HOUSE BILL No. 4860

 

May 29, 2007, Introduced by Rep. Condino and referred to the Committee on Appropriations.

 

     A bill to amend 1969 PA 287, entitled

 

"An act to regulate pet shops, animal control shelters, and animal

protection shelters; to establish uniform procedures and minimum

requirements for adoption of dogs, cats, and ferrets; and to

prescribe penalties and civil fines and to provide remedies,"

 

by amending the title and sections 4 and 9b (MCL 287.334 and

 

287.339b), the title as amended and section 9b as added by 1997 PA

 

7 and section 4 as amended by 2004 PA 280.

 

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:

 

TITLE

 

     An act to regulate pet shops, animal control shelters, and

 

animal protection shelters; to prescribe certain powers and duties

 

for certain state departments; to establish uniform procedures and

 

minimum requirements for adoption of dogs, cats, and ferrets; to

 


create certain restricted funds for certain department activities

 

and to allow allocation of those funds throughout certain

 

departments; and to prescribe penalties and civil fines and to

 

provide remedies.

 

     Sec. 4. (1) Applications for pet shop licenses shall be on a

 

form as provided or made available by the director. Beginning

 

October 1, 2003 through September 30, 2007, the The director shall

 

issue pet shop licenses for a term of 1 year beginning January 1 of

 

each year. Until October 1, 2003 or after September 30, 2007, the

 

director shall issue a pet shop license upon application and

 

payment of a license fee of $150.00.

 

     (2) Beginning October 1, 2003 through September 30, 2007, the

 

The department shall charge a fee of $200.00 for an initial

 

application for a pet shop license and a fee of $100.00 for renewal

 

of a pet shop license.

 

     (3) The following apply only to licenses issued beginning

 

October 1, 2003 through September 30, 2007:

 

     (a) A license issued before July 23, 2003 expires on December

 

31, 2003, except that a license issued in the 2003 calendar year

 

expires on December 31, 2004.

 

     (b) Beginning January 1, 2004 and except as otherwise provided

 

for in this section, a A pet shop license is renewable by

 

submission of a completed renewal application provided or made

 

available by the department and payment of the renewal fee

 

described in subsection (2).

 

     (4) The agriculture licensing and inspection fees fund is

 

created within the state treasury. The state treasurer may receive

 


license and inspection fees and administrative fines received

 

pursuant to this or other acts, as provided for by law, that are

 

administered by the department. The fund may receive money or other

 

assets from any source for deposit into the fund. The state

 

treasurer shall direct the investment of the fund and shall credit

 

to the fund interest earnings from fund investments. Money in the

 

fund at the close of the fiscal year shall remain in the fund and

 

shall not lapse to the general fund. The department shall expend

 

money from the fund, upon appropriation, for the purpose of

 

administering and carrying out those duties required by law under

 

this act and 1937 PA 284, MCL 287.121 to 287.131; 1974 PA 93, MCL

 

287.111 to 287.119; the insect and plant disease act, 1931 PA 189,

 

MCL 286.201 to 286.228; and part 83 of the natural resources and

 

environmental protection act, 1994 PA 451, MCL 324.8301 to

 

324.8336.

 

     (5) Every 3 years, the department may adjust the fee schedule

 

in subsection (2) by an amount determined by the state treasurer to

 

reflect the cumulative annual percentage change in the Detroit

 

consumer price index over the 3-year period. An adjustment under

 

this subsection shall not exceed 5% even if the amount determined

 

by the state treasurer to reflect the cumulative annual percentage

 

change over the 3-year period is more than 5%. A fee adjusted under

 

this subsection shall be rounded to the nearest $5.00. As used in

 

this subsection, "Detroit consumer price index" means the most

 

comprehensive index of consumer prices available for the Detroit

 

area from the bureau of labor statistics of the United States

 

department of labor.

