Bill Text: NY S04342 | 2011-2012 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Directs the department of agriculture and markets to inspect the condition of certain horse stalls in cities with a population of one million or more.
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2012-06-06 - PRINT NUMBER 4342A [S04342 Detail]
Download: New_York-2011-S04342-Introduced.html
S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
4342
2011-2012 Regular Sessions
I N S E N A T E
March 30, 2011
___________
Introduced by Sen. LANZA -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
printed to be committed to the Committee on Agriculture
AN ACT to amend the agriculture and markets law and the administrative
code of the city of New York, in relation to the inspection of certain
horse stables in cities of one million or more
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
1 Section 1. The agriculture and markets law is amended by adding a new
2 section 359-b to read as follows:
3 S 359-B. INSPECTION OF CERTAIN HORSE STABLES IN CITIES OF ONE MILLION
4 OR MORE. 1. THE PROVISIONS OF THIS SECTION SHALL APPLY ONLY TO:
5 (A) HORSE STABLES IN CITIES HAVING A POPULATION OF ONE MILLION OR
6 MORE; AND
7 (B) HORSE STABLES FOR RIDING HORSES, THE BOARDING OF HORSES OR FOR
8 HORSES USED FOR RIDING LESSONS.
9 2. NO PROVISION OF THIS SECTION SHALL BE DEEMED TO APPLY TO CARRIAGE
10 HORSES OR ANY HORSE THAT IS SUBJECT TO THE PROVISIONS OF THE RACING,
11 PARI-MUTUEL WAGERING AND BREEDING LAW.
12 3. THE DEPARTMENT SHALL, AT A MINIMUM, MAKE YEARLY INSPECTIONS OF
13 HORSE STABLES TO ENSURE COMPLIANCE WITH THE PROVISIONS OF THIS ARTICLE.
14 4. (A) HORSES SHALL BE HOUSED IN STABLES WHICH SHALL BE CONSTRUCTED SO
15 AS TO BE STRUCTURALLY SOUND. SUCH STABLES SHALL BE MAINTAINED IN GOOD
16 REPAIR TO CONTAIN THE HORSE HOUSED THEREIN AND PROTECT IT FROM INJURY.
17 (B) STABLES SHALL PROVIDE SUFFICIENT SPACE TO ALLOW EACH HORSE
18 ADEQUATE FREEDOM OF MOVEMENT TO MAKE NORMAL POSTURAL ADJUSTMENTS,
19 INCLUDING THE ABILITY TO STAND UP, TURN AROUND AND LIE DOWN WITH ITS
20 LIMBS OUTSTRETCHED.
21 (C) STABLES SHALL BE ADEQUATELY VENTILATED AT ALL TIMES TO PROVIDE FOR
22 THE HEALTH AND WELL-BEING OF THE HORSE. VENTILATION SHALL BE PROVIDED BY
23 NATURAL OR MECHANICAL MEANS, SUCH AS WINDOWS, VENTS, FANS OR AIR CONDI-
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD00585-01-1
S. 4342 2
1 TIONERS. VENTILATION SHALL BE ESTABLISHED TO MINIMIZE DRAFTS, ODORS AND
2 MOISTURE CONDENSATION.
3 (D) THE TEMPERATURE SURROUNDING THE HORSE SHALL BE COMPATIBLE WITH THE
4 HEALTH AND WELL-BEING OF SUCH HORSE. TEMPERATURE SHALL BE REGULATED BY
5 HEATING AND COOLING TO SUFFICIENTLY PROTECT EACH HORSE FROM EXTREMES OF
6 TEMPERATURE AND SHALL NOT BE PERMITTED TO FALL BELOW OR RISE ABOVE RANG-
7 ES WHICH WOULD POSE A HEALTH HAZARD TO THE HORSE. THIS SHALL INCLUDE
8 SUPPLYING SHADE FROM SUNLIGHT BY NATURAL OR ARTIFICIAL MEANS.
9 (E) INDOOR STABLES SHALL BE PROVIDED WITH ADEQUATE LIGHTING SUFFICIENT
10 TO PERMIT ROUTINE INSPECTION AND CLEANING, AND BE ARRANGED SO THAT EACH
