Pet owners in California no longer have to worry whether they will be asked to declaw or devocalize their companion animals when applying to rent an apartment.

Gov. Jerry Brown signed State Bill 1229 into effect, which will prevent California landlords from requiring prospective tenants to have their pets devocalized or declawed.

The new legislation prevents landlords from refusing housing to people who will not get their pets devocalized or declawed. It also makes it illegal for landlords to market their properties using language meant to ward off people with fully intact pets.

According to the bill, landlords will face a $1,000 fine per pet if they violate the new law.

State Bill 1229, co-sponsored by the Humane Society Veterinary Medical Association (HSVMA) and The Paw Project, had already passed through Senate with a 39-0 vote.

The bill made a central argument that: “The permanence of declawing and devocalizing contrasts with the temporary nature of the occupancy of real property owned by another, which generally lasts only for a fixed term and may be terminated upon notice by one of the parties.”

Read the full text of SB 1229