UARC News and Events >> 12 February 06

Sun Feb 12 10:13:03 MST 2006

Hi Everyone,

Here is some news of the goings on in the Utah Animal Rights Coalition. In This E-Mail:

  * Calendar of Events
  * Legislature
  * In the News

Thanks to Rachel, Jenna, Sarah, Eric, David, John, Kim, and others who helped with the UARC day at Ching Sanctuary!  Good times had by all!

To be removed from this mailing list, follow the instructions at the bottom.

### CALENDAR OF EVENTS ###
  ( UARC lists other groups' events in our calendar as a service to the community, for solidarity with others fighting for animal liberation.  PETA, VFS, ARM and Ching Farm are not affiliated with UARC. )

Monday, 13th (tomorrow)
------------
- Ching Sanctuary cooking class at the Downtown Wild Oats
- 7:00 PM - UARC Steering meeting at The Bridge (512 W. 200 S.).  All are welcome.

Wednesday, 15th
---------------
- 1:30 PM - High school leafletting.  Meet at The Bridge to carpool to a to-be-decided High School where you will help pass out animal rights leaflets and/or CDs.  Contact Jason (jasonh at uarc.com) for more details.
- 7:00 PM - Mark Bekoff reading and signing at King's English

Friday, 17th
------------
- 8:00 AM to 1:30 PM - Citizens' Day at the Legislature (see below)
- 7:00 PM - Mark Bekoff "Animal Passions and Beastly Virtues" at Vieve Gore Concert Hall at Westminster College

Saturday, 18th
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- 12:00 Noon - VFS fur demo at L'Ours Blanc furs

Sunday, 19th
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- Ching Sanctuary cooking class at the Sugarhouse Wild Oats
- 5:00 PM - SOAR weekly meeting

### LEGISLATURE ###

Here's an update on the bills we're watching this session:

* HB 61 - Criminal Penalty for Animal Cruelty - Wyatt, S.
  http://www.le.state.ut.us/~2006/htmdoc/hbillhtm/HB0061.htm

   Current Location:  Senate Rules Committee
  Closeness to Pass:  51%
         Next Heard:  7-14 days
      Action Needed:  Contact the members of the Senate Natural Resources, Agriculture, and Environment Committee to urge them to pass HB 61 favorably.  They'll probably have the bill before them next week:

  Sen. Waddoups, R - mwaddoups at utahsenate.org
  Sen. Evans, R - bevevans at ubtanet.com
  Sen. Fife, D - ffife at utahsenate.org
  Sen. Hatch, R - thatch at utahsenate.org
  Sen. McCoy, D - smccoy at utahsenate.org
  Sen. Peterson, R - dpeterson at utahsenate.org

* HB 95 - Individual Income Tax Contribution for Community Spay and Neuter Programs - Noel, M.
  http://www.le.state.ut.us/~2006/htmdoc/hbillhtm/HB0095.htm

   Current Location:  House Third Reading for House Bills
  Closeness to Pass:  35%
         Next Heard:  2-4 days (position 20 on calendar)
      Action Needed:  Contact your House representatives

* HB 328 - Eliminating the Age Requirement for Hunting Small Game - Oda, C.
  http://www.le.state.ut.us/~2006/htmdoc/hbillhtm/HB0328.htm

* HB 329 - Age Amendments for Hunting Big Game - Oda, C.
  http://www.le.state.ut.us/~2006/htmdoc/hbillhtm/HB0329.htm

   Current Location:  House Third Reading for House Bills
  Closeness to Pass:  35%
         Next Heard:  2-4 days (position 20 on calendar)
      Action Needed:  Contact your House representatives

 ## Representatives ##

One of the more important parts of getting involved in the Utah Legislature is knowing who your representatives are.  To find these out, visit http://www.clerk.slco.org/elections/index.cfm and enter your street address.  Look for "STATE SENATE" and "STATE REPRESENTATIVE" - these are the people who are making decisions on your behalf in this legislative session, and they need to hear your opinion about the bills which they will be voting on.