11 HORSE IS PROTECTED FROM EXCESSIVE ILLUMINATION WHICH POSES A HEALTH
12 HAZARD TO SUCH HORSE.
13 (F) STABLES SHALL BE DESIGNED TO ALLOW FOR EFFICIENT ELIMINATION OF
14 WASTE AND WATER IN ORDER TO KEEP THE HORSE DRY AND PREVENT THE HORSE
15 FROM COMING INTO CONTACT WITH THESE SUBSTANCES. IF DRAINS ARE USED, THEY
16 SHALL BE CONSTRUCTED IN A MANNER TO MINIMIZE FOUL ODORS AND BACKUP OF
17 SEWAGE. IF A DRAINAGE SYSTEM IS USED, IT SHALL COMPLY WITH FEDERAL,
18 STATE AND LOCAL LAWS RELATING TO POLLUTION CONTROL.
19 5. STABLES SHALL BE KEPT IN A CLEAN CONDITION IN ORDER TO MAINTAIN A
20 HEALTHY ENVIRONMENT FOR THE HORSE. THIS SHALL INCLUDE REMOVING AND
21 DESTROYING ANY AGENTS INJURIOUS TO THE HEALTH OF THE HORSE AND PERIODIC
22 CLEANINGS. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES SHALL A HORSE REMAIN INSIDE A STABLE
23 WHILE IT IS BEING CLEANED WITH STERILIZING AGENTS OR AGENTS TOXIC TO
24 HORSES, OR CLEANED IN A MANNER LIKELY TO THREATEN THE HEALTH AND SAFETY
25 OF THE HORSE.
26 6. (A) HORSES SHALL BE PROVIDED WITH WHOLESOME AND PALATABLE FOOD,
27 FREE FROM CONTAMINATION AND OF NUTRITIONAL VALUE SUFFICIENT TO MAINTAIN
28 EACH HORSE IN GOOD HEALTH.
29 (B) HORSES SHALL BE ADEQUATELY FED AT INTERVALS NOT TO EXCEED TWELVE
30 HOURS OR AT LEAST TWICE IN ANY TWENTY-FOUR HOUR PERIOD IN QUANTITIES
31 APPROPRIATE FOR THE HORSE BREED AND AGE.
32 (C) FOOD RECEPTACLES SHALL BE PROVIDED IN SUFFICIENT NUMBER, OF
33 ADEQUATE SIZE, AND SO LOCATED AS TO ENABLE EACH HORSE TO BE SUPPLIED
34 WITH AN ADEQUATE AMOUNT OF FOOD.
35 (D) HORSES SHALL BE PROVIDED WITH REGULAR ACCESS TO CLEAN, FRESH
36 WATER, SUPPLIED IN A SANITARY MANNER SUFFICIENT FOR THEIR NEEDS.
37 7. THE COMMISSIONER IS AUTHORIZED TO PROMULGATE SUCH RULES AND REGU-
38 LATIONS AS HE OR SHE DEEMS NECESSARY TO IMPLEMENT THE PROVISIONS OF THIS
39 SECTION.
40 8. VIOLATION OF ANY PROVISION OF THIS SECTION OR ANY RULE OR REGU-
41 LATION PROMULGATED PURSUANT THERETO SHALL BE A CIVIL OFFENSE PUNISHABLE
42 BY A FINE OF NOT LESS THAN ONE HUNDRED DOLLARS NOR MORE THAN ONE THOU-
43 SAND DOLLARS.
44 S 2. Section 17-330 of the administrative code of the city of New
45 York, as added by local law number 2 of the city of New York for the
46 year 1994, subdivisions b, c, g, l, n and p as amended and subdivisions
47 q and r as added by local law number 10 of the city of New York for the
48 year 2010, is amended to read as follows:
49 S 17-330 Regulations. a. The commissioner, with the advice of the
50 advisory board as hereinafter established AND SUBJECT TO THE PROVISIONS
51 OF SECTION THREE HUNDRED FIFTY-NINE-B OF THE AGRICULTURE AND MARKETS
52 LAW, shall promulgate such regulations as are necessary to carry out the
53 provisions of this subchapter and to promote the health, safety and well
54 being of the horses which are required to be licensed hereunder and of
55 members of the public who hire such horses.
S. 4342 3
1 b. 1. Horses shall not be left untethered or unattended except when
2 confined in a stable or other enclosure. When tethered, all horses shall
3 be secured by the use of a rope attached to the halter, not to the bit
4 or bridle.
