Valparaiso and nearly every other city and town throughout the Hoosier State would be prohibited from enacting an ordinance banning the sale of dogs at pet stores under legislation approved Monday by the Indiana Senate.
Senate Bill 134, which now goes to the House, requires Indiana localities that did not ban the sale of dogs at retail pet stores prior to Jan. 1, 2023, to allow pet store dog sales in accordance with the terms of the proposal.
The Republican-controlled chamber approved the measure, 29-18. State Sen. Ed Charbonneau, R-Valparaiso — whose hometown city council currently is working to adopt a ban on pet store dog sales — was the sole Northwest Indiana senator to support the plan.
If the measure ultimately is enacted into law without changes, any pet store dog sale ordinance subsequently adopted by Valparaiso would be preempted by the retroactive provision of the state statute and could not legally be enforced.
At this time, the legislation does not negate the bans on pet store dog sales previously adopted as a means to combat animal abuse by Crown Point, Dyer, East Chicago, Hebron, Highland, Lake Station, Lowell, Munster, Schererville and Whiting.
State Sen. Blake Doriot, R-Goshen, the sponsor of the legislation, explicitly acknowledged his goal is to prevent more cities and towns from adopting pet store dog sale bans to ensure pet stores can continue selling dogs in nearly all Indiana communities.
More importantly, he said, the legislation protects both dogs and dog purchasers by requiring pet stores selling dogs meet what Doriot described as the "gold standard of pet health."
Specifically, the plan obligates Indiana pet stores selling dogs to disclose all fees associated with the purchase, each dog's age and breed, medical history, breeder name and address, details needed for pedigree registration, proof of microchipping and the store's return policy.
A purchaser would be entitled to a return or refund, including repayment of veterinary bills, if a veterinarian certifies within certain time frames that the dog was sick or died because it was unfit for purchase due to illness or disease, or possesses a congenital or hereditary condition requiring significant veterinary care, according to the legislation.
"I would never do anything to cause harm to dogs," Doriot said.
Critics of the proposal, including state Sen. Eddie Melton, D-Gary, a candidate for Gary mayor, said they view it as "overreach" by the state.
"Senate Bill 134 is inherently inhumane, allowing for the breeding and selling of dogs by retail pet stores without ensuring the safety and health of the animal. I condemn animal cruelty and believe all lawmakers have a duty to support anti-cruelty laws as good public servants," Melton said.
Opponents also said that there's plenty of evidence of bad actors operating "puppy mills" featuring overbreeding, inbreeding and unsafe conditions and that local governments should be entitled to prevent such abuse by banning dog sales at community retailers.
"The minute we started interfering with local control, I couldn't support this," said state Sen. Fady Qaddoura, D-Indianapolis. "There's no need to change the law."
The measure faces an uncertain fate in the House where a similar proposal, House Bill 1121, sponsored by state Rep. Mike Aylesworth, R-Hebron, failed to advance out of the Agriculture and Rural Development Committee.
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