Animal Protection Code Under Title 11

By HANNA VALENTO, REVISOR OF STATUTES

During this last legislative session, District II Representative Marvin Bruneau sponsored the Animal Protection bill. Band Assembly passed Ordinance 42-22 on April 27, 2022. It was later signed by the Chief Executive on April 30, 2022. Its effective date is June 1, 2022, and will then be codified into law in Title 11 – Environment, Natural Resources, Animals and Plants as subchapter 2 of chapter 4.

It updates the dog protection language in subchapter 1 of chapter 4 and creates new provisions for dangerous dogs and dog houses. It also enacts subchapter 2 – Animal Protection. The purpose of the animal protection code is to respect, honor, and protect animals in a manner that is consistent with Band culture and tradition. It’s broader than the dog protection subchapter, as it includes all animals. Originally, the language was taken from Minnesota’s animal protection language, but through workshops with the elected officials, the language was changed so as to fit the community’s needs and desires to protect the animals, such as adding a definition for emotional harm, changing the language for improper confinement, adding immunity for tribal enforcement officers, adding a Good Samaritan law, and more.

The Band Assembly put the draft bill out for public comment twice and held several workshops to improve the language. Tribal Police, the Commissioner for Natural Resources, and outside entities, such as MNSNAP, Secondhand Hounds, and the University of Minnesota Student Initiative for Reservation Veterinary Service were able to attend a workshop where we discussed the draft legislation. The discussion proved to be very beneficial and successful as the Band Assembly was able to get a better understanding of how all these entities work together to help the animals. From that discussion, the Band Assembly made changes to the bill to incorporate the requirement of dogs being microchipped, adding a purpose section to incorporate Band culture and tradition, making sure tribal enforcement officers have immunity, and the requirement for tribal law enforcement to create policy for animal protection.

In the end, this legislation was a huge success for the community and the animals. We hope to continue having great discussions to update the law to better serve the community.

Be sure to follow the Tribal Register on the Band’s webpage for updates regarding draft legislation.