5 2. Horse bridles and halters shall be used on carriage horses at all
6 times when operating a carriage.
7 c. Standing stalls for carriage horses shall be sixty square feet or
8 larger, with a minimum width of seven feet, and shall be configured to
9 permit a carriage horse to turn around and safely lay down within the
10 stall. Horses shall be un-tied when stabled. A halter shall be on the
11 horse or hung outside each stall at all times.
12 d. Horses shall be adequately quartered. Stables and stalls shall be
13 clean and dry and sufficient bedding of straw, shavings or other suit-
14 able materials shall be furnished and changed as often as necessary to
15 maintain them in a clean and dry condition. Adequate heating and venti-
16 lation shall be maintained in stables as prescribed by the [commission-
17 er] STATE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE AND MARKETS.
18 e. Owners shall insure that appropriate and sufficient food and drink-
19 ing water are available for each horse and that while working each horse
20 is permitted to eat and drink at reasonable intervals.
21 f. Owners shall not allow a horse to be worked on a public highway,
22 path or street during adverse weather or other dangerous conditions
23 which are a threat to the health or safety of the horse. A horse being
24 worked when such conditions develop shall be immediately returned to the
25 stable by the most direct route.
26 g. 1. Carriage horses shall not be at work for more than nine hours in
27 any continuous twenty-four hour period. Riding horses shall not be at
28 work for more than eight hours in any continuous twenty-four hour peri-
29 od. Rest periods for carriage horses and riding horses shall be of such
30 duration and at such intervals as the commissioner shall prescribe, but
31 rest periods for carriage horses shall in no event be for less than
32 fifteen minutes after each two hour working period, and the time of such
33 rest period shall be included in calculating the number of hours the
34 horse has worked in any twenty-four hour period. During such rest peri-
35 ods, the person in charge of such carriage horses shall make fresh water
36 available to the horse.
37 2. Carriage horses shall receive no less than five weeks of vacation
38 or furlough every twelve months at a horse stable facility which allows
39 daily access to paddock or pasture turnout. Proof of such vacation or
40 furlough shall be provided upon request to the department and/or the
41 ASPCA.
42 h. Carriage horses shall not be driven at a pace faster than a trot.
43 Riding horses may be ridden at a canter but shall not be galloped.
44 i. Horses shall be suitably trimmed or shod, and saddles, bridles,
45 bits, road harnesses and any other equipment used on or with a horse at
46 work shall be maintained and properly fitted as prescribed by regulation
47 of the commissioner.
48 j. Stables in which horses used in a rental horse business are kept
49 shall be open for inspection by authorized officers, veterinarians and
50 employees of the STATE department OF AGRICULTURE AND MARKETS, and any
51 persons designated by the STATE commissioner OF AGRICULTURE AND MARKETS
52 to enforce the provisions of [this subchapter, agents of the ASPCA,
53 police officers, and employees of the department of consumer affairs]
54 THE STATE AGRICULTURE AND MARKETS LAW.
55 k. An owner shall be jointly liable with the person to whom a horse is
56 rented for any violation of this subchapter or of any regulations
S. 4342 4
1 promulgated hereunder committed by such person if the owner had know-
2 ledge or notice of the act which gave rise to the violation at the time
3 of or prior to its occurrence or under the circumstances should have had
4 knowledge or notice of such act and did not attempt to prevent it from
5 occurring.
6 l. An owner of a rental horse business shall keep such records as the
7 commissioner of health shall prescribe including but not limited to a
8 consecutive daily record of the movements of each licensed horse includ-
9 ing the driver's name and identification number, if applicable, rider's
10 name, the horse's identification number, vehicle license plate number,
11 if applicable, time of leaving stable and time of return to stable. An
12 owner of a rental horse business shall also keep written protocols for
13 emergencies, including but not limited to primary and secondary emergen-
14 cy contact information for each horse owner and insurance company infor-
15 mation, if applicable. Such records shall be kept on the premises of the
16 stable where the horses are kept and shall be available for inspection.
17 The commissioner may, in his or her discretion, require a time clock,
18 date stamp or time stamp where such commissioner believes it is appro-
19 priate.
