Animal Control events - January 1, 2015 through May 2016 (Texas Parks and Wildlife Department)
| Submitted | May 23, 2016 |
| Est. Completion | None |
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Communications
From: Beryl Lipton
To Whom It May Concern:
Pursuant to the Texas Public Information Act, I hereby request the following records:
Any and all databases, spreadsheets, reports, or other consolidated data sets regarding animal control activity within this jurisdiction and any applicable subdivisions for the period from January 1, 2015 through the date this request is processed. Please provide all available segregable information for all removal and/or destruction events, including those conducted by citizens within the jurisdiction. Please include all other available segregable information, including but not limited to, the location of the event, the date of the event, the number and type of creature involved, and any other available data.
The requested documents will be made available to the general public, and this request is not being made for commercial purposes.
In the event that there are fees, I would be grateful if you would inform me of the total charges in advance of fulfilling my request. I would prefer the request filled electronically, by e-mail attachment if available or CD-ROM if not.
Thank you in advance for your anticipated cooperation in this matter. I look forward to receiving your response to this request within 10 business days, as the statute requires.
Sincerely,
Beryl Lipton
From: Open Records
Good morning,
TPWD received your open records request for records "regarding animal control activity". I am seeking clarification on what types of records you are seeking, pursuant to Government Code Sec. 552.222(b).
While TPWD's law enforcement division does respond to various wildlife-related calls for assistance, TPWD does not perform the same services as a city or county level animal control program. For example, a TPWD game warden might respond to a call from a property owner who has discovered a wild animal on their property. However, TPWD does not take custody of animals or have any involvement beyond handling the immediate public safety concern. In these situations, the game warden would likely create an incident report. However, that would be the extent of TPWD's records regarding animal control activity.
If you are interested in these reports, then please let me know. TPWD does not organize reports according to incident type, but rather the location and date of the incident. Therefore, in order to compile reports involving animal control activity, I will have to reach out to each game warden across the state to determine if they have made any animal-related reports since January, 2015. This is a time-consuming and lengthy process. If you are able to narrow your request to a certain geographic area, then we can likely compile the information at little to no cost to you.
If this is not the type of record that you are seeking, then you might want to file an open records request with a county or city animal control program.
Please note that Sec. 552.222(d) requires you to respond to this request in writing within 60 days, or your request will be considered withdrawn. You may provide your written response to TPWD in person (4200 Smith School Road, Austin, Texas 78744); by mail (to the same address, addressed to the attention of "Open Records"); by fax (512-389-4482); or by email (open.records@tpwd.texas.gov<mailto:open.records@tpwd.texas.gov>).
Please let me know if you have any questions or would like additional information. Thank you.
Elizabeth Cater
Attorney
Texas Parks & Wildlife Department
(512) 389-8626
(512) 389-4482 (fax)
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