Animal research.

Existing law prohibits the keeping or use of animals for diagnostic purposes, education, or research without approval by the State Department of Public Health. Existing law authorizes the department to prescribe rules under which persons who wish to keep or use animals for those purposes may obtain approval from the department, and to promulgate regulations governing the use of animals for those purposes. Existing law exempts certain persons from those requirements, including persons who use or keep animals for animal training and animal cosmetics, among other things. A person who violates these provisions is guilty of a misdemeanor. This bill would define "animal" for purposes of these provisions as any live vertebrate nonhuman animal used for diagnostic purposes, education, or research, as specified. The bill would require persons who keep or use animals for those purposes, including persons who are exempt from department approval, to submit specified information to the department annually, including the number of animals kept during the previous year in various pain and distress categories and the purposes for which animals were used. The bill would require the department to publish that information in electronic form via the department's internet website, as specified. By expanding the scope of a crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated program. 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.