December 16, 2025
TO: City Council
REQUESTED BY: Travis Randel, Deputy City Manager, Development Services APPROVED BY: Robert A. Johnson, City Manager
SUBJECT: Agreement with RCDAS
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends that the City Council:
1. Approve the three-year Professional Services Agreement with the Riverside County Department of Animal Services (RCDAS) to provide animal control field operations and sheltering services for the period July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2028.
2. Authorize the City Manager to execute the Agreement and related documents, with minor modifications as approved by the City Attorney.
DISCUSSION:
The City entered into an agreement with the Riverside County Department of Animal Services (RCDAS) in January 2024, followed by an extension through June 30, 2025. Since late May, the City has been working with the County on an updated agreement.
RCDAS serves as the regional animal services provider for a large portion of western Riverside County, contracting with 16 cities: Blythe, Calimesa, Cathedral City, Coachella, Desert Hot Springs, Eastvale, Hemet, Indian Wells, Indio, Jurupa Valley, La Quinta, Palm Desert, Perris, Rancho Mirage and Riverside. The County operates modern facilities, including the San Jacinto Valley Animal Campus, and they maintain the field staffing, veterinary capacity, dispatch systems, emergency response infrastructure, and administrative tools necessary for full-service operations. No other provider in the San Jacinto Valley offers similar scale, staffing depth, technology, or 24-hour sheltering capabilities. Their regional role and demonstrated ability to support neighboring jurisdictions make them the only viable long-term partner for San Jacinto.
During the current contract term, RCDAS has provided reliable field response and sheltering services, ensuring the City’s animal control needs are met without interruption. RCDAS’ regional staffing, dispatch capabilities, and sheltering resources have supported timely service delivery, compliance with State requirements, and ongoing community-focused programs such as foster placement, adoption coordination, and pet support.
The County program is designed around collaboration, community engagement, and modern animal welfare practices. Their services extend far beyond basic field response or sheltering.
RCDAS actively works to reduce impounds, increase reunification, expand adoptions, and provide alternatives to shelter entry whenever possible. Its mission-driven approach, training standards, and facilities demonstrate both professional competency and a strong commitment to public service.
RCDAS provides the following to the City:
• Professionally trained officers certified in humane law enforcement, PC 832 arrest/search/seizure, emergency response operations, ICS protocols, self-defense, and tactical communications.
• A comprehensive field program that responds to calls for service, investigates bites and cruelty cases, processes nuisance complaints, conducts licensing enforcement, and performs deceased-animal pickup.
• An advanced sheltering system that includes 24-hour animal care, disease control, veterinary examinations, treatment, spay/neuter, microchipping, vaccinations, foster placement, adoption programs, community rescue partnerships, livestock and fowl care, and public veterinary support through grant-funded programs.
• A modern facility with conditioned kennel systems, indoor/outdoor access for dogs, enrichment programs, feline cubbies, volunteer engagement, wellness clinics, and playgroup programs that improve health, reduce stress, and assist with adoptability. • A free-roaming cat program, neighborhood support tools, and pet support initiatives to help families keep animals at home instead of surrendering them. • Outreach, and education programs designed to keep pets with families whenever possible. • Emergency response capabilities through the Riverside Emergency Animal Response System (REARS), disaster sheltering, and evacuation support for both small and large animals.
These programs provide measurable benefits to the community, including improved public safety, faster reunification of pets with owners, reduced shelter intake, and expanded access to low-cost veterinary services.
These collaborative services align with the City’s strategic goals of supporting responsible pet ownership, improving neighborhood conditions, and reducing impound-related costs over time.
Services to be provided as part of the City’s agreement include but are not limited to:
Field Services
Basic services for animal control officer filed operations include the following:
• Response to calls for assistance from the public, law enforcement, and fire agencies • Impoundment, investigations of animal bites, rabies quarantine, and cruelty cases • Processing nuisance and barking complaints, kennel/cattery inspections, and licensing enforcement
• Reunification of animals with owners in the field
• Removal of deceased animals from the public right-of-way • Issuance of warnings and citations, administrative hearings, and emergency response Sheltering and Veterinary Services
• 24-hour shelter operations at the San Jacinto Valley Animal Campus • Disease control, feeding, enrichment, and behavioral monitoring • Veterinary examinations, treatment, vaccinations, microchipping, and spay/neuter services
• Adoption placement, rescue and community partner coordination, foster care programs • Livestock and fowl care
• Neighborhood cat program, pet support services, and grant-supported wellness programs • Community education, volunteer coordination, and public outreach Under the current agreement, the City pays a fixed cost for one full-time Animal Control Officer and a variable amount for sheltering and related services. Although the previous contract estimated a monthly cost of approximately $84,000, the City experienced significant volatility, with actual invoices. Because sheltering is billed on actual impounds, length of stay, and medical and operational needs, monthly costs in 2025 have averaged $152,000, with significant swings month to month. reaching as high as $225,000 in a single month. The fluctuating nature of invoices has made long-term budgeting difficult.
The new three-year agreement implements a fixed annual rate structure for both field and sheltering services. These annual costs are established at the start of each fiscal year and adjust only through an agreed-upon methodology created during the County’s extensive rate study. This prevents month-to-month cost spikes and provides the City with reliable financial planning tools that align with the annual budget process.
Under the agreement City will pay fixed annual amounts for field and shelter services, which equate to predictable monthly costs by fiscal year. Based on the County’s rate schedule, the City’s base contract costs will be:
• FY 2025–26: $1,012,752 annually (Shelter $718,792 + Field $293,960), or some $84,396 per month.
• FY 2026–27: $1,224,950 annually (Shelter $908,764 + Field $316,186), or some $102,079 per month.
• FY 2027–28: $1,367,407 annually (Shelter $1,035,411 + Field $331,996), or some $113,951 per month.
Under the new agreement, the City will be required to host two spay/neuter clinics and two vaccination/microchip clinics per fiscal year, at approximately $3,000 per event, or about $12,000 per year in total. Including the cost of the required community clinics, the new structure remains well below the current cost to the City.
This requirement reflects the County’s data-driven approach to decreasing stray populations, lowering shelter intake, and reducing long-term system costs. The City and County will continue partnering on community adoption events.
Officer overtime will remain a variable cost under the new model; however, experience under the current agreement shows that overtime has been limited, and has not materially affected the overall budget.
All services under the proposed agreement were included and approved in the current Fiscal Year 2025-2026 operating budget. No additional allocations are required, and adoption of the agreement is not expected to increase appropriations beyond what is programmed in the budget for animal control and sheltering services.
FISCAL IMPACT:
Funding for current services and anticipated updated contract services was approved in the Fiscal Year 2025-2026 operating budget, and should have no impact on the General Fund. Future years of contract funding would be included as an item in the approval of the City’s annual budget process.
ATTACHMENTS:
San Jacinto - DAS City Contract Draft 2025