New Hampshire state representative Jennifer Rhodes was out recently when she saw a young girl nearly get run over by a car. What made the event particularly galling was that the man driving the car was holding two dogs with one hand, and petting them with the other.
Despite the clear stupidity of the situation, ironically, she found herself in a bit of an Air Bud situation—there is no specific law against driving with pets on your lap in New Hampshire. So Rhodes decided to draft one. The proposed bill, though, is drawing a lot of controversy.
“I thought it was a no-brainer,” Rhodes told the Associated Press. “I never in my wildest dreams thought that this would become one of the more controversial bills of the session, but by God, here we are.”
Although only Hawaii has a law that specifically bans the practice of allowing animals onto a driver’s lap, many have more general laws that would allow authorities to punish these drivers. It should perhaps not have surprised Rhodes, though, that New Hampshirites are opposed to restrictions on the road.
Read: New Volvo Study Makes Strong Case Against Unrestrained Pets
New Hampshire Is The Only American State That Doesn’t Require A Seatbelt For Anyone Over 18
The state is the only one left in the country in which adult occupants are not legally required to wear seatbelts in a moving vehicle. It’s such an outlier that the CDC has developed a pamphlet specifically to address the state’s seatbelt use. And, indeed, as word got around, the state legislature received letters from angry constituents.
“If I am driving my ill dog (or cat, or other pet) to the vet for medical attention or to be euthanized, you can bet your bottom dollar that I will have (and have had) that animal in my lap for that possibly final trip with them,” one person wrote in a letter. “Please stay out of people’s cars and let people have a small slice of happiness in the sanctity of their own vehicles.”
Rhodes argues that the new law is targeted specifically at pets on laps because she didn’t want to be too general. Unlike in New Jersey, where pets must be secured with a restraint, the proposed law in New Hampshire has just one requirement of pet owners.
“If you want your dog to be in the backseat and have his head out the window, great. You want your dog to be in the passenger seat up there with you? That’s great. All we’re trying to do is say that the dog should not be on your person at all,” Rhodes said.
Despite the angry drivers who wrote into the state legislature, Rhodes does have some supporters. Cheshire County Sheriff Eli Rivera told the state House Transportation Committee recently that he has a lot of experience with pets on laps.
“I’ve seen dogs running back and forth between the front seat, the back seat, looking out one window, looking out the other window. I’ve seen drivers holding a pet with their left hand, and they’re trying to look over the dog as they are driving down the road,” he said. “It does cause a hazard.”
While Rhodes understands that people have strong feelings about their pets, she says that this law is not an attempt to undermine that relationship.
“They think that I’m somehow punishing them, when I don’t look at this as punishment in any way, shape or form,” said Rhodes. “I’m looking at it as the safety of the pet.”
