2021 LEGISLATIVE UPDATE

The COVID-19 pandemic continues to create challenges at the State Capitol in allowing the Legislature to hear a large number of bills and, as a result, several legislators have elected to pause their measures in 2021. But some bills are still active and are of particular importance to the veterinary profession. The CVMA’s legislative team has participated in numerous calls and virtual meetings with legislative staff and stakeholders and has submitted position letters on bills of high importance. Below is a summary of the most important bills that the CVMA has worked on this year.

HOUSE RESOLUTION (HR) 61 (LEE): VETERINARY MEDICINE

Introduced in mid-July, this resolution asks the California State Assembly to commit to “sensible and humane therapeutic veterinary procedures for companion animals.” Typically, Assembly and Senate Resolutions are celebratory in nature. However, HR 61 adopts a diff erent tone by implying that veterinarians are subjecting animals to unnecessary surgical procedures without any regard for the overarching health of the patient. As written, HR 61 bans “nontherapeutic” surgeries, a term undefi ned in law, but which appears in this resolution to include surgeries such as elective gastropexy or laparoscopy that are benefi cial to an animal’s care. While HR 61 does not include an explicit statement against cat declawing, the resolution’s sponsors have sponsored past legislation to prohibit declawing, and the CVMA believes this intent is driving HR 61, as well. The CVMA has submitted an opposition letter to the Author and key members of the Legislature.

AB 1535 (ASSEMBLY BUSINESS AND PROFESSIONS COMMITTEE)

VETERINARY MEDICAL BOARD: SUNSET REVIEW.

The Assembly Business and Professions Committee and the Senate Business, Professions, and Economic Development Committee periodically hold joint sunset oversight hearings to review boards under the Department of Consumer Affairs (DCA). The sunset review process provides an opportunity for the DCA, the Legislature, the boards, and interested parties and stakeholders to discuss the performance of the boards and make recommendations for improvements. The Veterinary Medical Board (VMB) is being reviewed in 2021, and its report to the Sunset Review Committee is posted on the VMB’s website. The CVMA submitted two letters to the Sunset Review Committee with comments and positions on issues addressed in the VMB’s report. The VMB’s Sunset Review is one of the most important, timeconsuming measures that the CVMA works on every four years, as the Sunset bill typically addresses licensing fee structures and complex scope of practice matters, in addition to the general review of the VMB. Among the more significant items included in this year’s bill are:

{ Revise and raise the statutory limits for license and permit fees, and lower Registered Veterinary Technician fees

{ Create a statutory exemption to premises registration with the VMB for animal shelters that perform the limited veterinary practices of vaccination, parasite control, and administering medications to individual animals pursuant to orders from a veterinarian with an established Veterinarian-Client-Patient Relationship for that animal

{ Require RVTs, veterinary assistants, and veterinary assistant controlled substance permit holders to wear name identification tags in at least 18-point type that include their license or permit numbers

{ Expand the VMB’s scope of authority in relation to premises permits of practices owned by nonveterinarians and prohibit them from interfering with, directing, or controlling the professional judgment of any veterinarian or RVT

{ Make falsely advertising as a specialist or board-certified practitioner subject to board discipline

CVMA POSITION: Watch, Work with Author

BILL STATUS: Senate Floor

AB 1282 (BLOOM) (COAUTHOR WILK): VETERINARY MEDICINE: BLOOD BANKS FOR ANIMALS.

This legislation will transition California’s closed-colony canine blood banking model to a community-sourced blood donor system. The CVMA has been actively involved in the issue of animal blood banking since 2019 and worked closely with the bill’s authors to represent the needs of the veterinary profession again this year. CVMA issues that were addressed include preserving a safe and adequate supply of blood and blood products and determining when and how California will transition from the closed-colony model to a community-sourced model. During a Senate Appropriations committee review of the bill in August, the VMB and California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) expressed concerns with some of the logistical aspects of the bill, and the Department of Finance opposed the bill due to its fiscal impact. As a result, a budget trailer bill was amended to include $1 million in funding for CDFA implementation.

CVMA POSITION: Approve

BILL STATUS: Senate Floor

AB 1533 (ASSEMBLY BUSINESS AND PROFESSIONS COMMITTEE) CALIFORNIA BOARD OF PHARMACY: SUNSET REVIEW.

The CVMA submitted comments to the Joint Sunset Review Committee regarding issues with the California Board of Pharmacy (BOP), primarily concerning veterinary compounding. One of the items raised in the CVMA’s comment letter was a request that at least one BOPappointed member be a compounding pharmacist. The CVMA’s request was successful, and that compositional requirement is being implemented accordingly. The CVMA will continue to advocate for the veterinary profession at both the legislature and the BOP to protect the ability of veterinarians to provide medications to animal patients.

CVMA POSITION: Watch, Work with Author

BILL STATUS: Senate Floor

SB 547 (GLAZER): ANIMALS: EMERGENCY RESPONSE: CALIFORNIA VETERINARY EMERGENCY TEAM PROGRAM.

SB 547 creates a state-funded Veterinary Emergency Team at the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine to assist the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) in developing and implementing all aspects of the California Animal Response Emergency System (CARES), including participating in disaster response field operations. The CVMA testified in support of this bill during an Appropriations Committee hearing and submitted support letters to legislators throughout the legislative process. The bill was incorporated into AB 132, a highereducation budget trailer bill, and was signed into law on July 27, 2021. It will provide $3 million annually to UC Davis from the state general fund to support its disaster response program. UC Davis will begin its new role in disaster response on January 1, 2022.

CVMA POSITION: Support

BILL STATUS: Chaptered into Law as part of 2021 Budget Trailer

Bill AB 132

OTHER ACTIVE BILLS FOR 2021

AB 70 (SALAS): GENE SYNTHESIS PROVIDERS.

CVMA POSITION: Watch

AB 468 (FRIEDMAN): EMOTIONAL SUPPORT DOGS.

CVMA POSITION: Approve

AB 527 (WOOD): CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES: CANNABINOIDS.

CVMA POSITION: Watch

AB 1306 (ARAMBULA): HEALTH PROFESSIONS CAREERS

OPPORTUNITY PROGRAM.

CVMA POSITION: Watch

SB 453 (HURTADO): AGRICULTURE: BIOSECURITY AND EMERGING INFECTIOUS DISEASE FUND.

CVMA POSITION: Watch

SB 703 (HURTADO): DISEASED ANIMALS: LABORATORY SERVICES.

CVMA POSITION: Support

BILLS MOVED TO INACTIVE STATUS SINCE JULY 2021

AB 253 (PATTERSON): ANIMAL WELFARE.

CVMA POSITION: Watch

SB 252 (WIENER): TOXICOLOGICAL TESTING IN DOGS AND CATS.

CVMA POSITION: Watch

SB 344 (HERTZBERG): GRANTS: HOMELESS SHELTERS: PETS AND VETERINARY SERVICES.

CVMA POSITION: Approve

SB 519 (WIENER): CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES: DECRIMINALIZATION OF CERTAIN HALLUCINOGENIC SUBSTANCES.

CVMA POSITION: Watch

For specific information on bills or to track CVMA-monitored bills through the legislative process, visit the CVMA’s online Legislative Action Center, which now has a new look and format. The Voter Voice platform makes searching for relevant legislation easier and more user-friendly. Check out the improved format by logging onto cvma.net and clicking on the Government tab.