Good morning, and thank you for joining us
for this committee on Health and Human Relations meeting.
It is 10:25 AM on October 9th, 2025,
and this meeting is now called to order.
On today's agenda, we have three items.
The first is the appointment of Angela J. Green
as Commissioner of Chicago Department
of Family and Support Services.
Second, a resolution from Alman Hopkins, calling
for an expression of support for the federal government
to pass the American Center for Cures, legislation,
and third resolution from other Fuentes
and associated subject matter hearing
with Chicago Animal Care
and Control regarding their shelter operations
and community engagement.
Before we begin, I will call the role to establish Quorum
Vice-Chair Ramirez, alderman Robinson.
Alderman Yancy, wo Gutierrez Alderman Lopez,
alderman Ccho Lopez, alderman Fuentes,
Derman Cruz, alderman Casada, alderman Lawson,
Alder Woman Man in Howorth other Manhattan,
Rodriguez Sanchez is present.
We have eight members present. We have a quorum.
I want to recognize Alderman Hopkins here.
Nonmember, thank you for being here.
We have a request for remote participation setting Rule
59 from other women.
Cruz, can I get a motion
to approve her remote participation?
So moved by other woman, Gutierrez.
All those in favor signify by saying aye.
Opposed say nay in the opinion of the chair.
The ayes have it. Other woman. Cruz, are you online?
I'm here. Thank you.
You've now been added to the roll call.
Uh, we will begin our meeting with time for public comment.
This period is limited to 30 minutes,
and each speaker is limited to three minutes.
We have 20 in-person public speakers signed up,
and we don't have any virtual public speakers.
And we're going to start with Mr. George Blakemore.
Um, in the interest of time,
because we have so many speakers,
we're gonna do two minutes per person.
Thank you. So
that everybody gets a chance to speak.
We're gonna do two minutes so that everybody can speak.
Go ahead, Mr. Blakemore.
Human relat, uh, committee,
human relation, how
human beings relate to each other.
And I'm appalled to come to this meeting
and see the, the hunters, uh, a white faces.
How did you, uh, market a, uh, uh,
or did you market to the black community?
This just didn't happen.
You created that to happen.
All white folks.
You, uh, your human relations is, is terrible.
It, it's disgraceful. It's, it's un-American.
And all of you here, 99% of you are Democrats.
A one party system like communist, China
of passage, Germany
or Russia, a one party system,
no checks and balance.
And look at here, where are the aldermans?
And when I came in here, I said, oh, look at here.
Look at all these white folk.
How did you market this, uh, uh,
inform black people about this meeting?
And why didn't you?
Because black people are very involved in, in the system
with human relations.
Young lady, this is a sad day.
No, don't tell me about the minutes and seconds is you?
All of you. This is not a good look
when you have a multicultural, a city to have 90%
of the people in the committee meeting
that are not black you.
Thank you for your comments, Mr. Blakemore.
Uh, next speaker is James Howorth. James Howorth.
Good morning. Good morning.
Thank you for the opportunity to speak to you about caring
for homeless animals in Chicago.
My name is James Howorth. I live in the second ward.
I've been a volunteer at Paw Chicago for over four years,
assisting P Chicago in animal care, adoption counseling,
public outreach, and new volunteer training.
PAW Chicago is ca C'S largest
transfer partner, having,
having taken in almost 2000 animals last year
and almost 1400 in the first eight months of this year.
Without overwhelming you with statistics, I would like
to draw your attention to just a few points.
Adoptions at CACC went up
by over 28% in 2024 over the previous year.
And this year they are up another 26% year to date
over last year.
At the same time. CACC is the lowest funded animal care
agency of all large cities, both in total funding
and per capita.
For example, funding for animal care in Houston
is nearly $16 million.
Austin, over $21 million
and Los Angeles over $62 million.
Chicago's funding stands at only $7.7 million.
We are the only major city to have reduced funding
in the past year.
Meanwhile, intake numbers at CACC have increased in each
of the past three years by 10%, 18%,
and 22% respectively.
We're proud of the success of our partnership with CACC,
but the city of Chicago needs to step up
and do its part to adequately fund this effort.
We can do so much more working together with your support.
Thank you. Thank you for your comments.
I have Abigail next Abigail, and then
after Abigail, I have Cynthia.
I,
Good morning. Go ahead.
My name is Abigail Spencer.
I am a volunteer with few lines
of Chicago and Hyde Park Cats.
I'm also a community caretaker through Chicago Paws.
My aim in speaking today is not to deliver just that.
I instead hope to just share anecdotally
the community spillover of funding these programs.
There's one thing you take away from
my speaking in particular.
It is that when you fund programs, you empower people.
You can see this effect today in this room.
The amount of people who have come in,
albeit a bit demographically odd for the city of Chicago,
but the amount of people who have come in today motivated
to convince you to give us more resources
to do the work we want to do.
You already have the benefit of people loving animals,
caring for them in their homes as a hobby, as a passion.
Many of us lose money to do this work,
and yet we still do it.
But when there is more money, what happens is people
who are less economically empowered have the chance
to now be paid.
Staff, volunteers who don't need
to spend their own money on medical bills, they don't need
to do the transport because they have resources.
The work that I do is most directly in Woodlawn.
And I can tell you that most
of the people in Woodlawn do not look like me.
And in fact, many of the people helping cats in
Woodlawn do not look like me.
I'm able to be here because my job supports it,
because I'm able to do cat rescue even when I'm
not being paid for it.
But I don't want you to look around this room
and think that all of these people are just here
because this work is easy or
because it's so accessible now, it is not.
We need more funding so
that Chicago's entire population can be involved in the
capacity they want to with helping homeless animals.
And we cannot do that without more money for CACC
that spills over into all of these other rescues.
Please thank you for your comments.
I have Cynthia next, and then Anna.
Good morning. My name is Cynthia Cook
and I am in Ward 30.
Um, so I'm here today, uh, as a
Chicago volunteer who's worked in the big FIX program
that was designed by PAWS and Chicago Animal Care
and Control to help cats
and larger dogs at CACC find their new home.
So every morning my partner
and I would hop in the paws van, go over
and pick up a van full of animals, bring them over
to P Chicago Medical Center,
where they'd be spayed neutered.
At the end of the day, we would take them back
and be immediately available for adoption.
And it is that immediately available for adoption
that has made that program so successful during the time
that this program has operated 931 cats
and large dogs have been successfully
integrated into their new homes.
And yet, in spite of those efforts,
um, there was still, there still was a gap in
the time that it would take for someone to say,
I really want to adopt that animal
and the time that that animal would've been spayed
or neutered, and then be available for adoption by law.
And many families are unwilling to wait that time.
And so as a result, they go to other shelters.
And what ends up happening then at CACC, is
that it has a growing number of unadopted animals
and that leads to deadly consequences and,
and outcomes for adoptable animals.
And all of that is a reflection of what's happened
with the budget for Chicago Animal Care and Control.
It simply does not have the resources.
Thank you for your comments.
Have Anna Anna, ick.
Good morning. Good morning.
My name is Anna Ick,
and as a concerned Chicago resident Active CACC,
volunteer vice president of FE lines of Chicago
and Animal Welfare Advocate, I'm asking the city
to make meaningful investments in structural changes
to improve conditions for animals, staff, volunteers,
and the public who depend on Chicago
Animal care and control.
Most importantly, is improving the veterinary
staffing and care standards.
There are only three full-time veterinarians
for the entire CACC population.
And open positions, including kennel attendants
and veterinary care staff directly impact the life
of quality of life for animals in the building
and must be filled immediately despite the
current hiring freeze.
Additionally, pause or another qualified veterinary
organization should be reinstated to assist
with vetting since their abrupt stop.
Following the July mass spay neuter event,
animals have been waiting far too long
for essential services such as vaccinations and spay
and neuter adopters face extended delays
before they can bring their new pets home, leaving animals
to occupy vital kennel space.
For weeks during these preventable waiting periods,
many animals become sick
or exposed to diseases such as panleukopenia
or upper re severe upper respiratory infections.
As a result, these animals are often placed on deadline list
and must be transferred to licensed Respir partners
because the sheltered lacks the capacity
to provide appropriate treatment, rescues
and fosters across Chicago have been stretched
beyond their limits, trying to save the constant stream
of deadline cases from CACC as both the CACC volunteer
and an active member of the local rescue community.
I see firsthand how critical it is
to address these issues immediately.
The current standard of care does not meet ethical
or humane standards, and this must be treated
as a top priority by the city moving forward.
Volunteers also are waiting months to be approved, largely
because fingerprinting can only be done at a single downtown
location during standard work hours.
We're asking for additional fingerprinting sites in a
simplified onboarding process.
So willing and capable volunteers aren't discouraged
and driven to other D organizations.
Bringing new volunteers in should be as accessible
and welcoming as possible.
Thank you.
Thank you for your comments.
Next speaker is Alexan Alexandra Fitzgerald
and afterwards Alexis of Lados.
Alright. Hello.
Thank you everyone for, for coming,
especially the city council members, um,
who took the time to be here today.
Um, I'm, my name's Alex Fitzgerald.
I'm not representing a certain organization, um,
but I have spent many years working in animal welfare in
Chicago in different organizations.
Um, the first thing I wanna acknowledge is
that the CACC administration
who are here today are operating
with several major roles vacant, um, including that
of executive director.
Um, so there's only so much they're gonna be able
to accomplish while they, these major positions are open.
Um, I do have some questions I'd like to direct towards them
that I think other folks, um, would be interested
to hear the answers to as well.
Um, so great.
As other speakers have, have said,
great progress has been made in increasing adoption since
the pandemic in 20 24, 19 0.8% of animals taken
to the shelter were adopted out.
Um, CAT adoptions specifically have increased reaching a
high of 24.9% in 2024.
Dog adoptions in 2024 were lower at
15.3%.
Um, so I just wondered if you could speak
to why we are maybe seeing greater progress in cat adoptions
as opposed to dog adoptions.
Um, the percent of animals being returned
to their owners is also down compared to
years preceding the pandemic.
Um, if, if, is there anything we can attribute this to
or anything that might explain that, um, transfers are down
as well compared to pre pandemic years?
I know CACC used to have nearly 200 active rescue partners
and now that number is closer to 100.
Um, so I'm wondering if we know why, uh,
all these rescues have stopped working with CACC.
Um, I understand at a point, um,
a veterinarian from the shelter medicine department
of the Vet School at the University of Wisconsin.
I, sorry. Thank you for your comments.
We wrote down your questions
and we will be asking them, uh, of animal care and control.
Alexis.
All right. Good morning. My name Morning is Alexis PDOs.
I am a homeowner in the second ward.
Thank you Alderman Hopkins for being here.
Um, I wish more actually cared to show up.
Um, so here to talk about a couple things.
The two main points we need housing reform, similar to
what has happened in dc they enacted in 2024 Roscoe's Law,
it prevented, um, arbitrary like, uh, sorry, arbitrary,
um, breed
and weight restrictions, creation
of pet friendly house homeless shelters
and the caps on pet rent and security deposits.
Um, one of like the proudest moments I've had this year
being a Chicagoan has been seeing the community
respond to the ICE raids.
Like we understand like family in Chicago
and these pets are our family.
Nobody should have to sit there
and choose between their pet or housing.
It's just, it's inhumane.
Um, second, we need a breed breeding ban in this city,
there is no reason we are not a farm, we are not a zoo.
We're not doing conservation efforts.
This is the city of Chicago.
Why is there animal husbandry happening in our city limits
when pets are dying every single day
that are perfectly healthy,
perfectly adoptable, it's unacceptable.
These people are sitting in the corner profiting off
of their animals fornicating.
It's just ridiculous. And that's not a job. I'm sorry.
And if you think that's a job, I'm scared to see
what you guys are gonna do as city councilmen
because that simply is just not a job.
We need to put a ban on it.
You need to stop the bleeding
because these people should not have to take time out
of their day and their money to their own money
to do something that should be a public service
provided by the city of Chicago.
We're one of the most underfunded animal
controls in the entire country.
We have some of the highest intake
and it just simply needs to stop
and we need to do something about it.
And I think a breed ban it. It's due time.
It's due time. Thank you.
Amy Johnson is next.
Amy Johnson. And afterwards, uh, Liz, Liz
s Amy Johnson. Are you
Here?
Yeah.
Good morning. Good morning. Uh, I am Amy Johnson.
I'm a volunteer for Polish Chicago.
I've been a volunteer for their 360 program with the,
and bringing animals in to get spayed aneu in order
to get them to their homes a little faster.
Um, while I was there,
I would see the staff doing o working overtime.
So we would have, would take us five to 10 minutes
to load up a, a dog into the van.
They'd be multitasking
and working on other things in their facility
while they had a little bit of time while we're loading up.
Uh, I've talked to volunteers who have been frustrated
because there's no support or structure.
And they had, they left
because they couldn't, they didn't feel the support.
And uh, like for, for instance, even getting asked to
help with a, an adoption
or something, they would,
they didn't have the proper training.
So I know this person in particular hopped in that day,
but didn't come back because they were just like, I,
I'm not trained on this.
And to me, that comes from upper structure from within CACC
and they just need the funding
and the support within their organization.
Um, and PAW has been able to, uh,
secure someone to help
with adopt adoption program, but they can't.
They need help within the city
to help fund these kinds of things.
Um, yeah, the adoptions are up 26% this year
to date in August, but there are so, so many dogs
and cats being brought into the facility
that they just need more funding.
Thank you.
Thank you for your comments. I want
to acknowledge Elder woman Jesse Fuentes, um, as member
of the committee and Elderman Bill has joined us as well.
Non-member. Go ahead.
Thank you. I'm Liz. Hows with Cats in Action?
We're a Homeward bound partner with Animal Control.
