Bill > S2423

This bill, also known as "Nero's Law", aims to allow for the humane transportation of police dogs (K9 partners) by ambulance services. The key provisions include: 1. Defining "police dog" as a specially trained dog used by law enforcement agencies for official duties, such as search and rescue, service, or accelerant detection. 2. Requiring ambulance services to authorize their Emergency Medical Services (EMS) personnel to provide emergency treatment and transport injured police dogs to veterinary facilities, provided there are no humans requiring emergency care at the time. 3. Establishing guidelines for ambulance services, including training EMS personnel in providing basic first aid and life-saving interventions for police dogs, developing safe handling procedures, identifying local veterinary facilities for emergency treatment, and properly decontaminating and sanitizing the ambulance after transporting a police dog. 4. Providing legal protections for EMS personnel who, in good faith, render emergency aid or transport an injured police dog to a veterinary facility. The bill aims to ensure the humane treatment and transportation of police dogs, who are valuable partners in law enforcement operations, while also prioritizing the care of human patients.

Budget and Finance

Joint Committee on Public Safety and Homeland Security (J)

https://malegislature.gov/Bills/191/S2423