{"id":211062,"date":"2025-09-08T20:50:19","date_gmt":"2025-09-08T20:50:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/211062\/"},"modified":"2025-09-08T20:50:19","modified_gmt":"2025-09-08T20:50:19","slug":"mayor-gina-ortiz-jones-gets-unlikely-ally-in-bid-to-stop-anti-pet-dumping-ordinance","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/211062\/","title":{"rendered":"Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones gets unlikely ally in bid to stop anti-pet dumping ordinance"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"Puppies in a box on the side of a road. Credit: Facebook \/ San Antonio Animal Care Services<\/p>\n

San Antonio Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones has attracted an unlikely ally in her otherwise lonely effort to halt passage of an anti-pet dumping ordinance: animal-rescue advocates.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In an open letter to Jones and City Council<\/a> posted over the weekend, nonprofit group No Kill SA expressed concern the proposal could actually hinder those who spay and neuter stray animals. Proposed by Assistant City Manager David McCary and Animal Care Services Director Jonathan Gary, the ordinance would fine those caught dumping animals on city streets up to $2,000.<\/p>\n

Jones sparked a backlash<\/a> from others on council after she removed the anti-pet dumping amendment from last week\u2019s agenda, arguing that the original paperwork was filed before her time in office. <\/p>\n

Despite the outcry, No Kill SA Director Lea LaPort told the Current the proposed ordinance, as currently written, could punish do-gooders who spay and neuter stray animals then release them. \u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIt doesn\u2019t give a clear and concise definition of who could be excluded from that abandonment,\u201d LaPort said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

LaPort recalled a time when one of her organization\u2019s members accidentally caught a raccoon in a trap that was originally intended for a dog the person intended to spay or neuter.\u00a0The person member ultimately released the raccoon back into the wild. <\/p>\n

\u201cThat could technically be considered abandonment, because there\u2019s no clear definition,\u201d LaPort said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

An audio recording LaPort\u2019s organization supplied the Current also indicates that at least one of the city\u2019s 311 operators in the past instructed a caller to \u201clet go\u201d of stray dogs they capture if ACS officers are unable to pick up the loose canines promptly.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI can give you the supervisor\u2019s number from Animal Care Services if you\u2019d like, but he couldn\u2019t give me an ETA, and he says if you can\u2019t take the dog anymore, then you can always let it go,\u201d the unidentified 311 operator said in the conversation, which was recorded last winter, according to LaPort.<\/p>\n

LaPort maintains that the advice given by some 311 operators is in complete violation of the proposal now scheduled for council debate.\u00a0<\/p>\n

LaPort said she\u2019s not opposed to the city having an anti-dumping ordinance, but she said people trying to remedy the stray animal problem could be wrongfully penalized unless the language is amended.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Although Jones scrapped the anti-dumping proposal from last week\u2019s agenda, it\u2019s since been scheduled to appear before this Thursday\u2019s council meeting. <\/p>\n

The ordinance is back on the agenda after a bipartisan coalition, including District 5 Councilwoman Teri Castillo, District 7 Councilwoman Marina Alderete Gavito and District 10 Councilman Marc Whyte, filed a formal memo demanding it be returned to the dais. \u00a0<\/p>\n

Despite the concerns of LaPort and other animal rights activists, two City Hall insiders who wished to remain anonymous said it\u2019s unlikely the amendment will be changed or clarified prior to Thursday\u2019s vote.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\t\t\tThe ordinance would have fined those who dump animals up to $2,000 on the first offense. \t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\t\t\tThree council members filed a memo demanding the pet-dumping ordinance be debated at the next meeting after it was bumped from this Thursday\u2019s agenda.\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\t\t\tShannon Sims\u2019 comments come before his planned retirement this summer and as the city actively searches for his replacement.\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

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