North Carolina 2025 Session Status: In Committee Bipartisan · 8 D · 3 R cosponsors

HB 657 — Duke's Rescue Act.

Last action — Reptd Fav Com Substitute

  1. ✓
    Introduced
  2. 2
    In Committee
  3. 3
    Passed House
  4. 4
    Passed Senate
  5. 5
    To Executive
  6. 6
    Enacted

This bill is in committee in the House. Introduced April 01, 2025. It must pass committee before a floor vote.

Next likely step: a committee vote, then a floor vote in the House.

Odds of enactment

Low chance

Based on the sponsor, cosponsors, and committee posture, this bill has a low chance of becoming law.

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A statistical estimate from our own model of past outcomes — an insight, not a guarantee. Policymaking is volatile.

Prognosis

Advancing 42% · moderate confidence

  • In Committee

    Current position in the legislative process.

  • 11 sponsors

    2 primary, 9 co-sponsors signed on.

  • Bipartisan support

    Sponsored across 2 parties (8 D · 3 R) — cross-party backing.

Based on stage, sponsorship breadth, committee status, recorded votes, and cross-state momentum — a description of the observable signals, not a prediction.

In plain language

The bill is known as Duke's Rescue Act.

The bill is titled Duke's Rescue Act but its specific provisions are not provided in the details.

Bill Text

What changed in the latest version

136 added · 147 removed

Plain-language change summary

The recent changes to House Bill 657 update the minimum standards for animal care by explicitly adding an emphasis on animal dietary needs and the conditions for providing adequate shelter. Notably, the new version clarifies that animals must be fed at least once daily and that their shelter must not include outdoor tethering during extreme weather conditions. These updates are important because they aim to promote the health and well-being of animals by ensuring they receive necessary care and protection from harsh elements.

