I am posting my letter to the NM Dept. of Game & Fish. Feel free to customize (especially para 4) and reuse.
You can make a difference here & now!!!
Here are the two places to voice your concerns-
Pat Snyder, Law Enforcement Division, NM Game & Fish
patrick.snyder@state.nm.us (***or write Pat Snyder, Law Enforcement Division, NM Game & Fish, PO Box 25112, Santa Fe, NM 87504
or call Pat at 505-476-8062.)
NM Governor- (email link:
http://www.governor.state.nm.us/emailchoice.php?mm=6 )
(Or write: Office of the Governor 490 Old Santa Fe Trail
Room 400 Santa Fe, NM 87501)
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TO: Pat Snyder, Law Enforcement Division, NM Game & Fish
patrick.snyder@state.nm.us
RE: Comments on 19.35.7 NMAC
CC: NM Governor’s office
1. Why are you attempting to regulate the influx of harmless animals into the state of NM?
These animals have no adverse effect being within the state, they do NOT pose a threat & have (until your very recent proposed enforcement of this "rule") have been imported into the state with out any regulation. How do you intend to enforce this rule that covers a list of animals so extensive as to even apply to Crickets?
I can understand your desire to regulate the importation of animals that would be a threat to NM’s eco-system, but you are well beyond that scope here. Do you even fathom that your "rule" exceeds your mandate? Have you looked at what other states have done? Have you considered a more cost effective approach by stating a specific list of non-native animals that due to ecological impact, it would behoove you to regulate?
2. What are your intentions towards current exotic pet owners whose animals have no permit? This Dept. did not even HAVE a permit to issue back when it first discussed this rule & the intention to enforce it in spring of '07. Are you now going to go door-to-door telling children & adults of NM that their treasured pet can no longer reside with them? Many exotic pet owners are allergic to more conventional pets & owning an exotic pet gives them benefit of animal companionship.
It is not within your power nor should it be to tell a person to ask permission from their local county or township for permission to keep their animal! It is the person's responsibility to ensure that they are not in violation with their local laws. To hinge issuing a permit to an applicant having to ask permission for a thing that local law already permits is at best an excessive hoop for the applicant to jump through & at worse prohibitive to exotic pet ownership as a whole.
Your interference with the rights of individuals by attempting case-by-case approval CLEARLY shows you are anti-pet & anti-pet trade. Your rule is not in the best interests of the people whom you serve, neither the state nor the pet trade itself. It requires nothing less that to be completely stricken from the books until such time as you are willing to narrow your focus to only the non-native animals that may have a negative impact on the state.
3. Have you considered the impact that this rule has- on the NM pet store owner; the distributors; the Exotic pets shows held here; the out of state suppliers? Have you set down and evaluated the impact as the monetary costs of this “rule”? Enforcement will make it financially impossible for NM pet shops to stay in business. And for what benefit is this enforcement of this rule precisely?
4. You have opened this rule to public comment. And I have stated mine. But what you have not done is consider that the rule itself is counterproductive & should be erased- it never belonged in your books to begin with. I have enjoyed residing within this state and I own non-native harmless exotic animals. If you pursue enforcing this rule, I will relocate to another more reasonable state. I doubt you may think that the loss of revenue from my departure to be much, but when you add up all the others who will lose out, I hope you are reasonable enough to see that the cost of this rule well exceeds any benefit.
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