Hello ferret enthusiasts, Our bill, AB 854, is scheduled for the Water, Parks & Wildlife Committee on Tues. April 13th. Below you will find the members of that committee and if one of them is your representative, please write to him or her now-- ask your friends and family members to do the same. The only exception is the chairman, Assemblyman Mike Machado. All interested parties in CA may write to him because he is committee chair-- please, NO out of state letters to any CA representatives!!! For those of you outside California who wish to help, write your letters to our governor, Gray Davis at: Governor Gray Davis, Governor's Office, State Capitol, Sacramento, CA 95814. Californians, remember, you must reside in the district for your letter have any impact on the decision of the members listed below. Please do NOT send letters to representatives that are not your own. When you do write, be sure to include your name and address on all correspondence, otherwise your letter or e-mail will not be counted! You will find e-mail addresses below if we have them as well as tel and fax. To write to any of the members listed below, simply write Assemblymember followed by their name and this address: State Capitol, Sacramento, CA, 95814. You will also find their ferret voting history listed and if they supported legalization in the past, please thank them for their support. If they voted against legalization, or are a new member, please urge them to decriminalize ferret ownership for these reasons: 1.) Ferrets are domesticated animals and therefore do not belong in the hands of a wildlife agency. 2.) Ferrets are legal in the rest of the contiguous 48 states. 3.) Ferrets are a safer pet to people and the environment than either a cat or a dog. 4.) The law is not working (tell them to visit a pet store and look at the ferret items on the shelf) and when a law is not working there is usually something very wrong with it. 5.) Banning ferrets is a waste of taxpayer dollars and governmental goodwill. All Californians should also write to their individual Assemblymembers. To find out the name of your State Assemblymember, Californians can visit our webpage at http://www.ferretnews.org and go to http://www.ferretnews.org/legislators.html and the section called legislators/Know your Representatives. Follow instructions for the Assembly representatives. All Californians should also write to our Governor, Gray Davis at: Governor Gray Davis, Governor's Office, State Capitol, Sacramento, CA 95814 to let him know CA citizens have been seriously wronged by the Department of Fish and Game where ferrets are concerned. WATER, PARKS AND WILDLIFE COMMITTEE Mike Machado, Chair (D-17) tel(916) 319-2017 fax (916) 319-2117 e-mail<[log in to unmask]> Area representing: Stockton and he heart of San Joaquin County Ferret voting history: voted no last session. Please ask this member to support ferret legalization. Dick Dickerson, Vice Chair (R-2) tel(916) 319-2002 fax(916) 319-2102 e-mail<[log in to unmask]> Area representing: Siskiyou, Shasta, Tehama, Glenn, Trinity, Colusa, Sutter,NE Yolo and Southern tip of Butte County Ferret voting history: New Member. Please ask this member to support ferret legalization. Roy Ashburn (R-32) tel(916)319-2032 fax(916)319-2132 email<[log in to unmask]> Area representing: Kern &Tulare counties including Kern River Valley, Bakersfield, Lake Isabella, Lindsay, Porterville, Strathmore, Tulare and Visalia. Ferret voting history: voted yes last session. Please thank this member for supporting ferret legalization and encourage him to continue his support. Bob Margett Rep-59 Tel(916) 319-2059 Fax(916) 319-2159 email<[log in to unmask]> Area representing: NE corner of Arcadia, Bradbury, Claremont, Covina, Duarte, Glendora, La Verne, Monrovia, San Dimas, Sierra Madre, & parts of Azusa, Pomona, Temple City & West Covina. Ferret voting history: voted yes last session. Please thank this member for supporting ferret legalization and encourage him to continue his support. Sam Aanestad (R-3) tel(916)319-2003 fax(916)319-2103 email<[log in to unmask]> Areas representing: Modoc, Lassen, Plumas, Sierra, Nevada and Yuba counties and most of Butte County. Ferret voting history: New Member. Please ask this member to support ferret legalization. Peter Frusetta (R-28) tel(916)319-2028 fax(916)319-2128 email<[log in to unmask]> Areas representing: Parts of Monterey county, San Benito county, the Watsonville area of Santa Cruz county and part of the southern Santa Clara county. Ferret voting history: voted no last session. Please ask this member to support ferret legalization. Thomas M. Calderon (D-58) tel(916) 319-2058 fax(916) 319-2158 no email that we know of Areas representing: Southeast portion of Los Angeles county, including cities of Santa Fe Springs, S. El Monte, S. Whittier & Los Nietos. Ferret voting history: New Member. Please ask this member to support ferret legalization. Dennis Cardoza (D-26) tel(916)319-2026 fax(916)319-2126 email<[log in to unmask]> Areas representing: All of Merced county and the western half of Stanislaus county including southern part of Modesto and southwest corner of San Joaquin. Ferret voting history: voted yes last session. Please thank this member for supporting ferret legalization and encourage him to continue his support. Sheila James Kuehl (D-41) tel(916)319-2041 fax(916)319-2141 no email that we know of Areas representing: Woodland Hills, Malibu, Pacific Paqlisades, Santa Monica, Agoura Hills, Brentwood, Calabasas, Canoga Park, Encino, Hidden Hills, Reseda, Tarzana, Topanga, West Hills and Westlake Village. Ferret voting history: voted yes last session. Please thank this member for supporting ferret legalization and encourage her to continue her support. Assemblymember Kuehl is currently a co-author of our bill. Virginia Strom-Martin (D-1) tel(916) 319-2001 fax(916) 319-2101 email<[log in to unmask]> Areas representing: Del Norte, Humboldt, Mendocino and Lake counties and Sonoma county north of Santa Rosa. Ferret voting history: voted yes last session. Please thank this member for supporting ferret legalization and encourage her to continue her support. Helen Thomson (D-8) tel(916)319-2008 fax(916)319-2108 email <[log in to unmask]> Areas representing: All of Solano county except western Vallejo, most of Yolo County and the Delta region of Sacramento County. Ferret voting history: voted yes last session. Please thank this member for supporting ferret legalization and encourage her to continue her support. Howard Wayne (D-78) tel(916)319-2078 fax(916)319-2178 email<[log in to unmask]> Areas representing: the coastal district from La Jolla to Imperial Beach including Coronado, Mission Bay, Balboa Park and a large portion of downtown San Diego. Ferret voting history: New Member. Please ask this member to support ferret legalization. Dean Florez (D-30) tel(916)319-2030 fax(916)319-2130 email<[log in to unmask]> Areas representing: Southwestern part of the San Joaquin Valley including all of Kings County and parts of Fresno, Kern and Madera county. Ferret voting history: New Member. Please ask this member to support ferret legalization. Californians, it's time to get busy! Jeanne Carley Californians for Ferret Legalization 410 Mountain Home Road Woodside, CA 94062 (650)851-3750 [log in to unmask] [Posted in FML issue 2626]