About Pets Evacuation and Transportation Standards Act (PETS Act)

The destructive force of Hurricane Katrina exposed many flaws in our nation's emergency preparedness programs. One easily correctible issue that has come to light is that many of our city and state authorities' disaster plans do not take into account how to rescue the portion of the population who are pet owners.

There are currently over 358 million pets in the United States residing in 63% of American households. Pets are part of the family and there is a strong bond between people and their animals. The PETS Act (S. 2548/H.R. 3858) will help preserve this bond when disasters like Hurricane Katrina strike. When Hurricane Katrina ravaged the Gulf Coast last fall, evacuation and rescue efforts were often delayed because evacuees were told they could not bring their animals and therefore chose to stay in the homes -- putting themselves at risk rather than abandon their animals.

Stories of pets being ripped from the arms of crying children, seniors being forced to choose between life-saving medication and their pets, and the blind being told that their service dogs would not be allowed at evacuation centers made national headlines in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.

"The sight of evacuees choosing between being rescued or remaining with their pets, perhaps even having to leave behind the trained and faithful helping animals that some people with disabilities rely on every day, was just heartbreaking," said representative Lantos in a press release on Sept. 22.

"Our legislation will put an end to that."

Disaster planning must include provisions for people with animals and the animals themselves in order to be effective. The PETS Act will do just that by requiring that local and state disaster plans address animal issues. The Senate version of the PETS Act goes further by requiring essential assistance for individuals with household pets and service animals, and the animals themselves, following a major disaster. In order to qualify for Federal Emergency Management Agency funding, a city or state is required to submit a plan detailing its disaster preparedness program. The PETS Act would simply require that the State and local emergency preparedness authorities include how they will accommodate households with pets or service animals when presenting these plans to the FEMA.

The Senate bill, S. 2548, was introduced on April 5 by Senators Ted Stevens (R-AK) and Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ). The House bill, H.R. 3858, was introduced last fall by U.S. Reps. Tom Lantos (D-CA) and Chris Shays (R-CT) and has more than 95 co-sponsors, including the key support of Transportation and Infrastructure Chairman Don Young (R-AK) and Ranking Member James Oberstar (D-MN). The House bill has passed the Full Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.

This legislation is supported by the Humane Society of the United States, the Doris Day Animal League, the Best Friends Animal Society, and the American Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA).

Find out more at http://www.fund.org/.

SECURE CHECKOUT WITH VERISIGN SAFE NETWORK FOR GOOD!