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We are thrilled to share that yesterday, after intense advocacy by SCIL, a broad coalition of both American and Australian animal protection organizations, and your calls and letters, SB 1212 (Jones) was voted down by the Senate Natural Resources and Water Committee. This bill would have exempted kangaroos from California’s ban on the sale of wildlife parts and products, reopening our state to the commercial trade in kangaroo skins and meat.
If you watch the beginning of the hearing, you’ll notice some members are absent—this is common, as legislators are often pulled to other committees due to overlapping responsibilities. During the initial discussion, the bill did not receive a motion for a vote. At the end of the hearing, those members returned to cast votes on the bills they missed. At that point, Senator Seyarto made the motion to allow a vote. The Committee then voted: 1 yes, 2 no, and 4 abstentions.
A sincere thank you to the Chair, Senator Josh Becker (D-Menlo Park), for his “no” vote and for his leadership in urging fellow Committee members to reject the bill.
We also extend our gratitude to Australian MP Emma Hurst for providing a powerful quote for the hearing and helping mobilize opposition from over 50 organizations and thousands of individuals. Click on the photo below to watch her viral Instagram video on SB 1212.
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