Spay and Neuter Program Out of Funds for Low Income Pet Owners
Last year the Los Angeles City Council passed an ordinance mandating the spaying and neutering of all dogs and cats in Los Angeles. Part of the measure included the promise of vouchers for low income pet owners to get their animals fixed in order to comply with the law.However now it appears that the program a victim of the current budget crunch, according to a statement released last week by Los Angeles Animal Services. No more vouchers will be distributed until the Department is sure of it's funding.
We have been told that at the next City Council meeting Council Member Dennis Zine will ask that the funding be restored. However, the Council is on recess next week so it will be several days before the low-income vouchers can be restored, if at all. Some are saying that considering the funding loss for the vouchers the law should be repealed. However, at the time the law was passed Department head Ed Boks was unclear as to how it would even be enforced.
Labels: budget shortfall, city budget, dennis zine, ed boks, mandatory spay neuter
Posted by Michael Higby @ 3/14/2009 10:49:00 PM
8 Comments:
Recess?!?! What's that all about? Has the City Council exhausted itself with all of its hard work and long meetings lately?
PPP - P**S POOR PLANNING -
the numbers where there before you passed this law which tramples the Constitution and personal property rights. Why dont' you ask HSUS and/or PETA for the money. They pull in millions but their tax return shows less than 4% goes to actually help animals. The rest goes to the organization & lobbying. Good Luck!
How many laws have funding to assist in compliance?
Spay/neuter subsidies are needed, but are not required to assist folks in compliance.
Maybe, to help would be robbers from taking a shop owner's money, the government should stand outside these target stores and hand out cash.
To the idiot "anonymous," name another law that can cost the person $700 per situation. The law was passed with a PROMISE that no resident would not be burdened because of the funding available. That was a lie. The amount was lied about ($2.2 million was said to be available and at the time it was stated, the budget had about half that.) and the council passed the law based on the lies they were told by Ed Boks. I highly doubt any of our beloved city coucilmembers would want little old ladies to be charged with a misdemeanor for failure to fix their house cats due to lack of funds. That wouldn't be very good press now, would it? We shall see.
11:26
Fortunately the "little old ladies" are the ones who want spay neuter, who raise money for spay neuter and who promote spay neuter.
There are free spay days available, a Spay Mobile that is providing free sterilizations (paid for by the city) and Clinico is doing low cost sterilizations.
It is sad that the vouchers have been cut. It does not equate to a cessation of free sterilization services compliments of the city government. It does equate to a reduction of those services through coupon use. This is more of a tragedy to the local vets who enter agreements to do this service with coupon use in hopes of having a future client. People can still bring their animals to the Spay Mobile or the city clinics run by Clinico for discounted sterilization services.
Wrong. The city pays for the "spay mobile" which the funding was also cut. The "spay days" are run by individuals who refuse to continue to deal with LAAS. There are no more city provided subsidized spay and neuter situations.
On another note, it seems Ed Boks is publically blaming the city council for "demanding" he cut the voucher program and the council saying they knew nothing about it, even having had a meeting with Ed the day before. This should be good and hopefully winds up with Ed being fired.
March 17, 2009 10:45 AM
Hmmmm...you say "wrong, the city pays for the spay mobile" and so did I, unless "the city" and "city government" are two different things. The Spay Mobile (Amanda's, not Sam Simon's) will continue to be funded. It's the rest of the voucher program that was suspended.
In essence, the "normal" way to pay for the Spay Mobile ended long ago. The dept used (and will continue to use) vouchers to pay for one of them. 500 thousand use to go to the Spay Mobile in addition to the vouchers for the public. Now, the Spay Mobile is paid for with vouchers and the rest of the vouchers were suspended.
Those individuals that help out with the free spay days just did one at NE Shelter. Are you saying that Clinico and Amanda have just decided to stop working with LAAS?
Yes, we can only hope this gets the man fired.
I'm saying that Amanda is paid BY VOUCHER when doing "special" events. Clinico was paid by private money donated. Amanda Foundation charges the city $90 per animal, more than the $70 voucher cost for a FREE surgery for the public. Amanda can only do just over 3000 surgeries per year. Doesn't even come close to the 800,000-1.5 million estimated pets in the city. The law states that those who make 300% of the federal poverty level (that would be $65,000 or less for a family of 4) will be provided with "free spay/neuter." I suspect there are about 2 million people in L.A. who fall into that category. The Amanda truck is important because it can go to people (but not all people) but still can only do 3000 surgeries per year max and is booked for the remainder of the year. So what to do if charged with getting your animal altered and you can not afford it? Be charged with a fine that you can also not afford?
Post a Comment
Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]
<< Home