A California bill that sought to end killer whale shows at SeaWorld in San Diego and phase out their captivity was put on hold today, dousing an escalating fight between animal activists and a major tourist attraction.
The bill's author, Democrat Richard Bloom, agreed during the first committee hearing for AB2140 to revisit his proposal after further study.
As a result, the bill is dead for this year and the soonest lawmakers could vote on the proposal would be mid-2015 following additional hearings.
"It's unfortunate that much of the conversation has been fueled ... By fear and invective and misinformation," Bloom said. "It's clear that many committee members are simply unprepared to make a decision on the bill."
Bloom was inspired by the 2013 documentary "Blackfish" in which filmmakers argue that captivity and mistreatment of orcas make the animals aggressive and has led to attacks on trainers.
Public outrage over the movie drove 1.2 million people to sign a petition supporting the bill that was delivered to the Assembly yesterday by three elementary school students who successfully stopped an overnight school field trip to SeaWorld.
