KCMO has made quite a bit of progress over the last few years in regards to animal welfare. Moving control of the animals shelter away from the city and to a private organization has decrease shelter euthanasia by 35%, but there is still more improvement that needs to be made - a LOT of improvement. Several animal control laws, including laws prohibiting the care of feral cat colonies, restrictive pet limit laws and laws mandating that all pit bulls be spayed or neutered continue to cause too many animals to be unnecessarily impounded at the shelter.
All of the positions in KCMO are up for re-election in Spring 2011. In February there will be the primary election on Tuesday, February 22nd, with the top two vote getters moving on to the general election in March. The General Election is slated for March 22.
In KCMO, everyone gets to vote for the mayor, along with all at-large district representatives and the in-district representative for their district.
Incumbants are noted with an asterisks (*).
Candidate Questionaires went out on 1/18 with a second round of questionaires that went out on 2/10. A third round of questionaires went out to winners of the pimary election to candidates that advanced that we had not yet received questionaires from. We will be updating profiles as we receive back completed questionaires. You can see each candidate's complete questionaire in the files section on the right. For more information on the "paw" ratings system and our political philosophy, please check our general politics page.
Note: Given recent developments, some of the responses to the question about opening the shelter contract up for a new RFP are a little outdated. We think these responses are still valuable in getting their opinions on the matter...but note that the vast majority of responses came in before the announcement that the current contract would not be renewed.
Mayor
Sly James 
-- James is the owner of a lab mix, a Minature Schnauzer and a Dachshund/Yorkie Mix (Dorkie). He also used to own an Irish Wofhound that has passed away. James is not supportive of breed specific laws - and would be open to repealing the city's law mandating the spay/neuter of all pit bull type dogs as he believes that ordinances should not unfairly burden low-income families and individuals. Instead, laws should be targeted toward owners whose animals are raised for violent, unlawful ends. Generally speaking, James is opposed to privatizing the shelter, however, recognizes that the current shelter privatization is working for the city both in financially and in quality of service. He would consider re-opening the bid (as a note, this all is a bit of a concern as the likely worst case scenerio for the animals in Kansas City is if the city took back over the shelter operations). James does not support quotas as revenue boosters for the city, but is supportive of performance metrics that ensure citizens are getting the needed results. He also is not generally supportive of targeting "selected neighborhoods" in enforcing laws through door-to-door sweeps. James would be open to laws that temporarily allow residents to be over the pet limit in certain situations and would support laws that allow for the proper care of feral cat colonies. He is also supportive of long-term plans to replace the city's current, outdated shelter.
Mike Burke -- It took three separate times sending our survey to Mr. Burke before we got it returned, but we finally got one back. Burk is the owner of a cat named Clancy that they adopted as a stray. Burke does not support breed specific legislation and favors education for spay/neuter vs mandatory laws. He said he would like to review the current contract and evaluate the success of the private shelter contract before making decisions on improvements. He is a supporter of off-leash dog parks and said he championed the funding of the Penn Valley Dog Park when he was the chair of the Public Improvements Advisory Committee and thinks we need more facilities like this, particularly in the urban core where park space is a premium. He said a quota system does not seem like the most effective measurement of performance. He supports enforcing the city's licensing law, but does think there may be a better way to enforce the law rather than door-to-door sweeps. He would be willing to explore temporary pet limit exemptions for rescues and would support changes to allow for the care of neighborhood cats (and knows of people in his own neighborhood that care for them). He is very open to exploring the expansion of the current shelter or building a new one.
City Council
1st District
Dick Davis -- Davis is the onwer of one cat. He is comfortable with the city's position to privatize the city shelter and that re-opening the contract for new bids would be in order. He thinks additional dog parks and people in rescue being temporarily over the pet limit are reasonable proposals. He also thinks that good animal control officers should not need performance standards and that door-to-door sweeps are an excessive use of police power. He would support laws that allow for Trap/Neuter/Return. He does not support a move to improve the city animal shelter unless the city's financial position improves. There are several other issues (including Breed-specific legislation and the law mandating spay/neuter of 'pit bulls" in which he says he has no strong feelings and would be open to discussions. Mr. Davis is running unopposed.
1st District At-Large
For this district, both of these candidates are very stron when it comes to animal welfare issues. We strongly suggest that you take the time to learn about these candidate's views on other city-related issues before going to the polls.
