Legislative News: Wyoming Animal Abuse Statute Undergoes Reorganization
by Sylvia Bagdonas
After years of adding amendments to the Wyoming animal abuse statutes, creating a patchwork of laws with varying levels of applicability for various categories of animals, the Joint Interim Agriculture, State and Public Lands & Water Resources Committee is proposing a comprehensive reorganization of state animal abuse statutes in the upcoming 66th Wyoming Legislature. The goal is to consolidate statutes where feasible, review inconsistencies, clean up statute definitions and refine sections. The result of the committee’s work, Senate File 26, is titled Animal abuse statutes reorganization and update. You can view the bills that are filed for the 2021 Legislative session at https://wyoleg.gov/.
This is good news. For years, strengthening and clarifying Wyoming’s animal abuse statutes has been discussed by animal protection advocates and legislators.
Wyoming consistently ranks at the bottom tier of all 50 states when the states’ animal welfare laws are evaluated by national animal protection organizations.
For example, the Animal Legal Defense Fund’s most recent 2019 publication, 14th Annual U.S. State Animal Protection Laws Ranking Report, lists Wyoming as 46th in the nation. This ranking report “is the longest-running and most authoritative of its kind, assessing the strength of each state’s animal protection laws”. Appallingly, for 14 years Wyoming has ranked as one of the worst five states.
Interim meeting discussions about Wyoming animal abuse statutes reorganization efforts during 2020 have revealed a continuing confusion and concern about how to address household pets and companion animals versus livestock and wildlife. Often these are interchangeable concepts and not clearly defined categories for the wide variety of animals maintained by families and considered pets. Livestock and wildlife are sometimes living in the household. Companion animals are increasingly woven into the fabric of a family’s daily life. They provide social support, stability, protection and love and are considered quasi-family members.
Nationwide, and in Wyoming, the legal system has not kept pace with the emerging attitude changes about the status of pets in our lives. Obviously, Wyoming is way behind, ranking at the lowest level of all states. Is Wyoming ready to recognize and adapt to these cultural changes? Tune in to discussions about the animal abuse statutes when they are discussed in committee hearings and on the floor of the House and Senate. Provide input to your legislators regarding your concerns and suggestions for change. Although the bill sponsors are committed to focus on the overdue laws’ reorganization only, this reorganization effort may be a gateway to more positive animal abuse changes in the future.
