Social Compassion in Legislation

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Social Compassion in Legislation (SCIL) is a political animal advocacy organization based in Laguna Beach, California and operating in the state capital of Sacramento. The organization is classified as a 501(c)(4) political advocacy nonprofit focused on animal welfare and animal rights. It sponsors and works to shepherd through the California legislature bills aimed at reducing pet overpopulation, protecting and saving companion animals and wildlife, encouraging the humane treatment of all animals, eliminating all forms of animal cruelty, conserving the environment and promoting veganism.

SCIL is the only organization active in California that focuses specifically on advancing legislation to protect animal rights and reduce or prevent pet overpopulation.

Founding

SCIL was founded in 2007 by Judie Mancuso to support legislation to reduce pet overpopulation in California.

Per its mission statement, SCIL seeks to “save and protect animals in the wild, on the farm and in homes through public policy advocacy in California and beyond.” Mancuso’s inspiration to start the organization came from a trip she took to Louisiana to volunteer to help animals left without homes after Hurricane Katrina. She returned to California convinced that the state had a pet overpopulation problem it needed to tackle before a major catastrophe struck there.. In 2018, SCIL further expanded its mission to include sponsoring or supporting a broader array of bills including legislation focused on environmental conservation and plant-based living.

Legislative History and Key Campaigns

Between 2007 and 2023, SCIL sponsored 63 bills, of which 24 were signed into law – 23 in California and one in New York. Over the same period, nine SCIL-sponsored bills were adopted by the California legislature then vetoed by the governor, 18 died in committee, four were tabled, and seven were tabled due to Covid-19.

SCIL was notably behind the landmark laws that made California: the first state in the nation to ban the sale of mill-bred animals in pet stores (Assembly Bill 485, Pet Rescue and Adoption Act, authored by Patrick O’Donnell); the first state in the nation to ban the sale of cosmetics and personal hygiene products tested on animals (Senate Bill 1249, California Cruelty-Free Cosmetics Act, authored by Cathleen Galgiani and cosponsored with the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine); the third state in the nation to ban the use of wild animals in circuses (Senate Bill 313 authored by Ben Hueso) after New Jersey and Hawaii; and the first state in the nation to ban fur trapping (Assembly Bill 273, Wildlife Protection Act, authored by Lorena Gonzalez and cosponsored with the Center for Biological Diversity). The Cruelty-Free Cosmetics Act is credited with leading 12 other states to ban the sale of animal-tested cosmetics and personal hygiene products and even with influencing China’s policy for approving cosmetics for in-store sale in its domestic market.

Process and activities

SCIL comes up with ideas for laws relating to animal or environmental protection then seeks out one or more lawmakers to author the legislation. In some instances, a legislator who has an idea for an animal or environmental bill may approach SCIL and ask it to be the main sponsor or cosponsor. SCIL works with lawmakers from both parties and has had sponsored bills signed into law by Republicans and Democrats.

Once a sponsored bill has been introduced, SCIL works through its 501(c)(3), Social Compassion, to raise public awareness about the issue the bill addresses. SCIL hires lobbyists to help make the case for its sponsored bills to lawmakers, and mobilizes its supporters to call or email their legislators about the legislation or to attend committee hearings. It may help find experts and affected parties to offer testimony at committee hearings.

Press coverage

Given the groundbreaking and at times controversial nature of certain sponsored bills, and the intense opposition they face, certain SCIL legislative campaigns have received international press coverage. The organization’s first major sponsored bill, Assembly Bill 1634, the California Healthy Pets Act, introduced in 2007 by Assemblymember Lloyd Levine, would have required that most dogs and cats in California be spayed or neutered by six months of age. The first of its kind in the nation, the bill received media attention from local to national to international outlets including CNN and the BBC. Active supporters of the bill included Bob Barker, Lionel Richie and Keely Shaye Brosnan. Opponents, which included breeders, gun groups and farm interests, branded the bill the “Pet Extinction Act” and claimed it would eventually mean the end of all dogs and cats in California. The bill’s ultimate defeat, after a two-year battle, was chronicled in an L.A. Times article entitled, “The Political Education of Judie Mancuso.”

In 2015, SCIL sponsored AB 1965, which made it legal for California restaurants to allow dogs in outdoor seating areas provided that certain safety measures are taken and unless prohibited by a local ordinance. This successful legislative effort led to numerous articles being published across the US and in other countries with headlines like “Bone appétit” and “Fido Al Frecso.” The Economist’s coverage of the story included a cartoon showing two dogs seated at a table with a white linen tablecloth, being treated like royalty. A similar “Dining with Dogs” bill was passed the following year in New York, an effort also led by SCIL.

SCIL’s vanguard sponsored bill mandating that only dogs, cats and rabbits from shelters and rescue centers be sold in California pet stores was widely discussed in the US and UK^[media.

