Animal Cruelty Bill Passed in Senate, House

Friday, Jan 30, 2009
Animal Cruelty Bill Passed in Senate, House
January 30, 2009LITTLE ROCK - The legislature approved a bill that makes aggravated animal cruelty a first offense a felony for torturing dogs, cats and horses.The governor has indicated he would sign the measure, Senate Bill 77. Aggravated animal cruelty is specifically defined as torture, maiming, mutilating, burning and poisoning a dog, cat or horse. Abandoning an animal, or keeping one penned up without sufficient water and food, would not be aggravated animal cruelty and would be a misdemeanor. SB 77 exempts farming and ranching, hunting, veterinary practices and euthanasia. A judge could order psychiatric evaluations and treatment of offenders convicted under the act. It enhances penalties for animal cruelty in the presence of a child under 16.The sponsors of SB 77 have been working on the bill for years to alleviate the concerns of farmers, ranchers and those who train and ride horses in parades and rodeos. One concession made by the sponsors was to clarify that only certified law enforcement officers could make arrests under the act.The attorney general and his office put in long hours drafting changes and fostering negotiations between interested parties. Three bills to strengthen penalties for domestic abuse have been approved by the House. House Bill 1040 creates a new crime, strangulation, that would be a felony. Victims of domestic violence are often choked, but evidence of it can take hours or even days to appear so it is often treated as a misdemeanor.HB 1039 increases the penalties for abuse of people 60 and older or children 12 and younger. HB 1038 makes it a felony to violate a protective order twice within a span of five years. Violating protective orders is a misdemeanor now. Some victims of abuse are continuously harassed or threatened by ex-boyfriends or former spouses who are not deterred by current penalties.A fourth bill, HB 1058, would remove the statute of limitations for rape, kidnapping and first degree sexual assault. HB 1058 is still in a House committee. The other three bills in the domestic abuse package are in Senate Judiciary Committee.The state's projected budget and revenue picture begin to take shape last week, when legislation was filed to raise tobacco taxes to pay for a health care initiative. HB 1204 would raise cigarette taxes by 56 cents a pack and raise the tax on smokeless tobacco products as well. The bill would generate $88 million a year in new revenue, which would pay for a statewide trauma system and a wide variety of health care programs.HB 1238 would also finance a trauma system, but without relying on higher tobacco taxes. It would raise money for a trauma system with fines against people convicted of violent crimes and drug dealing, fines for drunken and hazardous driving, a portion of insurance premium taxes.The governor proposed using $60 million in surplus funds to cover gaps in next year's operating budget. It would be a departure from standard practice to budget one-time surplus money to pay for recurring expenses in education, Medicaid and prisons. However, if the economy recovers within a year or two then vital services can be maintained with money from what is being called a "rainy day fund."