 


     (6) (4) Beginning the effective date of the amendatory act

 

that added this subsection July 23, 2004, the department shall

 

issue an initial or renewal pet shop license not later than 90 days

 

after the applicant files a completed application. Receipt of the

 

application is considered the date the application is received by

 

any agency or department of the state of Michigan. If the

 

application is considered incomplete by the department, the

 

department shall notify the applicant in writing, or make the

 

information electronically available, within 30 days after receipt

 

of the incomplete application, describing the deficiency and

 

requesting the additional information. The 90-day period is tolled

 

upon notification by the department of a deficiency until the date

 

the requested information is received by the department. The

 

determination of the completeness of an application does not

 

operate as an approval of the application for the license and does

 

not confer eligibility of an applicant determined otherwise

 

ineligible for issuance of a license.

 

     (7) (5) If the department fails to issue or deny a license

 

within the time required by this section, the department shall

 

return the license fee and shall reduce the license fee for the

 

applicant's next renewal application, if any, by 15%. The failure

 

to issue a license within the time required under this subsection

 

does not allow the department to otherwise delay the processing of

 

the application, and that application, upon completion, shall be

 

placed in sequence with other completed applications received at

 

that same time. The department shall not discriminate against an

 

applicant in the processing of the application based upon the fact

 


that the license fee was refunded or discounted under this

 

subsection.

 

     (8) (6) Beginning October 1, 2005, the director of the

 

department shall submit a report by December 1 of each year to the

 

standing committees and appropriations subcommittees of the senate

 

and house of representatives concerned with agriculture issues. The

 

director shall include all of the following information in the

 

report concerning the preceding fiscal year:

 

     (a) The number of initial and renewal applications the

 

department received and completed within the 90-day time period

 

described in subsection (4) (6).

 

     (b) The number of applications denied.

 

     (c) The number of applicants not issued a license within the

 

90-day time period and the amount of money returned to licensees

 

and registrants under subsection (5) (7).

 

     (9) (7) As used in this section, "completed application" means

 

an application complete on its face and submitted with any

 

applicable licensing fees as well as any other information,

 

records, approval, security, or similar item required by law or

 

rule from a local unit of government, a federal agency, or a

 

private entity but not from another department or agency of the

 

state of Michigan. In the case of an initial application, completed

 

application includes the completion of construction or renovation

 

of any facility and the passing of a satisfactory inspection.

 

     Sec. 9b. (1) If a person violates this act or a rule

 

promulgated under this act, the director, after notice and an

 

opportunity for an evidentiary hearing under the administrative

 


procedures act of 1969, 1969 PA 306, MCL 24.201 to 24.328, may do

 

either or both of the following:

 

     (a) Suspend or revoke a license or registration issued to the

 

person under this act.

 

     (b) Impose an administrative fine of not more than $1,000.00

 

for each violation. The director shall advise the attorney general

 

of the failure of a person to pay an administrative fine under this

 

section. The attorney general shall bring a civil action to recover

 

the administrative fine and costs and fees. The administrative fine

 

shall be deposited in the general fund of the state treasury

 

agriculture licensing and inspection fees fund created in section

 

4.

 

     (2) In addition to any other action authorized by this act,

 

the director may bring an action to do 1 or more of the following:

 

     (a) Obtain a declaratory judgment that a method, act, or

 

practice is in violation of this act.

 

     (b) Obtain an injunction against a person who is engaging, or

 

about to engage, in a method, act, or practice that violates this

 

act.

 

     (3) If a person fails to comply with a contract for the

 

alteration of a dog, cat, or ferret as required under section 8a, a

 

court with appropriate jurisdiction may order transfer of ownership

 

of the adopted animal only to 1 of the following:

 

     (a) The facility from which the animal was adopted.

 

     (b) A veterinarian, animal control shelter, or animal

 

protection shelter willing to accept the animal and either humanely

 

euthanize the animal or adopt the animal to an owner who agrees to

 


have the animal altered.