, the 1 local authority must test the animal. An uninfected dog must 2 be returned its owner. Under current law, a local authority 3 must confiscate a dog and either return it to its owner or 4 humanely destroy it after 10 days (Code section 351.39). 5 COURT ORDER. The bill prohibits a local authority from 6 confiscating, impounding, or disposing of a dog that is 7 considered property without obtaining a court order. The dog 8 cannot be placed in the custody of a private person, cannot be 9 sterilized, and must be provided with an adequate standard of 10 care. 11 CRIMINAL OFFENSE —— FALSE REPORT. The bill creates a 12 new criminal offense referred to as “false report” which 13 is committed by a person providing incorrect or incomplete 14 information to a local board of health or law enforcement 15 official, knowing that the information will likely result in 16 the confiscation of a dog that is property. A person who 17 commits the offense is guilty of a simple misdemeanor. The 18 person may also be ordered to pay for costs associated with the 19 prosecution. 20 APPLICABLE CRIMINAL PENALTY. A person who is in violation 21 of a provision in the Code chapter is guilty of a simple 22 misdemeanor (Code section 351.43). A simple misdemeanor is 23 punishable by confinement for no more than 30 days or a fine of 24 at least $65 but not more than $625 or by both. 25 -9- LSB 2287YH (8) 88 da/rn 9/ 9