Accessibility to emergency information and services: evacuations: pets.

Website navigation elements added: skip to content, home, accessibility, FAQ, feedback, sitemap, login, quick search box, and sidebar links (Bill Information, California Law, Publications, Other Resources, My Subscriptions, My Favorites, Bill Search).

A 'Digest Key' metadata block was added showing Vote: MAJORITY, Appropriation: NO, Fiscal Committee: YES, Local Program: YES.

Official document header ('STATE OF CALIFORNIA AUTHENTICATED ELECTRONIC LEGISLATIVE MATERIAL') and page number footers were removed in favor of the web layout.

The bill was formally enacted as Chapter 695 of the Statutes of 2025, with the Governor's approval date of October 13, 2025 recorded in the document header.

Document formatting was updated from enrolled bill layout to chaptered law layout, including changes to page headers, line breaks, and the addition of 'STATE OF CALIFORNIA AUTHENTICATED ELECTRONIC LEGAL MATERIAL' at the top.

Changed 'or in coordination with' to 'in coordination with' in two places (Section 8593.11(b)(1)(A)(i) and (b)(1)(C)), making coordination with the emergency management authority a mandatory condition for approving pet rescues and reentry into evacuation zones, rather than an alternative to incident commander approval alone.

The legislative counsel's digest was revised to remove the reference to 'resources for persons who need assistance reuniting with pets' from its summary of website posting requirements. The underlying statutory text in Section 8593.11(c) still contains that requirement, so this is a digest correction rather than a change to the law.

Formatting changes consistent with enrolled bill preparation: removal of amendment history headers, line numbers, and page numbers; addition of passage dates (Assembly September 12, 2025; Senate September 11, 2025), clerk and secretary signatures, and governor approval block.

Removed the specific list of who may rescue pets (residents in the evacuation zone, their designated representatives, or county-designated animal rescue entities). The bill now simply requires procedures 'for the rescue of a pet' without specifying who performs the rescue, giving local governments broader discretion.

Changed approval language from 'approval by the incident commander or emergency management authority' to 'approval by the incident commander or in coordination with the emergency management authority,' shifting the relationship between these two roles from either/or to a coordination model.

Eliminated the separate requirement for cities and counties to designate a second contact person or entity specifically for people whose pets were left behind and who need assistance retrieving them. Only one contact designation remains, for information regarding evacuating pets during an evacuation.

Added a new requirement that cities and counties post multimodal methods of providing information regarding pet rescues and resources on their websites, expanding accessibility beyond text-only web content.

Narrowed the post-30-day protection for evacuated pets. Previously, a pet could not be euthanized or transferred out of custody unless ALL local rescue and foster partners were notified and given an opportunity to take custody. Now, only euthanization is prohibited (transfer is no longer restricted), and only if a specific animal rescue organization has previously notified the agency of its willingness to take custody and completes the transfer at the end of the 30-day period.

In Section 53074.1, the definition of 'evacuation order' was narrowed from covering any 'state or local emergency' to only a 'declared federal or state emergency.' This means the 30-day protection period for rescued pets (prohibiting adoption, euthanasia, or transfer) now applies only during formally declared emergencies at the federal or state level, not during local-level emergencies.

A new provision allows a local animal control agency to transfer a pet to an in-state partner animal shelter, animal rescue, or animal foster during the 30-day hold period, as long as the agency maintains records of the pet's location to facilitate owner reunification. Previously, no transfer out of custody was permitted for the full 30 days.

Section 53074.1(c) now excludes pets that were 'relinquished or surrendered by its owner' from the protections of the section. Previously, only pets that were irremediably suffering were exempt. This means if an owner voluntarily gives up a pet after an evacuation, the 30-day hold and partner-notification requirements do not apply.

Senator Allen was added as a coauthor of the bill.

The period during which a rescued pet cannot be adopted, euthanized, or transferred out of animal control custody was reduced from 90 days to 30 days.

Pet rescues from evacuation areas now require approval by the incident commander or emergency management authority before they can occur.

