Subject: Fix San José – Restore Spay/Neuter & TNR Access Now

Dear Mayor and City Councilmembers,

As a San José resident, taxpayer, and deeply concerned community member, I am urgently calling for immediate action to restore and fund public access to affordable spay/neuter and Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) services. The city’s continued failure to invest in these critical programs is fueling a rapidly escalating crisis—one that threatens animal welfare, public health, and the stability of our entire shelter system.

In 2024, San José allocated just $2,400 toward public spay/neuter and TNR services. For a city of more than one million residents and a budget exceeding $5 billion, this number is not just alarming—it is dangerously negligent. Before the pandemic, San José supported strong clinic partnerships and maintained a reliable network of low-cost sterilization services for both pets and community animals. Today, that infrastructure has collapsed.

Since COVID, the city’s public sterilization system has been completely dismantled. The in-house clinic shut down. Veterinary partnerships dissolved. Voucher programs vanished. In the vacuum left behind, stray animals have multiplied—visibly, rapidly, and predictably. San José Animal Care Services can no longer take in many animals due to extreme overcrowding, and the situation is worsening by the month. Yet there is still no plan, no timeline, and no budget commitment to rebuild these essential services.

Although the City Council passed Resolution No. RES2024-230 to allow discounted spay/neuter fees, the resolution has been left hollow. No funding. No rollout. No service goals. Community proposals and data submissions have gone nowhere. Meanwhile, the crisis grows.

Across California, shelters reported 450,000 intakes in 2024, with euthanasia rates at a three-year high. This is no longer just an animal welfare problem—this is a community safety emergency, a public health concern, and a looming financial disaster for taxpayers who will ultimately bear the cost of inaction.

San José once performed 10,000 spay/neuter surgeries in-house, including 2,000 for the public—a lifesaving safeguard that kept overpopulation under control. That system has collapsed. Surgeries fell to 4,300 in FY 22–23 and only 6,000 in FY 23–24, with just 4,700 completed in-house. This drastic shortfall has left our community exposed to unregulated breeding, skyrocketing stray populations, and a predictable surge of animals flooding the shelter.

Spay/neuter and TNR are not optional—they are the only proven, humane, cost-effective tools capable of stopping this crisis before it becomes irreversible.

And now, San José is reporting its lowest shelter intake in 15 years—not because fewer animals exist, but because the system is failing. Animals are being left on the streets, abandoned in parks, and pushed into neighborhoods instead of entering a shelter that has no capacity left. This is not progress—it is a warning sign of a system on the verge of collapse.

If the city does not act immediately, San José will be swept into the same statewide emergency already overwhelming California shelters—and once that happens, recovery will be far more expensive, far more difficult, and far too late for countless animals who will pay the price.

I respectfully urge the City to take the following actions:

1. Restore and fund public spay/neuter and TNR services to at least pre-COVID levels
2. Re-establish partnerships with local veterinary providers, supported by voucher programs and public funding
3. Collaborate with Santa Clara County to create a coordinated regional network for affordable services
4. Implement a clear, accessible application system for residents seeking assistance
5. Provide regular public updates on funding levels, service capacity, and community impact
6. Pursue additional funding sources, including state grants and nonprofit partnerships, to scale services citywide

San José has the resources—and the responsibility—to lead on this effort. Animals are not a luxury; they are part of our families, our neighborhoods, and our shared environment. Their welfare must be treated as a priority.

Thank you for your time and attention to this urgent matter. I hope to see San José step up and once again lead with compassion and foresight.

Sincerely,
[Your Name]
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