20 m. A horse required to be licensed pursuant to this subchapter which
21 is lame or suffers from a physical condition or illness making it
22 unsuitable for work may be ordered to be removed from work by the
23 commissioner or his or her designee or by an agent of the ASPCA or a
24 veterinarian employed or retained by such commissioner or ASPCA to
25 inspect licensed horses. A horse for which such an order has been issued
26 shall not be returned to work until it has recovered from the condition
27 which caused the issuance of the order or until such condition has
28 improved sufficiently that its return to work will not aggravate the
29 condition or otherwise endanger the health of the horse. In any proceed-
30 ing, under this section it shall be presumed that a horse which is found
31 at work within forty-eight hours after the issuance of an order of
32 removal and which is disabled by the same condition which caused such
33 order to be issued has been returned to work in violation of this
34 section. Such presumption may be rebutted by offering a certificate of a
35 veterinarian indicating suitability to return to work prior to the expi-
36 ration of the forty-eight hour period.
37 n. Every horse required to be licensed hereunder shall be examined by
38 a veterinarian prior to its use in a rental horse business, at time of
39 each license renewal, and thereafter at intervals of not less than four
40 months and not greater than eight months. The examination shall include
41 the general physical condition of the horse, its teeth, hoofs and shoes,
42 its stamina and physical ability to perform the work or duties required
43 of it, and whether it is current on vaccinations, including those for
44 rabies, Eastern/Western equine encephalitis, West Nile virus, Rhinopneu-
45 monitis virus, and tetanus, or any other vaccinations the Commissioner
46 may require by rule. The examination shall also include a record of any
47 injury, disease, or deficiency observed by the veterinarian at the time,
48 together with any prescription or humane correction or disposition of
49 the same. A signed health certificate by the examining veterinarian
50 shall be maintained at the stable premises at which such horse is
51 located and shall be displayed on the outside of the such horse's indi-
52 vidual stall. An original of said certificate shall be mailed by the
53 examining veterinarian to the department.
54 o. 1. Carriage horses shall not be worked whenever the air temperature
55 is 18 degrees fahrenheit or below.
S. 4342 5
1 2. Carriage horses shall not be worked whenever the air temperature is
2 90 degrees fahrenheit or above.
3 3. For purposes of this subdivision, temperatures shall be those meas-
4 ured by a state-of-the-art thermometer, as determined by the commission-
5 er, as measured by the commissioner or his or her designee at street
6 level at one of the stands designated pursuant to section 19-174 of the
7 code.
8 4. If the temperature exceeds the limits set by this subdivision
9 during the course of a particular ride, at the ride's conclusion, but no
10 later than one-half hour after the temperature exceeds these limits, the
11 operator must immediately cease working, move the horse to an area of
12 shelter, where available, rest the horse and then walk it directly to
13 its stable. All horses so returned to their stable must be unbridled and
14 unharnessed and remain at the stable for at least one hour, and there-
15 after, until such time as the weather conditions shall once again reach
16 acceptable limits.
17 5. No violation of this subdivision shall occur unless a written warn-
18 ing of violation is first issued by the authorized enforcement personnel
19 to the operator advising that the air temperature limits of this subdi-
20 vision have been exceeded and directing that the operator cease working
21 a carriage horse in accordance with the provisions of this subdivision.
22 A violation of this subdivision may be issued if an operator fails to
23 comply with the direction contained in the written warning of violation.
24 Failure to comply with such direction shall not be construed as a sepa-
25 rate violation.
26 p. Every carriage horse required to be licensed hereunder shall be
27 equipped with a manure catching device. Such devices shall be affixed or
28 attached to the carriage and shall at no time be affixed or attached to
29 the horse.
30 q. Carriage horses shall not be younger than five years at the time
31 placed into service in any rental horse business and licensed. No
32 carriage horse older than 26 years of age shall be licensed to work in a
33 rental horse business. Acceptable proof of age shall include a signed
34 letter from a licensed veterinarian stating the horse's age, a certif-
35 icate from an officially recognized national registry of horses stating
36 the horse's age, or another industry approved method of certifying age.
37 r. Owners shall insure that during the months of November through
38 April every carriage is equipped with a heavy winter horse blanket large
39 enough to cover the horse from crest of neck to top of rump. Such blan-
40 kets shall be used to cover carriage horses in cold weather. Waterproof
41 horse blankets of a lighter material shall be provided at all times to
42 cover the horse from withers to tail during periods of wet weather when
43 the air temperature is 55 degrees or below.
44 S 3. This act shall take effect on the first of January next succeed-
45 ing the date on which it shall have become a law.
