Dog licensing: issuance: puppy licenses.

Existing law authorizes counties and cities to issue dog licenses and dog license tags for a fee, as specified. Existing law also prohibits a public animal control agency, animal or humane shelter, or a rescue group, as defined, from selling or giving away to a new owner any dog that has not been spayed or neutered, except as specified. A violation of provisions governing the regulation and licensing of dogs is an infraction or a misdemeanor, except as specified. This bill, until January 1, 2018, and only in the Counties of Los Angeles, Orange, Sacramento, San Diego, and Santa Clara, would additionally require each pet dealer, as defined, humane society, rescue group, society for the prevention of cruelty to animals, or other specified entity to submit once a month, except as specified, a report to the local governmental entity that is responsible for licensing dogs in the city or county in which the pet dealer, humane society, rescue group, society for the prevention of cruelty to animals, or other specified entity is located. The bill would require the report to contain the name, address, and telephone number of the person who receives a dog, and other information regarding the dog that was adopted or sold in the previous month, as specified, by the entity submitting the report. The bill would require the entity that submits the report to retain a copy of the report for 12 months. The bill would prohibit the use, distribution, or release of the information contained in the report for any purpose except to ensure compliance with existing state and local law for the purposes of (1) providing notice to the person adopting or purchasing the dog regarding laws requiring the person to obtain a license for the dog and (2) providing notice to another local governmental entity responsible for licensing dogs in the jurisdiction in which the person resides that the person has adopted or purchased a dog, if the person does not reside in the jurisdiction of the local governmental entity that is providing the notice. The bill would exclude a rescue group that places fewer than 20 dogs in a calendar year from these reporting requirements. A violation of these provisions would be punishable by a civil fine of $50 for the first offense and $100 for each subsequent offense. The bill would exempt an act in violation of the above-described provisions from the provision which makes the violation a crime. The bill would authorize other counties not described above to enact local ordinances implementing a program consistent with these provisions. This bill would authorize a licensing agency to issue a puppy license to the owner of a puppy that is 6 months of age or less, which would expire when the puppy reaches one year of age, except as specified. The bill would require the owner of a puppy to obtain a dog license tag upon the expiration of the puppy license. Because a violation of this provision would be an infraction, the bill would create a new crime, thereby imposing a state-mandated local program. The bill would also make conforming changes. Existing law authorizes a dog license tag to be issued for 12 or less of the usual fee required for a dog if a certificate indicating that the dog has been spayed or neutered is presented from a licensed veterinarian. This bill would authorize the city, county, or city and county to specify the means by which the dog owner may provide proof that the dog has been spayed or neutered. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.