We're also a member of the Chicagoland Humane Coalition.
Um, our mission is to help people
who are feeding outdoor cats
through a process called Trap neuter return.
Um, we will help 1500 cats this year.
We mainly work on the south side of Chicago,
where I am seeing more abandoned, um, friendly
and stray cats that I have ever seen in 15 years.
It's epidemic. Um, cats are breeding on the streets faster
than we can scoop them up, adopt them, and shelter them.
We're losing the battle.
We need to dedicate not only considerable more funding
to animal control,
but also earmark some of that money for trap neuter return.
So what I did was an exhaustive search of public record,
which I also submitted online.
And I compared
what other cities are doing throughout the country
on a per capita basis.
So Austin, Texas leads the way they allocate $23
and 75 cents, um, per capita for animal control.
Chicago's last at $2 and 65 cents.
Almost every other city also includes money, um,
for spay neuter services for free roaming cats.
Um, even New York City who hasn't historically done that,
just received a grant of a half million dollars.
So everyone is addressing the issues
that are out there except Chicago.
Um, last subject is we've had an interim executive director
who's been doing the job of two people, uh, for three years.
That's ridiculous.
Uh, we'd like a nationwide search to find someone
with knowledge, experience,
and leadership running a similar organization to come
to Chicago to lead us into the future.
Thank you.
Thank you for your comments.
Next is Anna Johnson
and afterwards, Stacy Price, Anna Johnson.
Hey there. Uh, I'm Anna Johnson.
I am with One Tail at a time,
and I have been a Homeward Bound
transfer partner intake representative, uh,
working at CACC week after week for about 15 years now.
In those 15 years, I have seen
so little progress made on adding progressive programming to
CCCs offerings, progressive programming
that would help support the people
and animals in our community.
Things such as a foster program increased, uh, staffing
for adoptions and just basic functions like answering calls
for sick, injured and dangerous animals.
Um, a couple of other speakers have already referred
to the work that other cities have done
with some increased funding to increase their life saving
and positive outcomes.
And we would love to see the same for Chicago.
Uh, so in order for CACC to be a viable public resource,
we have to provide adequate funding
to support the basic necessary programming.
We are a city who is full of animal lovers
and we've seen that time
and time again interacting with other people.
We meet at animal control
and in our daily work in animal welfare field.
Um, and we also are a city full
of incredible animal welfare organizations with tons
of resources to share who are working really hard
to fill those gaps that are left in the programming
that's currently offered by CACC.
So in order for CACC to fulfill their basic functions
and just go beyond the bare minimum, uh,
they need increased funding
to serve the people in pets in our community. Thanks.
Thank you. After Stacy tries, uh,
it would be Dr. Rachel Wooten. You can start. Stacy.
Hi. So I am the operations director at one tail at a time.
I've been in the animal welfare space for over 15 years, 12
of that in the city of Chicago.
And I can say that things are not improving at Chicago.
Animal Care and Control intake continues to climb
positions including leadership
and veterinary positions remain vacant.
And CACC continues to be woefully underfunded.
These challenges are not due to a lack
of caring from the community or the staff at CACC.
There's a distinct lack of funding.
Progressive programming and staff support for the animals
and the resources that our community needs.
Rescues simply cannot absorb every animal,
and frankly, it's not our job.
It is a public health and it's a safety issue.
And I wish that I could tell you
that animal welfare isn't political,
but the truth is, animal welfare is inherently political.
The oppression of humans and the suffering
of animals are deeply intertwined.
Fighting for animals means fighting against systems
that dehumanize and marginalized communities.
Real change is protecting the most vulnerable human
and non-animal or human, non-human, sorry.
And that is why I encourage you
to prioritize allocating resources for Chicago Animal Care
and Control and for the wellbeing of all
of our fellow humans in the animals.
Thank you for your comments.
Uh, now we have Dr. Rachel Wooten, followed
by Carolina Hernandez.
Here.
I had to fix it all. Okay. Um, hi, I'm Dr. Rachel Wooten.
I'm a local shelter veterinarian.
I'm currently at one tail at a time, but I've been doing
and working with local rescues
and animal sheltering since 2017.
I've completed shelter internships
and um, have done fellowships.
So I do like to say I'm pretty good at this.
Um, and I would like to just say I can't talk too long.
Um, I would like to talk about more than just the animals
currently entering the Chicago Animal Care and Control,
but unfortunately we could only have the time to do this.
So we really need to fund the staffing
that is at Chicago Animal Care and Control.
Chicago is one of the largest cities in America,
and it is honestly pretty shameful
how underfunded our animal care and control is.
And there are a lot of models that we can follow.
So if, for one example is Houston, um,
which is a similar size of Chicago,
they have their animal regulation and control.
They are able to be at a 90% live rece live release rate
of their dogs and cats entering their animal shelter.
They are also an open intake shelter.
So there really isn't an excuse that, oh,
we just have too many animals coming
in and we have to take them.
In order to be able to do that, we have to fund the city
and we have to fund the animal shelter that
and the employees that are working there.
So especially with medical care, it is really important
that we are funding and adequately staffed
because that is the only way you're going to be able
to move the animals out of the program from entering in
and being able to be adopted
or more importantly, reunited with their families.
And because of the staffing issues
that we have at Chicago Animal Care
and Control, we are unable to actually, um, do that
and do it effectively.
So it is really important that we are doing that.
And all the rescue groups
and people who are here, it should not be only on us
to be able to take the very sick animals that are there.
If you have the appropriate staffing
and the structures with policies and procedures and vaccines
or um, just, you know, basic prevention
and um, able to do that for the people of Chicago,
then we would have less animals coming into the shelter.
We would also have less animals leaving, um, their families.
That is the biggest important thing that I needed to say.
Thank you for your comments. I Carolina Hernandez
now and after, uh, Rosa Espinoza.
Hi, my name is Carolina Hernandez
and I work the community outreach program
with one tail at a time.
And in my time there, I have had the pleasure
and honor of working with a diversion program that used
to be at Animal Care and Control at least once a week.
That program was crisp
and that program did a lot for community
for Chicago residents
and community members who needed help with their pets,
that they were either gonna surrender
or try to find a way to keep
and crisp allowed that the option to be keep my pet
and keep them out of animal Care and Control.
I, uh, at this time we don't have that option.
Um, CRISP has not been allowed to continue working
with Animal Care and Control.
And in the community outreach work that I do now, I see that
that is a big need.
That is something that community members no
longer have access to.
Um, when they go to Animal Care
and Control, they're faced with long wait times,
not being able to go in at any time,
but limited hours that many of them can't, can't go to.
Um, so it would be great to have programs like Crisp, uh,
more robust diversion programs available
for community members and also more funding for animal care
and control to be able to go back to the hours they had
before to be able to provide additional services so that
community members do not have to wait in line
or just do nothing when they see pets outdoors
because they're not able to go when, when they can.
That is it.
Thank you for your comments.
I have Rosa Gomez and you're Espinoza
Espinoza. Okay. After
You is Rosa Gomez.
Okay. I do TNR.
Uh, I started with Cats in Action.
I learned so many things how to do TNR
before I didn't know what a feral cat was.
Uh, we need more money, more for CACC for TNR.
That's the only way we gonna help cats have less population.
I don't, I'm not sure,
but from while, while I was reading in Google,
they spend more money on ization than doing a cat on the
long run, getting them fixed.
So if you would go outside on the streets
and see how much suffering is out there,
how much it's suffering, we go on the chats on Facebook
that a lot of volunteers.
We are in there doing it with our own money, our own time.
It's very stressful, it's overwhelming, but we do it
because of the love of cats or dogs.
And I foster, I started doing first TNR
and right now the amounts of money that we have to pay
with our own money to TNR, the cats, we don't have it.
Plus I'm fostering and I have stopped
because it gets overwhelming.
We get a lot of people at full capacity.
People think, oh, the rescues take them out,
they're gonna save them.
No, it's not that easy. It's hard to find a foster.
Sometimes we have to hold it overnight
so other people can take it the other day.
It's stressful. I wish everybody
of you would go on the streets or go to CACC
or being in the chats that we are.
So you can see all the money that we spend.
That's why rescues, we have less and less
because we're getting all the bills and medical
and we don't know what to do No more in the streets.
We see a cat. Should I leave them there?
Can I get more cats in my house?
No, I cannot take more cats in my house.
Can I ask my friend? No, she's full.
Thank you. Next is Rosa
Gomez and after is Heather Owen.
Hi. Um, my name is Rose Gomez
and I also do TNR, which is trap neuter return.
And um, it is very stressful
because the money to do TNR does not come from the city
or from the different, uh, clinics that do the low cost
tn r That money has to be raised.
That money has to be paid for by somebody.
And besides that, you need the equipment.
You just cannot trap a cat if it's feral on the street.
You just cannot tell the cat,
please come inside the carrier.
No, of course not. You have to trap it.
You need the equipment. So we have to dedicate our time,
our resources, supplies in order to do TNR.
The city really needs to provide the money in order to
advocate for all of the homelessness that is happening,
specifically with the cats.
And it doesn't matter if it's a friendly cat
or not, there's many cats that are abandoned
for whatever reason, people can't afford forward
to keep the, to keep their the mascot or to keep their cat.
So they let the cat loose.
And what happens, they multiply
and the, the, the suffering continues day in and day out.
And we see the suffering
because this, this is why we're here.
Our hearts, I believe each
and every one of us here, our hearts bleed for the animals
because this is not something
that comes in our mind, oh, today.
And then we'll think about it in a month.
No, this is something that we carry day in and day out.
Every day we carry the burden of trying to advocate.
But the bottom line is, you guys, you guys need
to provide the money.
That's all that it's about. We need money.
And, and the director that's in place right now,
Susan Capello, we need a permanent director.
Why is that so hard? Why is that so hard?
All you gotta do is interview different candidates
that could be done tomorrow.
What is the problem? Get on it. Please. The money.
The money. The money.
Thank you for your comments. Heather Owen is next.
Followed by Lucy. K.
Good morning everyone. Good morning.
Um, thank you for being here.
I know there's a lot going, going on in our city,
so we appreciate this.
Um, I live in the 35th Ward, so thank you Alderman Koda,
appreciate your attendance.
Uh, my name's Heather Owen.
I am the co-founder of One Tail at a Time.
We've been A-C-A-C-C rescue partner for 17 years,
and I'm also a previous commissioner at
Chicago Animal Care Control.
I served from 2019 to 2023
in my 17 years working with CACC.
They have gone through nine director changes.
And right now we have an interim director who has been there
for over two years while her deputy
director position has remained vacant.
Can any of you do your job without your deputy?
I would quit and run far away.
On top of the deputy director position being vacant,
there are many vacancies in administrative leadership,
medical animal care.
There we have set our department up to fail
and they are failing, um,
on top of being minimally staffed.
CACC also has a budget that's a fraction of
what other major cities spend on animal services.
And this year we had the nerve to defund them.
We took away those positions while they were struggling.
So if any of you, any
of us go into CACC on any given day unannounced,
this is what you're gonna find.
A line of people surrendering their pets as well
as a very long line of good citizens
who came into surrender.
Um, animals that they found it can take up to two hours
for a good Samaritan to get a stray animal processed in.
And then we wonder why are they stray in the parking lot?
Why are they tied to benches?
You will find a lobby with a handful
of people waiting patiently to see adoptable animals.
I came in a couple weeks ago and ran into an acquaintance
and asked her what she was doing there.
She was looking to adopt a cat.
She waited over 45 minutes to be helped
and eventually had to leave.
When you walk into the dog pavilions, you will see ro
after row of stressed out animals.
Thank you for your comments. Lucy.
Kay is next.
Lucy and then Jillian has things.
Lucy.
Yes. Thank you. Go ahead. I'm so sorry I didn't hear.
You're okay. Okay. Um, I'll keep it real brief here.
Uh, there's been some amazing heroes here speaking today,
and I'm, um, just so thrilled to see so many people
and from all walks from no kills to supporters,
to volunteers to rescues,
from caring from different experiences.
We all come with different perspectives
and views on how to move forward.
And, um, I'm, I can only share mine.
And as a longtime volunteer at shelters across the US
and fostering 33 dogs personally, I'm running
to urgently addressed what I see over at CACC.
And this is written in the spirit of collaboration
and my observations are grounded in truth.
I will continue where, uh, right away,
where I believe Heather just left off about walking into
CACC and experiencing the deplorable conditions.
And that really does need to be addressed.
Um, just it's, it's beyond heartbreaking.
Um, one thing I'm, I'm unclear is,
and I do agree with the budget needing to be addressed,
but can we confirm when the last audit was?
Because I still show it was 2013
and when was the last comprehensive?
Um, I was just inquiring if there has
been anything more recently.
And we just need to address when, uh, how this allocation
of funds is actually being used, uh, with the majority
of it, I believe, from what I can see, going
to the 7 million now, over 7 million going to staff, uh,
salaries, 80%.
And you know, what's left is for food
and lifesaving initiatives.
Um, I also wanted to recommend a, uh, again,
emphasize a nationwide search for a director
that's transformative with, um, a clear vision
and co compelling passion for saving lives.
Uh, staffing personnel
who truly care about animal protection,
engaging the community and are committed
to ensure ethical standards, um,
because it isn't just about funding.
Thank you for your comments.
I have Jillian next, and after I have John Davis.
And lastly, Julie Darling.
Hello, my name is Jillian Hastings
and I am a curious citizen and a citizen journalist.
And I'm here today
because I want to know the story of what's happening
with Chicago shelter dogs.
Um, I want to say a few words.
When I look into the eyes of a dog, I see a sentient being
with the capacity for unconditional love.
And I find it unconscionable that so many dogs,
healthy dogs are euthanized daily.
I find myself looking at CACC dogs on Facebook
and crying daily.
