NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A5139
SPONSOR: Brown K TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the agriculture and markets law, in relation to regis-
tration of backyard chicken coops
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
Requires residential property owners to register backyard chicken coops
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1: The agriculture and markets law is amended by adding a new
section 385.
Section 2: Establishes the effective date.
JUSTIFICATION:
Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, a growing number of New York-
ers have turned to the practice of building chicken coops in order to
have a fresh and cheap source of chicken eggs While these backyard
chicken coops are beneficial to families, they also pose a risk for both
public health and the poultry industry through the transmission of avian
flu. The recent outbreaks of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI A)
in the Mid-Western United States have proven catastrophic for the poul-
try industry, leaving approximately 40 million chickens and 8 million
turkeys dead and costing the poultry industry approximately 3.3 billion
dollars, as well as over 950 million taxpayer dollars from the United
States Department of Agriculture in dealing with these outbreaks. This
highly infectious disease not only has the potential to severely hurt
New York's 86-million-dollar poultry industry, but also become another
public health crisis. HPAI A has already been detected in various wild
birds, mammals and in some cases humans who had recent contact with
poultry. While human infections are rare, the mortality rates can be as
high as nearly 50 percent. This bill will require the registration of
backyard chicken coops with the local municipality to help monitor
outbreaks of avian diseases and more effectively track same in order to
combat their spread and protect both New Yorkers and the poultry indus-
try.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2023-24: A.6187
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:
None
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
5139
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
February 12, 2025
___________
Introduced by M. of A. K. BROWN -- read once and referred to the Commit-
tee on Agriculture
AN ACT to amend the agriculture and markets law, in relation to regis-
tration of backyard chicken coops
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The agriculture and markets law is amended by adding a new
2 section 387 to read as follows:
3 § 387. Backyard chicken coop registration. 1. Any person who owns a
4 chicken coop on their residential property shall register such chicken
5 coop with the municipality in which their property is located on a form
6 to be prescribed by the commissioner. Such registration shall be
7 conducted within thirty days of establishing such chicken coop.
8 2. Municipalities shall regularly send an updated list of all regis-
9 tered residential chicken coops to the New York farm bureau. The New
10 York farm bureau shall create and maintain an online database of all
11 registered residential chicken coops in the state and shall contact all
12 residential property owners listed in such database upon the documented
13 outbreak of disease affecting residential chicken coops.
14 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD08056-01-5
