A bill that was introduced in the Georgia state legislature would prohibit breed discriminatory laws on the state level.
SB 184 is a relatively simple bill. It would amend the current dangerous dog law to include the following language:
“Notwithstanding the provisions of Code Section 4-8-1, no county, municipality, or local 12 authority shall adopt any ordinance or resolution for the regulation of domestic dogs that 13 classifies based on breed.”
Most importantly, the bill expressly includes language that would repeal all existing breed discriminatory laws.
Last week, SB 184 cleared the Senate and moved on to the House. The vote of 42-11 was a decisive victory for the bill. SB 184 has been assigned to the House Government Affairs committee.
There is a companion bill in the House, HB 124. This bill is identical in its language to SB 184. This bill has cleared the second reading and is moving to the Senate side. The fact that these bills have cleared the sides of the legislature that they started on is a very good sign. There is support for the end of breed discriminatory laws on both sides.
The passage of these bills would be a huge step. We do not see a lot of southern states taking on the issue of breed discriminatory laws and BDL seems to be more common in the south than in the north and west percentage wise. Not only would this bill protect the rights of residents, it would also have a huge impact on the surrounding states and open the door to consideration of similar bills in the surrounding area.
GEORGIA RESIDENTS: It is imperative that you continue to reach out to express support for this bill. Take the time to write your Representative a note of support for SB 184. A list of members of the House can be found here: http://www.house.ga.gov/Representatives/en-US/HouseMembersList.aspx
You can find your specific Representative here: http://openstates.org/find_your_legislator/
The contact information for the House Government affairs committee is as follows:
Rep. Ed Rynders, Chair: ed.rynders@house.ga.gov
Rep. Buzz Brockway,: buzz.brockway@house.ga.gov
Rep. Tyrone Brooks: tyrone.brooks@house.ga.gov
Rep. Barry Fleming: barry.fleming@house.ga.gov
Rep. Hugh Floyd: hugh.floyd@house.ga.gov
Rep. Mark Hamilton: mark.hamilton@house.ga.gov
Rep. Dustin Hightower: dustin.hightower@house.ga.gov
Rep. Rusty Kidd: rusty.kidd@house.ga.gov
Rep. Eddie Lumsden: eddie.lumsden@house.ga.gov
Rep. John Meadows: john.meadows@house.ga.gov
Rep. Howard Mosby: howard.mosby@house.ga.gov
Rep. Mary Margaret Oliver: mary.oliver@house.ga.gov
Rep. Larry O’Neal: larry.oneal@house.ga.gov
Rep. Alan Powell: alan.powell@house.ga.gov
Rep. Jay Powell: jay.powell@house.ga.gov
Rep. Tom Taylor: tom.taylor@house.ga.gov
Rep. Darlene K. Taylor: darlene.taylor@house.ga.gov
Rep. Bruce Williamson: bruce.williamson@house.ga.gov
Filed under: Georgia, State Specific