Um, I think it is a reflection of our society's tendency
to say that's just the way it is,
as terrible things take place.
So I would like to appeal to all
of your deeply feeling human hearts today.
We need to fund CACC.
We need to find them a visionary leader,
and relax the red tape and bureaucracy.
We need to listen to all
of these amazing rescue organizations
and people who have been working in this field for so long.
And I would like to see Chicago become a leader
in forsaking the system of war, violence and economics
and embracing choices that nurture a compassionate
and loving society.
Ice, ai, Gaza, all of these things are interconnected.
We need a society that cares, you know,
and is compassionate.
And this is just, you know, an example of that.
And it will be reflected in the larger world when it
happens in the smaller world.
So thank you. Ruth Cruz.
Woo. Thank you. John Davis.
And then Julie Darling.
Good morning. My name is John Davis
and my professional background is in National
Animal Shelter data.
Despite media narratives, national intake
and deaths are lower this year than both 2024 and 2019.
What is happening here is not a product of national trends
using CCCs own data definitions,
nearly one in four dogs at CCC did not make it
out alive last year.
A rate far below that of many similar shelters.
A nearly identical number of dogs entered CACC in 2019
and 2024.
There were 604 dog deaths in 2019
and 1,548 dog deaths in 2024.
An increase of 944 deaths are up another
15% this year.
Nationally, 2024 was the best year
for cats in US shelter history here in Chicago,
2024 saw the most cats enter CACC in 10 years.
And the most cats dying since 2016.
Adoptions have always been lacking in our city shelter,
which heavily relies on transfer partners located on the
north side or in the suburbs.
Last year, about 22% of the dogs
and cats that came into CACC were adopted
out directly to families.
Most other cities have rates two to three times greater
among the large shelters nationwide.
94% adapted out a higher rate of pets than CACC.
The south and west sides lack easy and accessible adoptions.
CACC has a very low rate at which lost dogs a return
to their families compared to other shelters in 2024,
only 19% of stray dogs made it back home down from 29%.
In 2019, getting back
to this pre pandemic rate could have saved more than 500
dogs last year alone.
CACC needs your support. Thank you.
Thank you for your comments.
Our last speaker is Julie
Darling. Well, good morning
Everyone. Thank you for,
um, being here today.
I, um, I am completely blown away by the support
that is shown up here in chambers,
so you guys have no idea how important it is.
My name is Julie Darling,
and I hear I am here today to speak for
the voiceless at Animal Care and Control.
I started this process over a year and a half ago
and through a series of relationships, met another advocate
who together we got the right alders to finally hear us
bringing resolution 1 8 6 7 7 to the council.
A very special thank you to Alders Fuentes
and Rodriguez Sanchez for getting us here today.
Gandhi said, the greatest of a nation
and its moral progress can be judged
by the way its animals are treated.
He said, I hold that the more helpless a creature,
the more entitled it is to protection
by man from the cruelty of man.
And I echo very much what the speakers
before me have stated today.
So I implore you to look at alternative solutions
to the animal crisis in our city.
I understand budget is an issue, I truly do,
but it's been my very personal experience with CACC,
that staff truly needs our support in so many ways.
I really want you to hear us with an open mind
and help institute meaningful solutions work with us,
including the much needed funding that commiserates with
a city of our size.
Thank you very much for your time today.
Thank you. Um,
this concludes the public comment period.
Thank you to all the speakers, uh,
who came to share your thoughts.
In addition to today's, uh, in-person comments,
our committee received 243 written comments
that were forwarded to members via email.
Comments emphasized the need for today's matter, uh,
subject matter hearing by providing hundreds
of personal stories,
and highlight the concerns of the public in regards
to operation at CACC.
Comments also include support
for Angela Green's appointment.
A letter from unhoused neighbors asking
for support at the Spark shelter
and cost to fund our Department of Public Health.
I want to acknowledge Alderman Robinson, that is
with us in person and other woman Ruth Cruz,
who has also joined us in person.
Our first item of business is the approval
of the Rule 45 report.
Can I get a motion to approve the September?
So moved by other person, Ava.
All those in favor signify by saying aye. Aye.
Opposed say nay in the opinion of the chair.
The eyes have it.
Our first matter for today is
8 2 2 5 0 0 1 9 8 5 6,
which is the appointment of Angela J. Green as Commissioner
of Chicago Department of Family and Support Services.
We have Commissioner Green with us here this morning as well
as a few members from her team.
I will pass it to the commissioner to introduce her team
and to do a statement.
New Chairwoman Rodriguez Sanchez.
I have with me in the box Harley Jones,
who is our first deputy of comm of, uh,
first Deputy commissioner,
and I have our managing Deputy Commissioner Raymond Barrett.
And I have our Deputy Commissioner of Homelessness,
Andrea Chapman.
Thank you And good morning members
of the Committee on Health and Human Relations.
My name once again is Angela Green,
and it is a true honor to appear
before you today as Mayor Brandon Johnson's nominee to serve
as commissioner of the Chicago Department
of Family and Support Services.
For more than 25 years, my career has been devoted
to strengthening families
and building systems that give children
and communities the opportunity to thrive.
I began this work in Indianapolis, Indiana
at Children's Bureau Incorporated,
where I developed the first innovative community-based child
abuse prevention project in the state.
That experience taught me
that the most effective solutions are born when government
works hand in hand with community partners
and residents themselves.
From there, I was appointed Deputy Director
of Practice support for the Indiana
Department of Child Services.
In that role, I oversaw child welfare policy,
quality assurance
and information systems for the entire state.
I led a comprehensive redesign
of Indiana's child welfare policy, manual
and information system,
while also implementing new accountability measures
to ensure family receives families receive the
right services at the right time.
These six years sharpened my ability
to manage complex systems,
but more importantly, they deepened my conviction
that policy and practice must always be grounded in the
lived experience of families.
In 2011, I moved to Chicago
to join the United States Department of Health
and Human Services, their administration for children
and families with first with the Children's Bureau,
and then later as a regional administrator for the Office
of Regional Operations at Children's Bureau,
I was responsible for overseeing federally funded child
welfare programs across six Midwestern states,
monitoring over 1.4 billion in funding
and partnering with state leaders to strengthen outcomes.
In this critical role, I learned the importance
of both accountability and flexibility, ensuring compliance,
um, while also supporting innovation on the ground.
As regional administrator,
I represented the assistant secretary
of a CF across region five that represented Illinois,
Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin,
and worked closely with 35 sovereign tribal nations.
I was also asked to serve as acting regional administrator
for regions three and seven.
Region three is headquartered in Philadelphia
and region seven is headquartered in Kansas City, Missouri.
But I was, um, offered the opportunity to act as acting
regional administrator, extending the reach
to 12 additional states and 16 additional tribal nations.
Across these roles, my work focused on advancing equity,
promoting economic mobility,
and improving child and family wellbeing.
I had the privilege of convening state commissioners,
national foundations, thought partners
and tribal leaders to align priorities, break down silos,
and pursue shared solutions to poverty, homelessness,
and workforce challenges that affect families nationwide.
Although my career has spanned state, regional
and national levels,
my 15 years here in Chicago has truly shaped me.
And it is where I feel called
to give back in the most direct and meaningful way.
The Department of Family
and support services is central to our city's vitality
and prosperity from addressing homelessness
and supporting survivors of domestic violence to caring
for older adults and creating pathways for youth.
DFSS is often the first line of response for some
of our most vulnerable residents.
But more importantly than just being a provider of programs,
DFSS must be a trusted partner, an agency that listens,
that meets people where they are,
and that helps to restore dignity and hope.
If confirmed, my priorities would be
to build a stronger cross sector partnership
because no single agency can meet these challenges alone
to embed equity in every aspect of our service delivery,
ensuring fair and consistent access for all communities
to strengthen accountability so
that resources are used effectively
and residency tangible outcomes.
And to position Chicago as a national model
for innovation in human services,
grounded in compassion and community voice.
I am passionate about advancing youth employment, about
economic mobility, about housing and homelessness,
and about community safety.
I am committed to working with DFSS
to provide even more opportunities for young people to have,
um, that have so much promise, to have opportunities
for them to honor the legacy of our seniors, while ensuring
that they have support and connection
and resources that they need to provide a stable place
to land for those returning from incarceration
or those experiencing homelessness.
And to collaborate with communities to expand safe spaces
so they can flourish and not just survive.
I step into this role with humility and with gratitude,
but also with a sense of urgency, recognizing the fragility
of federal resources
and the potential impact
of funding constraints on our programs.
I'm entering this role with the experience
of establishing diversified funding strategies,
investing in people,
and securing the expansion
of our most effective services is vital.
Families across our city are counting on us not only
for services, but for leadership that is steady,
that is responsive and deeply committed to their wellbeing.
So I thank you for the opportunity to peer for you today,
and I look forward to your questions
and if confirmed to working alongside each of you
to ensure every child, every family,
and every community in Chicago
has the support they need to thrive.
Thank you, chairwoman.
Thank you. Um, commissioner, I want
to acknowledge Alman Raymond Lopez,
who has also joined us in person.
And I would like to start with a question.
I really appreciate how proactive you have been reaching out
and starting to ask about needs.
Um, can you share with us a little bit of
what your vision is to address, uh, the homelessness crisis
that we have right now?
Um, particularly in the face of federal funding cuts, um,
and the attacks
of the Trump administration towards our city.
Thank you. Thank you for that question. Chairwoman.
What is occurring right now is, is unprecedented
and the, uh, the safety of our unhoused residents
and neighbors is critical.
Um, we are working tirelessly
and it's not just our department.
We're working with other partners, city, state,
and county to ensure that we've expanded some
of our bedrooms so that we can, um, bring those
who are in danger, um,
because of federal forces that may be coming into our city,
have a place, um, to go for, for safety, we're also ensuring
that we're getting out know your rights, um,
information out to our delegates.
Um, we even did a special, um, training for our youth
that involve involved in our, our youth programs.
We've done it with all of our shelters.
We actually are meeting with them weekly to talk about this
and make sure they know what to do and how to respond.
Um, and the city has done an excellent job in terms
of making sure we're all working together
and sharing that information to protect Chicagoans.
Can you talk a little bit about the work with shelters?
I, we had, um, I showed up at the shelter on Foster
that is bordering with my ward,
and it was a really nerve wracking
moment for a lot of people.
They did end up taking two people from
the street, not from the shelter.
They were not allowed in.
But can you talk a little bit
about the protocols that are in place?
We do have, um, we've made sure that we given all of our,
um, delegates what our expectations are in terms of, um,
protecting the, their residents.
And it's not just shelters too, right?
It's our senior centers. It's also
because we're seeing it around there.
Um, it's also our community centers.
So we have a, a big array of folks
who are on the ground in our city that are ensuring
that they're, they're recognizing what the protocols are.
So, um, for our staff,
they know they're not supposed to let anyone in.
We actually have a whole protocol for them.
A whole stand that we send out, um, ensures that there,
there are warrants that will allow them to come in.
Um, we're not to give information about staff
or about, um, individuals there.
So our our city staff are aware of this.
What we've done to our delegates is we ensure
that they have the know your rights.
They know, um, our facilities should be locked,
so no one should be entering in
and no one has, um, they've done it on the street
as, as you are aware.
Um, and then we're also making sure the mental health
of our staff as well as our, our residents
and our, our clients that we're serving
that we're attending to that as well.
Can you talk about how that is being done?
The mental health component?
Yep. Um, we are actually meeting with staff.
We have our managers, we're talking to our managers and, um,
and down that line
to talk about, you know, how are you feeling?
Um, we've had staff that asked to take off
because it was just a little bit too much.
It, this is a, a trying time.
Um, so we are having those, um, mental health, if you will,
attending to the mental health of our staff
by having those conversations and being upfront with that
and letting them voice where their concerns are
and how we are ensuring that our staff are safe.
Um, and then also for the residents.
Um, it, we are all,
I think we're all experienced this anxiety and this fear,
and it should not be that way here in the city.
And, and the mayor is trying his best to, um, ensure
that we are, um, aware of what resources we have
through law, um, that we could share
with our delegates as well as our, our staff.
But we are communicating with them. Yeah.
Thank you. Do I have questions from Alman? Casada
Being here. Um,
I really appreciated our conversation the other day, um,
where we were able to have very nuanced discussion
around the different types of tactics
and strategies that all
of us in this body should be employing in our communities,
um, to make sure that we are decriminalizing, um, poverty,
um, and also making sure
that we have a compassionate response to people
who have been abandoned
or who have fallen through the, the lack
of a social safety net.
Um, and because of the increasing crisis of wealth
and income inequality in our city and across our nation.
So I just wanted to commend you for your extremely, uh,
qualified, nuanced,
and compassionate perspective and experience.
I think that you will be a great asset to our city.
Um, clearly this conversation is extremely important
because of the need that currently exists
and unfortunately the, um, more than likely outcome of
this administration's decisions on increasing, um,
the vulnerability of poor and working class people.
Um, so some of my questions that I would love to hear you,
um, expand on is, I'm not sure if you're familiar,
that the Trump administration recently cut service, um,
some benefits for, uh,
disabled people experiencing homelessness
and the SOAR program, which is the supplemental se, uh,
security income, social security, disability insurance,
outreach, access and recovery program.
Um, can you speak a little bit about, um, the nature of
disabled people in our community
who are experiencing homelessness
and maybe some of the, um, strategies that you seek
to employ to, to assist that community?
Thank you. Thank you for that question, alderman.
Um, one thing that is critical is that we are able
to service all of our population that includes, um, those
who, um, are non-English speaking, that includes those
religious minorities that also includes our disabled
community, um,
and our LGBTQ plus community that we have services for them.
Um, and we do, we actually have services that are, um,
a DA compliant for our, our homeless, um, um, unhoused,
uh, uh, residents.
