An Act relative to improving enforcement for tethering violations
Generates a plain-language summary of the bill text and history.
| Date | Branch | Action |
|---|---|---|
| 11/19/2025 | Senate | Bill reported favorably by committee and referred to the committee on Senate Ways and Means |
| 6/3/2025 | Joint | Hearing scheduled for 06/10/2025 from 01:00 PM-05:00 PM in B-1 |
| 2/27/2025 | House | House concurred |
| 2/27/2025 | Senate | Referred to the committee on Municipalities and Regional Government |
No additional cosponsors.
| Committee | Recommendation | Vote |
|---|---|---|
| J10 | Favorable | 1 entries |
Section 174E of chapter 140 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2020 Official Edition is hereby amended by striking in paragraph (a) the first and second sentences and replace with:- (a) No person owning or keeping a dog shall chain, confine, or tether a dog outside and unattended (1) for longer than 5 hours or (2) outside from 10:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. “Outside and unattended,” for the purposes of this section, shall mean any dog who is exposed to the elements for a duration of longer than 15 minutes and not in visual range and physical presence of the owner. This expressly includes, but is not limited to, a dog in a securely fenced-in yard, a dog in a kennel, or a dog tethered. For purposes of this section a dog shall be considered “outside” regardless of access to an outdoor doghouse or similar structure. No person owning or keeping a dog shall tether, confine or chain a dog in a manner that allows the dog to leave the owner's, guardian's or keeper's property.
Section 174E of chapter 140 is hereby further amended by inserting after the word “chains”, in line 7, the following words:- , pinch collars, choke collars,
Section 174E of chapter 140 is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 7, the words “lines or”
Section 174E of chapter 140 is hereby further amended by inserting after the word “feet”, in line 19, the following words:- per dog
Section 174E of chapter 140 is hereby further amended by striking out, in lines 35-37, the words “provided, however, that a choke collar and a pinch collar shall not be used to tether a dog to a cable run;”
Section 174E of chapter 140 is hereby further amended by striking out the words “in accordance with subsection (b)”, in lines 52-53, and inserting in place thereof the following words:- and unattended
Section 174E of chapter 140 is hereby further amended by striking out in paragraph (c) the third sentence and inserting in place thereof the following sentence:- The entrance to the shelter shall allow the dog's entry and exit, and in adverse weather have a flap or other mechanism sturdy enough to block entry of weather elements.
Section 174E of chapter 140 is hereby further amended by inserting after the word “outside”, in line 64, the following words:- and unattended
Section 174E of chapter 140 is hereby further amended by striking out, in lines 69-70, the words “, unless the tethering is for not more than 15 minutes”
Section 174E of chapter 140 is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 90, the word “and” and inserting in place thereof the following word:- or.
SECTION 1. Section 174E of chapter 140 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2020 Official Edition is hereby amended by striking in paragraph (a) the first and second sentences and replace with:- (a) No person owning or keeping a dog shall chain, confine, or tether a dog outside and unattended (1) for longer than 5 hours or (2) outside from 10:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. “Outside and unattended,” for the purposes of this section, shall mean any dog who is exposed to the elements for a duration of longer than 15 minutes and not in visual range and physical presence of the owner. This expressly includes, but is not limited to, a dog in a securely fenced-in yard, a dog in a kennel, or a dog tethered. For purposes of this section a dog shall be considered “outside” regardless of access to an outdoor doghouse or similar structure. No person owning or keeping a dog shall tether, confine or chain a dog in a manner that allows the dog to leave the owner's, guardian's or keeper's property. SECTION 2. Section 174E of chapter 140 is hereby further amended by inserting after the word “chains”, in line 7, the following words:- , pinch collars, choke collars, SECTION 3. Section 174E of chapter 140 is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 7, the words “lines or” SECTION 4. Section 174E of chapter 140 is hereby further amended by inserting after the word “feet”, in line 19, the following words:- per dog SECTION 5. Section 174E of chapter 140 is hereby further amended by striking out, in lines 35-37, the words “provided, however, that a choke collar and a pinch collar shall not be used to tether a dog to a cable run;” SECTION 6. Section 174E of chapter 140 is hereby further amended by striking out the words “in accordance with subsection (b)”, in lines 52-53, and inserting in place thereof the following words:- and unattended SECTION 7. Section 174E of chapter 140 is hereby further amended by striking out in paragraph (c) the third sentence and inserting in place thereof the following sentence:- The entrance to the shelter shall allow the dog's entry and exit, and in adverse weather have a flap or other mechanism sturdy enough to block entry of weather elements. SECTION 8. Section 174E of chapter 140 is hereby further amended by inserting after the word “outside”, in line 64, the following words:- and unattended SECTION 9. Section 174E of chapter 140 is hereby further amended by striking out, in lines 69-70, the words “, unless the tethering is for not more than 15 minutes” SECTION 10. Section 174E of chapter 140 is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 90, the word “and” and inserting in place thereof the following word:- or.