Residents and their designated representatives who reenter an evacuation zone to rescue pets must be operating under the supervision of the incident command system.

A new provision explicitly states that nothing in the bill grants any person the absolute right to reenter an evacuation zone, and all reentry is subject to incident conditions and approval by the designated incident commander or emergency management authority.

The scope of assistance for which a city or county must designate a contact person was expanded from 'assistance with evacuating pets' to 'information regarding, or assistance with evacuating pets.'

The bill was expanded from a single nonsubstantive grammar fix to Section 50022.9 into a multi-section act adding two new Government Code sections (8593.11 and 53074.1) addressing pet rescue during mandatory evacuations and post-evacuation animal protection.

Cities and counties must, upon the next update to their emergency plan, designate procedures allowing residents in mandatory evacuation areas (or their representatives) to return and rescue pets that were alive at the time of evacuation. Localities may require a liability waiver before return but this does not create a general right to re-enter evacuated areas.

Cities and counties must designate a person or entity to call for assistance evacuating pets during a mandatory evacuation, and a separate person or entity to call for assistance retrieving pets left behind in mandatory evacuation areas.

Cities and counties must post on their websites contact information for the designated pet assistance contacts and resources for reuniting with rescued pets, including a list of animals rescued from evacuated areas linked on the homepage.

Pets rescued or originating from a mandatory evacuation area cannot be made available for adoption, euthanized, or transferred out of local animal control custody for at least 90 days. After 90 days, they still cannot be euthanized or transferred unless all local rescue and foster partners have been notified and given an opportunity to take custody.

An exception is carved out: the 90-day protection period does not apply to a pet that is irremediably suffering.

The bill now includes a state mandates reimbursement provision. If the Commission on State Mandates determines the bill contains costs mandated by the state, local agencies must be reimbursed under Part 7 of Division 4 of Title 2 of the Government Code. Fiscal committee and state-mandated local program designations both changed from 'no' to 'yes.'

A new definition of 'pet' is established in both new sections: an animal including a dog, cat, rabbit, rodent, reptile, amphibian, fish, bird, or other species kept for the purpose of being a household pet.

The original nonsubstantive grammar fix to Section 50022.9 (changing 'ordinances which that adopt' to 'ordinances that adopt') is retained but moved to a later section number in the amended bill.

A new category of authorized pet rescuers is added: a person or entity with animal rescue experience designated by the city or county. Previously only the resident or their designated representative could rescue pets.

A new definition of 'evacuation order' is added, covering orders from the Governor, county emergency management official, county sheriff, chief of police, or fire marshal requiring relocation due to imminent danger.

References throughout the bill shift from 'mandatory evacuation area' to 'an area subject to an evacuation order,' broadening applicability beyond strictly mandatory evacuations to any type of evacuation order.

Emergency plan procedures must now establish timelines or conditions under which rescues can occur as safely as possible, adding a concrete planning requirement not present in the prior version.

The amendment to Section 50022.9 of the Government Code (regarding cities adopting county ordinances by reference) is removed entirely from the bill.

The fiscal committee designation changes from 'no' to 'yes' and state-mandated local program changes from 'no' to 'yes,' formally acknowledging the bill imposes state-mandated costs on local agencies that may trigger reimbursement obligations.

Replaced 'mandatory evacuation area' throughout with 'area subject to an evacuation order,' broadening the bill's geographic applicability beyond only mandatory evacuations to include any area covered by an evacuation order.

Expanded the entities covered by the pet protection restriction from only 'the local animal control agency' to also include 'its partner animal shelters, animal rescues, or animal fosters,' broadening which organizations must comply with the holding period.

Changed rescue procedure requirements from designating procedures for a specific person or their representative to requiring procedures for 'at least one of' three categories (residents, designated representatives, or experienced rescuers), giving local governments more flexibility in how they structure pet rescue access.

Expanded the liability waiver provision to explicitly state it must release the city or county from any liabilities or claims related to the person's return to the residence, providing clearer legal protection for local governments.

Reduced the period during which rescued pets cannot be made available for adoption, euthanized, or transferred out of custody from 90 days to 30 days.