Scott Wagner -- Wagner is not currently a pet owner, but has been recently. He recently had his adopted Lab mix escape from his kennel/groomer for the second time and she was never able to be found - -and also recently had an elderly cat that had to be euthanized because of health issues. He does not support the city's law requiring all pit bulls to be spayed or neutered because he thinks laws targeting single breeds are not effective and this law particularly increases the burden on low-income families. He instead, favors cooperation with the animal welfare community to create a comprehensive plan to help people alter their pets with deferd costs for low-income households. He is generally supportive of allowing a private organization with expertise to run the city shelter and but does not favor immediate changes at the shelter as he thinks shelter contracts should run for 3-5 years so contractors have adequate time to make investments, hire staff etc. He is generally supportive of more dog parks in the city, preferring that new parks be evenly dispersed throughout the city and in larger parks so dog owners and non dog owners may be evenly accomodated. Wagner had his own neighborhood targeted by door-to-door sweeps and doesn't they they solved anything - and thinks the city quotas are 'completely counter-productive'. Wagner is supportive of allowing pet limit variences for pet fosters, and is open to solutions that will help the management and prevention of growth of feral cat colonies...while acknowledging that the current city laws preventing TNR programs are unenforceable. Wagner would support a public/private partnership for building a new shelter - as he realizes that it may be unrealistic for the city to come up with the full amount for the shelter on its own in the short term.
Daina Kennedy -- Kennedy has two Schnauzers -- Pepsi and Paige. She does not support breed specific laws because she doesn't think you can label a specific breed as a 'bad breed'. She is in favor of the shelter being privatized and is hopeful that a good organization will come forward to run the shelter now that the contract is expired. She favors more off leash dog parks because they are beneficial to the overall health of dogs. She does not support quotas, thinking individual violations should be handled on a case by case basis. She called the door to door sweeps "intrusive and abrasive" and thinks that animal control should focus on violations that actually cause a concern. She says that provisions should be made for rescues to be over the pet limit and still provied for save evironments for pets, pet owners and neighbors. She would favor conversations on how to make feral cat policies more effective and at looking at ways to improve the physical animal shelter.
2nd District
In the 2nd District, Russ Johnson is running unopposd.
*Russ Johnson -- Mr. Johnson is a very data-driven guy and is set on making decisions based on data, not emotions. This is usually very good for dog people, as bad animal policies are the ones made based on fear, not facts. He sat down with KCDA and went through a lot of information, and asked for even more. He'll make fact-based decisions on most subjects. He is running un-opposed in 2011.
2nd District At-Large
*Ed Ford -- Ford has previously owned two dogs that have passed away after living long, happy lives - both of which were adopted from animal shelters. Ford says he does not support breed specific legislation as he thinks the an animal's aggressiveness is based on how it is treated or trained. He is aware that Kansas City has formed partnerships with spay/neuter clinics that target low-income households and would be open to the repeal of the city's law mandating that all pit bulls be altered. He says he would be open to re-opening the animal shelter contract up for bids and is a supporter of dog parks. Ford does not favor the door-to-door licensing checks (and notes that in 1994 was given a ticket in such a sweep), and is open to creating a permit for rescue organizaitons to exceed the pet limit. He also would be supportive laws that allow for the proper care of feral cat colonies - noting that when he was growing up, his mother would often feed neighborhood cats. Ford would very much support long-term plans for a new shelter and notes that the city manager has assured the council that the next bond issue in the city would include a new animal shelter and has also been working with NAWS (Northland Animal Welfare Society) to help them find a location for their no-kill shelter.
Allen Dillingham -- KCDA has sent questionaires to Mr. Dillingham on two different occassions and have yet to receive a response.
3rd District - We'd like to note that the majority of animal control calls come from the 3rd District. It is dissappointing that the candidates running for 3rd In District are either unreachable or non-responsive.
Sharon Sanders- Brooks -- KCDA has sent questionaires to Ms. Brooks on three different occassions, and have yet to get a response. KCDA also received no response from her in 2007 when she was running. This type of response has been typical of Brooks' 4 year term in office on a variety of issues.
Jermaine Reed -- Mr. Reed has a campaign website, but does not have a way of contacting him on the website. So we have yet to get a questionaire to him for this campaign. While we have been unable to get a questionaire to Mr. Reed, we would still support him over Ms. Brooks at this point.
3rd District At Large
*Melba Curls -- In 2007 when Curls ran for city council, she did not respond to KCDA questionaires on three different occassions. After sending questionaires to her on two different occassions in 2011, she has yet to respond. This lack of response actually is a good representation of the type of response we have gotten from her while she has been in office.
Brandon Ellington 
-- Ellington is the owner of a 'pit bull terrier mix' that he adopted from Wayside Waifs. He is opposed to the city's mandatory spay/neuter law because it not only targets low-income households but also infringes on owners rights to whether or not they would like to breed their pit bulls or not (even though we at KCDA would hope most people would elect to have their pit bulls altered, we do support Ellington's view that mandating that they do so is unnecessary government over-reach). Ellington does not support any type of breed-specific laws because he remembers a time when people used to target Rottweilers and Doberman Pinchers as being aggressive - noting it is neglected or mishandled dogs that are aggressive, not breeds. He is open to putting the animal control contract up for bids. Ellington supports dog parks because it is good for dogs to be able to run and get exercise, and because they bring dog lovers together. Ellington supports getting rid of the quotas and against the door-to-door sweeps. He would support temporarily lifting pet limits for people rescuing (although he notes that he is supportive of the idea of pet limits) and would favor laws that would allow for Trap/Neuter/Release programs.
4th District
In the 4th District, Jan Marcason is running unopposed.
*Jan Marcason After receiving Ms. Marcason's survey, we sat down and met with her. As is somewhat common place for political surveys, she had somone help her fill the questionaire out who, eh, did a pretty horirble job. After meeting with Ms. Marcason and having worked with her some over the past four years, we feel somewhat confortable that she will not actively pursue negative legislation, however, we don't see this as something that she will prioritize and help us move positive initiatives forward. If she proves us wrong (and we'd love it if she did), we'll certainly keep you updated.
Here's our response to her original questionaire. What a difference 4 years makes. Four years ago, while running for office, Ms. Marcason sat down with KCDA prior to discuss animal welfare issues. Since that time, her stances have changed pretty dramatically, and not in a favorable way...in fact, many of her answers were quite concerning (thus her current ranking). Jan is not currently a pet owner. She says she does favor breed specific legislation when it can be statistically shown that it is necessary for the safety of all citizens. (We'd like to note that BSL has been proven, irrefutabley to be ineffective and a waste of resources. *See Topeka, KS recent repeal.) Thus, she says she is in favor of the current mandatory spay/neuter law for pit bulls because "in terms of citizen safety, the research showed the need for the legislation". (Never mind that 5 years later there has been no change in the number of dog bites in this city, but literally at least 2,000 dogs are dead directly because of the ordinance). She notes that having a private entity run the municple shelter appears to have been a good decision for the city financially (no comment that it has been better for the animals too), and notes that she is in favor of more dog parks as she believes that they enhance the quality of life for our citizens. She says that without sufficient data, she is withholding an opinion on the city's quota system and the door-to-door sweeps (although she does note that there seems as if there ought to be a less invasive way to encourage compliance with pet registration). She is open to suggestions for allowing people to have more than 4 pets without having to apply for a "Hobby kennel" permit. She says she gets phone calls complaining about feral cats in neighborhoods and is sympathetic toward that problem, and wonders if Trap/Neuter/Release programs would satisfy the concerns of these citizens. She does think it would be a good time to start long-term planning for a new shelter, although notes that financing would be a challenge.
4th District At-Large
John Crawford -- We have spoken to Mr. Crawford during the campaign and he has received our questionaire, but he is yet to respond. We will update this space if we ever receive a completed questionaire from Mr. Crawford.
Jim Glover -- Glover was on the Neighborhoods Committe that originally recommended the now-approved mandatory spay/neuter law for 'pit bulls' in 2006. Glover has yet to respond to our questionaire.
5th District
Ken Bacchus - Due to lack of an internet presence, KCDA was never able to get a survey to Mr. Bacchus.
Michael Brooks -- We don't know know Rev. Brooks stance on any of the issues, but he did send a representative to the Spay Day event before elections in 2007 (the Rev. had to host church on Sunday morning). Taking an interest in animal welfare issues is important. The more education people have on these matters, the better. Due to lack of an internet presence, we were unable to get a survey to Mr. Brooks for the 2011 election.
5th District At Large
*Cindy Baker Circo -- Circo is almost single-handedly to credit for moving the city shelter operations under private control - a move that saved the city money and has saved animal lives. Circo has become a bit "more political" in her views since the previous election. She is a dog owner, and has helped change some policies regarding the city's law mandating the spay/neuter of all 'pit bulls' to where owners are now given warnings for non-compliance and information on free clinics to have the surgery done. She does not favor breed-specific laws. Circo realizes that the shelter has made a lot of progress but that much more progress is needed and due to massive budget cuts, creativity and collaboration will be needed to make more progress. Circo has funded the priority dog park in Swope Park (although there is still need for a sponsor of it). Circo is supportive of the city's door-to-door sweeps as an effort to increase licensing. She is supportive of possible increases in the pet limit and would be supportive of a badly needed new shelter.
