Clock ticks for kennel law

HARRISBURG - After nearly two years of wrangling, the stage is set for an end-of-session showdown in the state House this week over Gov. Rendell's sweeping proposal to improve conditions for thousands of dogs in Pennsylvania's commercial kennels.

Few issues in recent years have provoked as much debate in the Capitol and public reaction as Rendell's effort to curb "puppy mills," large kennels that, critics contend, churn out hundreds of puppies a year while packing the breeding dogs in cramped, filthy cages.

With only nine voting days left this fall, supporters are making a final push, capped by a rally Tuesday, to send House Bill 2525 through both chambers before they'd have to start again when a new session begins in January.

"What divides us are those who sincerely believe that dogs are equivalent to livestock and those who see it differently: that dogs are man's best friend," said Rep. Mike Hanna (D., Centre), who helped shepherd the bill through the House Agriculture and Rural Affairs Committee in the spring.

The bill, which would double cage sizes, mandate outdoor exercise, and require annual veterinary exams at kennels that sell 60 or more dogs a year, is slated for a vote in the House Appropriations Committee as early as tomorrow. The committee chairman, Rep. Dwight Evans (D., Phila.), said that the bill was a top priority and that he was committed to getting it through as quickly as possible.

Despite 92 cosponsors, it is not clear whether the bill - stalled in July by scores of amendments filed by Republicans who oppose the changes - will reach the House floor. Democratic leaders say they are loath to bring up a bill that will require debating more than 100 amendments.

"Some really ridiculous amendments were filed to keep the bill from moving, and it worked," Hanna said. "If we can get serious and bring the amendments down to between 12 and 18, we can do this."

Rep. Art Hershey (R., Chester), the ranking Republican on the agriculture committee, said his staff was working with Democratic leadership and the Pennsylvania Veterinary Medical Association to reduce the amendments.

"The administration didn't consult with the PVMA in writing this bill, so it has some problems," Hershey said. "We're trying to get a better, more practical bill.

"When you mix animal welfare with animal rights, you have a debate that you're never going to settle."

Rendell's initial regulatory proposal, released in early 2007, generated a record 16,000 comments - 14,000 supportive. Soon national interest groups representing sportsmen, breeders and animal-welfare advocates launched vigorous lobbying campaigns.

The issue has divided Chester County's fox-hunting circles between members who fear their sport will suffer under tighter regulations and those involved in animal rescue. It pitted the powerful Pennsylvania Farm Bureau against the Department of Agriculture and opened a rift in the veterinary medical community.

A hearing on the final bill in the spring drew a standing-room-only crowd and prompted a marathon debate in the typically conflict-free agriculture committee. The issue attracted national media attention, most notably from TV mogul Oprah Winfrey, who already has devoted two shows to the plight of Pennsylvania's puppy mills and plans to air an update next week.

This month, commercial breeders - most of them Amish and Mennonite farmers in Lancaster County - struck back with a federal lawsuit against the state Department of Agriculture, contending dog wardens were unfairly targeting them.

A department spokesman defended the enforcement procedures, saying Lancaster County has the highest concentration of kennels - 11 percent of all kennels in the state - and the highest concentration of commercial kennels.

After some concessions last spring, including the dropping of certain collar-tag requirements for individual dogs in field and show events, sportsmen dropped their opposition to the bill. Still opposed are the Pennsylvania Professional Dog Breeders Association, which says it represents 300 of the 650 large breeders who would be affected; the Pennsylvania Farm Bureau; and the Pennsylvania Veterinary Medical Association.

The farm bureau and the breeders contend the bill will place onerous requirements on kennel operators and require costly retrofits of kennels. The PVMA, which says it represents 1,900 veterinarians, opposes requiring outdoor exercise and solid flooring, saying impermeable floors and dirt runs promote unsanitary conditions.

Supporters in the House are confident that most members will vote to make Pennsylvania a more humane place for dogs.

"The bill will end the abuse, neglect and cruelty that has been allowed to go on for too long in this state," said Rep. Bryan Lentz (D., Delaware).

But the bill must clear the Senate before being sent to Rendell's desk, and how much support it has in that chamber is unclear. Sen. Mike Brubaker (R., Lancaster), chairman of the Senate Agriculture and Rural Affairs Committee, has vowed to raise the bar for commercial kennels and said he would consider the bill when it got to his committee.