 ## Citizens' Day at the Legislature ##

Each year, Utah Issues (utahissues.org) sponsors a citizens' day at the legislature.  UARC would like to encourage you to attend this event, as it will teach you about the legislative process and give you the opportunity to meet directly with your legislators over lunch.  It is a free event.

  When:  February 17th from 8am until 1:30pm
 Where:  Radisson Hotel, 215 W. South Temple
 RSVP

To attend, you'll need to register at http://www.altrue.net/site/poverty/section.php?id=12841 and indicate a vegetarian meal.  Please followup the registration with an email to Utah Issues indicating that you want a vegan meal instead of a vegetarian.  You may be able to do that at http://www.altrue.net/site/poverty/contactus.php.

### IN THE NEWS ###

Tuesday
-------
* Bill may widen the definition of the term "assistance animal"
  http://www.sltrib.com/utah/ci_3483224
TERRILYNNE POMEROY, of Centerville, and her guide dog Markie, a golden Labrador retriever, walk along the plaza at the Capitol Complex on Monday. ...

* Dead birds found at lake
  Wildlife expert says the eared grebes died of avian cholera
  http://deseretnews.com/dn/view/0,1249,635182391,00.html
SALTAIR RESORT ? Recreationists slogging across the mud flats beside the Great Salt Lake recently were surprised to find the remains of scores, perhaps a couple of hundred, of dead shorebirds.
  Behind Saltair, nearly out to the lake's blue water, bird carcasses lay in rows where waves had deposited them. Some protruded from pools, others lay on the mud crust. The state of the carcasses' decay varied. ...

Wednesday
---------
* Big bucks to hunt big bucks set record
  Auction: A doctor from Tennessee pays a $156,000 top bid for a statewide deer permit
  http://www.sltrib.com/utah/ci_3486469
Utah's mule deer herds may not be as robust as state wildlife officials would like, but one man decided there is at least one buck out there worth chasing this hunting season.
  David Meyer, an eye doctor from Memphis, Tenn., beat two other hunters with a bid of $156,000 last week to win the auction for Utah's 2006 statewide deer conservation permit. ...

* House doesn't support a raise of the animal-torture penalty
  http://deseretnews.com/dn/view/0,1249,635182747,00.html
While a number of measures increasing penalties for crimes across the board are flying through the Utah Legislature, Tuesday the House refused to get tougher on people who torture animals.
  Increasing the penalty for torturing an animal from a Class A misdemeanor to a third-degree felony "is the heart of the bill," said sponsoring Rep. Scott Wyatt, R-Logan. ...

* House uses amendment to shoot down animal cruelty bill
  http://www.heraldextra.com/content/view/164226/4/
Forty-one states have made torturing animals a third-degree felony, but it doesn't look like Utah will join them.
  A bill to increase the torture penalty from its current class A misdemeanor status met opposition Monday, where House representatives managed to pass an amendment 38-33 that rendered the bill virtually meaningless. ...

Thursday
--------
* Animal torture bill still has life
  http://www.heraldextra.com/content/view/164969/4/
The push to make animal torture a felony is not over yet.
  The House will take another look at the bill that was gutted by an amendment Tuesday after a motion to reconsider passed 48-27.
  "If you say that a crime is a misdemeanor, you communicate that it's not that serious," said sponsor Rep. Scott Wyatt, R-Logan, during Wednesday's floor debate. ...

Friday
------
* House votes to increase animal torture to a felony
  http://deseretnews.com/dn/view/0,1249,635183229,00.html &
* Animal cruelty sought as felony crime
  http://www.heraldextra.com/content/view/165106/4/ &
* House rethinks, decides crime should be a felony
  http://www.sltrib.com/utah/ci_3494548
Two days after gutting legislation to increase the penalty for animal torture, House members changed their minds and signed off on the bill. Logan Republican Rep. Scott Wyatt's HB61 would increase the crime of torturing an animal from a class A misdemeanor to a third-degree felony. ...

### #########################################

That's it for this week.  Thanks for reading!