B 26-0440

October 20, 2025
Nyasha Smith, Secretary
Council of the District of Columbia
1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, D.C. 20004
Dear Secretary Smith,
I am introducing the “Care for Animals Amendment Act of 2025”. Please see enclosed signed
copy of the legislation.
This legislation, which is being aptly introduced during National Pet Wellness Month, will
support the health and wellbeing of pets in the District. This legislation is the result of
meaningful collaboration with the District’s partner in animal care and control services - the
Brandywine Valley SPCA, and the District Department of Health. I am proud to introduce this
legislation with my colleagues Councilmember Charles Allen, Councilmember Janeese Lewis
George, Councilmember Robert C. White, Jr., and Councilmember Brooke Pinto.
The District is full of pet owners, including myself, and on any given day, you are likely to see
residents out walking their dogs or utilizing a dog park, and free-roaming cats exploring their
neighborhood. While there is limited data on the number of dogs in the District, a 2021
preliminary estimate placed the number of cats at approximately 200,000, with about 3,000 of
these designated as feral cats. 1 Between January and May 2025, the Committee on Health
reported that the number of animals housed at a District shelter exceeded 2,000. 2
This legislation expands the newly-renamed Animal Population Health and Education Program
to include preventive and emergency veterinary services for pet owners in addition to existing
low-cost spay and neuter clinic services, and an educational program for pet owners regarding
1
  Fenston, Jacob. There are roughly 200,000 cats in D.C. Yes, Someone Counted. DCist (September 24, 2021).
Accessed October 19, 2025 at https://dcist.com/story/21/09/24/so-many-cats-dc-cat-count/.
2
  Committee on Health, Report and Recommendations of the Committee on Health on the Fiscal Year 2026
Budget for Agencies Under Its Purview (June 23, 2025: p. 24). Accessed October 19, 2025 at
https://lims.dccouncil.gov/Hearings/hearings/917.
pet care and safety, and the laws related to pet ownership. These services will be funded through
the dog licensing fee that is currently law in the District, pet food registration fees, and any
additional funds received from public or private sources. Finally, this legislation creates a
mechanism for the enforcement of standards for pet care facilities by the District Department of
Health.
Please feel free to reach out to me or my Legislative Director, Neferteria Brown, with any
questions or for additional information. She can be reached at nbrown@dccouncil.gov or by
phone at (771) 333-9734.
Sincerely,
Zachary Parker
Ward 5 Councilmember
Chair, Committee on Youth Affairs
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2 _____________________________  _____________________________
3 Councilmember Charles Allen  Councilmember Zachary Parker
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7 ________________________________  ______________________________
8 Councilmember Janeese Lewis George  Councilmember Robert C. White, Jr.
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12 ________________________________
13 Councilmember Brooke Pinto
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16A BILL
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18_________________________
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20IN THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
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22_________________________
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25 To amend the Animal Control Act of 1979 to create an Animal Population Health and Education
26Program to support veterinary services, sterilization, and pet ownership education, to
27clarify funding sources and uses for the Animal Education and Outreach Fund, and to
28establish pet food registration fees; and to amend the Animal Protection Amendment Act
29of 2008 and the Department of Health Functions Clarification Act of 2001 to create a
30mechanism for the enforcement of standards for pet care facilities.
31
32 BE IT ENACTED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, That this act may
33be cited as the “Care for Animals Amendment Act of 2025”.
34Sec. 2. The Animal Control Act of 1979, effective October 18, 1979 (D.C. Law 3-30;
35 D.C. Official Code § 8-1801 et seq.) is amended as follows:
36(a) Section 2 (D.C. Official Code § 8-1801) is amended as follows:
37(1) New paragraphs 16A, 16B, and 16C are inserted to read as follows:
38“(16A) “Pet food” means any commercial feed prepared and distributed for
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39 consumption by dogs and cats.
40“(16B) “Program” means the Animal Population Health and Education Program
41 established in § 8-1810.
42“(16C) “Spay or Neuter” means sterilization of a dog or cat by surgical means or
43 FDA approved pharmaceutical methods that remove or alter reproductive function.”.
44(2) New paragraph 19 is inserted to read as follows:
45“(19) “Veterinarian” shall have the same meaning as provided in § 3-
46 1201.01(16).”.
47(b) Section 11 (D.C. Official Code § 8-1810) is amended to read as follows:
48“Sec. 11. Animal Population Health and Education Program.
49“(a) The Department of Health shall establish the Animal Population Health and
50 Education Program to support residents with veterinary services and animal control needs. The
51 Program’s goals include:
52“(1) providing preventive and emergency veterinary services for cats and dogs;
53“(2) reducing population growth among stray and unwanted cats and dogs;
54“(3) reducing stray and unwanted cats and dogs entering animal shelters;
55“(4) reducing cat and dog euthanasia rates;
56“(5) reducing animal-inflicted injuries to humans (e.g. bites); and
57“(6) reducing threats to public health and safety (e.g. from rabies and vehicular
58 accidents).
59“(b) The Program shall provide animal care and education services, including:
60“(1) Providing preventive and emergency veterinary services;
61“(2) Providing low-cost spay and neuter clinic services; and
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62“(3) Implementing an educational program for animal owners regarding pet care
63 and safety, specifically in extreme weather conditions or emergencies, and on the laws related to
64 pet ownership.”
