Thursday, February 21, 2019
For Immediate Release
Assemblymember Brian Maienschein and Social Compassion in Legislation Introduce Bill to Expand California Ban on Sale of Exotic Animal Skins
AB 1260 would add hippopotamus’, sharks, stingrays, and many reptiles to a list that already includes big cats, polar bears, dolphins, and other threatened or endangered species
February 21, 2019 (Sacramento, CA)
– As California continues its path as a leader in environmental preservation and animal welfare,
Assemblymember Brian Maienschein
(San Diego) and
Social Compassion in Legislation
today announced the introduction of AB 1260, a new bill to ban the sale of the skins of several exotic and vulnerable animals for commercial use. In a January 2019 poll conducted on behalf of Social Compassion in Legislation, a full 75% of Californians said they would support such a ban, with 83.9% of those saying their support is strong.
“Californians like to do what’s right and have supported legislation to protect animals,” said
Assemblymember Maienschein
. “Maybe there was a time when our ancestors needed to wear the skin from a stingray or of a hippopotamus, but that time is long gone. These are fashion choices, plain and simple, and they are destroying biodiversity around the world. I’m proud to be taking steps to eliminate a market for these unnecessary and destructive products.”
“Our polling shows that this measure is extremely popular across the state, with Californians broadly opposing the cruel practice of skinning rare animals alive to make clothes,” added
Judie Mancuso, CEO and Founder of Social Compassion in Legislation
. “This bill will have a macroeconomic effect on this barbaric industry, removing a major market from companies that kill various lizards, hippos, stingrays, and sharks for their skin.”
Major fashion brands often skin animals alive to make their products or use third-party vendors that do. California law already includes bans on several species of animal skin, but AB 1260 will bring the list further in line with the will of the people of California. Many companies, including Adidas, Adolfo Dominguez, Ann Inc., Arcadia Group (which owns Topshop), ASOS, bebe, Chanel, H&M, Hugo Boss, L Brands (which owns Victoria’s Secret), Mango, Nike, Nine West, Overstock.com, Puma, Stella McCartney, Victoria Beckham, VF Corporation, among others, already have policies in place against the use of exotic animal skins.
“PETA’s many thousand California members herald this bill which will abate enormous suffering of animals who, as our exposes have shown, are often skinned alive overseas for nothing more than a handbag or belt,” said
Ingrid E. Newkirk, President of PETA
.
“I hope the legislature is supportive and passes this bill quickly,”
Mancuso
said. “These animals need their skin far more than we do.
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Thursday, February 21, 2019
For Immediate Release
Quirk Renews Efforts on Accurate and Humane Hazardous Waste Identification
SACRAMENTO – Hazardous waste must be disposed of properly to protect public health and the environment. Today,
Assemblymember Bill Quirk
(D-Hayward) introduced
AB 733,
which will enable California to identify this waste more humanely and accurately.
“As Chair of the Assembly Committee of Environmental Safety and Toxic Materials, I work every day to protect Californians and California’s environment from toxic pollution. Making sure hazardous waste is accurately identified and disposed of is crucial,” said Assemblymember Quirk.
The hazardous waste test currently used in California, commonly known as the “minnow test”, essentially involves adding waste to a fish tank and seeing if the fish die. Companies committed to cruelty-free practices forgo the test and play it safe by treating all their waste as hazardous. “This is costly to business and means that California may be treating more waste than we should as hazardous waste,” continued Assemblymember Quirk.
“Last year, we made history in passing monumental legislation that banned the sales of any cosmetic tested on animals anywhere in the world in the State of California. It is time the state joined business industry leaders and advocates in adopting its own cruelty-free pledge and eliminate this barbaric and outdated test on live fish replacing it with an internationally accepted humane alternative,” said Judie Mancuso, President of Social Compassion in Legislation, co-sponsor of the bill with the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine.
AB 733 authorizes the Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) to identify humane alternatives to the “minnow test.”
“There are more advanced and humane approaches available to protect our waterways from hazardous waste,” said Kristie Sullivan, M.P.H., Vice President Research Policy for the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, “and we are proud to work with Assembly member Quirk to push DTSC to update its regulations to replace live fish testing with more modern approaches.”
“My work on this issue, in partnership with Social Compassion in Legislation and Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, was stalled by Governor Brown’s veto last year. However, I vowed to continue to fight for policies that fortify California’s environmental safety. By introducing AB 733 today, I keep that promise,” concluded Assemblymember Quirk.
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Social Compassion in Legislation
info@socialcompassioninlegislation.org
www.socialcompassioninlegislation.org
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