I spoke with my local representative the other day regarding the proposed West Virginia bans and had decent results.
This is regarding HB4344 & SB477 which are mentioned in a couple of other threads below this one. HB4344 is basically dead because the Natural Resources Committee doesn't meet again until Thursday, so it did not meet the deadline it would need to pass. The Senate bill, however, passed through the Senate and is now in the House. Representative Daryl Cowles advised me to try to focus my efforts on the head of the House Judiciary Committee (Tim Miley) because if he is convinced that the bill is a bad idea, it never even comes up for discussion in the House at all.
So my suggestion would be to have as many people as we can get to email him. I was told that when they bring up their emails in committee and see a whole lot of something like "Oppose SB477" in the subject lines it really gets their attention and they're more likely to get the message that way because they don't have time to read every individual email (especially if you're from outside their district).
PLEASE email Tim Miley at tim.miley@wvhouse.gov even if you're not from West Virginia. My concern is that it's already passed through the Senate and only has one more place to be voted through before we're in real trouble. West Virginia doesn't seem to be real well represented on these forums, so please don't let us fall through the cracks!
If you go to the USARK website and email in bulk from there, most emails are getting bounced back so it appears as if they have been blocked. You'll need to make this email from your own email address. This is the standard USARK letter if you want to use it:
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Delegate Miley and Committee Members,
As a resident/stakeholder in the West Virginia reptile community I appreciate your concern for public safety and environmental protection. However, your proposed bill is far too over reaching in regards to reptiles. Who ever assisted in the construction of the bill doesn't understand the natural history, captive husbandry nor the economics of reptiles in WV. Most of these animals are tropical in nature and cannot survive the cold temperatures that prevail 3 seasons of the year in our state. The idea that these animals pose an invasive species threat to WV natural resources is unsupportable by fact. Additionally, these animals have never posed a public safety threat in WV or elsewhere.
The reptile industry represents $15 million annually in commerce in West Virginia. Thousands make their living in this State because of this business. To cavalierly destroy this non-traditional agricultural interest because of a fundamental lack of understanding is unacceptable. As written, this bill will hurt me and my family. It is bad idea to kill jobs in this kind of economy.
Working with certain reptiles entails a moderate occupational risk, but historically and statistically, reptiles represent virtually zero public safety risk. Dogs account for 35 deaths a year in this country (a dozen in 2012 to date). Captive reptiles less than one per year. Traditional livestock and pets have proven much more of a public safety risk than reptiles. According to US Fish & Wildlife and US Geological Services studies, the rare event of a death as the result of a captive reptile falls into the category of occupational hazard. There is no record whatsoever of a captive reptile creating any measurable risk to the public... NEVER!
Neighboring Virginia has already seen the wisdom in reconsidering such an ill advised bill. Please remove ALL reptiles from SB477. Thank you.
Thank you.
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