Victory for Pet Owners! San Marcos, TX, Overturns Microchip Mandate
4/3/2009
Local animal owners no longer required to chip their pets
The City Council of San Marcos, Texas, unanimously voted this week to rescind a mandatory pet microchipping ordinance that would have required all pets within city limits to receive an injected implant. The 7 to 0 vote was made at the City Council meeting on Tuesday night. All members were present and voted, including Mayor Susan Clifford-Narvaiz, according to San Marcos Communications Director Melissa Millecam.
The chipping ordinance was originally adopted last December and was slated to take effect on April 1st. The measure had sparked months of heated opposition and repeated demonstrations by local residents, including a protest and candlelight vigil at the March 3rd City Council meeting that drew a crowd of over 300 people.
The March 3rd protest took place during the last City Council meeting, and was heavily covered by the local television and print media. The protest, combined with the empassioned testimony of numerous local residents, prompted the City Council to agree to reconsider the measure at its March 31st meeting, at which point the measure was overturned.