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GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA SESSION 2025 H 2 HOUSE BILL 657 Committee Substitute Favorable 6/16/26 Short Title:
GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA SESSION 2025 H 1 HOUSE BILL 657 Short Title:
Representatives Ross, Carney, Cotham, and Ward (Primary Sponsors).
For a complete list of sponsors, refer to the North Carolina General Assembly web site.
April 2, 2025 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED ANACT TO PROVIDE MINIMALSTANDARDS OFCARE FOR COMPANION ANIMALS.
Wildlife Resources, if favorable, Judiciary 2, if favorable, Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House April 2, 2025 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED ANACT TO PROVIDE MINIMALSTANDARDS OFCARE FOR COMPANION ANIMALS.
(1) Dogs used or kept for the purpose of lawful hunting, sledding, sporting, or field trials or events where tethering or sheltering the dog in a particular manner is integral to the training or conditioning of the dog for one of those purposes.
(1) The use of a dog in a lawful hunt.
(2) The conduct of obedience training, field and water training, law enforcement training, or other dog training activities where tethering or sheltering the dog in a particular manner is integral to those activities.
(2) The use of a restraint on a dog while the owner and dog engage in conduct directly related to the business of shepherding or herding cattle or livestock.
(3) The use of a restraint on a dog while the owner and dog engage in conduct directly related to the business of shepherding or herding cattle or livestock.
(3) The use of a restraint on a dog while the owner and dog engage in conduct directly related to the business of cultivating agricultural products.
(4) The use of a restraint on a dog while the owner and dog engage in conduct directly related to the business of cultivating agricultural products.
(4) The use of a restraint on a dog pursuant to the requirements of a camping or recreational area.
(5) The use of a restraint on a dog pursuant to the requirements of a camping or recreational area.
*H657-v-2* General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 (2) Adequate exercise.
(2) Adequate exercise.
– The opportunity for the animal to move sufficiently to maintain normal muscletoneandmassfortheage,species, size,andcondition of the animal.
– The opportunity for the animal to move sufficiently to maintain normal muscletoneandmassfortheage, species,size,andcondition of the animal.
(3) Adequate feed.
*H657-v-1* General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 (3) Adequate feed.
– Sufficient space to allow each animal to (i) easilystand, sit, lie, turn about, and make all other normal body movements in a comfortable, normal position for the animal and (ii) interact safely with other animals in the Page 2 House Bill 657-Second Edition General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 enclosure.
– Sufficient space to allow each animal to (i) easilystand, sit, lie, turn about, and make all other normal body movements in a comfortable, normal position for the animal and (ii) interact safely with other animals in the enclosure.
a.
Page 2 House Bill 657-First Edition General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 a.
The effective period for a severe weather warning issued for the area bytheNational Weather Service,includinga hurricane,tropical storm, winter storm, tornado, or severe thunderstorm warning.
The effective period of a hurricane warning or tropical storm warning issued for the area by the National Weather Service.
d.
The effective period for a severe weather warning issued for the area bytheNational Weather Service,includinga hurricane,tropical storm, winter storm, tornado, or severe thunderstorm warning.
– To restrain a companion animal bytying the animal to anyobject or structure, including a house, tree, fence, post, garage, or shed, by any House Bill 657-Second Edition Page 3 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 means, including, without limitation, a chain, rope, cord, leash, or running line.
– To restrain a companion animal bytying the animal to anyobject or structure, including a house, tree, fence, post, garage, or shed, by any House Bill 657-First Edition Page 3 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 means, including, without limitation, a chain, rope, cord, leash, or running line.Tetheringshallnotincludetheuseofaleashtowalkacompanionanimal.
Tethering shall not include the use of a leash to walk a companion animal and shall not includetheuseofarestraint onadogduringtransport, grooming, veterinary care or while the owner and dog are engaged in training, shows, or competition.
The sum of ten thousand dollars ($10,000) in nonrecurring funds for the 2026-2027 fiscal year is appropriated to the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services for the Animal Welfare Section for costs related to public education and educational materials pertaining to the companion animal standards set forth in this act.
This act becomes effective December 1, 2025, and applies to offenses committed on or after that date.
SECTION 4.
Page 4 House Bill 657-First Edition
Section 1 of this act becomes effective December 1, 2026, and applies to offenses committed on or after that date.
Section 3 of this act becomes effective July 1, 2026.
This remainder of this act is effective when it becomes law.
Page 4 House Bill 657-Second Edition
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Action History

  1. Reptd Fav Com Substitute

  2. Re-ref Com On Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House

  3. Serial Referral To Judiciary 2 Stricken

  4. Serial Referral To Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House Stricken

  5. Withdrawn From Com

  6. Re-ref to the Com on Judiciary 1, if favorable, Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House

  7. Passed 1st Reading

  8. Ref to the Com on Wildlife Resources, if favorable, Judiciary 2, if favorable, Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House

  9. Filed

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

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2 sponsors · 9 co-sponsors · 168 not signed on

Sponsors (2)

Co-sponsors (9)

Not signed on (168)

168 members have not signed on to this bill.

Show all 168 →

"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

Whip count is in markup. Polling the chamber and every recorded vote this session. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Calling the roll · Tallying · Engrossing

Subjects

public-safety environment agriculture
Cross-referencing the record. Reading this bill against every other bill in the corpus by meaning, not keywords. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Matching · Ranking · Engrossing

Frequently asked questions

Who sponsors HB 657?
HB 657 is sponsored by Garland E. Pierce (Democratic), Tim Longest (Democratic), Pricey Harrison (Democratic), Julia Greenfield (Democratic), Maria Cervania (Democratic), Kanika Brown (Democratic), Cynthia Ball (Democratic), Tricia Ann Cotham (Republican), Becky Carney (Democratic), Stephen M. Ross (Republican), and Neal Jackson (Republican).
What is the current status of HB 657?
This bill is in committee in the House. Introduced April 01, 2025. It must pass committee before a floor vote.
Where can I track HB 657?
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