Statewide Animal Protection Measures Move Forward

BEAGLE BILL, POACHING BILL, AND MORE

A black bear climbing a tree

While the halls were still quiet at the beginning of the legislative session due to COVID-19, there was a flurry as formal sessions ended in July.

Governor Charlie Baker recently signed the “Beagle Bill,” which facilitates the adoption of dogs and cats no longer needed for research purposes at research institutions or product testing facilities, in partnership with a shelter or rescue, or via private placement. (For more information on the Beagle Bill, please click here.) Gov. Baker also signed the “Poaching Bill,” which authorizes Massachusetts to enter the Interstate Wildlife Violator Compact, which already benefits every other state in the country and allows reciprocal recognition of hunting license losses for convicted wildlife poachers. It also modernizes specific penalties for illegal hunting.

Another last-minute victory included a ban on betting on greyhound races that are simulcast in Massachusetts but run elsewhere. For those who remember the 2008 ballot question that banned dog racing, this is the final step needed for full compliance with that measure.

In addition, a law was passed to study the feasibility of establishing and maintaining wildlife crossings (tunnels or bridges that allow wildlife to cross human barriers, such as highways). “Nero’s Bill” also passed earlier this year, making sure police dogs can be transported to receive needed care when injured in the line of duty.

In each year of the two-year legislative session, the MSPCA-Angell has advocated for more than $100,000 from the state budget for the Massachusetts Animal Fund to spay/neuter/ vaccinate homeless animals and those living with families who cannot afford these health services.

In the first year of the session, the Massachusetts legislature passed essential updates to the 2016 farm animal confinement ballot question to require further enrichments that allow veal calves and gestating pigs enough space to turn around and spread their limbs, and gives hens the ability to engage in vital natural behaviors such as perching, scratching, dust bathing, and laying eggs in a nest. The legislation also added liquid eggs (commonly used by restaurants and food services) to the law, making this improved confinement law impact millions more hens.

More bills may pass between now and December 2022 when the bills are not deemed controversial, and we hope legislation addressing rodenticide’s dangers will advance. House Bill 4931, which has already passed the Senate, would require public institutions of higher education to adopt Integrated Pest Management Strategies, which use multiple methods to prevent and address rodent problems (for example, sealing building holes and cracks and removing nesting materials from problem areas to discourage rodents). This bill also requires the digitization of pesticide use forms for better monitoring.

Some bills won’t make it to the finish line, and we will revisit those in 2023. Thank you to the many legislators, advocates, and organizations we partnered with to move this legislative session’s statewide animal protection measures forward.

For more information, visit mspca.org/advocacy.

Charlie Baker sitting at a desk surronded by people with the bill in front of him
Governor Charlie Baker hands the MSPCA’s Liz Magner a pen from the ceremonial signing of the “Poaching Bill.”