What began as a suggestion during the public comment period at November's meeting of the Jefferson City Public Safety Committee may soon be an ordinance for the City Council to consider.
At Friday afternoon's public safety committee meeting, chairman and 1st Ward City Councilman Mike Harvey brought a suggestion back up from last month's meeting that animal activist Joe Wilson presented.
The idea, if it eventually became an ordinance, would make it illegal for pet owners to drive with an animal in the bed of a truck.
"I thought it was worthy of some conversation," Harvey said.
During the committee discussion on the issue, 3rd Ward Councilman Bryan Pope suggested, in an effort to have a better understanding of the city on the issue, that the committee do a poll of area veterinary doctors to get their opinion. The committee suggested trying to find a volunteer who might be able to carry out that poll, but no names were specifically suggested.
Echoing his concerns from the previous meeting, 2nd Ward Councilman Rich Koon expressed concern about how far-reaching the potential bill would be, questioning if it would go as far as to keep drivers from allowing animals to stick their heads out the window while inside a moving vehicle.
Harvey said, for the purposes of the discussion, he saw this pertaining to only trucks. Likewise, when it was time for the public comment period, Wilson said that was his intent for the law.
However, Wilson did express some concern about what he said was the slow pace that the issue has taken. He said, along with presenting the issue to the public safety committee last month, he had also discussed it with the administration committee to no avail.
"This has drug on for over a year, and I don't see any reason for it," Wilson said. "Common sense should apply here. It is an obvious danger, not only to the dog, but to other drivers. If the dog comes out of the back of a truck, potentially, an accident could happen as a result of somebody trying to miss that dog.