San Francisco Officials Talk About Mandatory Allowance of Pets in Apartments

Mandatory acceptance of pets in rental housing
The issue of mandatory acceptance of pets in rental housing was heard again by the Animal Control and Welfare Commission on November 12, 2009. There have been two meetings on this topic.

This agenda item stems from the commissioner’s previous discussions about trying to ensure that no potentially adoptable animal be euthanized in city shelters.

There has been some discussion among commissioners about making the acceptance of pets in rental housing mandatory in order to increase the number of rental housing providers that will accept pets in their tenant’s rental units.

Debates have been heated and emotional. SFAA opposes mandating owners to accept pets in rental units. We believe pet policy is a choice that should be left up to the building owners. Contrary to what many of the speakers at the hearings and the commissioners have said, SFAA believes that owning a pet is not a right, it is a choice.

SFAA board member Andrew Long spoke in opposition to the legislative proposal. His comments are featured in a KGO-TV news story that ran November 12: