The California Animal Protection Enforcement Act (California)
AB 554
California bill would clarify the authority of SPCAs to use civil enforcement to prevent the violation of state animal protection laws
Status
All too often, when animals are suffering due to unlawful treatment, government authorities do not act. This may be due to inadequate staffing or resources, inexperience with animal cruelty cases, or a failure to prioritize animal cases.
When the government is unable to protect animals, it’s up to animal advocates and animal protection organizations to step in. Current California law makes a special provision for this, but the law needs clarification. A new state bill would do just that.
The bill, The California Animal Protection Enforcement Act (AB 554), would modernize the language of existing state law, clarifying the process of protecting California animals using civil enforcement.
The current law grants standing to specially incorporated societies for the prevention of cruelty to animals (SPCAs) to enforce state animal protection laws.
The new bill, AB 554, would make a critical improvement to the law to ensure that SPCAs are better positioned to enforce the law and protect animals in need. California is a national leader in passing humane reforms — placing in the top tier of the Animal Legal Defense Fund’s annual ranking of all U.S. states on the strength of their animal protection laws — but laws mean little without enforcement.
Why is This Bill Important?
A version of the existing California law dates back to 1905, so it’s understandable that it could use modernized language more than a century later. The new bill would provide legislative clarity by explicitly stating that SPCAs “may bring a civil action for specific or injunctive relief, including to enjoin possession, to enforce a penal law or any other law relating to or affecting animals that would be a basis for complaint under subdivision (a).”
While the existing law is intended to prevent cruelty to animals and specifically grants standing to SPCAs, defendants will exploit issues with the law to have cases dismissed on procedural technicalities and avoid accountability. This wastes resources, ties up animal protection cases in court while animals may continue to suffer, and it has the potential to allow cases of animal cruelty to persist.
These problems can be averted by clarifying the law and the specific civil remedies that SPCAs may pursue under it to prevent future cruelty. Several states have similar laws authorizing SPCAs or concerned citizens to obtain injunctions to prevent the violation of animal protection laws. These laws are critical to ensure enforcement of animal protection laws.
The bipartisan AB 554 was introduced by Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel (D-45), co-authored by Assemblymembers Bill Essayli (R-63) and Ash Kalra (D-25), and sponsored by the Animal Legal Defense Fund. It unanimously passed a key vote in the California State Assembly Committee on Judiciary in March 2023 and will continue through the Legislative process this session.
To learn more about animal-friendly legislation in California and find opportunities to take action, visit aldf.org/california.
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