65“(c) An individual may qualify to participate in the Program if the individual meets all of
66 the following:
67“(1) Is 18 years of age or older; and
68“(2) Is a resident of the District.
69“(d) The Mayor shall adopt regulations pursuant to this section relative to:
70“(1) Format and content of all forms required under this section;
71“(2) Proof of eligibility under subsection (c);
72“(3) Administration of the Fund established pursuant to section 11a; and
73“(4) Any other matter necessary for the administration of the Fund under section
74 11a.
75“(e) The Department of Health shall administer the Program and shall be responsible for:
76“(1) distributing, collecting and compiling all forms, including but not limited to,
77 veterinarian participation agreements, sterilization and immunization certifications, and creating
78 a database therefrom for enforcement and accountability purposes;
79“(2) maintaining a list of participating organizations;
80“(3) determining eligibility;
81“(4) obtaining the maximum number of spay, neuter and inoculation procedures
82 available to the Program’s financial parameters per calendar year;
83“(5) and establishing rules and financial parameters per calendar year for the
84 implementation of preventive and emergency veterinarian services.
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85“(f) The Department of Health shall prepare and transmit an annual report to the Council
86  and Mayor on Program outcomes and the use of the fees received from the Animal Education
87  and Outreach Fund established pursuant to section 11a.”.
88(c) Section 11a (D.C. Official Code § 8-1810.01) is amended to read as follows:
89(1) Subsections (b), (c), and (d) are amended to read as follows:
90“(b) Revenue deposited into the Fund shall come from:
91“(1) 25% of each fee paid for the application, issuance, or renewal
92 of a dog license pursuant to § 8-1804(e-1);
93“(2) Pet food registration fees paid pursuant to § 8-810.03 [Sec.
94  11c]; and
95“(3) Funds from public or private sources.
96“(c) Money in the Fund shall be used for the following purposes:
97“(1) Implementation of the Animal Population Health and
98 Education Program under § 8-1810; and
99“(2) Appropriate overhead and administrative expenses related to
100 the Fund;
101“(d) All money deposited into the Fund shall have the following
102 parameters:
103“(1) The money deposited into the Fund shall not revert to the
104 unrestricted fund balance of the General Fund of the District of Columbia at the end of a fiscal
105 year, or at any other time.
106“(2) All interest earnings shall be credited to the assets of the Fund
107 and shall become part of the Fund.”.
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108(d) A new section 11c [D.C. Official Code § 8-1810.01c] is added to read as follows:
109“Sec. 11c. Pet Food Registration Fees.
110“(a) Each pet food product distributed for retail sale in the District shall be registered
111 annually with the Department of Health.
112“(b) A registration fee for each pet food product shall be paid annually by a pet food
113 manufacturer as follows:
114“(1) For Fiscal Year 2026, $50 per each product of each brand;
115“(2) For Fiscal Year 2027, $75 per each product of each brand; and
116“(3) Beginning in Fiscal Year 2028, future registration fee increases to be
117 determined by the Department of Health in each subsequent year.
118“(c) The total of the registration fees collected under subsection (b) of this section is to be
119 distributed to the Animal Education and Outreach Fund established by § 8–1810.01.”.
120Sec. 3. Section 202(a) of The Animal Protection Amendment Act of 2008, effective
121 December 5, 2008 (D.C. Law 17-281; D.C. Official Code § 8-1821.02(a)), is amended to read as
122 follows:
123“(a) No person shall own, operate, maintain, open, or establish a commercial pet care
124 facility without first obtaining a basic business license with an Inspected Sales and Service
125 license endorsement pursuant to Title 47 of the District of Columbia Official Code and an
126 operational permit from the Mayor. The Mayor shall issue rules to establish the standards for the
127 care and management of animals in a commercial pet care facility, to provide for initial and
128 periodic inspections of a facility and to provide for remedial action to be taken against the
129 operational permit for failure of the facility to comply with the standards of care and
130 management established by the rules or any District or federal law or regulation applicable to the
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131 facility, including summary suspension of the permit where the failure is of such a serious nature
132 and magnitude that it presents an imminent danger to the health or safety of a person or animal in
133 the facility.”.
134Sec. 4. Section 4902(a)(4) of the Department of Health Functions Clarification Act of
135 2001, effective October 3, 2001 (D.C. Law 14-28; D.C. Official Code § 7-731(a)(4)), is amended
136 to read as follows:
137“(4) Regulate health care facilities, social service facilities, commercial pet care
138 facilities and commercial animal breeder facilities;”.
139Sec. 5. Rules
140The Mayor, pursuant to Title I of the District of Columbia Administrative Procedure Act,
141 approved October 21, 1968 (82 Stat. 1204; D.C. Official Code § 2-501 et seq.), may issue rules
142 to implement the provisions of this act.
143Sec. 6. Fiscal impact statement.
144The Council adopts the fiscal impact statement in the committee report as the fiscal
145 impact statement required by section 4a of the General Legislative Procedures Act of 1975,
146 approved October 16, 2006 (120 Stat. 2038; D.C. Official Code § 1-301.47a).
147Sec. 7. Effective date.
148This act shall take effect after approval by the Mayor (or in the event of veto by the
149 Mayor, action by the Council to override the veto), a 30-day period of congressional review as
150 provided in section 602(c)(1) of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act, approved December
151 24, 1973 (87 Stat. 813; D.C. Official Code § 1-206.02(c)(1)), and publication in the District of
152 Columbia Register.
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