Advocacy

In Your Corner: Legal Clarity, Legislative Strength

New York State Veterinary Medical Society

2026 Legislative Agenda

The NYSVMS mission is to lead New York State veterinarians through education, advancement and protection of animal wellness, public health, and the veterinary medical profession and we work to make sure that New Yorkers have access to the highest caliber veterinary care available in the most cost-effective way. As part of working to achieve those goals, NYSVMS monitors state legislation and regulations and, as necessary, engages in advocacy with regard to specific issues of interest.

The New York State legislature has two-year sessions; as such, legislation introduced in the first year of the legislative session is still “live” and ripe for action in the second year without needing to be reintroduced. The session (January-June 2026) is the second year of the current legislative session, so all bills monitored by NYSVMS in 2025 remain “live” and ready for action.

Protecting a Veterinarian’s License to Practice Veterinary Medicine

Position Statement: NYSVMS urges the legislature to work carefully to balance the interests of animals with legislation that implements mandates on the performance of medical procedures by licensed veterinarians. Veterinarians are educated and trained to act in the best interest of their patients and medical decisions should be left to the discretion of professionals operating within the appropriate standards of practice.

For years, the New York State legislature has introduced legislation (S.3026 - Senator Gianaris/A.8551 - Assemblyman Dais) that would prohibit bark softening in dogs unless performed by a veterinarian where the procedure is medically necessary for a dog. NYSVMS strongly believes bark softening is a medical decision which should be left to the sound discretion of fully trained, licensed, and state supervised veterinary professionals operating within appropriate standards of practice. Further, NYSVMS already discourages bark softening unless the procedure is medically necessary for a dog, is a last alternative to euthanasia, or when the animal will be surrendered by the owner if the procedure is not performed. Therefore, NYSVMS believes the determination to perform bark softening should be done on a case-by-case basis where specifics of the situation can be reviewed and evaluated, rather than having a ban placed on the procedure altogether.
Legislation that would restrict the use of medically important antimicrobials in food-producing animals (S.3220 - Senator Kavanagh/A.1667 - Assemblywoman Rosenthal) has been introduced for the last several years in New York. This bill has the potential to restrict the practice of food animal veterinarians in a manner that could have a detrimental impact on animal welfare. NYSVMS looks forward to continued discussions on this bill and the opportunity to continue to educate legislators about the use of medically important antimicrobials in food-producing animals and the guidelines already followed by veterinarians to ensure use only as necessary.

Increasing Opportunities for New York Veterinarians

Position Statement: NYSVMS supports legislative and regulatory efforts that will make it less administratively burdensome to become a veterinarian and to keep up with professional requirements.

Acceptance of RACE-approved coursework to fill New York CE requirements is something that NYSVMS members have raised repeatedly. Allowing RACE coursework for credit in New York would afford licensed veterinarians flexibility and the opportunity to learn about topics not offered by a New York provider but relevant to overall practice.
It is widely reported that veterinarians often carry a great deal of educational debt, and that there are difficulties in recruiting and retaining veterinarians in many areas of the state and among many specialties and subspecialties. NYSVMS supports efforts by the legislature to create loan forgiveness opportunities and address veterinary shortages and will work to ensure that these opportunities are created in a way that is most helpful to veterinarians and veterinary students.

Protecting Veterinarians from Liability

Animal Guardianship

Position Statement: NYSVMS opposes any legislation regarding animal guardianship.

For well over a decade, New York legislators have sponsored a bill (A.1344 - Assemblywoman Glick) that would establish a cause of action for the wrongful injury or death of a companion animal and provide for injunctive relief and compensatory and punitive damages. While NYSVMS understands and supports the protection and quality care of animals and believes that those intentionally harming an animal should be subject to punishment, the concern with this legislation is that it could unfairly penalize veterinarians for routine care, treatment, or invasive procedures with unintended negative results. NYSVMS strongly opposes this legislation based on its potential detrimental impact on veterinarians and the increased costs that could result from lawsuits filed pursuant to this proposed cause of action.

Protecting Animal Welfare and Supporting Allied Welfare Organizations

Position Statement: NYSVMS will continue to advocate for laws and regulations that protect animal welfare in New York State.

NYSVMS supports efforts to crack down on illegal horseracing activities like those seen at bush tracks around the country. While New York State currently has a strong regulatory structure surrounding horseracing, practitioners must be vigilant about disregard for these regulations and work to ensure that horses entering and leaving racing work in New York State are protected.
Recently amended regulations promulgated by the New York State Department of Health regarding the ability to euthanize wildlife have created welfare and access to care issues; NYSVMS intends to engage with relevant state agency staff to ensure that regulatory guidance does not unnecessarily restrict the abilities of veterinarians to follow appropriate protocol.
NYSVMS looks forward to continuing to support allied animal welfare organizations in their efforts to ensure protection for pets. This includes effective implementation of the regulations supporting the Shelter Standards Act and related legislation to make necessary changes to the law.