By The Associated Press
OLYMPIA — A bill to make it a civil offense to lock an animal in a car or enclosed space in dangerous conditions has passed the state House.
Senate Bill 5501, approved by the Senate unanimously in February, passed the House in a 60-37 vote Tuesday. It would create a $125 fine for leaving an unattended animal confined where temperature, lack of water or dearth of fresh air could hurt or kill it.
The bill the House passed adds language to the Senate’s bill, including an expansion of the crime of animal cruelty to cover killing an animal with an extreme indifference to life.
The bill now moves back to the Senate for consideration of the House’s changes.
