Bills in WA Will Impose a Fee on Pet Food for Spay/Neuter Program

[kaffe]

Two bills (SB Bill No. 5329 http://apps.leg.wa.gov/billinfo/summary.aspx?bill=5329&year=2009 and HB 1406 http://apps.leg.wa.gov/billinfo/summary.aspx?bill=1406&year=2009)
introduced last Wednesday in Washington state, USA, that calls for $57.50 per ton fee on petfood to fund the state's spay/neuter programs.  The PFI are not too happy, saying that the fee is the highest ever imposed on a product.  See http://www.petfoodinstitute.org/

[Bonkers]

  Hmmm. According to this legislation if  the pet food that is distributed weighs less than one ton than no fee is imposed. Also stated is that speciality pet food is not subject to the companion animal spay/neuter fee.  Wonder what is considered to be "speciality pet food"?

[Bonkers]

  Found the answer.     "Specialty Pet Food:
A commercial feed prepared and distributed for consumption by specialty pets. Specialty pets are domesticated animal pets normally maintained in a cage or tank, such as, but not limited to, gerbils, hamsters, canaries, psittacine birds, mynahs, finches, tropical fish, goldfish, snakes, and turtles."  http://agr.wa.gov/FoodAnimal/AnimalFeed/Definitions/SpecialtyPetFood.aspx

[kaffe]

Thanks, Bonkers.  I find myself in support for this bill, although I'd like to know how they will administer the resvenue in such a way as most DO get to fund the state's spay and neuter program.

[Bonkers]

  That's a good question kaffe but more specifics are needed. Of course you realize that these fees are actually going to be paid by consumers as I am sure this will cause the price of pet food to increase in the state of Washington if the legislation should pass.

[sherrylynne]

I wonder if ferrets will be considered "specialty pets"