Part 1: How to Advocate for Ordinances Locally

How to advocate for ordinances/laws in your county

Join SCAWA and follow this guide to get started. For information on your local group, please complete the contact us page on this website, or view the previous blog for the GroupMe links!

Part 1: Starting out - Connect with your Local SCAWA leader! This will help you mobilize your efforts with the statewide alliance. SCAWA will be able to assist you with everything below!

Want to get some better laws passed in your county? Or even just carry forward state laws to your county so that your animal control can enforce them better?

1) Search your county and/or city animal laws. Search your state animal laws. Know what your currently have enacted already and know them well. Next, find nearby laws in a neighboring county or state that you’d like to enact. Search the specific language and print it out. Also save an electronic copy of the law or laws. It’s easiest to get laws passed that have been enacted nearby, rather than trying to write your own. More than likely, laws that have passed already have gone through many levels of proper vetting!

2) Meet with your local animal shelter, especially if it’s a local open admission county shelter. Meet with the people in charge, and tell them about your plans for new laws. Ask them what they think about your proposed laws. Ask them if there are laws they would like to see enacted. You should also meet with Animal Control and ask them their thoughts. The shelter should be able to help with this connection to animal control! If not, you’ll have to call them directly and set up a meeting. (While you’re at it, foster a dog or sign up to volunteer! )

3) Find a County Council member in your county willing to help. You’ll need a member or members to help spearhead and guide the process. Start with your district’s County Council member. You’ll need to google “who is my [insert your county] county council member” and you may have to check a district map to plug in your address. You will need to email them, and send a respectful email with your name and contact information in the email, and attach the example laws to the email you’d like to pass. This may take time and a few follow ups. You can try calling them, too. And attend a council meeting to see if they will speak to you face to face.

4) Gather trusted animal advocates willing to show up for meetings and to help. These will need to be people who are reliable, level headed, and willing to meet with people involved in the lawmaking process. These are your fellow organizers who can help put together meetings, materials, and ideas. You’ll need to meet with these folks many times!

5) Start amassing a list of contacts of animal advocates who can show up to county council meetings when laws start moving along the process. Preferably people residing in your county, as constituents of your county council members will have more say than someone who isn’t. But all should be welcome to pack a room. Gather contacts of shelter staff, rescue contacts, veterinarians, and animal lovers who care. This contact list will be a powerful contact list when the time comes to have people contact their lawmakers, too! You’ll need to have this list quick to access because you’ll never know when you will need to add folks to it!

That’s all for now.

Stay tuned for the next part of this advocacy series Part 2: Gaining Traction.