Title: Urgent: Formation of the Promised Community Action Committee

Dear [[Recipient’s Title and Name]],

I am writing as a concerned San José resident to respectfully request the immediate creation of a formal Community Action Committee for Animal Services, as was publicly promised by City leadership for January 2025 but has not yet been established.

San José is facing a worsening animal welfare crisis. San Jose Shelter remains overcrowded, declines accepting found animals from the public, illegal breeding continues to rise, access to spay/neuter services is extremely limited, and small rescue groups are overwhelmed trying to manage the overflow of animals who have nowhere else to go. Despite thousands of residents contacting the City in 2024, the promised committee intended to provide oversight, transparency, and structured collaboration has not materialized.

Instead, the City has relied on informal, undocumented conversations that lack transparency, structure, or accountability. Without a legitimate public committee, meaningful oversight of shelter operations—and progress toward audit recommendations—remains impossible.

For these reasons, I respectfully urge the City to honor its commitment and establish a Community Action Committee with the following requirements:

1. Form the Committee Now — As Promised.

Create a standing public committee, rather than informal meetings with no structure or documentation.

2. Hold Monthly Meetings with Published Agendas and Minutes.

Residents, volunteers, rescues, and advocates deserve visibility into decisions that affect shelter operations and animal welfare.

3. Include Key Stakeholders.

Representation should include:

• Animal Services leadership
• Local rescues and volunteer groups
• Veterinarians and animal behavior experts
• Community advocates
• Public health partners
• Representatives from affected districts

These individuals are the ones seeing the crisis firsthand and can provide essential insight.

4. Share Transparent Metrics and Progress.

This includes shelter capacity, length of stay, spay/neuter data, rescue partnerships, enrichment programs, behavior evaluation protocols, GAP spending allocations and illegal breeding enforcement. Transparency is critical for trust and accountability.

Why This Committee Is Urgently Needed

San José’s shelter has been operating far over capacity. Illegal breeding continues without meaningful enforcement. Community members are denied help, and rescues are left to manage intake that should be shared with the City.
Spay/neuter access remains severely limited—fueling an already growing overpopulation problem.

A Community Action Committee is essential to addressing these issues in a transparent, collaborative, and sustainable way. It would allow the City to:

• Strengthen leadership and operational structure at the shelter
• Improve community access to low-cost spay/neuter
• Develop enforcement strategies for illegal breeders
• Create humane, effective intake and outcome practices
• Support the audit recommendations through transparency and community oversight

San José’s animals and residents deserve a system that is accountable, responsive, and guided by expert and community input—not one that relies on closed-door discussions and inconsistent communication.

Thank you for your time and for your leadership on issues impacting our community. I respectfully urge you to support the formation of this long-overdue Community Action Committee so we can work together toward meaningful, lasting improvements in animal welfare across San José.