We, we have those even
for our other specialized populations, um,
and we're able to service them, uh, in,
within our shelter system that we have currently.
Got it. Um, I would also, uh, just want to point out too,
that we are currently working on, um,
we have a trans femicide working group, so a working group
to address the murder and violence towards trans women.
Um, I think that would be a really good conversation for you
to have with the Department of Public Health, uh,
because I think one of the, clearly a sector of
that population also experiences, uh, housing, uh, ins,
instability in security.
So I think that would just be a really good conversation
for you to have with, with commissioner over there.
Thank you for that. Um, what do you think are some
of the biggest needs for D Fs s currently
and in the foreseeable future?
Currently, um, in, there's a couple areas where I see
that we need to expand.
One is definitely in our, um, homelessness services in terms
of shelter beds and housing stock.
Um, we need to have more targeted, um,
and concerted efforts around building that capacity.
Um, also in our youth services area, we need to ensure
that we are continuing to grow youth employment.
I want to be a little more courageous
and work on the corporate side of that and,
and get some of our corporations involved in that component.
Um, and the other area is in senior services, ensuring that,
um, our home delivered meals for our seniors continue.
Um, as we see,
and this is a, a, a, a asset for the city, we have a number
of seniors that are, um, growing older in our city
and are still healthy and still have the ability to, um,
you know, to, um, to prosper.
And so we wanna make sure that we have our services
for the older population,
the growing population here in the city,
and we wanna make sure those meals and nutrition meals
and those are there as well.
So those are three areas that are concern for me.
Great. Um, and then, um, what are some of your plans
or experience on working, uh, around state advocacy?
Because clearly, um, you know, there are so many different,
there are very limited levers that we have
for revenue generation here in the city of Chicago.
It's part of this discussion that we're having, uh,
around our city budget.
Clearly, my argument is that we need, uh, extreme, uh, forms
of wealth redistribution here in the state of Illinois
and across the United States.
Uh, because we can't just tax poor
and working class people, uh, to solve our problems.
We need to make sure that we're asking the wealthiest
corporations and individuals to pay their fair share so
that we can build affordable housing so
that we can make homelessness, uh, you know, a thing
of the past, the relic of the past.
Um, so we need help from the state. Mm-hmm.
We can't do this alone. They can't do it alone.
Um, what's some of your experience
or some of your perspective
around the state advocacy that that needs to be done?
You know, that actually is what put me,
brought me into social work.
Um, I first started working in Boys and Girls Club
and I saw some of the, um, disadvantages, uh,
in terms of their ability to access services
that should be made available.
And so I wanted to start advocating.
I started advocating with the advocacy group in Indianapolis
and, um, lobbying our state legislator.
So I have experience in that.
Um, but um, I also have experience working from the state,
understanding what funding revenues are there
and what funding, um, opportunities are there
that we are not capitalizing on yet.
Right. And there's also some federal funding, um,
that we haven't tapped into.
I was, was quite excited when the job came to me.
I was like, Ooh, there's, there's several pieces
there are not connecting with.
I see other revenue opportunities there.
So I will be pursuing that
after I get through this budget season.
Um, but that is something I'm excited about, um,
growing our portfolio
and our revenue, our revenue funding stream, diversifying
that not only with state, but with federal dollars
and some nonprofit, um, some foundations as well.
Great. Well, I, I would encourage you to continue
to lean on this, uh, committee
and, uh, this council on that state advocacy.
Um, that's something that I definitely
want to lend my hand to.
Um, and the last thing I'll say is, you know, um,
in my time working in public service, uh, in the 35th Ward,
one of the things that I mentioned, I brought this up, uh,
during our discussion, is actually an increase in, um,
our Polish population,
especially our senior Polish population,
that have a fallen into homelessness, uh,
because of loss of benefits, because of loss of jobs,
or the, the changing local economy and landscape.
And so I think that, uh, your point on and perspective
and sensitivity towards our senior population
is extremely necessary.
And of course, with access, um,
and the necessity for more beds
and making the process simpler, um, ex an experience
that I had, uh, over the past two
and a half years was that my mother became homeless.
Um, and trying to find her the adequate resource
or something that where she felt dignified in was an
extremely humiliating and a difficult process.
And so, you know, imagine what it's like to be, well,
at the time I was a sitting commissioner trying
to find my own mom, you know, housing and shelter.
I can't imagine what it's like for, uh, you know,
a working class person or, you know, a family
that is juggling multiple jobs
and so many of the different responsibilities in their daily
life, and they can't find the housing
or shelter for their loved ones.
So we need to make this simpler for people.
Um, but of course, you know, we have
to build shelters today,
but we, we need to be building homes, uh,
for people in the long run, um, so that we can get rid
of these shelters because we don't need them any longer.
So thank you again for your service,
and I look forward to working with you.
Thank you, sir.
Thank you. Derman ca next I have other woman, Haden.
Thank you, chair. Um, uh, Angela. Hi.
Welcome. Thank you.
I know, I know we got to, to chat,
um, a little bit this morning.
Um, and commiserate on this practice.
We're gonna change, right?
Of the timing of new commissioners
and putting them through, uh, all the most difficult times.
We're gonna be, we're gonna be gentle with you on budget.
Um, um, I just wanna, you know, echo,
um, my colleague, um, Alder tis comments on just
how lucky we are here in the city of Chicago to have someone
as accomplished and experienced
as you here continuing your service.
So, thank you. Um, you know,
we couldn't be in more challenging times.
And so it's, it's heartening to still have, you know,
the best and brightest, like, you know, joining up
and helping us, um,
because we're, you know, we are older people.
Yeah. Um, we do our part,
but we really need, um, uh, you know,
exceptional people like yourself in these, uh,
commissioner positions to help lead your departments.
Um, you are fortunate to have a very capable team.
Um, hello, DFSS friends.
Um, so I just wanna say thank you, thank you.
I know we've talked, uh, about a few things.
Um, what I'll say just on the record is, um, you know,
we are all here for the residents of our city.
And I know that sometimes there are, um,
traditions, uh, things embedded within the city about,
you know, information
and how comfortable department heads are in being frank, uh,
or, uh, direct and sharing things with council.
And, you know, you, you, uh, have been,
uh, appointed by the mayor,
but you are also approved by council.
Um, and we do have a mayor who has been, uh,
very big on co-governance and transparency.
So that's all to say is just like, please let us know
and be as direct as possible on the impacts on our services.
Um, so we are in, we're in very different times.
We know a lot of the federal, um, changes, particularly
around our budget, are creating, um, just challenges
that we have never before encountered.
And it can sometimes take multiple exposures to
that information for people to understand what
that impact means.
And so, hit us over the head if you need to,
but please help us really fully understand
what the impact is so
that we can make our best informed decisions, um,
as we operate in this body, to think about
what difficult decisions we're gonna need
and what services that we need to preserve and work on.
So that's my big request of you.
Um, you know, give it to a straight, um,
don't gloss over it,
because I think too often, even for us, um, we are used to,
you know, things functioning, oh, we've got this
and we've got this regular, we are in times where, um,
you know, our cities around the country are being sabotaged.
Um, and, um, with our minds on a lot
of different things, um, right.
We are multitasking to the extreme.
Like I take pride in being a really good multitasker,
but it's breaking my brain a little bit.
And so, again, um, even if you have, have,
have mentioned it, even if it ends up in like an email
somewhere, like when it comes down to it,
if you are not seeing kind of the, uh, um,
expected response or reaction,
or you're not hearing from us in, in response to information
that you're sharing, um, just again, like,
get our attention, excellent.
Help us, make us understand.
Um, 'cause I think we're gonna need that,
especially through this budget season.
Excellent. I will. Thank you. T women had, and,
and one thing I'll just say is there are a couple things
that I am looking at, um, to ensure that I'm ahead
of the game of, if we may have some, um,
budgetary issues in terms of federal funds, um, especially
around Head Start is an area that I'm concerned about.
'cause 68% of our funding is coming from outside sources,
not from corporate, right?
So that's a, almost 70%
of our funds are coming from either federal state,
and I think it's about 40 or 50% of that, of
that 68 is from federal funds.
So that's a large proportion of our money.
Um, so the area I'm really looking at is
that personal responsibility of work, reconciliation, ra,
how they're defining federal benefit.
That's gonna be critical.
If they change that definition of that, then
that will impact homeless services.
That will impact, um, head Start
that would impact several of our programs.
Um, so it, I'm staying ahead right now.
I think 2026, we might be okay. Uh, 2027.
If they change that, we might see some differences. Thank
You. And thank you Madam
Chair. Thank
You. Other woman.
Haden, do I have any other comments
or questions for the commissioner?
Other woman?
Hello again. It's so great to see you.
Thank you for your team for coming.
I, I just want to send my appreciation to, to you
or coming to the 48th Ward,
and please see us as partners.
Anything that you would like to creatively try, we know
that, that we need to think outside of the box right now.
Uh, we see what's happening at the federal level
and also all the good
that's we're doing at the local levels.
Um, and, and thank you for your team for meeting up
with us in, in Rogers Park to tour facilities
that are really trauma informed and designed.
Uh, we need that right now.
Um, and I just wanted to commend you for stepping up.
We need leadership right now, like you and I,
and I can't wait to, to work with you more.
So appreciate. Thank you.
Appreciate that. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you. I appreciate, um, the compliment,
but I'll tell you, when I walk into DFSS,
I walked into a team that is phenomenal.
They have the heart for this work at every level.
Um, and I'm so excited to be able to partner
with them and lead with them.
Thank you. Elder Women and Commissioner.
Um, we really want to collaborate.
A lot of the members of this committee are doing a lot
of work in their communities.
We want to be able to partner up
and we want to be able to have the hard conversations about
what is needed and how we we can support.
Um, so please feel free to always come to us to collaborate.
If I don't have any more comments
or questions, can I get a motion
to approve item A 2 25 0 0 1 9 8 5 6.
So moved by other person, Ava.
All those in favor signify by saying Aye.
Opposed, say nay in the opinion of chair. The ayes have it.
I will report this due pass recommendation at the
upcoming city council meeting.
Thank you, commissioner. And thank you to the team
for coming, uh, for coming a meeting with us this morning.
Our next matter for today is
R
20 24 0 0 1, 1 0 0 7,
introduced by Alderman Hopkins,
calling for an expression of support
for the federal government to pass the American Center
for Cures legislation.
We will be speaking about this in a couple of minutes.
This next item is calling for an expression of support
for the federal government to pass the American Center
for Cures legislation.
We have, um, alderman Hopkins, who has introduced,
um, this resolution.
Alderman, would you like to offer some remarks
and introduce your guest?
Yes. Thank you, chairwoman.
I really appreciate the opportunity to, uh,
hear this important matter.
Before your committee, uh, would like to introduce, uh,
an invited guest, uh,
who will be sharing his expert witness testimony
on this subject matter.
Uh, first I do wanna point out, um, somewhat
of a typo on the agenda.
Uh, the agenda, uh, for this resolution calls for the matter
to be, uh, referred for support for President Biden.
Uh, obviously President Biden is not the president
as we have this meeting today.
Uh, when we introduced it, of course, he, he was,
uh, the, the president.
But, uh, I think it's important to note
that this resolution was born in a spirit of bipartisanship,
and it will be advancing in a spirit of bipartisanship.
As we talked about before the meeting.
If there's any issue that unites people
across all spectrums of the political divide,
uh, it is our health.
Uh, you know, health does not recognize race, class, creed,
or political party.
Uh, and we all know people who have been, uh, struck by some
of the diseases that the American Center
for Cures will be focused on.
Uh, so it is the universal unifying human experience, um,
to focus on health and wellness
and to call upon the resources of government, uh,
to focus on finding cures, not just treatments, but cures.
And our, uh, invited guest will, uh, will touch on that. Mr.
Lou Wespac, who, uh, I'm pleased to introduce,
is a name familiar to many Chicagoans.
Uh, he successfully led a very prominent Chicago company,
halo Industries, uh, for 27 years, which he founded
and led as the CEO of that institution.
Um, he is one of the co-founders
of the American Center for Cures.
Um, he's a senior executive
with the Cancer Treatment Centers of America.
And his focus there at the Cancer Treatment Center was not
on treatment again, it was on prevention of cancer.
And believe it or not, cure of cancer.
We've been talking about curing cancer for so long
that people have, uh, lost fate that it would ever happen.
Um, but I would suggest that the people
who are involved in this research know better than us.
They're closer to a cure than they ever have been.
Now is the time to focus on curing diseases like cancer,
like diabetes and others.
Mr. Weisbach is bringing leadership that he has brought
to bear for his decades of service in, in government.
Uh, he was appointed as chairman of the Jefferson Trust
by President Clinton.
He also served as a judge
for the White House Fellowship program under President
Trump, again, showing a, a bipartisan ability, uh, to cross,
uh, partisan lines.
Uh, he was chairman of the Giving Back Fund, uh,
which is a philanthropic organization
that focuses on providing, um, means
for professional athletes to be able to give back
to the communities that they're from, uh, to donate
to charitable causes of all, uh, stripes and sizes.
Um, and he succeeded famous sports broadcaster,
Bob Costas in, in that role.
Um, so the success that he's had in industry and government
and, and in public health, uh, have now qualified him, uh,
to co-found this institution, uh, which is
before the federal government right now.
And the matter before us as a City Council, um, is
to support those efforts, uh, to provide $127 billion
of funding research that could actually cure diseases.
Uh, and again, we are, we are closer to some
of these cures than, uh, than people realize.
Um, and I will, uh, allow him
to talk in a little bit more detail about, uh, the genesis
for this organization, uh, and where they stand today.
Please welcome Mr. Lou Weisberg.
Thank you. And, uh, thank you all
for having me here today.
