Proponents said legislation advanced by a Senate committee ensures dog breeders are held to a high standard, while allowing pet stores anywhere in the state to sell dogs.

Opponents during Monday’s contentious, three-hour hearing said those standards are vague and the bill undercuts local decisions.

HB 1412 requires pet stores to register with the state and only sell dogs from breeders and brokers who meet a canine care certification program developed by Purdue University, with some exceptions for smaller operations.

John Troyer is an animal breeder. He said the bill supports people like him who are doing things the right way.

“We are the ones that deal with those bad actors behind the scenes and this will help us get rid of them,” Troyer said.

Join the conversation and sign up for the Indiana Two-Way. Text "Indiana" to 765-275-1120. Your comments and questions in response to our weekly text help us find the answers you need on statewide issues, including our project Civically, Indiana and our 2024 legislative bill tracker.

There are about two dozen communities in Indiana that ban pet stores from selling dogs. The bill would eliminate those local ordinances.

Adam Aasen is a Republican city councilor in Carmel, which has one of those ordinances. He said the bill takes away local control before the state knows whether the care standards even work.

“I understand there are rules to benefit the public and to benefit the taxpayer,” Aasen said. “And local municipalities, based on consent from their voters, have the right to make those rules.”

Dr. Candace Croney, director of the Center for Animal Welfare Science at Purdue, developed the program included in the measure. Croney said she’s reluctant to make the guidelines of her program public because she said they can be misused by bad actors to make their operations seem legitimate.

The bill is now headed for the full Senate.

Brandon is our Statehouse bureau chief. Contact him at bsmith@ipbs.org or follow him on Twitter at @brandonjsmith5.