Item 1: Draft Minutes 02.09.26 — original pdf

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ANIMAL ADVISORY COMMISSION REGULAR MEETING MINUTES FEBRUARY 9, 2026 The Animal Advisory Commission convened in a regular meeting on Monday, February 9, 2026, at Austin City Hall, Boards and Commissions Room 301 W 2nd Street in Austin, Texas. Chair Nilson called the Animal Advisory Commission Meeting to order at 6:00 pm. Commissioners in Attendance: Dr. Paige Nilson, Chair, D4 Ann Linder, Vice Chair, D3 Jennifer Daniel, D6 Erin Ferguson, D8 Jo Anne Norton, Parliamentarian, D7 Commissioners in Attendance Remotely: Koby Ahmed, Mayor Beatriz Dulzaides, D2 Whitney Holt, D5 Sarah Huddleston, D9 Nancy Nemer, Travis County Commissioners Absent: David Loignon, D10 PUBLIC COMMUNICATION: GENERAL Sara Mitran – Austin Resource and Recovery Deceased Animal Procedure Robyn Katz Gonzalez – State of Animals in ATX Craig Nazor – Birds and Bats Rochelle Vickery – Dog pickup and care assistance near airport Pat Valls Trelles – Introduction and support of Rochelle Vickery Shelly Leibham – Spay and Neuter Event Reminder APPROVAL OF MINUTES 1. Approve the minutes of the Animal Advisory Commission Regular Meeting on January 12, 2026. The minutes from the Animal Advisory Commission regular meeting on January 12, 2026 were approved during the Animal Advisory Commission regular meeting on February 9, 1 2026 on Vice Chair Linder’s motion, Parliamentarian Norton’s second on an 11-0 vote. Commissioner Loignon was absent. STAFF BRIEFINGS 2. 3. 4. Staff briefing regarding monthly reports. Presentation by Monica Dangler, Director, Austin Animal Services and Jason Garza, Assistant Director, Austin Animal Services. Presentation given by Monica Dangler, Director, Austin Animal Services and Jason Garza, Assistant Director, Austin Animal Services. Staff briefing on the Austin Animal Services Department 30-60-90-day horizon plan. Presentation by Monica Dangler, Director, Austin Animal Services. Presentation given by Monica Dangler, Director, Austin Animal Services. Staff briefing regarding an overview of the Austin Animal Services FY 26-27 budget. Presentation by Jason Garza, Assistant Director, Austin Animal Services and Melissa Pool, Chief Administrative Officer, Austin Animal Services. Presentation given by Jason Garza, Assistant Director, Austin Animal Services and Melissa Pool, Chief Administrative Officer, Austin Animal Services. WORKING GROUP UPDATES 5. 6. Update from the Pet Friendly Policy Working Group regarding updates from previous meetings and legislative priorities. Withdrawn Update from the Strategic Plan Working Group regarding progress in most recent meeting. Update given by Commissioner Ferguson. DISCUSSION AND ACTION ITEMS 7. Approve a list of legislative priorities to be supported by the commission for the upcoming legislative session. The motion to submit a list of legislative priorities with a commissioner contact for each to Austin Government Relations with the top three items as Animal Advisory Commission priorities was approved as amended by Vice Chair Linder on Parliamentarian Norton’s motion, Commissioner Ferguson’s second on an 11-0 vote. Commissioner Loignon was absent. The first amendment was to reprioritize the list below to move number 14 to number 3. 1. Request continued funds for spay/neuter (TXSPN) - Jo Anne Norton 2. Veterinary Virtual Visits/Telemedicine - Jo Anne Norton 3. Ethical Pet Sales - Jo Anne Norton 4. Designating APOs as First Responders - Jo Anne Norton 5. Removing Deposit Barriers for Renters and Homeowners - Whitney Holt 6. Animal Abuser Registry - Jo Anne Norton 7. Texas Emotional Support Animals - Whitney Holt 8. Dog Fighting Felony Reclassification - Whitney Holt 9. Pet Inclusive Housing - Whitney Holt 2 10. Ban Cat Declawing - Whitney Holt 11. Ban Glue Traps - Whitney Holt 12. Define “Breeder” More Robustly - Whitney Holt 13. Citizens Rescuing Pets in Hot Cars - Whitney Holt 14. Eliminate Housing Discrimination by Weight - Whitney Holt The second amendment was to add two new priorities to the list as numbers 15 and 16. The first priority was to “Prohibit the killing of bat colonies by sealing the entrances of colonies” and the second priority was to “Allocate public funding to 501c3 wildlife rehabilitation centers that regularly receive animals from public agencies.” The new list with the amendments will be as follows: 1. Request continued funds for spay/neuter (TXSPN) - Jo Anne Norton 2. Veterinary Virtual Visits/Telemedicine - Jo Anne Norton 3. Eliminate Housing Discrimination by Weight - Whitney Holt 4. Ethical Pet Sales - Jo Anne Norton 5. Designating APOs as First Responders - Jo Anne Norton 6. Removing Deposit Barriers for Renters and Homeowners - Whitney Holt 7. Animal Abuser Registry - Jo Anne Norton 8. Texas Emotional Support Animals - Whitney Holt 9. Dog Fighting Felony Reclassification - Whitney Holt 10. Pet Inclusive Housing - Whitney Holt 11. Ban Cat Declawing - Whitney Holt 12. Ban Glue Traps - Whitney Holt 13. Define “Breeder” More Robustly - Whitney Holt 14. Citizens Rescuing Pets in Hot Cars - Whitney Holt 15. Prohibit the killing of bat colonies by sealing the entrances of colonies – Ann Linder 16. Allocate public funding to 501c3 wildlife rehabilitation centers that regularly receive animals from public agencies – Ann Linder 8. Approve the formation and membership of a Budget Working Group in creatin budget recommendations for the FY27 budget. The motion to approve the formation of a Budget Working Group with Chair Nilson as a member was approved on Chair Nilson’s motion, Commissioner Daniel’s second on a 10- 0 vote. Commissioner Clinton was off dais and Commissioner Loignon was absent. FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS Presentation from Austin Resource Recovery regarding the process in finding and processing dead animals/pets. The meeting of the Animal Advisory Commission was adjourned at 8:08pm on Parliamentarian Norton’s motion, Vice Chair Linder’s second without objection. 3