Good afternoon. My name is Jim Pippolo. I'm the acting general manager and rodeo administrator for the Canadian Professional Rodeo Association based in Calgary, Alberta.
It's an honour for us to be here to give you our opinions on Bill S-203, and we thank Mr. Hanger and all the committee members for inviting us.
The Canadian Professional Rodeo Association is the official sanctioning body for professional rodeo in Canada. We sanction approximately 55 to 60 rodeos in Canada every year, with a payout of nearly $5 million annually. Almost one million people attend our events yearly.
There are approximately 1,400 members in our association. These members care for animals on a daily basis. They have thousands under their care, whether they're their own or belong to people they work for. Our members come from ranching backgrounds and have been raised around livestock their entire lives. The heritage of some of them can be traced back to the start of this great country we live in.
We feel that our members are expert livestock handlers. Rodeo is part of our chosen lifestyle--a tradition handed down from our forefathers, who developed the events and turned them into a competition. Who could ride the unrideable horse, who was the best roper, or who had the fastest horse all became part of our chosen sport--rodeo. It has evolved over the years into a cultural sport for ourselves, just as urban friends enjoy their sports of hockey, football, lacrosse, track and field, to name but a few.
The Canadian Professional Rodeo Association's board of directors governs the sport in Canada. They are assisted by up to 20 professional rodeo judges and 11 directors. Our judges attend seminars to ensure that our rules and regulations are enforced in a fair and consistent manner and that the code of practices for the handling of rodeo livestock is adhered to. We have almost 60 rules and regulations that deal with the safety and welfare of our rodeo livestock--in fact, they are our co-competitors in competition.
Disciplinary action comes in the form of fines, suspensions, disqualifications, or a combination of them, and they are not taken lightly by our association.
From Bill C-17 through Bill S-203, our association has closely followed the development of bills that deal with animal cruelty. We feel that Bill S-203 can achieve what is required to protect all animals from intentional cruelty or wilful neglect. It will increase the penalties, both monetarily and through lengthened prison sentences. It will remove animals from the possession of convicted persons, and it could place lifetime bans on serious offenders from ever caring for or owning livestock. It will give prosecutors the option of trying cases by way of indictment or summary conviction, depending on the seriousness of each case. It will empower the courts to make restitution orders if the costs are readily ascertainable.
The Canadian Professional Rodeo Association supports this progressive and improved legislation to increase protection for animals from cruelty and abuse without compromising the legitimate use of animals in our daily business, be it ranching, show jumping, farming, horse racing, rodeo, or many others. Bill S-203 does this. It is time the laws were updated.
Unfortunately, animal cruelty has not and may never be eliminated, but to strengthen the power of well-established laws that already exist is a great step forward for all Canadians. I think in everyone's life there has been a time when an animal has truly touched our hearts, be it a cat, a dog, a horse, or, in my case, a rodeo animal. That special moment will stay with us forever.
On behalf of the Canadian Professional Rodeo Association, its members, and the millions of rodeo fans out there, I would like to thank you for this opportunity to address this committee on what we feel is truly a step in the right direction to eliminate animal cruelty, which is Bill S-203.
Thank you.