SCIL's sponsored bill banning the sale of animal-tested cosmetics and personal hygiene products in California was the first of its kind in the country, and was thus widely covered in the press, including beauty trade journals. It has since been copied in ten other states, and as of 2023, the U.S. Congress is considering a federal ban

In 2019, Judie Mancuso was included in the Orange County Register’s annual list of the 100 most influential people in the county, ranking in the top ten. The profile that ran, entitled “If Animals Could Vote, Judie Mancuso Would Be President,” touched on SCIL’s most notable successes that year, including a bill authored by Assemblymember Brian Maienschein that took effect in 2020, adding seven new types of animal skins to the list of skins that cannot be sold in California. The profile also discussed the veto by Governor Gavin Newsom of a bill that would have required microchipping of all shelter pets before they are reclaimed or rehomed. SCIL had introduced a previous version of the bill in 2011, authored by then-State Senator and current U.S. Representative Ted Lieu. A slightly modified version authored by state Senator Ling Ling Chang was reintroduced in 2020 and signed into law, meaning that all animals leaving California shelters are now systematically microchipped.

Other notable legislative campaigns

SCIL sponsored a series of bills that led to the launch in 2012 of the Pet Lover’s Specialty License Plate, with artwork specifically designed for the plate and donated in perpetuity by James Bond actor Pierce Brosnan. Funds generated by sales and renewals of the specialty plate go to low- and no-cost spay and neuter initiatives across California. By 2023, the plate had granted out more than $2 million through the California Department of Food and Agriculture to organizations providing spay and neuter services.

Senate Bill 1138, authored by Nancy Skinner, sponsored by SCIL and signed into law by Governor Jerry Brown in 2018, requires California’s state-run healthcare facilities and prisons to offer plant-based meal options to patients and inmates.  Assembly Bill 558, authored by Adrin Nazarian and sponsored by SCIL, creates financial incentives for California public schools to offer plant-based meal and beverage options.

In addition to bills, SCIL has sponsored a number of resolutions.

-        One adopted in 2015 called for the California Education Code to be revised to include the principles of humane treatment of pets and wildlife in school curricula (Humane Education, HR 28);

-       One adopted in 2015 made the shelter animal California’s official state pet (Official State Pet, ACR 56);

-        The Pet Crisis Response Resolution, introduced in 2023, lays out a series of actions to be taken to address persistent pet overpopulation in the state. It was introduced with support from a large number of legislators from both parties as well as celebrities including Priscilla Presley (ACR 86).

Affiliated Nonprofits

Social Compassion, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, founded in 2007 concomitantly with SCIL. The organization notably acts through humane education programs, rapid response media campaigns, and support for spay and neuter programs in the state of California and throughout the nation.

Compassion PAC is a political action committee that researches and interviews candidates and endorses those who are committed to advocating for laws that protect animals and the environment. The committee raises funds that it contributes directly to endorsed candidates’ campaigns.

The California Spay and Neuter License Plate Fund, Inc. is a nonprofit organization formed in 2010 specifically for the purpose of selling 7,500 pre-orders for the to-be-created Pet Lover’s specialty license plate, proceeds from which would  provide funding for free and low-cost spay and neuter in California to reduce the number of dogs and cats ending up in shelters each year. The 7,500 pre-orders were booked and transferred to the California Department of Motor Vehicles in 2013. The Fund remains a legally active nonprofit as the owner of the artwork used on the license plate, but no longer plays a role in administering the program.

Partners

SCIL has at various times teamed up with other organizations to support legislation that protects animals and the environment or to defeat legislation that it considers harmful. In addition to the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine and the Center for Biological Diversity, its past partners include the National Resources Defense Council (NRDC), People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), and the Animal Legal Defense Fund.

Board of Directors

Notable members of the SCIL Board of Directors include:

Judie Mancuso, CEO, founder and president. Besides her work with SCIL, Mancuso served two terms as a public member of the California Veterinary Medical Board (2010-2018) and has served on the Laguna Beach Environmental Sustainability Committee as Vice-Chair and Acting Chair since 2019.

Nickolaus Sackett formerly practiced tax and corporate law in New York, before being hired as SCIL’s Director of Legislative Affairs in 2018.

Diane Keaton, American actress and filmmaker and animal rights champion, has been on the SCIL board since 2019.

Maggie Q, American actress and model, has been on the SCIL board since 2019. She has earned numerous awards for her animal rights advocacy, including her work with PETA.

Simone Reyes, renowned animal rights activist, is SCIL’s Vice-President of Communications.

Leah Sturgis, wildlife activist and independent film producer and director, is SCIL’s Vice-President of Wildlife Protection.

Genesis Butler, also known as the “Amazing Animal Ally”, is a youth activist, Young Marvel Hero and animal rights and plant-based diet activist. She joined the SCIL board in 2021 at the age of 14.

Haze Lynn, founder of Take Me Home Rescue, has been a SCIL board member since 2007.

Louise Linton, Scottish actress, prominent animal rights advocate and wife of former US treasury secretary Steve Mnuchin, has been a SCIL board member since 2019.

Other past board members include Katie Cleary, founder of Peace 4 Animals and creator and producer of World Animal News, and Karen “Doc” Halligan, renowned veterinarian and author.

References

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