In the coming days, legislators across the state are finalizing their 2026 priorities. This window is short. What happens now will determine whether lifesaving legislation moves forward — or whether communities, shelters, and animals are left to absorb yet another year of preventable harm.

We are preparing to reintroduce a critical bill to address two of the biggest drivers of animal suffering in California:

• Unregulated backyard breeding
  • Severe shelter overcrowding and lack of public visibility for adoptable animals

This bill is modeled on Bowie’s Law (AB 1482) — a proposal with no registered opposition and strong public support. Similar reforms have been attempted multiple times over the past few years, yet they have repeatedly stalled. During that time, the situation has only grown worse.

Why?
Because California still lacks clear, decisive legislative guardrails. Read on historically failed bills proposing solutions

This bill does something simple and long overdue:

• Lowers the threshold that defines a backyard breeder, so repeat and high-volume breeders can no longer operate just below enforcement limits
• Raises basic health standards, including vaccination and microchipping prior to sale
• Improves public visibility of shelter animals, so adoption has a real chance ( many shelters do not publish adoptable animals)
• Acknowledges shelter overcrowding as a statewide crisis, not a local failure

These are common-sense protections — yet in the absence of action, people continue to exploit gaps in the law, and communities pay the price:

• Shelters overflowing
• Disease outbreaks
• Mass euthanasia
• Rescues stretched past capacity
• Animals pushed out of the public system entirely

Here’s the reality:

Multiple legislators have already indicated they would support this bill as part of a coalition.
What we urgently need now is one champion — a legislator willing to step up and author the bill before priorities are locked in.

And that’s where you come in.

Many of you have asked:
“What can we do to help?”

👉 This is your moment.
👉 This is how you tip the scale.

We are asking you to act — TODAY.

Please contact your State Assemblymember and State Senator and tell them:

• This bill matters to your community
• Irresponsible breeding and overcrowded shelters are harming animals and public safety
• You are asking them to step up as a bill author or co-author
• You want this issue prioritized now, not later

Call.
Email.
Visit their district office if you can.

Personal messages matter more than form letters. A short, heartfelt note is enough.

Then — amplify it:

• Share this message with neighbors
• Ask friends and family to contact their legislators
• Encourage local rescue supporters to do the same

Our strength is in numbers.
Legislators act when they see urgency, consistency, and community demand.

Animals are being euthanized today because systems are failing.
Rescues are stretched beyond capacity.
Shelters are declaring emergency overcrowding statewide.

There is no more time to wait.

This is our chance.
This is our moment.
And it is happening right now.

Thank you for standing with us — and for standing up for animals who cannot speak for themselves.

Summary:

Animal Rescuers for Change (ARFC) supported AB 1482 (Bowie’s Law) through a statewide grassroots campaign last year that generated a few thousands constituent messages to legislators. Although the bill faced no registered opposition, it stalled due to timing and the absence of a lead author. We believe that renewed leadership and earlier coalition-building can move this bill forward in 2026.

The bill addressed root causes of California’s animal overpopulation crisis by strengthening breeder accountability and improving shelter transparency. A core provision would expand the definition of a “dog breeder” under the Polanco-Lockyer Pet Breeder Warranty Act, lowering the threshold from individuals who sell three or more litters or 20 or more dogs per year to those who sell two or more litters or 10 or more dogs per year. This change is essential to capture repeat and high-volume backyard breeders who currently operate just below enforcement thresholds.

Unregulated breeding, combined with poor visibility of shelter animals, is driving increasing shelter intake, overcrowding, and euthanasia. As shelters adopt managed-intake policies, thousands of animals are left outside the shelter system, creating public-health and environmental risks. Extreme overcrowding has led to disease outbreaks, including distemper, resulting in mass euthanasia events involving dozens — sometimes over 200 — animals at once. Crowded kennels also lead to animal injuries, fighting, malnutrition, and increased risk to rescue partners.

Nonprofit rescues are spending thousands of dollars per animal to transport a small fraction of dogs out of state, an unsustainable response that does not address the underlying causes. The lack of a clear statewide legislative framework continues to harm animals, shelters, rescues, and communities.

The bill also directs the state to study shelter overcrowding, a need repeatedly identified in prior legislation. Today, nearly all municipal shelters publicly declare themselves over capacity or in crisis, underscoring the urgency of a coordinated, data-driven statewide response.

Addressing irresponsible breeding and improving shelter transparency are essential to reducing intake, preventing euthanasia, protecting public safety, and stabilizing California’s animal-welfare system.