What's happening
This bill requires the New York commissioner of agriculture and markets to develop standards and guidance for therapy dogs and their handlers.
Why it matters
Establishes state-level consistency. by requiring official standards and guidance for therapy dogs, which can help ensure that therapy animals and their handlers meet clear and uniform expectations across New York.
Addresses safety and quality. by mandating guidance on assessment, training, and risk management, potentially reducing incidents or misuse of therapy dogs in sensitive settings like schools, hospitals, and care facilities.
Improves animal welfare. by including animal welfare and best practices in the standards, which may help protect therapy dogs from neglect, overwork, or improper treatment.
Facilitates local implementation. by making guidance available online and to municipalities, supporting local governments that issue special therapy dog tags and improving public understanding of what constitutes a legitimate therapy dog team.
Albany, before your first meeting.
Every bill that moved yesterday, summarized in a sentence and ranked by impact. The Albany Scorecard follows on Sundays.
Free. Unsubscribe in one click. Want alerts on specific bills? Create an account.
Who cares
Department of Agriculture and Markets
The bill would authorize the commissioner to work with relevant state agencies and stakeholders to identify and, as needed, develop therapy-dog guidance and make it available on the department’s website.
Therapy-dog handlers
The guidance would address assessment and training, risk management, animal welfare and best practices for dogs and handlers.
Facilities using therapy dogs
The guidance would cover facilities using these dogs, including risk management and best practices.
Municipalities issuing special therapy-dog tags
The department would provide them with the guidance.
Headline styles
Set Therapy Dog Standards
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
History
- Signed chap.574
- Delivered to governor
- Returned to senate
- Passed assembly
- Ordered to third reading rules cal.278
- Substituted for A6601
- Referred to ways and means
- Delivered to assembly
- Passed senateVote 62–0
- Ordered to third reading cal.1014
- Committee discharged and committed to rules
- Reported and committed to finance
Show 1 earlier action
- Referred to domestic animal welfare
Companion bill
The same bill in the other chamber. A bill becomes law when one version passes both houses and the governor signs it, so either number can carry it.
Set Standards for Therapy Dogs
Assembly Floor Calendar · Sponsor Donna Lupardo
Full text
1 pageUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
4802
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
March 26, 2019
Introduced by Sen. MARTINEZ -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Domestic Animal Welfare
AN ACT to amend the agriculture and markets law, in relation to requiring the commissioner of agriculture and markets to identify and develop standards for therapy dogs
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Section 124 of the agriculture and markets law, as amended by section 22 of part T of chapter 59 of the laws of 2010, is amended to read as follows:
§ 124. Powers of commissioner. The commissioner is hereby authorized to:
1. (a) promulgate, after public hearing, such rules and regulations as are necessary to supplement and give full effect to the provisions of sections one hundred thirteen, one hundred fourteen and one hundred seventeen of this article; and
(b) exercise all other powers and functions as are necessary to carry out the duties and purposes set forth in sections one hundred thirteen, one hundred fourteen and one hundred seventeen of this article.
2. in cooperation with other relevant state agencies and stakeholders identify, and develop as necessary, guidance for therapy dogs, their handlers and facilities using such dogs, including, but not limited to, assessment and training, risk management, animal welfare, and best practices for such dogs and their dog-handlers. Such guidance shall be made available on the department's website and provided to municipalities that issue special tags for therapy dogs pursuant to section one hundred eleven of this article.
§ 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD10601-01-9
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the agriculture and markets law, in relation to requiring the commissioner of agriculture and markets to identify and develop standards for therapy dogs
Purpose or general idea of bill
This bill would lead to state guidance on best practices for therapy dogs, for handlers of the dogs, the institutions where the dogs are brought, and the public.
Summary of provisions
Section 1: The Commissioner of Agriculture and Markets, with other rele- vant agencies and stakeholders, is authorized to identify, and if neces- sary develop guidance for therapy dogs, their handlers and institutions using such dogs on assessment and training, risk management, animal welfare and best practices. The guidance would be available on the Department's website and provided to municipalities that issue special therapy dog tags.
Section 2: Establishes the effective date.
Justification
Therapy dogs are used to help children, seniors, college students and residents of institutions such as nursing homes or mental health facili- ties. These dogs have been shown to have a positive emotional effect on those they are brought to visit, but there has been some public confusion about the role of therapy dogs. Chapter 37 of the Laws of 2018 required a working group to examine issues related to these dogs, espe- cially the need for education, training, identifying what they do, and clarifying the differences from service dogs and emotional support animals. The working group consisting of multiple state agencies, repre- sentatives of disability rights groups and animal protective advocates came up with recommendations for standards to protect the animals, provide training and/or certification for animals and considerations for facilities using therapy dogs.
The report of the working group, issued in October, 2018, is a useful tool to develop guidance that the State should make available, so that the public knows what a therapy dog is and how they should be trained and used, especially when local governments issue official tags desig- nating therapy dogs.
Prior legislative history
This is a new bill.
Fiscal implications for state and local governments
There are no fiscal implications to the State or local governments.
Effective date
This bill shall take effect immediately.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.