Uh, I'm just gonna give you a brief outline of
what we're doing, and
because I'd like to make sure that there's time
for questions and answers, uh, to all
of the older people here,
to also the people in the audience.
Uh, I don't know a lot of you,
but what I will tell you is, is that in the last 15
to 20 years, everybody in the audience here,
ev every person who's sitting in front of us
has watched somebody die
or suffer from a disease
that probably doesn't even need to exist anymore.
And the easiest way to understand that is, is
that if we don't cure
or prevent any disease in the next 20 years, there is not
one person that will lose their job.
Think about that for one second.
That's not how things get done.
Uh, we have a systemic problem relative
to prevention and cure.
And the American Center for Cures concept was born out
of taking a blank sheet of paper
and saying, if the only thing we were committed to doing was
to prevent disease and
or cure disease, how would we go about it?
And we realized that none of the none underlined, none
of the things that we do today
would be part of that process.
And so we said, well, let's talk about this.
What does any successful venture need to,
to actually occur?
So let's take us back 35 or 40 years,
and let's talk about the people at Apple.
And I see a lot of you with your Apple
phones as as I'm talking.
Uh, if I said to you 35 years ago that
you would have all the information at your fingertips
that you have right now, you'd be doing exactly what a lot
of you are doing right now, uh, you would've said,
that's an impossibility.
You're talking about more information
that is on cumulatively all the supercomputers
in the world right now.
And yet, because of the fact that Apple
had the five pillars of success that you need
to do things successfully, you now have an Apple phone
and you aren't using a rotary phone all the time.
And what are those five pillars there?
Nothing gets done without enough money.
And I hear this group talking today about cats and, and dogs
and about the need for money.
Without enough money, nothing gets accomplished.
Without the right leadership, seasoned leadership
that's proven they can get things done.
Nothing gets accomplished without the right business plan.
Nothing gets done without a accountability,
nothing gets done and without a sense of urgency.
So when you look historically at what's happened in the
world of cures, none of these elements have been in place.
And the American Center for Cures seeks to make that happen.
We are talking about setting up 16 separate units,
14 units that are built around 14 separate diseases,
including Alzheimer's, including Parkinson's,
including diabetes, including brain cancer,
pancreatic cancer, mental illness, heart disease.
And each of these groups will have $36 billion,
and we'll have a six year plan to prevent
or cure each of those diseases.
We will be hiring the top business leaders in America
who have proven that they have the ability
to get the job done, taking the most difficult tasks
as only business leaders know how to do,
and crossing the finish line.
Uh, the 15th unit will be what we call the catchall, a unit
that deals, uh, one of the alderman said to me, talked
to me today about HIV that deals with all the other diseases
that are out there and will have $108 billion budget.
And the 16th unit will be all AI and data.
And what, what the American Center
for Cures brings to all of you is the hope
and the understanding that we're going to
put together in one place exactly what
historically has been needed to succeed
and cross the finish line.
The other thing that's particularly interesting today in the
divided city that we're in right now,
the divided country we're in right now, is the, is cures
and disease are a hundred percent issue.
So everybody in the audience here, everybody, every one
of you, uh, older people as well,
uh, have the same issue.
And it doesn't matter what your ethnicity is,
it doesn't matter if you're rich or poor, a Democrat
or Republican makes no difference.
Disease strikes people equally.
Doesn't matter if you're living on the streets
to the last speaker that was out here.
And we're gonna end that.
And, and we've built this in a way that this will
work for everybody.
This will not be something
that will only be accessible to wealthy people.
This will be something that will be accessible
to every American, regardless of how much money they have.
And the proof of the matter is, is
that if you look at Steve Jobs
or you look at somebody who is living on the street, uh,
we've done a lousy job in this country relative to having
the system in place to be able to cure people
and prevent people from getting sick.
Well, that ends now.
And the interesting thing is, from my perspective
as being a lifelong Chicagoan, is Chicago
has the ability to provide leadership on this issue
and to show America that we can work together.
And again, the fact that this is a hundred percent issue,
it's the exact same for Democrats
and Republicans, same for everybody.
Regardless of how much money you have, uh,
we have an opportunity as a city and you as a city council
and as a committee to get the job done,
do this in a very public
and national way, get the media
to understand the opportunity
and get the, the community to understand
that Chicago is working for all people
and is visionary once again.
So with that, um, I'll be happy to answer any questions
that any of you might have.
Oh, I, I did want to say one, one last thing.
The, the economic process here is, is that we would,
the bill that we're gonna, the bipartisan bill
that we're going to have in Congress is gonna call
for the treasury to sell $750 billion worth of bonds
to fund this, which,
and the government will be responsible
annually for interest only.
So in year one, we're talking about $6 billion in year two
$12 billion.
And understand this, if we were only to,
we're gonna do a lot better than this,
but if we were only to cure diabetes,
that would save the federal coffer $750 billion
a year and growing.
So just understand that this makes sense economically.
It makes sense for every person in this room,
every American, again, regardless of gender.
And so we're excited about it.
We, I've done a lot of national interview shows lately.
At the end of every interview,
people all say the same thing.
They simply say, there's no holes in this story.
It's something we should have done 25 years ago.
Unfortunately we didn't.
But now is the time, and especially
because of ai, to be able
to put the pieces together in a businesslike methodology,
which the American Center for Gus provides.
Thank you very much for having me.
Thank you for that statement.
Um, I do have some questions.
It seems like we're trying to provide, um, care
and research in order to
prevent and cure disease,
but we are facing an administration
that is completely dismantling everything
that would help people, um,
and has a Secretary of Health that doesn't believe in
the methods that we have been using to cure this C So
how does this fit with the President's agenda,
and why do we think that this is going
to go anywhere under Trump's?
That's presidency's
A that thank you. And,
and that's a great question.
And the answer is, is actually very interesting.
So we've been working on this for a very long time.
When President Trump cut research funding, all
of a sudden the entire research community in America, uh,
became destabilized.
And we're saying, where are we gonna get money?
How are we gonna continue our work?
But it made them understand
that their work has not served us well.
Their work hasn't been coordinated.
Their, it hasn't worked out.
We haven't, we, we cured polio 65, 70 years ago.
Think about how often you have watched on television on A,
B, C, on NBC, on CBS,
how close we are to the cure for something.
The cures don't come, the cures don't come.
'cause the system doesn't work.
So what interestingly happened,
and I'm not saying that the President meant for this
to happen, but by cutting research funding, he made the,
the entire industry, including the researchers, realize
that there had to be accountability.
There had to be a new system, there had to be change.
So actually, his actions have
put us in a remarkable place.
I spoke at ASCO in Chicago, 40,000
people at the event,
and people were lined up to meet me
to talk about the American Center for Cures, understanding
that this is the future, thinking out of the box
and doing things in a different way, especially in a,
when things didn't work.
And this president, uh,
and I understand a lot of the feelings in this room about
this president, but this president has certain skill sets
that he does bring to the table regardless
of his motivations.
And I, I'm not gonna go into that conversation
and make this political,
but he, he is able to get things done
and able to try things that have never been done before.
And he looks at things from a much more
business-like perspective.
So I happen to think,
and again, I've lived with this for many years
and I've met with every president
in the last 25 years about this.
This is a president who actually affords us the opportunity
to get this done because he's willing to cross lines.
And I under, I understand your point.
Uh, but that's the,
that's actually the business reality of this.
He is, we believe,
and I've the Secretary of Health under Donald Trump
in his first administration, said
that he believes the American Center for Cures is going
to be the greatest thing that's ever happened in
the history of America.
That's the Secretary
of Health under Donald Trump in his first administration.
So I understand how many of you feel
that this is the last guy that would do something like this?
I would actually say the polar opposite.
And I doesn't make me a fan.
It makes me a realistic business person to say
that this guy happens to look
at the world in a different way.
And I think he's the first guy
that would ever do something like this.
Um, you were talking about the Center
for Cures as a business model.
Can you like explain that a little further?
Because we are incredibly concerned with the dismantling
of public institutions.
Public institutions that have been
around for a very long time.
When you say that it was not working, there is a lot
of research that has actually been developed,
and we have advanced a lot in things like HIV for example.
There, there is a lot of progress that has been made
that now is being threatened by all of these cuts.
And what you're saying is that this project will come
to save all of this.
And I am very confused about how this is going to
address those needs.
I fundamentally don't think that
public health should be a business, unfortunately,
under capitalism it is.
So, and it ends up with leaving people out
of the possibility of getting
and accessing care and resources.
So I, I would like for you to explain to me how
this business model, like structure is going
to solve a problem that is being exacerbated
by the dismantling of all these public institutions.
So first thing is it's not a business,
it's a businesslike process.
It's saying that if I ran a public company
and I had accountability to my shareholders,
and we had 5,200 employees,
I had accountability to all of them.
And so I had to run this business with them in mind
and making sure that they were taken care of properly.
The in, in the world of healthcare
and the world of, uh, preventing disease
and curing disease, we, we don't run
that in a businesslike way.
It's done. Because unfortunately,
in our government right now,
and this is not a Republican thing
or a Democratic thing, um, people in power, people
with money are able to go
and give money to people in Congress
and get things that they want.
Not things that are necessarily good for you and your family
and me and my family, but things
that are good for their business.
So we've constructed this in a way
where it's not a business, but it's businesslike.
It's in the private sector. It's not a government agency.
It's saying, if we are only thing we wanted
to do was prevent or cure people from getting sick,
and we had a blank sheet of paper,
how would we go about that?
And that's all we've done is we've said, this is
how much money you would need.
This is, how would you feel if the CEO of Apple
had $36 billion
and his only job was to
end Parkinson's and could do it any way he wanted to?
Would you feel comfortable that that's a better process
and a better system than what we have today?
Today? There's nobody responsible.
I met with the head of the NIH for two hours now,
that's a government funded agency,
and they do a lot of great work.
The head of the NIH said, you're a hundred percent right.
This is absolutely, there's no debate on whether we should
be doing something like this.
There's no debate about the process.
The issue is, is getting public support
and a city support like we're doing today,
and getting the public to understand the opportunity.
If you're sick
and tired of dealing with diseases that don't need
to exist anymore and wanna change the system
and be open-minded to doing it in a way
that will change things for you and your family.
The American Center for Cures is something
that you should stand out and speak about
and petition government to get done.
So I understand your reservations about the administration,
but what I'm saying to you is,
and I worked in the Clinton administration
and I was involved in all the other administrations.
We haven't gotten the job done when it comes to healthcare.
We just haven't. And when it comes to cures, just think of
where we should be relative
to all the money we've spent on research relative to all
of the AI that we have now, all the abilities that we have.
But it's nobody's job to cure anything.
All the money is in prevention.
So the people making money are not trying
to cure your disease.
They are focused on making money by, uh,
in the way that they like.
Yeah, I'm, I'm pretty aware how the, how this work. Yeah.
But thank you. Sure.
Um, do I have any questions for our guest?
Any questions, comments about this?
No. So we can move on to vote.
All right. No, no. You, you can't ask questions.
I'm, I'm asking my colleagues if they
have questions, but thank you.
Um, okay.
If they are not questions
or comments for from the committee members,
can I get a motion to approve Item R
20 24 0 0 1, 1 0 0 7.
Do I have a motion to move this item?
I have never not had
Other Manhattan.
So, moves all in favor of accepting this item.
Respond by saying, aye.
I oppose, say nay
in the opinion of the chair.
The nays have, um, this item did not pass
and won't be recommended.
Recommended at the upcoming city council meeting.
Thank you for being here. Thank you for submitting the item.
Um, I'm gonna move to the next item.
Next. On the agenda,
I have item R
2 25, 0 0 1, 8, 6, 7 7, introduced
by other women Fuentes, calling
for hearings on strengthening animal welfare services
and community engagement in Chicago.
We have several guests here with us today
for the associated subject matter hearing.
I request we hold remarks
and questions related to this item until
after presentations.
Um, can I get a motion to approve?
Item R
20 25 0 0 1, 8, 6, 7, 7.
Um, other person move. Uh, the item is on the floor.
Do I have C, c, C here?
Okay. I have a motion to approve.
Item R 20 25, 0 1, 8, 6, 7, 7.
Other person hadn't. So move.
Uh, all those in favor of approving this item
signify by saying, aye.
Opposed say nay in the opinion of the chair. The aye.
Have it. And we are going to move on
with our subject matter hearing.
Are we ready? Okay.
Um, thank you Director, Sue, your team and our guests
and members of the public for joining us today
for this important conversation.
Um, I want to pass it on
to other woman Fuentes first to offer some remarks
and explain, um, how this hearing came to be.
Um, we are very happy to be having this conversation.
We know that this is a really important conversation
and we also know that we are juggling a lot
of things in our city right now,
that everything is an emergency, that we have a lot
of people to take care of right now.
Um, and we also understand that this has
to be a conversation that we need to have
and that we need to prioritize.
So, um, other women, Fuentes.
Thank you, chairwoman.
Uh, first I wanna preface
that obviously there's a lot happening in the city right
now, and so I wanna thank my colleagues
for being here in a moment where there is
so much happening in your neighborhoods.
Uh, the conversation around animal and ca care
and control is an important one, uh, both on the side
of the department that has articulated over
and over again the needs that they have
to the advocates to labor.
I think that this is a time
that we can have these conversations,
ask the critical questions,
and then develop a plan on how we move our city forward
as it relates to animal care and control.
And so I just wanna preface
that while it may be difficult right now to,
to isolate this conversation in a global context, uh,
I do believe that it's important to be here.
So I wanna thank the department for their preparation,
their partnership, their willingness to come here
for the subject matter hearing.
I wanna thank our advocates who have brought us
to this point to ensure that we can have the discussion,
and so many of them are here in the audience.
