Pit bull breed ban abolished in Tijeras
The Village of Tijeras abolished its law that said pit bull ownership is not allowed when it adopted Bernalillo County's Animal Care Ordinance June 30.
The old ordinance made it unlawful “to own or possess in the Village any dog of the breed known as American Pit Bull Terrier.”
Under the old ordinance, the mayor of the village was also the animal control officer as well.
Tijeras Mayor Jake Bruton said he wanted to make some changes to the ordinance and wanted some help from Bernalillo County to help with animal control.
“We were in talks with Bernalillo County,” he said. “They were like, ‘If we’re going to be the people who … are enforcing your animal ordinance, we can’t be [enforcing some rules in] one portion of Bernalillo County and 10 feet away in the Village of Tijeras, doing a
completely different set of rules. If you want to continue with us as your administrator on animal control, you’re going to have to adopt our ordinance.’”
Bruton said he and the council looked over the Bernalillo County Animal Care Ordinance, and decided the ordinance was the best thing for the village to do.
“There was nothing in there that is going to obstruct our residents or citizens,” he said.
But for him, Bruton said the best part was lifting the ban on pit bulls.
“I’m completely happy,” he said. “That’s something I’ve been looking forward to for a long time is switching that ordinance. … The bulldog or the bully breed ban is no more. Ring it from the mountain tops.”
This change comes a few years after contentious meetings on whether or not a service dog for a young boy should be allowed to stay in the village.
The Village also updated its personnel ordinance and created an ordinance for wastewater management.
For the personnel ordinance, Bruton said the village is “trying to get ahead of the state with the maternity/paternity leave and also leave for adoption, and things like that.”
Bruton also said the council changed how leave for employees is accrued.
“Before [employees] got a lump sum of leave of vacation and sick leave,” he said. “Now we’ve changed it to where it’s accrued … and then also we’ve extended it to where you can carry over some of the leave that you don’t use throughout the course of the year. Before, it was use it or lose it kind of policy which, I feel really promoted the use of all the sick leave when necessarily you may not be sick.”
Bruton also said a wastewater ordinance has never been created in Tijeras before.
“I thought it was best that we go ahead and remedy that,” he said. “We have a water ordinance, we have an animal ordinance, we have a personnel ordinance, I felt that we needed to implement a wastewater ordinance so that it gave the staff a clear direction, right? It gives the residents a clear direction.”
The new ordinance sets the guidelines for the residents and business that want to set up as well as the village staff that way they all know how to go about the process, Bruton said.