Charlie Angel - Mr. Angel owns a 7 year old yellow lab named Max and says he cannot remember a time when he has not had a pet. He also is a huge fan of horses. He says that he thinks pit bulls are known to be an aggressive breed but says he needs more information on breed-specific legislation and the city-wide ordinance requiring all pit bulls to be spayed or neutered. He is generally open to a new bidding process for the shelter and likes that privatization saved the city money. He is a big fan of off-leash dog parks and thinks they are the best thing that can happen for a city dog because they allow dogs to run and play with other dogs and help them to develop socialization. He was not familiar with the idea of the quota but thinks it might lead to citizens being unnecessarily harrassed and is not in favor of door-to-door sweeps and thinks that there would be better uses for animal control officers. Angel is not in favor of raising the pet limit per household but would be open to temporary increases for volunteers for rescue organizations. He may be interested in improving the city shelter. Angel's views on 'pit bulls' is of concern for us, but we think he seems reasonable and may need a little education in a few particular areas.
6th District
* John Sharp -- Sharp is the owner of a German Sheperd/Norwegian Elk Hound Mix. He notes that he was not on the council when the ordinance requiring the spay/neuter of all pit bulls was enacted, but if he had been, he would have voted against it. While he strongly supports efforts to spay/neuter, he does not support mandatory laws unless the subsidies are available to help low-income households. He also does not support breed-specific legislation. While he does think privatizing the animal shelter has been an improvement, he knows more improvements are necessary and there could be benefits of more city council supervision. He thinks the city's one dog park has been a success and that more are needed in other areas of the city. Sharp thinks the city's performance standards were designed as a "quick fix" to management problems and believes that animal control should devote more time to educating and working with pet owners vs punitive legislation...and also feels that the door-to-door sweeps are counter-productive if not used in this way. Sharp would support allowing for a special license to be over the city's pet limit and for laws that allow for Trap/Neuter/Return for feral cat colonies. He also would support a long-term approach to replacing the city's outdated animal shelter while acknowledging that budgets are tight.
Terrance Nash -- KCDA sent Mr. Nash surveys on two different occassions but he never responded. It has been our experience that if officials have not been responsive prior to elections, they are seldom more responsive once elected.
6th District At-Large
Tracy Ward -- Ward is a vocal proponent of less government - and this is usually beneficial when it comes to preventing unwanted laws that target pet owners. Ward has three pets, a Great Dane/Anatolian Shepherd Mix and two cats (one of which turns 20 this summer). Ward believes that laws such as the city's law mandating the spay/neuter of pit bulls are designed to punish a few irresponsible owners and doesn't believe in punishing all dog owners based on the actions of a few. Ward 'absolutely' does not favor breed-specific laws. She, in general, believs that privatizing the shelter opens the door for competition and leads to higher quality services at a fair fee - and thus, would be open to making changes at the shelter if workers/volunteers at the shelter believe that is what would be best. Ward is supportive of more dog parks in the city and would benefit Kansas City by making it more "pet friendly". She is not a fan of quotas because they can lead to unethical practices by law enforcement and thinks the "knock and talk" type of law enforcement violates the Constitution and favors education over punishing and profiting from it. She would support raising the pet limit - particularly for people fostering for rescues, and does not support punishing people for feeding feral cats (although she does see the need for managing colonies to keep them from getting out of control). She also supports long-term plans for a new shelter but realizes that Kansas City is facing tough economic times and that the private sector and charitable money may need to be sought to help build one in a more timely manner.
Scott Taylor - No rating - Taylor is not currently a pet owner, but does note that some of his fondest memories as a child are with his dog, Teppy. Taylor says it is important for homeless pets to have the opportunity to be adopted and likes city partnerships that would help more animals get adopted...and is interested in hearing more about other options for shelter partnerships. Taylor is open to more discussions and exploring additional options with regard to breed specific legislation, the city's mandatory spay/neuter law for pit bulls, dog parks, trap/neuter/release policies for cats, pet limit laws and the city's door-to-door sweeps. Because of the lack of positions on many of the issues, we have elected to give no rating to Mr. Taylor at this time - but do appreciate his time in returning the questionaire.