NEWS RELEASE
Rep. Mike Freiberg
Minnesota House of Representatives
District 43B – 651-296-4176 – rep.mike.freiberg@house.mn.gov
381 State Office Building, St. Paul, MN 55155
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Marlee Schlegel
651-296-9873 or marlee.schlegel@house.mn.gov
March 6, 2023
Rep. Mike Freiberg Introduces the Dog and Cat Data Transparency Bill
Saint Paul, Minn. – Today, Rep. Mike Freiberg (DFL – Golden Valley) was joined by Senator Bonnie S. Westlin (DFL -- Plymouth) and the Animal Humane Society for a press conference on the Dog and Cat Data Transparency Bill. The bill, authored by Representative Freiberg and Senator Westlin, would let consumers verify breeder and shelter claims about the number of animals, animal health, and facility conditions before making a significant financial and emotional investment in a new pet. This legislation would make data on findings about large-scale commercial cat and dog breeders public and would require state inspection data for licensed dog and cat breeders to be posted online.
“Minnesotans deserve to know the truth about where their new member of the family is coming from,” said Rep. Freiberg. “This bill will help families and pet-parents-to-be verify things like the number of animals, the health of the animals, and facility conditions before they put down a large deposit on a puppy or kitten they haven’t met yet. By increasing transparency, facilities following proper procedures will be unaffected, while bad actors will be held accountable.”
Minnesota consumers can easily find important information on most other licensed professionals and businesses, including nonprofit animal shelters, because the state classifies the data as public information. The Dog and Cat Transparency Bill will ensure licensed breeders are held to the same data transparency standards.
“Minnesotans want to have the best information available for themselves and their families when making important life decisions – and that should include when they bring a pet into their lives,” said Senator Westlin. “Unfortunately, many families are in the dark about the conditions that may have existed for pets raised by breeders, and it’s time to change that. This legislation will provide much needed transparency around commercial breeders throughout Minnesota.”
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