Colorado: Aurora Seeks Public Input on Breed Ban, Dangerous Dog Proposal Before 8/17 Vote

The City of Aurora, Colorado, continues to move forward on amending its dangerous dog laws, and is asking for public input prior to the vote on Monday, August 17.

Two items will be discussed:

1. The city’s current breed ban – Current city law bans American Staffordshire Terriers, Staffordshire Bull Terriers, and American pit bull terriers, unless they are service dogs meant to accommodate the ADA or a DNA test says the dog is genetically less than 50 percent of one of these breeds.
   The city is seeking input on whether to keep or repeal the law, and whether the decision should be made by the council or by placing it on the ballot for residents to vote.
2. A new dangerous dog law – According to the city, the proposal would:
   -Establish a “tiered system” for judges to determine the level of offense
   -Allow animal control officers more discretion in handling individual cases
   -Update the current law to be in line with other area jurisdictions

It should be noted that the city emphasizes that the new dangerous dog law is separate from the discussion on the breed restrictions. It will be discussed and could be passed irrespective of whether breed restrictions remain in place. 

More details on these proposals may be found on the city’s website.

Also, please note that the Aurora initiatives are separate from the Denver proposal to place a measure on this issue on the November 2020 ballot.  Read AKC’s alert for more information on the Denver proposal.

Talking Points:

AKC encourages people who reside in Aurora to provide input to the city:

• Encourage the city on focus on promoting responsible dog ownership and addressing dogs of any breed(s) that are truly a problem in the community.
• If you participate in events in Aurora, let the city know about what you do, the positive impact the events have on the community, and the steps you take to ensure safety around all dogs.

For more information and talking points about dangerous dog/ breed specific legislation, visit the Breed-Specific/Dangerous Dog key issues page in the AKC Legislative Action Center.

How to Comment:

There are two ways to comment on this proposal:

• Testify at the August 17 virtual hearing:
  1) Call 855-695-3475, then press *3. The phone line will be open at 7pm on August 17.
  2) Indicate whether you are calling to comment on the current breed ban or dangerous dog proposal, and you will be placed in a queue and called upon when the council reaches that item on the agenda.
  3) You will be given 3 minutes to speak.

• Submit written comments no later than 10:00 am on Friday, August 14. These comments will be submitted to all aldermen for review prior to the hearing.  Submit comments to:  animalordinance@auroragov.org.

AKC Government Relations and the Colorado Federation of Dog Clubs will continue to closely monitor the city’s actions on these issues.  For more information, contact AKC GR at doglaw@akc.org.