Uh, I believe this could be a fruitful conversation
and one that's productive.
Uh, I do want to always preface it.
Uh, when we have hard conversations, it's important for us
to remain respectful.
I know that we may hear things that we may not like,
but I think in a very, uh, appropriate, polite
and respectful discourse, we can move our work forward.
Uh, and I'm hoping that this is the beginning
of many conversations as it relates to
how we move animal care and control forward.
So thank you all for being here.
I look forward forward to the questions
and, uh, how we wrap up this hearing.
Thank you, chairwoman, for entertaining this item.
Thank you. Um, other woman Fuentes.
And I also want to show my appreciation to, uh, my director
of policy, Jonathan n
and, um, other persons Fuentes, uh,
staffer Marie.
Um, they did a lot of work to get us here today
and to engage with community, and,
and that's a very important part of this process.
So thank you very much, Jonathan. Um, director Sue.
All right. Thank you very much. Thank you
for having us here today.
So I'm just gonna do a quick introduction.
My name is Susan Capello
and I'm the acting Executive Director
with Chicago Animal Care and Control.
Um, with me at the dais, I have Armando Tejeda,
our executive administrative Assistant
and Public Information Officer for the Department.
In the box, I have Angela Rayburn, our operations manager,
Arthur Hamilton, our shelter manager, Chloe Snowden Morgan,
our human resources business partner,
and three of our other partners with us.
I have, uh, Celine Rack from Paw Chicago, sorry,
Jamie White from Friends of Animal Care
and Control, and one of our volunteers.
And then Mama Deia from Cook County Animal
and Rabies Control with us today.
And thank you so much for having us. Um, okay.
So good afternoon and thank you again for the opportunity
to present an overview of Chicago Animal Care and Control.
CACC protects public safety
and ensures the humane care of animals
through sheltering placement, education and law enforcement.
We're Chicago's only municipal shelter taking in every
animal that comes through our doors.
And so far this year, we've taken over 14,800 animals.
Oh, Is my presentation supposed to be up
There?
Tell me what to do.
Got it. Okay. Yay.
Thank you. Thank you. All right.
So our mission is to protect both people
and animals across the city of Chicago.
We uphold the city's commitment to compassionate, equitable,
and accessible animal care services.
And just as important, we work every day
to strengthen relationships
with collaborative community partners,
constructive advocates, and caring residents
to improve outcomes for animals and engage the public.
Our objectives are simple but broad.
Protect public safety, ensure humane care,
and provide sheltering placement, education
and animal law enforcement.
Every one of those elements connects directly
to public service, not just for animals, but for people
and neighborhoods across the city.
Our leadership team is presented here, again, myself
as the acting executive director, Armando as our PIO, Angela
as our operations manager, and our as our shelter manager,
and Chloe as our human resources business partner.
It's a small but
but dedicated group supported by dozens
of staff across four divisions.
CC'S work is grounded in several sections
of the municipal Code two dash 16,
which formally establishes our department
and executive authority two dash one 20,
which outlines our commission,
and its nine members, four dash 3 84 relating
to animal related businesses.
And seven dash 12, which defines animal control,
impoundment, and care standards.
These codes give us the legal structure to operate safely
and effectively citywide.
The last two years have been busy in 2024, pause,
Chicago help perform 931 Spain neuter surgeries.
And two Homeward bound partners also stepped up
to assist with more of those.
By 2025, we introduced Chicago's first 24 hour outdoor
microchip scanning station.
Verified that all 22 police districts have microchip
scanners launched youth programming with Safe Humane Chicago
and the Alternative Schools Network hosted our first content
for a cause influencer event.
And we saw the highest number
of corporate volunteer days ever recorded at Chicago
Animal Care and Control.
Additionally, P Chicago held a massive Spain neuter day
or surgery day by transporting dogs
and cats to the Lurry Clinic
and performing 130 spay neuter surgeries all in one day
for us through September,
over 14,800 animals have entered the shelter.
This is the highest intake since 2013.
Our live income out, sorry.
Our live outcome rate for, for cats
and dogs stands at 85.5%.
That includes 2,652 adoptions.
816 return to owners, 7,195
transfers to rescue partners
and transfers remain one of our most impactful programs.
1,720 euthanasias were performed due to medical, behavioral,
or space limitation.
Still a reduction relative to our intake volume.
Approximately 70%
of the animals entering CACC are
brought directly by the public.
19% of the animals that come in are from our field services
and the remaining 11% from the Chicago Police Department.
That balance shows how much residents actively rely
on us and why.
Our 3 1 1 and field response teams are critical.
Every single number here represents coordination
between staff, volunteers, and our partners.
Our field services division receives an average
of 129 calls per day, focusing on injured animals,
aggressive strays, and assisting other agencies.
CACC is on track to receive approximately 45,000 requests
for service in 2025.
This work protects both people
and animals under difficult conditions.
All of our service requests come through 3 1 1.
And accuracy. Accuracy matters.
Residents should confirm addresses, shared descriptions,
and follow up if situations change.
This process allows our officers
to respond efficiently and safely.
Please visit our website for detailed information about each
and every service request
that we have for wildlife.
We follow Illinois Law
and partner with Flint Creek Wildlife for relocation,
for humane relocation when necessary.
Three key tips for wildlife issues.
And I know you all get the calls on 'em.
Eliminate the food source.
So secure your garbage cans and clean up pet excrement haze.
Make noise outside.
When that animal's coming near you, it's going to go away.
And then keep weeds and brush maintained.
So critters have nowhere to hide.
So did you know, just as important.
Um, this slide reminds us, reminds the public
that we don't handle deceased animals on the streets, uh,
pigeons, bees, beehives, and rats.
Those calls go through Streets
and Sanitation or other departments.
So inside the shelter programs are the heart of what we do.
The volunteer program established
by Union Agreement supports adoptions and enrichment.
A doggy day out program helps long-term dogs decompress.
Diversion efforts, help families keep their pets.
That's where we want them.
And finding your Lost Pet program, reunites those lost pets
with those owners who are looking for them.
Our volunteers complete an information session,
fingerprinting and structured training
before handling the animals.
Their work ranges from enrichment
and adoptions to humane education and clerical support.
They're truly an extension of our staff and mission,
and we can't do any of our work without our volunteers.
Our Homeward Brown, our Homeward Bound network includes over
100 rescue partners
and transferred
seven thousand nine hundred seven thousand one hundred ninety five
animals so far this year.
That collaboration remains one
of the strongest success drivers for live outcomes.
Our partnerships extend beyond rescues.
Friends of Chicago Animal Care
and Control remains our strongest fundraising arm covering
expenses, city funding cannot.
City funding cannot cover,
and has spent over $1 million in the
after hours care medical program.
Cook County, an animal
and Rabies control co-hosts our Vaccine clinics tenants
so far this year, serving 944 pets with two more to go.
Cook County also covers training
and other resources for our department.
P Chicago invested over $1.3 million
through the 360 at CACC program to date,
expanding adoption supporting rescue partners
and helping 123 families keep their pets in their homes.
There's that, that, Um, diversion isn't new.
It's evolved since 2014.
From the original pause outreach to CRISP
and now to the 360 at CACC model.
This continuum of support, uh, keeps more pets in homes
and out of shelters.
In alignment with our racial equity plan,
we expanded outreach in priority community areas.
The Chicago Animal Care
and Control onsite pet supply unit increased public
interactions by 900%, keeping families and pets together.
Chicago Animal Care
and Control operates on a $7.52 million budget
with 73 full-time
and 10 part-time employees across four divisions.
Our facility is staffed from 7:00 AM to 7:30 PM daily
Field staff operates citywide seven days a week,
and the public has adoption access, noon to seven,
and animal intake from three to seven daily.
These structured schedules help us reduce overtime
by 36% this year.
So, looking ahead, our priorities are expanding access
to spay neuter and affordable vet care,
keeping pets in homes through community support programs,
preventing misinformation by using official CACC data
and calling on all of our partners
to prioritize local transfers for Chicago animals
and keep space open for those who need us the most.
So in summary, Chicago Animal Care
and Control is moving forward.
Through efficiency partnerships
and innovation, we've strengthened
operations and improved outcomes.
Our mission remains focused on protecting public safety
and ensuring humane care for every animal.
With continued collaboration
and support, we will keep making progress
for both the people and pets of Chicago.
Thank you very much.
Thank you, director. Um, I'm going to pass it
to other woman Fuentes, uh,
to introduce your guest, Jennifer.
Yeah, I
I can do it. So
if we have Jennifer give testimony, it's, uh, relates
to a lot of the volunteer work
and some of the programming
that we see at Animal Care and Control.
Um, thank you for all of the prep, uh, that you have done
with our team, uh, to be here.
So we'll pass over the presentation over to you.
Okay. Thank you so much. Good morning everybody.
My name is Jenny Schlater
and I've lived in Humboldt Park in the 26 ward since 2006.
I've worked in Chicago Animal Welfare for over 20 years
'cause I started young and as a volunteer staff member
and partner with Chicago Animal Care
and Control, I now lead Heartland Animal Shelter.
And I'm proud that since I started three years ago,
we've been among CCCs top five transfer partners.
CAC C'S success has always mattered deeply to me
before, during, and after my time there.
And I believe it matters to everyone in this room as well.
Before I begin, I wanna thank Alder Fuentes
and Rodriguez Sanchez, as well as Vero Ro Mercado,
Maurice Snyder, and Jonathan Nge for this opportunity.
And thanks to my colleagues in the fun CACC working group,
Paige Cassidy, Julie Darling, Jonathan Davis, RAA GIAs,
Jeff Jenkins and Heather Owen
for shining light on our city shelter.
I also wanna thank all of you
and the audience for some really thoughtful comments today.
And of course to my friends here at CACC, Sue Capella,
Angela Rayburn, Armando Tejera, art Hamilton,
and some, some other new friends.
Finally, I know there's a lot going on in Chicago right now.
I'll echo what others have said.
And I just wanna thank you all for taking the time
to talk about CACC.
'cause I know that you know that caring
for pets is caring for people as well.
So, before I get into what's going on today,
I thought it was important to talk a little bit about the
history and some of the progress
that C-A-C-C-A-C-C has made.
CACC has come a long way,
and it's worth remembering how far during my time there,
I saw the shelter handled just about every kind
of animal imaginable.
Pigs, goats, snakes, Guinea pigs, wildlife monkeys,
even alligators, you name it.
And I'm sure you all remember our beloved chance,
the Snapper and plenty of roosters too.
One named Luis still lives in my backyard and joined my dog.
And five Cat alumni from CACC.
And that's who we're gonna talk about today,
are the dogs and the cats.
In 1997, CACC took in over 28,000 animals,
and more than 26,000
of those animals were euthanized that year.
The live release rate was 7%.
By 2016, when I joined the management team intake had
dropped to around 14,000,
and the live release rate had jumped to 78%,
which is an extraordinary turnaround between 2016 and 2020.
We worked hard to hit that final 90% no kill benchmark.
And we used to joke that it was the last 10 pounds
that was the hardest to lose.
We launched fee waved adoptions and redemptions.
We expanded stray return to field.
We created Doggy Day out where anyone could take a dog out
for a walk and give them a break,
and they always came back happy and tired.
We built enrichment programs, Frisbee Fridays for dogs
and wine cork Wednesdays for cats,
and a little nursery for neonatal kittens.
We shifted to open adoption, reducing barriers,
and giving more Chicagoans the opportunity
to adopt from their city shelter.
And we built life-changing partnerships
with West Side Health Authority
and Ready Chicago to name a few,
which gave young men job opportunities caring for animals.
And working with Ready.
The Ready Guys is still one
of the most rewarding experiences of my life.
Uh, we also worked really hard to increase transparency.
Uh, as I just mentioned, we created
CCCs first official social media accounts.
We see we sought out media opportunities
and we promoted adoptions
and other services across the city on the city's
digital media network.
Alongside friends of CACC, paw Chicago,
the Chicagoland Rescue Intervention
and Support Program, safe Humane Chicago,
and hundreds of other rescue partners.
Together, we achieve no kill status every year between 2018
and 2021, saving over 90%
of the animals who came through the doors.
Of course, when the pandemic hit,
CACC saw a drastic decrease in intake.
I'll never forget walking into the shelter one day
and there were only about 30 animals left.
And it was surreal.
Um, I I I was brought to tears
and I felt like our dreams had finally come true.
And then the reality hit
as the world started to open up again.
People went back to work in school, evictions resumed,
which was a huge part of our intake at that time.
And the intake numbers started to shoot back up by 2024.
CACC took in 13,900 dogs
and cats in just the first eight months of 2025.
They're already at 11,200, about 50 animals a day.
If that trend continues,
CACC will exceed 16,000 intakes the
highest in more than a decade.
As Director Capella just mentioned, um, it wasn't easy,
but we had shed those last 10 pounds
and now we're fighting not to gain them back.
So where do things stand now?
CAC is facing rising intake, overstretched medical capacity,
and too few staff to keep up when that happens.
Euthanasia rises. So does burnout for staff, volunteers,
and rescue partners
of more than 5,000 stray dogs entering last year.
Only 19% return home down from 29% in 2019.
If we had simply matched that earlier rate,
500 more dogs could have gone home
instead of staying in the shelter.
Adoptions are strong by historical standards,
about 22% of outcomes.
And I know that doesn't seem like much,
but it it used to be fewer and they're working really hard,
but we know the demand is much higher.
Many Chicagoans want to adopt from CACC,
but they simply can't because the animals aren't ready
or there's no staff available to help them.
So how does this look nationally
across the us most shelters saw intake rise
after COVID, just like CACC did.
But now many have stabilized or even improved a bit.
National intake is down about 4% so far this year,
and euthanasia is starting to trend down too.
Other cities are investing in their
departments to stay ahead.
