What's happening
This bill prohibits landlords from including clauses in leases that require tenants to declaw their animals.
Why it matters
Protects animal welfare by preventing landlords from coercing tenants into declawing pets. , a procedure widely viewed as painful and unnecessary except for medical reasons.
Clarifies what constitutes "declawing" and "non-therapeutic" procedures. , making the law more enforceable and ensuring landlords cannot evade it through technicalities or alternative language.
Applies broadly to all types of residential leases. (apartments, tenements, mobile home parks), meaning more tenants and their pets are protected across different living situations.
May help tenants who own pets avoid difficult choices. between housing and animal health, reducing the risk of forced surrender or abandonment of animals due to unreasonable lease requirements.
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Who cares
Headline styles
Stop Forced Pet Declawing
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
3 Co-sponsors
2 Multi-sponsors
History
- Ordered to third reading cal.172
- Advanced to third reading cal.295
- Reported
- Reported referred to codes
- Referred to judiciary
Full text
1 pageUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
4516
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
February 4, 2019
Introduced by M. of A. GLICK, COLTON, L. ROSENTHAL, BUCHWALD -- Multi- Sponsored by -- M. of A. GOTTFRIED, PERRY -- read once and referred to the Committee on Judiciary
AN ACT to amend the real property law, in relation to prohibiting clauses in leases requiring the declawing of animals
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. The real property law is amended by adding a new section 235-h to read as follows:
§ 235-h. Lease provisions related to declawing animals; prohibited. 1. Any person, firm or corporation owning or having in charge any apartment house, tenement house or other building or mobile home park used for dwelling purposes who shall, in any lease of any or part of any such building or mobile home park, have a clause therein requiring as a restriction to occupancy the declawing of any animal, shall be guilty of a violation.
2. For purposes of this section:
(a) "declawing" means performing, procuring, or arranging for any non-therapeutic surgical procedure, such as onychectomy, tendonectomy, or phalangectomy, to remove or to prevent the normal function of an animal's claw or claws; and
(b) "non-therapeutic" means a surgical procedure that is performed without there being a medical necessity to address the medical condition of an animal, such as an existing or recurring illness, infection, disease, injury, or abnormal condition that compromises the animal's health.
§ 2. This act shall take effect on the sixtieth day after it shall have become a law and shall apply to all leases entered into on or after such date.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD05035-01-9
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.