John Kavanagh

John Kavanagh is an Arizona state senator and former state representative who has pioneered a variety of veterinary-related legislation. Considered by some to be Arizona's most humane legislator, his campaign website notes that he won "Legislator of the Year" from the Humane Society of the United States three times. He was also endorsed as a "Champion for Animals" by Humane Voters of Arizona for nine years. A prolific legislator, many of his animal-focused proposals tend to further empower pet interests relative to the general public.

In 2023 Kavanagh introduced a bill to modify the composition of the Arizona state veterinary board. SB 1934 would have expanded the state veterinary board from 9 to 11 members. One slot was reserved for a board-certified veterinarian while the other was reserved for "a member of a humane society." The board-certified veterinarian specified no specialty and no guarantee that their specialist expertise would be relevant to a particular case; boarded specialists on the Investigative Committees dismissed complaints at the same rate as others. The humane society position also appears to be a curious addition. The state's largest, the Arizona Humane Society, currently has a plurality on the board with former AHS veterinarian Robyn Jaynes and current AHS vet Melissa Thompson serving on the board alongside former AHS community engagement manager Jessica Creager and AHS volunteer Jane Soloman. Former board member and deputized animal rape investigator Nancy Bradley-Siemens also hailed from the AHS while public member Julie Young was an AAWL volunteer. The board's voting history speaks for itself; if anything, it makes you wonder about the people in the humane societies.

Not content with creating even more carveouts on the state veterinary board, he also planned to offload more of the entire state's regulatory apparatus onto the taxpayers. SB 1386 would have waived licensing fees for licensed professionals throughout the state. Rather, this staunch conservative proposed allocating $32 million (yes, you read that right!) from the state's general fund to counter the loss in user fees.

Kavanagh was quoted in an Arizona Mirror article, Anybody with a set of clippers: Pet groomers are totally unregulated in Arizona by Jerod Macdonald-Evoy. The story focused on a cat who had suffered serious burns, underwent surgery, and later died as a result of a grooming disaster, mentioning similar incidents reported elsewhere. Noting that "salons, barber shops, restaurants, tattoo parlors" and similar establishments currently have at least some regulation, several commentators in the story pointed out the curious hole in our broad regulatory state. Kavanagh responded that there's a trend toward less government regulation, stating that incidents such as the one described are rare and best handled "within the industry" and suggesting self-regulation and "industry policing" to solve it.

Along with "industry policing" Kavanagh appears to support involving ambulance-chasing lawyers in defense of Arizona pets. SB 1383, introduced in 2023, would have permitted Arizonans to sue veterinarians in private court. However, the bill would have only permitted lawsuits for two narrowly-defined provisions relating to nondisclosure of health information or injuries from unlicensed staff; if a veterinarian killed your pet in any other way, you'd have no right to sue. Despite a narrowly-targeted bill focused on a couple of special cases, the legislation failed to advance from committee after a targeted ambush by Arizona veterinarians and attorney David Stoll.

Kavanagh's SB 1067 chartered a commission during the 2023 session to develop new animal control standards for the entire state of Arizona. His proposed joint study committee would consist of four politicians, six members from state animal control groups, four members from humane societies, and a veterinarian from a veterinary college appointed by the state veterinary board. Aside from the veterinarian appointed by the board, all other members of the study committee would be appointed by the top politicians of the state house and senate. That same year he introduced SB 1059, which expanded the legal definition of "animal shelter" to include "an animal rescue organization or a for-profit organization that adopts or sells animals." His next bill, SB 1060, codified that fostering a pet for such "animal shelters" are not "owners" (and would therefore have no standing with respect to their foster pets).

Prior to his Senate career, Kavanagh introduced HB 2355 in 2022. This legislation proposed a statewide animal abuser registry similar to a sex offender registry. Sadly, the legislation contained no moral conscience protections for those convicted of animal abuse regarding end-of-life care and euthanasia, much less a sanity check on the humane sector. Our Tails of Woe contain several accounts of legitimate differences in values that could have put people on Kavanagh's list: 18-05, 20-51, 20-116, 21-111, 21-42, 21-43, 22-50, 22-56, 22-121, and 22-129 are notable cases.

Kavanagh was endorsed by Nancy Barto, the legislator who passed a law disappearing disciplinary actions for licensed professionals from all government websites after a mere five years.

Kavanagh remains in the Arizona Senate.