New York City added $1 million this summer
to relieve overcrowding in their shelters.
Indianapolis, Phoenix, Los Angeles,
and Tampa report adoption rates between 40
and 70%, which are double
or triple of CCCs and Tucson's.
Pima Animal Care Center has cut cat euthanasia by 10%
through community cap program programming,
which has always been a passion of mine
and something that we worked really hard on getting
partners, you know, over the last 10 years.
But we really need CACC to be able to do
that more proactively for it to really work.
So CAC is struggling, and that's not
because of effort or commitment.
It's because we're asking people
to do too much with too little.
So let's talk a little bit more about these challenges.
Chicago funds, its animal control system at the lowest level
of any major US city.
In 2023, CAC C'S budget was 7.17 million.
Compare that to $30 million in New York City,
or 11.5 million in Tampa
or Hillsborough County,
which took in a similar number of animals.
Staffing is dangerously thin, as many have remarked already.
But, uh, one comparison I wanna make is in
the medical department.
Uh, last I knew CACC had one certified vet tech,
five assistants and three vets.
And don't forget, it's not just for dogs
and cats, it's for every species.
And by comparison, at Heartland, we have two part-time vets
and three medical assistants for an intake
of about 1500 animals a year.
That's one 10th of CCCs volume.
With current staffing, animals wait longer for care,
get sicker, stay longer, and are adopted less often.
It's that simple. So what would success look like?
Imagine what's possible with proper funding.
CACC could be a community hub for animal care, youth jobs,
volunteer engagement and family support.
It could be a point of pride and not crisis.
Success looks like this.
Healthier animals
and shorter shelter stays a 30% return
to owner rate or higher.
A 40 to 60% adoption rate matching our peer cities clean,
welcoming facilities
and faster service, stronger partnerships and less burnout.
We've already proven that we can do it.
We just need the resources to sustain it.
So what would help? Here are the key investments
that I think would make the biggest difference.
More medical staff vets, vet techs, foster coordinators
to stave lives and speed up adoptions.
How about a volunteer coordinator?
So people who want to help can actually do so.
Dedicated adoption staff to connect more pets with families,
faster expanded field operations,
more officers returning lost pets directly to their owners
and pet owner support, low cost vaccines,
spay neuter, food and training.
So families don't have
to surrender their pets in the first place.
And I know a lot of the things are happening,
but there aren't enough resources
to do them at the level needed to be sustainable.
One thing that I think we could explore is
that there are corporations in Chicago, they're home to
so many Fortune 500 companies, McDonald's, Kraft, Heinz,
United, AbbVie, Exelon.
Imagine what could happen if each helped sponsor medical
care adoption events or outreach programs.
So the question is, how do we do this?
I wanted to, to suggest a couple of easy things, couple
of harder things, but they're all important.
So let's start with things that I think are simple.
We could make volunteer onboarding easier right now.
People have to get fingerprinted downtown
during business hours.
That's a barrier. And we're turning away help
that we desperately need.
How about we explore redirecting rabies tag revenue from
Cook County, much of which comes from city residents.
And what if some of that revenue could support CACC?
I already talked to Mamadou in the elevator about this this
morning, so we'll see.
And the big ones, what if we could increase CAC C'S budget
and authorize new positions to hire more medical adoption,
foster and outreach staff?
And what if we leverage more partnerships with nonprofits
and corporations to stretch every dollar further?
So what do we do next? CACC has shown what's possible.
We've already reached no kill.
We built programs that worked.
We inspired volunteers and partners and it wasn't easy.
But now the system is overwhelmed
and without additional investment,
we risk losing the progress we fought so hard for.
Not from lack of will, but lack of resources.
Chicago is a world class city.
As Mayor Johnson likes to stay,
it's the best freaking city in the world.
Let's make our shelter the best freaking
shelter in the world.
Thank you Jennifer. I I am going to, um, allow, uh,
director Sue if she has a direct response,
and then we will go into questions.
My direct response is, thank you Jenny. I don't disagree.
I know. Thank you.
Okay. Um, we're gonna start with, um, Q and a.
Now I have a couple of questions that were, that were asked
by one of the people offering public comment.
Uh, so I'm going to ask you several questions in a row
and you can answer them.
Um, this person wants
to know why there has been progress for cat adoptions,
but not for dogs.
Why is there a drop in active rescue partnerships by half?
And when was the last audit, um, of funding use?
Uh, I'm sorry, what was the first question again?
Why is, why has there been progress for cat adoptions
but not for dog adoptions?
Well, cats are a lot easier
to handle than dogs are, right?
Um, so most of our dogs
that we have at the shelter are the larger
bully breed type of dogs.
Um, we do have a lot of people coming in.
So where are the small dogs?
How can we get small dogs from you?
Um, we don't always have them at the shelter, so
that could be one of the reasons.
Um, our, our shelter manager, Hamilton.
Do you know, do you have any idea why it's higher? Cats?
I mean, we are up on adoptions altogether
as well as in dogs.
I think the question was comparing just one year to,
to a specific year.
If you look overall, we are still up on dog adoptions.
Going back to one specific year.
Yes, we are down, I think she mentioned
2019 or something like that.
We're down a hundred in dogs.
And then a lot goes into what's happening in the city
as well as why is our intake going up so much.
Um, not as many people can have the type of animals
that we have.
As Sue is saying, we don't have a lot of little dogs.
We, we do have a lot of large dogs, um, that are harder
to place than, um, other dogs.
And that could be why the, the adoptions are down
by a hundred when comparing it to that one year.
And for our Homeward Bound partners,
I know you've mentioned they're cut in half.
So prior to COVID, we did have over 200 partners.
Um, COVID had a lot to do with that.
Some partners just dropped off outta the system altogether.
Um, art, would you like to elabor right down there?
Yeah, so we, we regularly stay in contact with,
with our, our partners.
Um, coming outta COVID, there have been a lot
of organizations that are, that are no longer around,
and that goes back to even before COVID.
So when they're saying 200, that might've been
what was listed on our website at one time.
Um, yes, many of those organizations are,
are no longer active.
Um, and in some, some cases,
groups also just don't have the same resources
as they did in the past as well.
Um, what we're seeing in the city as far as
cost of living, we all know the high cost of pet care,
medical food, all of that stuff.
It affects rescues the same as it affects pet owners.
And I'd like to add a little bit more to that.
We did have our advisory board commission reach out to a lot
of our partners, um, the ones who are current
and possibly even some who are no longer involved.
And they provided a report at our last, um,
commission meeting about responses for a survey of why they,
what they're looking for,
why they're still pulling, why they're not pulling.
So, um, we did have
that at our last commission meeting available.
The last question is about audit.
So last time we audited.
Um, as far as a funding type of audit,
I remember something back in 2012.
That was quite some time ago.
It was definitely something we would be interested
in open to doing.
Okay. Uh, do I have any more questions
or comments from, I have Derman Robinson, uh,
other woman Fuentes, and then other woman Cruz,
Uh, director. Thank you,
uh, for your, um, time today.
And, uh, I also want to give kudos to, uh, Armando,
uh, and the folks that are, are in the box.
Uh, you all do a oman's job, uh,
with very limited resources.
And I just want to, to thank you, um, for, um,
the work that you guys do, um, in the city of Chicago.
It's a, it's a very, very tough job.
Um, and I just really want to give you guys kudos.
I, um, my colleagues here, um,
spent, um, some time, um, at your facility
and, uh, really enjoyed myself.
I had to think about, uh, being a dog dead of three
and not adding any additional family members, uh,
uh, to my household.
And it was tough to leave there
and not take, um, an additional, um, dog,
um, home with me.
Um, but, uh,
however we can continue to, uh, be helpful
to your efforts in adopting, uh, please let us know.
Um, I posted my, um, time at your facility
and, and we got, um, a lot of reviews, a lot of comments,
and so I would like to suggest to my colleagues
to do the same, um,
because we certainly need to, to help this department.
I would be remiss if I didn't thank, uh, the,
the visitors that we have here.
Um, I wanna thank you all the advocates for your support
and, uh, being here today, it really shows us how important
this is to the city of Chicago.
So I appreciate you all taking time out of your,
your busy schedules to come down
and show your support today. Thank you very much.
Thank you. Alderman Robinson. Uh, other woman Fuentes.
Thank you. Uh, chairwoman.
Uh, first, uh, again, I wanna thank the department, uh,
Chen staff, uh, also advocates for being here too.
Advocates in particular, Raza
and Julie, uh, who have been in partnership
with us doing this work.
Um, I have a couple questions. I'm not gonna ask them all.
I'll allow some of my colleagues to ask,
and then I'll do a cleanup at the
end, if that's okay with you.
Chair one for any questions that haven't been asked.
Um, director, can you, uh, tell us how often do you meet
with the mayor's office to discuss the successes
and challenges at CACC?
And what are the outcomes?
So we have regular operational overview meetings.
Um, we're doing at least one to two a month.
Um, we do discuss, uh, yes, our challenges
and our, um, and our successes.
Um, I mean, outcomes are, you're doing a great job,
keep going, keep moving forward, you know?
Um, so I don't know,
Armando, do you wanna add anything to that?
Yeah, so we do operational overviews
and just go over the challenges that we're facing.
Um, for the most part, I mean,
I think just like everyone here is saying,
we're doing the best that we can with what we have.
Yeah. Thank you. I appreciate that.
Uh, director, can you tell us
how many vacancies you currently hold?
Um, so I have nine full-time vacancies
and four part-time vacancies.
Are we currently in the process for hiring,
or are they held up in any sort of free? There's
Actually one that we got through at the last minute.
So they're currently in the onboarding process.
Okay. And then how many full-time vets
are currently on staff?
We have three budgeted,
three filled full-time veterinarians.
In an ideal world, how many vets do you think you need?
Wow, that's a loaded question.
Uh, um, we'd really have to sit down and dig into that.
Um, vets are not easy to come by, right?
We, there's a lot of veterinarians that are out there
who are not interested in shelter medicine,
so they're even harder to come by for our shelter,
especially in a shelter who does euthanize animals.
Um, so that's something that we'd really need to dig into
and look, um, I wouldn't be opposed
to at least doubling the start.
And then how many assistants do your vets have?
Right now there are vet five vet assistants
and one certified vet tech,
and ideally it should be two support staff
per one veterinarian.
If I can just, yeah, if I can just add, uh, one
of the big drawbacks for veterinary, uh,
to get vets in is the requirement to live within the city
of Chicago, which is a requirement for all city employees.
We have, um, a lot of interest from vets.
Unfortunately, they're not willing
to move within the city limits.
Thank you. Uh, director, can you walk us through, uh,
steps, practices,
processes in which you ensure the psychological safety
of your, both your staff and your volunteers?
Yes, absolutely. So most, number one, um, all city
of Chicago employees have access
to the Employee Assistance Assistance Program
through the Department of Human Resources.
Um, that's regularly distributed out to staff, um,
at our all staff meetings and when problems arise.
Um, but most recently we had a, um, oh,
Angela, I'm drawing a blank.
A young woman come in to help us with that.
Can you elaborate a little bit on that?
Uh, just a few weeks ago, we introduced our, um,
actually she's part of a rescue
and she offered to help our staff
and it will eventually go to volunteers.
She's coming in and she is a, um, well,
wellbeing facilitator, I believe is the title.
Um, so we had our first session, I guess at the end
of September, and she'll be coming back for, uh,
continuous sessions.
So that was one of the things
that we just started this year.
Yeah. And excuse me,
Can you state your name again for the record?
And Your Laura Rayburn
And You, and what's your position?
Operations Manager. Thank you.
And in addition to that, um,
our volunteer group is of course, very strong.
We have one of our own volunteers
who hosts a monthly session with our current volunteers
for compassion fatigue.
Thank you. This is my last question,
and then I'll do cleanup at the end.
Chairwoman, uh, director, can you reiterate
what is the capacity of the shelter
and how many animals do we currently have there?
Well, I'm gonna actually ask
Art Hamilton to respond to that.
He's our shelter manager.
So what we're currently at our capacity
and well, what is the capacity and what we have today?
So capacity can be looked at a lot of different ways.
Um, we have 225 brick
and mortar cages for dogs,
and we have about another under 200 cages for cats.
Um, some of them are brick
and mortar, some of them are portables.
A lot of places tend to measure the capacity, not by
what you can actually house,
but by how much staff you have
to take care of those animals.
Um, and then some of the older optics are like that.
Every animal should have at least 15 minutes of care, food,
water, and, um, you know,
socialization, cleaning, et cetera.
So if we went by that 15 minutes, we would,
we would be doing more than that,
but that is still not enough for the animals that we have.
Um, and as far as like staffing,
it's gonna vary from, from day to day.
Um, people have vacations,
people call off different things like that.
So there are some days that we're, we're gonna have, uh,
more staff than others.
Oh. What's our current population today?
Do you remember? Uh, Armando,
Gimme one second.
We got it. Hi,
Our Armando Tejeda, a public information officer.
Um, so this morning we opened with 225 dogs
and 151 cats.
That's before our officers went out into the field.
And intake starts at 3:00 PM today.
Is that it? No, you're done. Okay.
Uh, other woman, uh, Cruz. Thank
You Chairwoman.
Um, thank you Sue for being here
and your department here as well.
Thank you for the partnership for all
of our pet fair events that we are having.
So we appreciate the, um, partnership.
As many have stated, there's just
so much happening in our city,
but this is something that is extremely important
for our residents as well.
They have been reaching out to my office
through calls, um, through email.
So this is something that we need.
Um, a we need a lot of answers of what is happening.
I know we are doing the best you possibly can,
but our residents, some of them feel
otherwise, they feel that we're not doing enough.
They need to know what is happening in the department.
And my questions will be focused on that, um,
based on the input they have shared.
