The Acton Town Council takes a position on the proposed Rooster Ordinance.
Don Barre March 8, 2018
Department of Animal Care and Control
5898 Cherry Avenue
Long Beach, CA 90805
Subject: Proposed Rooster Ordinance
Reference: Press Release Issued by the Department of Animal Care and Control
Addressing Community Forums to Hear Public Comment on a Possible
Rooster Ordinance
Dear Mr. Barre
The Acton Town Council respectfully submits the following remarks in response to an
announcement recently issued by the Department of Animal Care and Control (“DACC”)
that it is soliciting community comments regarding a proposed ordinance to limit the
keeping of rooster in unincorporated Los Angeles County (“Ordinance”). The Acton Town
Council greatly appreciates the community outreach that DACC has initiated in this effort,
and is particularly grateful that Acton was able to host one of the public meetings that was
convened. The Acton Town Council comments presented herein focus on two primary
areas: 1) The underlying purpose of the ordinance; and 2) The long-term implication of the
ordinance on agricultural uses throughout the unincorporated area.
THE UNDERLYING PURPOSE OF THE CONTEMPLATED ROOSTER ORDINANCE
The Acton Town Council understands that the purpose of the contemplated ordinance is to
“improve quality of life for residents, reduce complaints of noise and odor, and reduce
illegal cockfighting”. Each of these “purpose elements” are discussed below in turn.
Improve “Quality of Life” for residents – Nearly all the lands within Acton’s boundaries are
zoned for agricultural uses that include raising chickens and maintaining roosters. The
ability to pursue such agricultural activities pursuant to existing zoning designations is an
essential element of the “Quality of Life” that the Community of Acton seeks to secure and
protect. Correspondingly, the Acton Town Council can conceive of no argument to support
a contention that limiting the keeping of roosters within Acton will somehow improve
Acton’s “Quality of Life”. Additionally, the Acton Town Council is aware of no evidence
showing that the keeping of roosters in Acton has remarkably impaired the “Quality of Life”
for Acton residents, and we ask that DACC provide us with such evidence so that we can
reconsider this issue. Stated more plainly, the “Quality of Life” for Acton residents is
contingent on the ability to pursue agricultural activities such as the raising of fowl, so an
ordinance that thwarts such abilities will not improve “Quality of Life” for Acton residents.
In any event, and prior to enacting any ordinance that limits the keeping of roosters in
Acton, the Acton Town Council respectfully requests that DACC prepare a detailed analysis
which clearly and quantitatively sets forth precisely how the provisions of the ordinance
will: 1) Improve the “Quality of Life” of Acton residents; and 2) Not impair in any way the
existing “Quality of Life” that Acton residents currently enjoy. Without such an analysis,
the County cannot demonstrate that the ordinance will achieve its stated purpose, and
under such circumstances, the County should not enact any ordinance at all.
Reduce noise and odor – The Acton Town Council is aware of no evidence showing that the
keeping of roosters in Acton results in markedly pronounced “noise and odor” problems
within the community and we ask that DACC provide us with such evidence so that we can
reconsider this issue. At the Acton Town Council meeting on March 5, 2018, it was
observed that the “odor” generated by roosters is relatively imperceptible compared to the
odor generated by equestrian facilities that are common within the Community of Acton. It
was also observed that a mechanism for reducing “noise” generated by the keeping of
roosters is to pen the roosters in an enclosure at night until the morning (which many
residents do anyway to avoid coyote predation). In any event, and prior to developing any
ordinance that limits the keeping of roosters in Acton, the Acton Town Council respectfully
requests that DACC prepare a detailed analysis which clearly and quantitatively sets forth
how the ordinance will remarkably improve “noise and odor” problems within the
Community of Acton. Without such an analysis, the County cannot demonstrate that the
ordinance will achieve its stated purpose, and under such circumstances, the County should
not enact any ordinance at all.
Reduce illegal cockfighting – The Acton Town Council applauds the efforts undertaken by
DACC to eliminate all cockfighting activities within unincorporated Los Angeles County.
The Acton Town Council is appalled and repulsed by these activities, and will do everything
in its power to assist DACC in this effort. However, the Acton Town Council notes that
there are numerous state and local regulations that already ban cockfighting everywhere in
unincorporated Los Angeles County, yet these terrible activities persist. Moreover, there is
no indication that the implementation of an ordinance to limit the keeping of roosters in
Acton will successfully deter cockfighting activities, particularly since cockfighting
operations already operate in utter defiance of the law. In other words, the Acton Town
Council is concerned that a new ordinance which limits the keeping of roosters will not
result in any perceptible “cockfighting reduction benefits”. In any event, and prior to
developing any ordinance that limits the keeping of roosters in Acton, the Acton Town
Council respectfully requests that DACC prepare a detailed analysis which clearly and
quantitatively sets forth the extent to which the ordinance provisions will successfully
deter cockfighting activities. This assessment is essential, because the County should never
enact any ordinance that limits agricultural uses in Acton without first showing that the
ordinance provides such substantial benefits that it clearly outweighs the adverse impacts
that will result from the limitations it imposes on the ability of Acton residents to pursue
legitimate agricultural uses.
THE LONG-TERM IMPLICATION OF A NEW ROOSTER ORDINANCE ON AGRICULTURAL
USES THROUGHOUT THE UNINCORPORATED AREA.
As indicated above, most parcels in Acton have an agricultural zoning designation, and the
keeping and raising of fowl has always been recognized as a legitimate agricultural use
within Acton. In fact, in the not so distant past, Acton was home to at least one large
commercial turkey farm. Such uses are consistent with the County’s stated purpose for the
agricultural zoning designation as set forth in County Code Section 22.40.010, which states
(with emphasis added): “The agricultural zones are established to permit a comprehensive
range of agricultural use in areas particularly suited for agricultural activities. Permitted
uses are intended to encourage agricultural pursuits and such other uses required for, or
desired by, the inhabitants of the community”. The Acton Town Council is concerned that
an ordinance limiting the keeping of roosters on agriculturally zoned properties will
essentially eliminate the raising of fowl as a legitimate agricultural activity, and it will
certainly signal a “paradigm shift” in how the County perceives the fundamental purpose
and intent of agricultural lands. In other words, an ordinance that limits the keeping of
roosters on agriculturally zoned lands is utterly contrary to the stated purpose of the
County’s agricultural zoning designation, and if adopted, it will permanently amputate the
regulatory foundation of all agricultural uses in Acton. It is for this reason that the Acton
Town Council respectfully requests that any County ordinance that is enacted to limit
roosters be restricted to non-agriculturally zoned properties.
Respectfully submitted;
Jacqueline Ayer
Correspondence Secretary for the Acton Town Council
