WASHINGTON (Oct. 15, 2012) -- The Humane Society Legislative Fund, the nation’s leading political advocacy organization for animal welfare, announces its endorsement of U.S. Rep. Gary Miller, R-Calif., in the 31st Congressional District of California. Citing his strong support of animal protection policies, the Humane Society Legislative Fund urges 31st District voters to support Gary Miller.
“Gary Miller has demonstrated a strong commitment to protecting animals from cruelty and abuse,” said Michael Markarian, president of the Humane Society Legislative Fund. “Bob Dutton has been anything but a reliable support of animal welfare policies, and he’s tried to stand in the way of a number of important reforms, including the ban on the hound hunting of bears. We urge Democrats and Republicans who care about the humane treatment of animals to support Gary Miller in this race between two long-serving Republican elected officials.”
Among his efforts, Miller has:
- Co-sponsored the Egg Products Inspection Act Amendments, H.R.3798, to extend some Prop 2 standards (to ban barren battery cages) to the entire nation, improving treatment of hundreds of millions of egg-laying hens
- Co-sponsored the Puppy Uniform Protection and Safety (PUPS) Act, H.R. 835, to protect dogs and crack down on large-scale puppy mill abuses
- Co-sponsored the Great Ape Protection and Cost Savings Act, H.R. 1513, to phase out the use of chimpanzees in invasive research, retire federally-owned chimpanzees to sanctuary, and save millions of taxpayer dollars
- Co-sponsored the Animal Fighting Spectator Prohibition Act, H.R. 2492, to close a loophole in the federal animal fighting law by making it a crime to attend or take a child to a dogfight or cockfight
- Co-sponsored legislation to ban commerce in videos showing the intentional torture of puppies, kittens and other live animals for the sexual titillation of viewers (H.R. 5092//P.L. 111-294)
- Voted to save taxpayer dollars by limiting subsidies to massive factory farms, which thrive on taxpayer giveaways that keep animal feed artificially cheap, jeopardize public health, the environment, and animal welfare, while also driving smaller and more humane, sustainable family farms out of business (H.AMDT.478/H.R. 2112)
- Voted to establish a program at Veterans Administration medical centers for veterans with post-deployment mental health issues such as post-traumatic stress disorder to train service dogs as a form of therapy, and the trained dogs would assist veterans with disabilities (H.R. 3885)
Bob Dutton has opposed a number of modest animal welfare reforms in the California State Legislature, including the following:
- Voted against a bill to prohibit the use of packs of radio-collared dogs to chase and kill bears and bobcats for trophy hunting (SB 1221)
- Voted against a bill to re-establish the Municipal Shelter Spay-Neuter Fund, allowing for voluntary contributions by taxpayers on their annual income tax returns. (AB 564)
- Voted against a bill that would save dogs’ lives by addressing barriers to licensing and improving local government funding for animal care/control activities. (AB 1121)
- Voted against a bill to require judges to prohibit felons convicted of animal cruelty from owning animals for a period of time. (AB 243)
- Voted against a bill to require any garment including any animal fur to be labeled with the species and country of origin. (AB 1656)
- Voted against a bill to require better, clearer price and coverage disclosures by pet insurers. (AB 2411)
- Voted against a bill to protect tenants from being forced by landlords into unnecessary surgery on their pets, particularly when the procedures provide no medical benefit to the animal. (AB 2743)
- Voted against a bill to ban the sale of animals in parking lots and alongside roads. (AB 1122)
- Voted against a bill to prohibit the painful and unnecessary practice of cutting the tails off cows. (SB 135)
Media contact: Stephanie Twining, (301) 258-1491, stwining@hslf.org
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HSLF is a nonpartisan organization that evaluates candidates based only on a single criterion: where they stand on animal welfare. HSLF does not judge candidates based on party affiliation or any other issue.
The Humane Society Legislative Fund is a social welfare organization incorporated under section 501(c)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code and formed in 2004 as a separate lobbying affiliate of The Humane Society of the United States. The HSLF works to pass animal protection laws at the state and federal level, to educate the public about animal protection issues, and to support humane candidates for office. Visit us on all our channels: on the web at hslf.org, on our blog at animalsandpolitics.com, on Facebook at facebook.com/humanelegislation and on Twitter at twitter.com/HSLegFund.
Paid for by Humane Society Legislative Fund and not authorized by any candidate or candidate’s committee. HSLF, 1255 23rd Street, NW, Suite 455, Washington, DC 20037.
