Bill Brant on HR669 and NRIP

[Albey]

This week there have been posts on the Forum pertaining to HR669 and NRIP. Some of them have been quite negative (this happened mostly over at Kingsnake), to PIJAC and to some of the large Breeders. This morning I received a letter from Bill Brant with his comments on these topics. For those of you who do not know Bill he is the owner of the Gourmet Rodent. He would most assuredly be considered one of the large Breeders.

I first met Bill at the 1994 National Reptile Breeders Expo when I purchased some of the finest Leopard Geckos I had ever seen. I have considered him and his wife Marcia friends ever since. When ever I had a question about husbandry or any thing else he was always glad to help. Any body that has met him at the National Reptile Breeders Expo over the years can attest to the kind of person he is. He has been fighting the good fight for a long time so I will let him take over now. Here is his letter.

April 30, 2009

Hello Fellow Herpers,
In recent days there have been many comments on topics related to HR669, so I decided to make a few of my own. If you care to, please forward this letter on to others as food for thought. My name is Bill Brant, and my wife and I own The Gourmet Rodent. I have been on the board of directors for the Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council (PIJAC) since March, 2003. I have also represented the Reptile Industry in Florida on the Animal Industry Technical Council (AITC), an advisory council to the Commissioner of Agriculture for the state of Florida.

In recent months our industry has been involved in several high profile pieces of federal legislation, HR669 and S373. HR669 has gotten more attention in recent months because it just came before the House Subcommittee on Insular Affairs, Oceans and Wildlife, but make no mistake, S373 as well as other issues threaten our emerging industry.
I have been encouraged by the outpouring of responses that preceded the hearing on HR669, however I have been saddened and somewhat confused by the responses I have seen on several of the forums by the leadership in the industry.
My confusion is because many posts indicate that HR669 is dead in the water. To my knowledge, that is not the case. At the end of the hearing, Rep. Bordallo stated that there would be a ten day comment period. I have seen nothing official that states anything other than the bill is still in progress, http://resourcescommittee.house.gov/...view&extid=246).

Even if it is going to undergo a significant revision, or a re-write, I believe our industry should offer to help come to a reasonable compromise, rather than dig our heels in and take the position of no compromise. If we do that, we may find out that we are in the minority, and get out voted. I also think it is unwise to prematurely claim victory at this point in time. We may have gotten their attention, and earned their respect for having garnered so much grassroots support, however to “crow” about victory prematurely could cause them to take a more unyielding position when it comes down to the compromises they are willing to concede to.

I am saddened by the misinformation that is abundant in recent posts on forums. Especially when it comes to the intent and impact of the National Reptile Improvement Plan (NRIP). To understand its intent, you need to understand its inception. It came about as a result of the “Tick Symposium” held in July 2000 in Tallahassee, FL. The Tick meeting came about because regulators in the Florida Department of Agriculture and the US Department of Agriculture were responding to the “Heartwater Scare” of 1999. Ticks carrying the bacterium that causes Heartwater Disease, a very fatal disease for ruminant animals such as cattle, sheep and deer, were found on imported Leopard Tortoises. At the time, FDOACS and USDA had no idea who the reptile industry was, so they sponsored the symposium to see who would show up.

PIJAC and many concerned herpers showed up to try to limit the action of USDA and FDOACS to just the reptiles that could be carrying the vector ticks. It became apparent at the symposium that our industry would need Best Management Practices and Standard Operating Procedures in order to have credibility in the eyes of our regulators. That is the reason why NRIP was drafted, not to create an elite group of larger reptile dealers and breeders. It took three years, and was open to anyone who showed an interest in participating in the process. We welcomed all the help we could get.

In June 2008, we convened a group of interested herpers at the PIJAC office in Washington, DC to review the NRIP document for potential amendments. One of the topics we addressed was making the program more user friendly for smaller reptile breeders of all types, sizes and descriptions. Most importantly, I want to emphasize that it is PIJAC’s desire to have NRIP be a voluntary program. I think it is interesting to see the similarity between the “code of ethics” of NCARK (the precursor of USARK) , and the NRIP program. Please take time to check them out. http://www.ncark.org/ethics.php http://pijac.org/projects/project.asp?p=28

A final reason why I am saddened is the seeming rivalry between USARK and PIJAC. I suspect that this is the result of one being a forty year old organization, and the other being a one year old organization. I am a member of both organizations, and urge you to do the same. They both have something to add to our common cause. USARK is young and reptile specific. PIJAC is seasoned and has been the “go to” resource for regulators and legislators for decades. As far as I can tell, the desired outcome of both organizations is to have a workable set of regulations that enable people to pursue their passion for reptiles while providing protection for the environment, public health and safeguards for people in our communities that don’t share our enthusiasm for reptiles. PIJAC’s position on HR669 is included here: http://pijac.org/governmentaffairs/hr669forum.asp I think our interests would be better served if we focused on solving the legislative challenges we all face in a unified manner. Please consider what I have said. I look forward to seeing many of you at the Daytona Expo, or the NARBC shows that I attend.

Sincerely,
Bill Brant
The Gourmet Rodent

[kc261]

Albey, thank you very much for posting this here. It seems that Bill Brant is a wise person, and I appreciate hearing his comments.

[mooingtricycle]

I simply wont agree because i personally feel the fee to be a member, to register for the program, and to be acredited is FAR TOO HIGH. Sorry But The hobbyists will be turned away because of this, and i wont support it with those fees as they stand.

Good idea. Dont gouge me for money. It goes towards my animals and my state first and foremost ( if i wanted to have certain permits for species here) .

The application fee is $10.00
"Fees
3.2.1
Accreditation Application Fee shall be paid at the time the application is submitted. The Accreditation Application Fee is applicable to the entity seeking accreditation and is not assessed on a per unit basis if the applicant has multiple locations. The fee schedule is:
a) For PIJAC members, $100
b) For non-PIJAC members, $175
3.2.2
Annual Fees:
In addition to the payment of the initial Application Fee, Participants shall pay an Annual Fee based upon the type of facility as follows:
3.2.2.1 Breeders a) PIJAC member: $100 b) Non-PIJAC members: $200
3.2.2.2 Importers, Wholesalers and Distributors a) PIJAC Members: $200 b) Non-PIJAC members: $350
3.2.2.3 Pet Retailer a) PIJAC member Single store: $50 b) PIJAC Member Multiple stores: $50 for each store for the first 6 units and $10 per unit for each additional unit. c) Non-PIJAC members single store: $100 d) Non-PIJAC Member Multiple stores: $20
3.2.2.4 Event Sponsors: a) PIJAC member $100 b) PIJAC member $200"

http://pijac.org/_documents/nripadoptfinal.pdf Thats the whole document.
The Pijac fees are as follows for an "Affiliate"
"Please check the dues level that best suits your business.
Business Type Dues
Salesperson $55
Veterinarians
Individuals/Single clinic $55 per vet or $100/clinic
Multi-unit clinics $550 + $25/clinic
Hobbyist $50
Allied Industries $550
Clubs & Societies $100"