Speak up- The Goverment is trying to regulate chicken owners

[U_Stormcrow]

https://www.regulations.gov/document/APHIS-2020-0068-8062

WAY down near the bottom is the proposed changes to the text. Search

"Part 1 Definition of Terms
1. The authority citation for part 1 continues to read as follows:" to get there faster.

While they altered a number of definitions, they left the exemptions (largely) alone. They are targeting breeders [of parakeets, budgies, parrots, etc -like birds], not producers of food as some of the summary paragraphs suggested. and while they are also including "exhibitors", the exhibitor definition excludes county fairs and similar where we backyard owners would most likely be found.

Exhibitor means any person (public or private) exhibiting any animals, which were purchased in commerce or the intended distribution of which affects commerce, or will affect commerce, to the public for compensation, as determined by the Secretary. This term includes carnivals, circuses, animal acts (including free-flighted bird shows), zoos, and educational exhibits, exhibiting such animals whether operated for profit or not. This term excludes retail pet stores, horse, dog, and pigeon races, an owner of a common, domesticated household pet who derives less than a substantial portion of income from a nonprimary source (as determined by the Secretary) for exhibiting an animal that exclusively resides at the residence of the pet owner, organizations sponsoring and all persons participating in State and country fairs, livestock shows, rodeos, field trials, coursing events, purebred dog and cat shows, bird fancier shows, and any other fairs or exhibitions intended to advance agricultural arts and sciences, as may be determined by the Secretary.

My egg sales won't bring me under this regulation, nor will showing my birds at the local faire, and it looks like they are going to assume chickens are "used or intended for use as food or fiber [or feathers]", and thus sales of them will be exempted as well, even if they ultimately end up as pets. Also, the rabbits I will be bringing on property in two months.

Well, I feel MUCH better.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

Quite the opposite. Wickard was about the federal government regulating the growing of wheat for consumption by one's own family. That bears little to no resemblance to the regulations under discussion here.

Was in response to someone making a "non-commercial" distinction. My point was that non-commercial isn't the shield that it once was.

 

[DParker75089]

Was in response to someone making a "non-commercial" distinction. My point was that non-commercial isn't the shield that it once was.

Yes, that someone was me. And as I said before, the issue was not that the fed.gov can't regulate non-business activity, but that in this case it isn't trying to regulate backyard chicken raising (the addition on my part of "non-business" was, in hindsight, gratuitous and not even necessary to the point.)

 

[U_Stormcrow]

Yes, that someone was me. And as I said before, the issue was not that the fed.gov can't regulate non-business activity, but that in this case it isn't trying to regulate backyard chicken raising (the addition on my part of "non-business" was, in hindsight, gratuitous and not even necessary to the point.)

Yes, and my mistake was believing them when they porovided this summary (which I c/p'd on page three as I worked my way thru the text, so people could follow my thinking)

"In a final rule published on June 4, 2004 in the Federal Register (69 FR 31513-31514, Docket No. 98-106-3), we amended the definition of animal in the AWA regulations to make it consistent with the revised definition of animal in the Act by limiting the exclusion to only those birds bred for use in research ( i.e., breeding stock). On the same date, we published an advance notice of proposed rulemaking (69 FR 31537-31541, Docket No. 98-106-4) notifying the public that we intended to extend enforcement of the AWA to birds not bred for use in research that are sold as pets at the wholesale level, or transported in commerce, or used for exhibition, research, teaching, testing, or experimentation purposes."
[...]

which made no mention of an exception for birds used primarily as feed, but rather appeared to effectively remove all exemptions apart from those applicable to birds being used for research. A summary which appeared to be reinforced by numerous comments regarding the input they recieved during the proposed rulemaking.

As I have maintained all along, the summary is poorly written. I should have jumped straight to the text of the proposed rule, and skipped the agency summary entire. That was my error.

 

[SpicyDisaster]

Well that was an emotional roller coaster. I haven't finished reading this yet, takes a bit for my data analytics brain to wrap around legal jargon. What I'm gathering from the above is the my intention to breed and hatch chicks for sale AND selling eggs won't fall under this regulation. With our current flock of 13 I could manage records but couldn't afford vet visits for them all.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

Well that was an emotional roller coaster. I haven't finished reading this yet, takes a bit for my data analytics brain to wrap around legal jargon. What I'm gathering from the above is the my intention to breed and hatch chicks for sale AND selling eggs won't fall under this regulation. With our current flock of 13 I could manage records but couldn't afford vet visits for them all.

I feel the same - and like I've shortened my life by at least a month with concern. I'll have a new white hair or two from this.

 

[Alicethewhiterabbit]

Any updates on this bill??

 

[BlueBaby]

I had my DH go to the link's to read to see if we might be included. He spent a long time reading through it. He said that they are basically saying that if you sell the bird's and make $500.00 a year or more that they could get you. He said that I should tell the people here that if they send a comment to suggest that they raise the amount to maybe $1000.00 a year so that it could help more of the smaller breeder's.

 

[Tookie]

All of this is just downright awful, I don't quite understand it all but I know none of it is good.

 

[TheOddOneOut]

TL;DR.

Can someone dumb this down for me?
As an owner of six female chickens whose sole purpose is as pets (though, we do eat the eggs), if this law was passed, what would happen to my flock? Would they need inspecting, banding, etc? Would I have to get rid of two of my hens?