AN ACT implementing the recommendations and guidelines of the national association of state public health veterinarians regarding the management of dogs, cats, and ferrets exposed to rabies.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

SECTION 1.  G.S. 130A‑197 reads as rewritten:
"§ 130A‑197.  Management of dogs, cats, and ferrets exposed to rabies.
When the local health director reasonably suspects that an animal required to be vaccinated under this Part has been exposed to the saliva or nervous tissue of a proven rabid animal or animal reasonably suspected of having rabies that is not available for laboratory diagnosis, the animal shall be considered to have been exposed to rabies. The recommendations and guidelines for rabies post‑exposure management specified by the National Association of State Public Health Veterinarians in the most current edition of the Compendium of Animal Rabies Prevention and Control shall be the required control measures."
SECTION 2.  This act becomes effective October 1, 2017.
In the General Assembly read three times and ratified this the 26th day of June, 2017.

	s/	 Daniel J. Forest
	 President of the Senate

	s/	 Tim Moore
	 Speaker of the House of Representatives

	s/	 Roy Cooper
	 Governor

Approved 1:56 p.m. this 12th day of July, 2017