Mailbag: Bill promoting trap, neuter and return would harm cats

State Sen. Janet Nguyen’s SB 1459 is bad policy and should be opposed.

After working for 17 years to reduce pet overpopulation and shelter overcrowding through legislation, two things are crystal clear to me. First, good laws will compel most people to do the right thing when it comes to animals. Second, bad actors with little regard for the voiceless will exploit every legal loophole they can.

SB 1459, which was scheduled for a committee hearing on May 16, is a prime example of poorly written legislation that can be used to harm rather than help animals. Willingly abandoning an animal in California is a misdemeanor. SB 1459 contains a provision that would amend that particular section of the Penal Code to state that releasing “community cats” through trap, neuter and return (TNR) programs does not constitute animal abandonment. Yet the bill sets no strict parameters for implementing TNR programs. Operators are not required to hold specific permits. Nor do they need to coordinate with local animal control agencies or meet minimum standards of care. In essence, anyone would be able to round up and sterilize as many adoptable cats as they want and legally dump them onto the street, as long as they call it a TNR program. SB 1459 would also give legal cover to individuals who abandon their cats and claim it was part of such a program. It would be virtually impossible for a prosecutor to prove those individuals were lying, due to the lack of specific language in the bill.

As a general rule, those of us who work on the front lines of the animal protection battle oppose TNR programs that are not closely managed. We know they are not good, for wildlife and especially not for the “community cats,” most of which suffer greatly from untreated medical conditions, hunger, dehydration, exposure to extreme weather, predators, or cruel humans.

The last thing California needs is a law that will send more of our feline friends back onto dangerous streets, condemning them to an early death.

The keys to ending pet overpopulation are spay and neuter programs for owned and shelter animals, vaccinations, licensing, microchipping, and keeping animals indoors. By creating a new, legal pathway for people to abandon their cats, SB 1459 moves us away from that goal. Please join me in opposing it by contacting Sen. Nguyen at (916) 651-4036 and the Senate Appropriations Committee at (916) 651-4014.

Judie Mancuso
Laguna Beach

District elections would harm H.B.

It is super ironic that I would ever agree with City Atty. Michael Gates and even more ironic that conservatives have flipped on the “districting” issue for Huntington Beach (Lawsuit alleges Huntington Beach’s at-large elections disenfranchise Latino residents, Daily Pilot, May 10). In the March 2004 primary election, Measure E, championed by conservative Scott Baugh and his GOP ilk, was soundly defeated 63.2% to 36.8%. The fear in the community was that “districting” was a thinly disguised “divide and conquer” strategy which would allow partisan special interests to flood each district with oceans of cash supporting their own candidates and thereby control the City Council outright. It would also bump citywide candidates residing in the same district and essentially force relocations, showdowns or dropouts. Given the new overgenerous campaign contribution “limits,” special interests can now rule city elections regardless of districts.

The lawsuit proponents fail to realize that whoever draws the district boundaries controls the process, and minority areas can wind up even less represented than they already are. This would have occurred to southeast Huntington Beach in 2004, for example, being lumped with a more dominant downtown electorate population which would have almost always guaranteed a downtown council member for that district. Districting will not work in Surf City unless you increase the City Council and have “micro-districts.” Even then, the “micro-districts” could be easily outvoted in setting policy by a majority on the City Council. The best strategy for minorities of all kinds is to rally behind citywide candidates who will listen to them and represent them fairly. Fortunately, the 2024 election in November offers that kind of outcome with support for the council incumbents.

Tim Geddes
Huntington Beach

H.B. won’t send library outsourcing to voters

Our Huntington Beach council majority claims they have to look into any budget-saving measure, which is why they are putting out an RFP to privatize/outsource the library. If the majority honestly believes “outsourcing” our library system is what the public wants, why are they refusing to let us vote on this? This council had no problem holding a special election in March which cost the city almost half a million dollars, but now refuses to allow the library issue to be put on the November ballot for a fraction of the cost. Could it be because they know the majority of the residents do not want this to happen? The council can claim it’s all about saving money, but I think most of us already know, it’s really about controlling what reading materials will be made available to the public and what library programs will be offered. It is also a way to get rid of our experienced, educated librarians who have been maintaining a book collection which reflects all viewpoints of the community, not just those of the MAGA far-right Christian extremists. If our council truly believed in the democratic process, they would let the residents decide the fate of their library.

Barbara Richardson
Huntington Beach

Transparency crucial in settlement

Re: California state auditor to examine Huntington Beach’s $7M air show settlement, Daily Pilot, May 15): In 2014, when Michael Gates was first running for city attorney against a 12-year incumbent, he criticized her for settling cases and argued that he would fight for the city . Now, not only did he enter into a $7-million settlement with the air show operator Code Four, but he refuses to discuss the terms of the settlement.

These are city taxpayer funds, and taxpayers are entitled to learn the details of that settlement. When Gates ran for reelection he campaigned with the conservative four candidates running for the the City Council, and now this majority, who granted Gates a pay raise, agreed to this settlement. Therefore it is crucial that the details of this settlement be revealed. If there is nothing to hide, why the hesitation?

Richard C. Armendariz

Huntington Beach

Shake Shack looks tempting

There’s a place on 17th Street in Costa Mesa called the Baycrest Caps N Corks Bottle Shop and Market, where I often spend time buying and scratching lottery Scratchers along with numerous others who share the same passion or gaming traits as me. I’ve been going to that place for some time now and have actually made some new friends. The store sells liquor, food, all kinds of snacks and two lottery ticket machines, which is atypical, as most places that sell lotto tickets only have one machine.

The Bottleshop is not just close to the new Shake Shack (Costa Mesa welcomes second Shake Shack to Orange County, Daily Pilot, May 10), it is just a few feet away with an ample view of the new place and even the outside seating. The customers of the Bottle Shop have been watching the construction of the new restaurant for the last few months and look forward to tasting the food there, which I’m told is pretty good. I happen to be at the Bottle Shop this past Thursday when Shake Shack had its grand opening with many people there celebrating the ribbon-cutting ceremony. We Bottle Shop customers have even made comments on how we would buy a few Scratchers and walk over to the Shake Shack, sit down on the outside seating and enjoy the food while either winning or losing money on the lottery. I’ve yet to taste the food there, but am looking forward to it along with my new friends from the very nearby Bottle Shop. As busy as that little shopping center is, it appears that the new eating place will garner even more business.

Bill Spitalnick
Newport Beach