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SECOND REGULAR SESSION
HOUSE BILL NO. 2822
103RD GENERAL ASSEMBL Y
INTRODUCED BY REPRESENT A TIVE DOLL.
6279H.01I JOSEPH ENGLER, Chief Clerk
AN ACT
T o repeal section 578.012, RSMo, and to enact in lieu thereof two new sections relating to
animal abuse, with penalty provisions.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the state of Missouri, as follows:
Section A. Section 578.012, RSMo, is repealed and two new sections enacted in lieu
2 thereof, to be known as sections 578.012 and 589.760, to read as follows:
578.012. 1. A person commits the of fense of animal abuse if he or she:
2 (1) Intentionally or purposely kills an animal in any manner not allowed by or
3 expressly exempted from the provisions of sections 578.005 to 578.023 and 273.030;
4 (2) Purposely or intentionally causes injury or suf fering to an animal; or
5 (3) Having ownership or custody of an animal knowingly fails to provide adequate
6 care which results in substantial harm to the animal.
7 2. Animal abuse is a class [ A misdemeanor ] E felony , unless the defendant has
8 previously been found guilty of animal abuse or the suf fering involved in subdivision (2) of
9 subsection 1 of this section is the result of torture or mutilation consciously inflicted while the
10 animal was alive, in which case it is a class [ E ] D felony .
589.760. 1. The pr ovisions of this section shall be known and may be cited as the
2 "Missouri Animal Abuser Registration Act".
3 2. As used in this section, the following terms shall mean:
4 (1) "Abuser" or "animal abuser", a person who has been convicted in this state
5 of committing an animal abuse offense;
6 (2) "Animal", a companion animal, not including livestock or wildlife;
7 (3) "Animal abuse offense":
EXPLANA TION — Matter enclosed in bold-faced brackets [thus] in the above bill is not enacted and is
intended to be omitted from the law . Matter in bold-face type in the above bill is proposed language.
8 (a) Animal abuse under section 578.012;
9 (b) Dogfighting under section 578.025 if the person's act constitutes a felony;
10 (c) Bullbaiting or cockfighting under section 578.050; or
11 (d) Sex with an animal under section 566.1 1 1;
12 (4) "Companion animal", any live dog of the species Canis familiaris or live cat
13 of the species Felis catus;
14 (5) "Conviction", a judgment enter ed by a Missouri court upon a plea of guilty ,
15 a plea of nolo contender e, or a finding of guilt by a jury or the court, notwithstanding
16 any pending appeal or habeas corpus proc eeding arising fr om the judgment.
17 3. Beginning January 1, 2028, the Missouri state highway patrol shall post a
18 publicly accessible list on its website of any person convicted of an animal abuse offense
19 on or after such date. The list shall include a photograph taken of each convicted
20 animal abuser as part of the booking pr ocess, the animal abuser's full legal name, and
21 other identifying data as the highway patr ol determines is necessary to prop erly identify
22 the animal abuser and to exclude innocent persons. The list shall not include the animal
23 abuser's Social Security number , driver's license number , or any other state or federal
24 identification number .
25 4. All cir cuit court clerks shall forward a copy of the judgment and date of birth
26 of all persons convicted of an animal abuse offense to the Missouri state highway patr ol
27 within sixty calendar days of the date of judgment.
28 5. Upon a person's first conviction for an animal abuse offense, the Missouri
29 state highway patrol shall maintain the person's name and other identifying information
30 on the list under subsection 3 of this section for two years following the date of
31 conviction, after which time the highway patrol shall r emove the person's name and
32 identifying information fr om the list, pr ovided that the person is not convicted of
33 another animal abuse offense during such two-year period.
34 6. Upon a person's second or subsequent conviction for an animal abuse offense,
35 the Missouri state highway patr ol shall maintain the person's name and other
36 identifying information on the list under subsection 3 of this section for five years
37 following the date of the most recen t conviction, after which time the highway patr ol
38 shall rem ove the person's name and identifying information fr om the list, prov ided that
39 the person is not convicted of another animal abuse offense during such five-year
40 period.
41 7. The Missouri state highway patrol shall r emove the person's name and
42 identifying information fro m the reg istry list if the sole offense that subjected the person
43 to the pro visions of this section is expunged.
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44 8. The Missouri state highway patrol may pr omulgate rules and reg ulations to
45 implement the prov isions of this section. Any rule or portion of a rule, as that term is
46 defined in section 536.010, that is cr eated under the authority delegated in this section
47 shall become effective only if it complies with and is subject to all of the provi sions of
48 chapter 536 and, if applicable, section 536.028. This section and chapter 536 are
49 nonseverable and if any of the powers vested with the general assembly pursuant to
50 chapter 536 to review , to delay the effective date, or to disappr ove and annul a rule ar e
51 subsequently held unconstitutional, then the grant of rulemaking authority and any rule
52 pr oposed or adopted after August 28, 2026, shall be invalid and void.
✔
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