Bill > AB1482

This bill, known as Bowie's Law, introduces several key provisions aimed at improving animal shelter and breeding practices in California. It requires animal shelters to publicly list available animals for adoption on their websites, with some exceptions for animals with severe medical conditions or dangerous behavior. The bill also mandates that the Department of Food and Agriculture conduct a comprehensive study on animal shelter overcrowding by January 1, 2028, exploring potential solutions and the feasibility of creating a statewide database for dogs and cats. Additionally, the bill modifies the definition of a dog breeder to include those who sell or transfer two or more litters or ten or more dogs within 12 months, and imposes new requirements on breeders. These new requirements include microchipping puppies before eight weeks of age, registering new ownership with the microchip company, providing detailed ownership transfer information, and ensuring that dogs are immunized and receive a health check from a California-licensed veterinarian before being sold or transferred. The bill also allows cities and counties to maintain more restrictive breed-specific ordinances and includes provisions for state reimbursement if the bill imposes additional mandated costs on local agencies.

Budget and Finance, Business and Industry

https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billStatusClient.xhtml?bill_id=202520260AB1482