Approve a Professional Services Agreement with Animal Friends of the Valleys, Inc. for animal control services in an amount not to exceed $43,050 annually and authorize the City Manager to execute the Agreement on a form acceptable to the City Attorney.

The City of Canyon Lake has contracted with Animal Friends of the Valleys, Inc. (SFV) for animal control services. These services are meant to safeguard the health and safety of its citizens and domestic animals through field services, after-hours emergency response, humane animal treatment, and enforcement of the City's related animal control municipal codes. The City is responsible for providing animal control and sheltering services to its residents, either directly or through contractual agreements. Since incorporation in 1990, the City has contracted with AFV for animal control services and, beginning in 2004, for animal sheltering services under separate agreements. Animal sheltering services are provided through an agreement with the Southwest Communities Financing Authority (SCFA), administered by Riverside County on behalf of the City and neighboring jurisdictions.

At the November 8, 2023 City Council meeting Council approved a new long-term agreement that maintained existing service levels while incorporating several administrative and financial updates. The agreement included a 2.5 percent annual cost-of-living adjustment, increased boarding fees to better reflect sheltering costs, and revisions to the Canyon Lake Municipal Code related to animals running at large. The agreement was approved for a three-year term through June 30, 2026, with two optional one-year extensions.

Since the initial three-year term has expired, rather than exercising one of the optional one-year extensions, staff is recommending approval of a new three-year Professional Services Agreement with Animal Friends of the Valleys, Inc. This approach provides the opportunity to comprehensively review and update both the agreement and the Scope of Services to ensure they accurately reflect the City's current operational needs and service expectations. As a result of this review, revisions were made to improve clarity, correct inconsistencies, strengthen performance and reporting requirements, and incorporate additional operational standards. The most significant updates include:

• Clarified and standardized operational, administrative, and financial provisions throughout the agreement.
• Added new operational standards for statutory holding periods, shelter standards of care, microchipping, monthly performance reporting, City ownership of animal management data, disaster response planning, and end-of-term transition assistance.

The proposed agreement is for a three-year term, through June 30, 2029, with the option of two (2) one-year extensions, for a maximum term of five years. The proposed agreement provides the City with cost certainty by maintaining the current compensation rate of $3,587.50 per month, not to exceed $43,050 annually, for the initial three-year term.