GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA

SESSION 2015

H                                                                                                                                                    1

HOUSE BILL 751

 

 

Short Title:        No Breed‑Specific Dog Laws.		(Public)
Sponsors:	Representative Wray (Primary Sponsor). For a complete list of Sponsors, refer to the North Carolina General Assembly Web Site.
Referred to:	Local Government, if favorable, Regulatory Reform.

April 15, 2015

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT to prohibit local governments from enacting or enforcing breed‑specific ordinances regulating dogs or dog ownership.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

SECTION 1.  G.S. 67‑4.5 reads as rewritten:

"§ 67‑4.5.  Local ordinances. ordinances; no breed‑specific regulation.

(a)        Nothing Except as provided in subsection (b) of this section, nothing in this Article shall be construed to prevent a city or county from adopting or enforcing its own program for control of dangerous dogs.

(b)        No unit of local government may adopt an ordinance regulating, restricting, or prohibiting the possession of dogs based upon the breed of the dogs or upon presumptions about the behavior inherent to a particular breed of dog."

SECTION 2.  G.S. 153A‑131 reads as rewritten:

"§ 153A‑131.  Possession or harboring of dangerous animals.

ASubject to the prohibition contained in G.S. 67‑4.5(b), a county may by ordinance regulate, restrict, or prohibit the possession or harboring of animals which are dangerous to persons or property. No such ordinance shall have the effect of permitting any activity or condition with respect to a wild animal which is prohibited or more severely restricted by regulations of the Wildlife Resources Commission."

SECTION 3.  G.S. 160A‑186 reads as rewritten:

"§ 160A‑186.  Regulation of domestic animals.

ASubject to the prohibition contained in G.S. 67‑4.5(b), a city may by ordinance regulate, restrict, or prohibit the keeping, running, or going at large of any domestic animals, including dogs and cats. The ordinance may provide that animals allowed to run at large in violation of the ordinance may be seized and sold or destroyed after reasonable efforts to notify their owner."

SECTION 4.  This act is effective when it becomes law.