CA Gov. Newsom Signs Roadkill Bill; Bans Fur Sales, Circuses, Bobcat Hunting

While California will now have the distinction of being the first state in the country to ban the sale and manufacture of new fur products, Gov. Gavin Newsom also just signed a law to allow drivers who fatally strike a deer, elk, antelope or wild pig to take the animal home and cook it.

California’s obsession with misguided animal “protections” has been greatly expanded this legislative session with Gov. Gavin Newsom signing more bills.

Fur Ban

Nationally, furs account for around $531 million in sales—25 percent to 30 percent of that in California.

The fur ban is part of a “radical vegan agenda using fur as the first step to other bans on what we wear and eat,” Keith Kaplan of the Fur Information Council said recently in a California Globe article.

Gov. Newsom signed AB 44 by Assemblywoman Laura Friedman (D-Glendale), who said she wants California to lead the nation in statewide fur bans. “Today there are a variety of humane alternatives, both in terms of faux fur that is virtually indistinguishable from real fur, and alternative textiles that are just as warm or fashionable,” Friedman says. “There is no need for fur in the 21st century and no place for it in a sustainable future.”

Notably, big Democratic donor and LGBTQ activist Ed Buck’s name was prominent throughout the process of AB 44 banning fur products in California. Buck was recently arrested for luring young, gay African American men to his home, and injecting them with methamphetamine.

“Having tried for over 20 years unsuccessfully to win in the court of public opinion the very narrow minority who support the Vegan agenda now look to lawmakers to force this agenda on the public,” Keith Kaplan of the Fur Information Council said. “It is happening for fur, leather, meat and medical research.  Merely giving in to the campaigns of deception, the harassment, intimidations and illegal activities of these animal extremists does not show leadership.  Lawmakers must stand up and identify means of addressing animal welfare in meaningful ways while still protecting individual consumer freedom.  That is true leadership.”

Roadkill Cafe

SB 395, sponsored by state Sen. Bob Archuleta (D-Pico Rivera), seeks to amend current state law to allow drivers who fatally strike a deer, elk, antelope or wild pig to take the animal home and cook it.

AB 1260 by Assemblyman Brian Maienschein (D-San Diego), adds iguana, skink, caiman, hippopotamus, and three types of lizards, to the import and trade prohibition of dead animals and dead animal parts.

‘Three Rings of Abuse’

PETA calls circuses, “Three Rings of Abuse.” Lawmakers passed and Gov. Newsom signed SB 313  banning most animals from circuses. The law exempts rodeos and does not apply to domesticated dogs, cats and horses. California is now the third state to enact such a ban, along with New Jersey and Hawaii.

Gavin Newsom also signed into law AB 128 by Assemblyman Todd Gloria (D-San Diego), to protect California’s horses from slaughter. The law requires public and private auction yard operators to post new signage, maintain sworn statements and post identifying information online starting Jan. 1.

Gov. Newsom signed AB 1254 by Assemblywoman Sydney Kamlager-Dove (D-Los Angeles) which prohibits hunting, trapping or killing bobcats in California until 2025, at which time the law will be reviewed.

Doggie Blood Bank

Weirdly, Gov. Newsom vetoed Senate Bill 202 by Sen. Scott Wilk (R-Santa Clarita), which unanimously passed the Legislature. SB 202 would have expanded the available commercial animal blood donor pool to include community-sourced donors. Gov. Newsom’s veto said the proposal “does not go far enough.” “Anyone with a pet would understand the importance of having a robust animal blood supply. Heaven forbid your dog or cat is hit by a car or is a victim of some other tragedy that requires blood donations,” Senator Wilk said, also noting there are currently only two commercial blood banks in the state.

Instead, Newsom said he wants legislators to send him a bill that would phase out the use of “closed colonies,” in which dogs are “kept in cages for months and years to harvest their blood for sale,” the Los Angeles Times reported.

More Animal Protections

California lawmakers and governors have a long history of animal “protections,” discounting the impact of culture and cost:

• fois gras ban, effective in 2012;
• ban on the ancient Asian delicacy shark fin soup;
• California lawmakers, and then voters, through the enactment of Proposition 2 and AB 1437, also known as the Farm Animal Cruelty Act, banned the sale of eggs from hens housed in small cages, allow them to roam free… putting them at risk of predators and raptors. Many said this ban violates the commerce clause.