So I do have, um, couple questions. So bear with me.
One of my first questions is, who from the mayor's office
does CACC report to? So
I report directly to Deputy Mayor Lori Lipson,
Nor Lipson. Okay.
And as we talk about like, you know, needing much help
and there is more opportunities in the department,
we do have to address, uh, the budget concerns that we have.
Have you, have you reached out to the mayor's office,
uh, regarding funding?
When was the last time, have you, have you been asked, um,
regarding like, this is how much we need to be able
to operate and what has been the outcome?
So this is something that we do every
year during budget season.
Um, we're currently in budget season,
so I don't know what's happening for 2026 yet
as we haven't had our meetings
with the budget department yet. Do
You have a number that you're requesting?
Um, I do not. Okay.
Um, I think that is something that, you know,
going into budget season, since a lot of the, uh,
departments already meeting with us
and saying, this is what we need from your support
to be able to do the, um, you know,
the responsibilities of their departments.
I think that is something, um, to be able to consider. Also.
Um, one of the things that was brought up,
it was the volunteering process.
It seems that there is a lot of people willing to step in
and to, to help, but the, it seems,
and this is according to somebody who
was a former volunteer, so somebody who has been able
to be there and express how the volunteer process takes
so long, it can take up to six months
to be become a volunteer.
Um, it, it seems that the process is, you know,
fingerprinting in one location during certain hours,
not having the ability to be able to do so.
So what are some of your recommendations to streamline that
and make it a process that is, doesn't take six months
and is a much faster process for these individuals
to be able to volunteer?
So I will say that six months,
it was like that previously.
Um, at this point we host a monthly
volunteer information session.
Um, so, so folks had come in to hear about
what the process is
and what to do, what you're gonna be able
to do at the shelter as a volunteer.
Um, so we host those monthly.
At that point, the applicant will fill out an a survey
to say exactly what they're interested
in doing at the shelter.
From that point, they then schedule
their fingerprint appointments.
Now fingerprint appointments are,
it's the same across the board for city employees.
You have to make the appointment
with the Department of Human Resources.
Um, they're open Monday through Friday, eight 30 to four 30.
I mean, that's out of my hands. I have no control over that.
But I am told that all volunteers are
required to be fingerprinted.
We've been doing that since 2009, so I remember
that bringing that up back then too.
Um, so everybody has to get fingerprinted.
And I will say that I actually get the clearances myself
still, and I'm seeing clearances coming back within seven
to eight days from that point.
Um, then volunteers have to go
through a training session, right?
I mean, working with the dogs, working
with the dogs at the shelter are very different than working
with the dog inside somebody's home.
Um, you have to learn how to open the cages.
You have to learn how to leash the dog from the cage
and get them out the hallways.
There's a lot of safety concerns with doing that.
So there is a lot of training, um, as far as
with a co volunteer to get that, um, to work on that.
And then there's one-on-one sessions
and mentoring sessions that have to, um, go into place.
Actually, Jamie White is a current volunteer with us.
Um, she has a mentor session at three o'clock
that she'd love to get to so she could get our volun,
our new volunteers trained.
Jamie, did I miss out on anything with that?
Um, no. You introduce
Yourself and state your, your role.
Thank you. I'm Jamie White.
I'm a volunteer at CACC
and on the Board of Friends of Animal Care and Control.
Um, so what I've heard from mentees that come through,
I haven't heard the six month anymore.
It is quite shorter.
Um, but everybody's life gets in the way.
They sign up for an information session,
and then they need to schedule that fingerprint appointment.
And sometimes they don't respond to the email
and then they'll respond to the email.
But by the time they respond,
those appointments available are no longer there.
And so it's quite a bit of administrative back and forth,
and that is the only part of the process that's controlled
by staff and not volunteers.
Volunteers run the information sessions,
volunteers run intro to dog walking,
volunteers run the mentor sessions.
Once they, the fingerprints are cleared from start to end
for that orientation and mentor sessions.
That takes less than 30 days, of course,
unless one of those mentees is going on vacation
or they have some other issue where they can't come
to the shelter right away.
So what is now, so I know you said that was
before the six months.
If you had to gimme an average, what would,
what is the average time now
From start all the way through a finish
of training? About 30 days.
About 30 days. Basically,
if somebody follows a process, follows
Straight through. Yes.
Um, my other question is regarding, um, the leadership.
You have been an active executive director for, um,
since 2023.
The conversations that you have
with the mayor's administration, is there any, um,
conversations regarding who it's gonna be become the actual,
um, director of the facility?
I, you know, based on this question is that it seems that
that department desperately needs permanent
and stable leadership to be able
to come in and make some changes.
But based on your conversations,
what are you hearing based on the, what are your plans?
What is the mayor saying
regarding the leadership at department? And so this
Is an appointed position by the mayor,
and when he's ready to make that appointment, he will do so.
Okay. Sounds good.
Um, also, other questions that I have also, this is from one
of the volunteers and, and I'm not sure if this is true
and that that's why I'm asking too.
Um, one of the questions which is alarming to me,
and I want you to, uh, to clarify is that dogs, it, um,
CACC only get out of their kennels once every few days.
And what is the plan to do something about that?
I will say that they're probably not wrong.
That dogs are walked once every few days.
Um, and dogs are walked by our volunteers.
We sh we do not have the staff available to do so
to walk the dogs or give them any enrichment.
So staff does not have anything to do with that.
Um, they're cleaning, feeding, providing the, um, you know,
movement of the animals from cage to cage, um, medical care,
but we don't have staff to walk and provide the enrichment.
That's what the volunteers are here for.
Um, so we definitely need more volunteers cleared
and in the door and to do that.
It seems that there, there is, I think there is any, um,
people wanna volunteer.
I mean, just, you know, I have a fur baby
and I cannot imagine not walking my dog
two to three times a day.
Um, so I, I think this is something
that why people are saying we need to do more
and we're not doing it.
Um, also another, another question is like, we, you know,
we have seen is nationally, you know,
numbers have gone up more or, um, dogs
or cats are being dropped off, um, at CAC
or other similar locations.
But it seems that other cities have been able to implement,
um, other outcomes
and they just wanna know what is the difference
with us, with our city.
Like why we can mirror the demand just like in other places
and be able to have a
better outcomes than what we're having now. Well,
That's a great question.
I'd, I'd like to see
what other outcomes they're saying that they have.
I mean, are you just saying more adoption
and more, I mean, over the past few years, I mean,
our social media sites have just blown up.
I mean, people see us again.
Is it that we don't have the right type of animals?
I don't know. I mean that's something we'd have
to dig into and take a look at.
Do you think more funding will make a difference?
More funding to have additional positions to be able
to service the clients as they come into the facility
would may be helpful. Yes.
Because you mentioned early on you had nine
vacancies, correct?
Right. Yep. Um, and I believe you addressed it.
Like what, what is happening to be able to fulfill those,
um, vacancies as quickly as possible?
Well, one is currently in the onboarding process,
and that's our animal care aide who's works in the
shelters for cleaning the shelter.
Um, we have four field staff, actually five field staff,
an inspector, and four ACOs vacant.
Um, those are all involved in the hiring freeze right now.
Okay. My last question
'cause I know my colleagues have other questions.
Um, so have you, um,
euthanized a fully vetted adopted animal that has received,
has been vaccinated, chipped, sprayed or neutered,
and received medical attention from a rescue partner?
Have we euthanized an animal that's already been vetted?
Uh, she had asked a lot. You said unadopted. Yeah.
Have we ized an adopted animal?
Just overall? So you know, whether it has been one
that has been adopted who has not been adopted,
just the process of fully vetted animal.
Oh yes. An animals that are fully vetted is, is not,
um, a responsible way to, to manage your, your euthanasia.
If you have an animal that's trying to bite whether
or not it's been neutered, microchipped, um,
you would not adopt that animal out.
Okay. Sounds good. Thank you. Thank you. Other
Woman? I have other woman
had an elder woman, Ramirez,
and I am going to close that because we are running behind
and the committee in finance needs to meet.
So other women hadn't, and then other woman Ramirez.
And then we'll close.
Um, thank you chair. I'll make mine actually brief.
So one, I just want to thank the animal, the a CC team
for all that you do.
Um, I wanna thank all of the, um, members of the public, um,
who came today, um, for your testimony, for the testimony
that was shared in writing through the committee, um,
and for, uh, chair you and
and alter Fuentes for bringing this forward, um,
through the chair.
I wanna hear from the mayor's office, right?
So we've, we've got the, the people doing the work
with the resources, um, like one hand tied
behind your back is what I feel.
And we've been having this conversation,
um, for several years.
Um, I know it did predate, um,
the current mayoral administration.
Um, but it's unacceptable to
allow a core city service, uh,
and department to go so neglected.
So Through the chair, I would like, um,
to hear from our deputy mayor, um,
and from the mayor's office and from the Office of Budget
and Management, um, why these essential positions are part
of, um, the hiring freeze.
Um, I would argue they fall under public health and safety.
I don't think that they should be part of the hiring freeze.
And also, um, of course, um, you know, commissioner for you
and your team, um, I'll just echo my colleagues.
Uh, uh, Alder Cruz's request for budget needs.
Um, we, we want to make sure
that these services are provided.
Um, I would also, you know, agree
with a lot of our commenters.
Um, how we, how we care for
our pets is also how we care for our people.
Um, and we know that there are increasing demands, um, both
because not just, uh, immigration enforcement and raids and,
and fear, but also of housing crisis and shortage
and the costs going up for everything.
So we know that people are having to part
with their furry family members, um, not
because they want to, but because they have to.
And, um, there's an increased demand.
We've gotta figure out a way to, to resource
that. Thank you Chair. We
Will submit your question through the chair.
Thank you. Other woman Ramirez, vice
Chair. Yes. Ramez.
Well, kudos.
I mean, thank you guys for all the work
and wanna thank everybody for bringing us to this moment.
I do wanna highlight the partnerships
and I'm very curious, like on a year to year PA basis, like
what are those conversations with the partnerships
and the ways in which they're stepping up
and also meeting the need.
Like how, how do they, how do you guys negotiate their time,
um, and their resources?
So we currently have a memorandum of understanding
with P Chicago for our partnership on our diversion on our
360 at CACC program.
Um, I would like to just say that Celine is here from Pause,
and I, I thought she was gonna have an opportunity
to really speak, but can they submit their written
statements in?
Okay. I just wanted to make sure her statement gets in on
what the program actually does.
Um, so we definitely have conversations very
regularly with paw.
Our Homeward Bound partners are regularly having
conversations with our animal placement coordinators.
So another position at the department who really works
with them to see what type of animals they're interested in.
Um, cook County Animal
and Rabies Control, again, also here today, um, to support.
And we're always having conversations.
I mean, we all know Mama Dew,
he was our previous executive director.
Um, but Cook County's constantly stepping up to try to help.
They host training sessions.
They use our facility, our staff can go for free.
They don't charge us anything for that.
And then our help with their, uh,
vaccine clinics is, is amazing.
So partnerships, we regularly talk
to Whomever's ready to step up.
Yeah. So thank you
to all the partnerships that have stepped up.
And then I do, I mean,
I am very curious about the Cook County, um,
and just the ways that, that they've stepped up.
I don't know if you wanna highlight, I know you're kind of,
you kind of alluded to that right now.
Um, and ways that maybe we can build a better
partnership if you have any ideas.
Yeah, I mean, cook County Animal
and Rabies Control has just been amazing, especially
with our vaccine cl our vaccine clinics.
Vaccine clinics from our shelter.
We started actually as something that I started back in 2010
and we've been doing vaccine clinics since we used
to support those vaccine clinics
with our veterinarians coming out into the communities
with our staff, doing everything.
Um, you know, of course with budgetary constraints
and things happening, um, cook County has stepped up.
They provide the veterinarians, which is the largest, um,
um, part of our,
we can't do the clinics without a veterinarian
and veterinarians are not cheap,
let's just say it that way, right?
So they pay for veterinarians to come out and help.
They pay for veterinary support staff.
They provide the rabies vaccines, the microchips.
All I have to provide is one of the four of my team here,
or the five of us here, um, to come out and help with that.
So we're filling out the paperwork,
we do our data entry on our end register
microchips, keep track of everything.
Um, vaccine clinics are, are my heart. I love doing them.
I love talking to the community when we're out there
and I would love to do more. Yeah,
I mean people, they get in line, they do
Almost The day before 5:00 AM
Yes, Exactly. Exactly.
And you know, they're camping out. Yeah.
But they're so wonderful and they're much appreciated.
And my last point is like, what as Aldermanic offices,
I love your flyers,
whoever does your comms flyers are the cutest.
Um, but is is there anything
that you wanna just let us know on like
what we can do as better partners?
Yeah, and I definitely appreciate, I see when you post,
when you repost our stuff.
So, uh, social media is probably the biggest thing out there
right now, sharing what we send.
We do have a monthly adoption event
and I know Armando reaches out to all of your offices
through your chiefs.
Um, so follow up with them,
make sure you guys are sharing those posts
and getting the word out for us.
And that's really one
of the main things we could do right now.
Thank you Ramirez.
Um, I'm going to leave it here
because we are running really behind.
Thank you so much to um, directors, to
to the team volunteers
and to everybody that took time today to come.
Listen, bring your concerns. We hear you.
And we are going to continue this conversation, um,
particularly as it pertains to budget needs,
um, in this cycle.
Um, would there be no further business before the committee?
Can I get a motion to adjourn? So moved by Alderman Sava.
Hearing. No objection. Sole order.
The meeting of the Committee on Health
and Human Relations is now adjourn.
Can I just add one more quick thing?
I just wanna thank all of you again for everything
that you've done for us and everybody at the mayor's office,
the budget department, everybody's been so helpful.
Thank you.