On Monday, January 13th, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors will give final consideration to changes to the city's animal control regulations. The proposed amendments would add the term “guardian” wherever “owner” appears in San Francisco's municipal code. The measure passed first reading in early December and now needs only 6 votes to become law. San Francisco dog owners should contact the Board of Supervisors immediately and ask them to oppose the change.
What You Can Do:
Contact Mayor Willie Brown, Jr. and the San Francisco Board of Supervisors. Urge them to vote “no” on the “guardian” ordinance.
Points to Consider:
- Use of the term “guardian” eliminates the legal rights and obligations that individuals have as owners to keep, nurture and protect their animals.
- Contrary to proponents' statements, referring to owners as “guardians” does nothing to promote humane treatment of animals. You cannot force people to assume more responsibility by changing a label; you must educate them instead.
- Although the San Francisco proposal allows for “owner” and “guardian” to be used interchangeably, passage of such legislation would set a dangerous precedent for future laws that could completely eliminate classification of dogs as property.
San Francisco City Officials:
The Honorable Willie L. Brown, Jr.
Mayor, City of San Francisco
City Hall, Room 200
1 Dr. Carlton B. Goodlett Place
San Francisco, CA 94102
(415) 554-6141 – voice
(415) 554-6160 -fax
damayor@sfgov.org
Board of Supervisors
City Hall
1 Dr. Carlton B. Goodlett Place, Room 244
San Francisco, CA 94102-4689
Tom Ammiano – District 9 – President
Voted “no” on first reading. Thank him and ask him to remain firm in his opposition.
(415) 554-5144 – voice
(415) 554-6255 – fax
tom.ammiano@sfgov.org
Jake McGoldrick – District 1
Voted “yes” on first reading. Urge him to reconsider.
(415) 554-7410 – voice
(415) 554-7415 – fax
Jake.McGoldrick@sfgov.org
Gavin Newsom – District 2
Voted “no” on first reading. Thank him and ask him to remain firm in his opposition.
(415) 554-5942 – voice
(415) 554-5946 – fax
Gavin.Newsom@sfgov.org
Aaron Peskin – District 3
Voted “no” on first reading. Thank him and ask him to remain firm in his opposition.
(415) 554-7450 – voice
(415) 554-7454 – fax
Aaron.Peskin@sfgov.org
Leland Yee – District 4
(415) 554-7752 – voice
(415) 554-7751 – fax
Leland.Yee@sfgov.org
Matt Gonzalez – District 5 (Sponsor)
Voted “yes” on first reading. Urge him to reconsider.
(415) 554-7630 – voice
(415) 554-7634 – fax
Matt.Gonzalez@sfgov.org
Chris Daly – District 6
Voted “yes” in Health and Human Services Committee. Urge him to reconsider.
(415) 554-7970 – voice
(415) 554-7974 – fax
chris.daly@sfgov.org
Tony Hall – District 7
Voted “yes” on first reading. Urge him to reconsider.
(415) 554-6516 – voice
(415) 554-6546 – fax
Tony.Hall@sfgov.org
Mark Leno – District 8
(415) 554-7734 – voice
(415) 554-7739 – fax
Mark.Leno@sfgov.org
Sophie Maxwell – District 10
Voted “yes” in Health and Human Services Committee. Urge her to reconsider.
(415) 554-7670 – voice
(415) 554-7674 – fax
Sophie.Maxwell@sfgov.org
Gerardo Sandoval – District 11
Voted “yes” on first reading. Urge him to reconsider.
(415) 554-6975 – voice
(415) 554-6979 – fax
Gerardo.Sandoval@sfgov.org
For more information, please contact:
The Animal Council
AKC's Canine Legislation department at 919-816-3720 or doglaw@akc.org.
On Monday, January 13th, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors will give final
consideration to…