Senate advances House Bill 95 with grandfathering amendment after debate over raccoon and coyote pets

The Utah Senate moved House Bill 95 forward to the third-reading calendar after extended debate over public-health and wildlife risks and a floor amendment to grandfather existing captives.

Proponents from the Division of Wildlife Resources testified that raccoons and coyotes pose potential disease and ecological risks and recommended excluding animals already held in captivity from a future prohibition. Bob Hoschneger of the Division testified that "it would be our intent ... to exclude those animals that are currently held in captivity until the death or until that animal passes away," and urged caution about perpetuating captive populations.

Public witnesses, including rehabilitator Sherry Larson, urged protections for current owners and argued the bill as drafted could force euthanasia or confiscation. Larson read a prepared statement telling senators the bill in its original form "does not allow veterinarians to treat raccoons or coyotes without being penalized," and asked that existing owners be grandfathered in.

After floor discussion, the Senate adopted a new section reading, in part, "This section does not prohibit a person from continuing to keep a raccoon or coyote that he owns as of the effective date of this act." The amendment was adopted and the bill was placed on the third-reading calendar; the clerk recorded the second-reading action as 17 ayes and 6 nays.

Senators noted open questions remaining about enforcement, veterinary exceptions and county-level regulations; the Division of Wildlife Resources and Department of Agriculture remained available to help craft the final text during the committee and third-reading process.

The amendment narrows the bill's immediate impact by allowing current owners to retain animals already in captivity, while maintaining the bill's prohibition on new possession if the House ultimately concurs with the Senate's language.