Contact your City Council Member
Ask them to support Int. 0830-2026, the city bill for cats in retail food stores.
Contact your Council Member →Advocacy
Bodega Cats Need Standards
The bills would give bodega cats legal recognition and set basic care standards, so it is easier for owners and rescue groups to help them.
14,000+ signatures2 active bills (Int. 0830-2026 and A. 8341)$7,435.24 raised for rescue partners
The campaign is active. Both bills need public support.
Bodega cats still have no clear legal protection in New York. Under current rules they can be cited as a health violation, and there is no practical compliance path that separates a well cared-for cat from a neglected one.
City bill
Int. 0830-2026: in Committee on Health. No hearing scheduled.
State bill
A. 8341: re-referred to Assembly Agriculture. No Senate companion.
Take action
The recommended action is to contact your City Council Member. State outreach and the petition help alongside it.
Contact your state legislators
Ask your Assembly Member and State Senator where they stand on A. 8341 and humane standards for bodega cats.
Find your state lawmakers →Share the petition
The petition is the clearest public record of support. Sharing it keeps the numbers moving.
Sign the Petition →The bills
The city bill and the state bill do different jobs. The city bill is about official recognition and local enforcement. The state bill is about the first standards of care.
Official record: the city bill was introduced April 16, 2026. The state bill was re-referred January 7, 2026.
City bill · In Committee on Health
Int. 0830-2026
Official recognition.
Stops NYC agencies from treating bodega cats as an automatic health-code violation, and funds free vaccinations and spay/neuter.
Sponsors, history, and detail
The city bill is the first time New York City has created a local path for cats in retail food stores. It addresses local enforcement so city agencies do not treat every bodega cat as an automatic violation.
It also creates practical support for responsible care, including voluntary vaccination and spay/neuter access. City action matters, but city law alone does not settle a question that also touches state rules.
Lead sponsor: Council Member Frank Morano.
Sponsors: Council Member Virginia Maloney and Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams.
History: Originally Int. 1471, filed by Council Member Keith Powers before the end of the 2025 Council session.
No hearing scheduled.
State bill · Re-referred to Agriculture
A. 8341
First care standards.
Sets the first statewide standards for how bodega cats must be cared for: vet care, vaccines, spay/neuter, food, water, and sanitation.
Sponsor, status, and detail
The state bill would set up the first statewide standards of care for cats in retail food stores: veterinary care, vaccination, spay/neuter, proper nutrition and water, sanitary conditions, and separation from food preparation or storage areas where required.
The goal is to separate responsible care from neglect.
Sponsor: Assembly Member Linda Rosenthal.
Status: Re-referred to the Assembly Agriculture Committee on January 7, 2026.
No Senate companion bill yet.
Bodega cats already work here
Bodega cats are part of neighborhood life in New York. The campaign is about matching that reality with clearer standards, better care, and a legal path store owners can understand.
- Rodent pressure
- Bodegas operate near subway lines, restaurants, and trash routes. Cats are already part of how many stores respond.
- Food safety
- Stores are already balancing rodent pressure, inspections, and animal care. A legal path makes those responsibilities clearer.
- Neighborhood culture
- On many blocks, regulars know the cat before they know the owner. The cat is a fixture people stop in to check on.
- Legal gray area
- State rules prohibit live animals in retail food stores, and inspectors enforce that rule inconsistently. Cats, stores, and rescue partners are left without standards.
Fundraiser transparency: $7,435.24 distributed to rescue partners
The 2025 Bodega Cat Fundraiser raised $7,435.24. 100% was distributed equally among four rescue partners: Bronx Community Cats, Sassee Cats, Catstoria Rescue, and Bronx Tails Cat Rescue. Each received $1,858.81 for vaccinations, spay/neuter procedures, wellness checkups, and emergency care.
View fundraiser results →Real help for bodega cats, right now.
Bills take time. The cats need help now. Lesure donated 10 self-cleaning litter boxes and 10 cat beds to bodega cats across the city.
See the Lesure partnershipReal questions about bodega cats
Legality, food safety, animal care, and what supporters can do next.
Are bodega cats legal in New York City?
Not clearly. City and state rules still leave store owners without a simple legal path. Int. 0830 would stop NYC agencies from treating a cat in a retail food store as an automatic local violation, but state action is still needed.
What does Int. 0830 actually do?
The city bill would override the local prohibition on cats in retail food stores. It would also create voluntary, no-cost vaccination and spay/neuter programs, plus outreach so store owners know how to use them.
What does A. 8341 add at the state level?
The state bill would create health and safety guidelines for cats living in retail food stores. That includes regular veterinary care, vaccinations, spay/neuter, food, water, clean conditions, and safe cat zones away from food preparation and storage areas.
Is this safe for food stores?
Safety depends on clear standards. Vaccination records, sanitation rules, accountability, and humane care make enforcement more useful than an informal system with no practical path for stores.
Do bodega cats actually help with rodents?
They are part of why many owners keep them. Cats catch mice, deter some rodent activity, and live in the store full time. The law should recognize that reality while still requiring humane care and store cleanliness.
Can customers pet, feed, or photograph a bodega cat?
Ask the owner first. Do not feed the cat, pick it up, chase it, or use flash in its face. Some bodega cats are social. Others are working animals that want to be left alone.
What is the most useful thing supporters can do?
Contact your City Council Member about Int. 0830, contact your state legislators about A. 8341, and sign the petition so public support stays visible.
How we got here
Documenting the cats turned into a public record lawmakers could point to. That record grew into a petition, a fundraiser, press coverage, and the first city and state bills written to protect bodega cats.
Read the full campaign record
- January 28, 2025
Petition launches
We asked New York City to create a voluntary certification program for bodega cats, with legal recognition, vaccination requirements, and responsible care standards. That petition became the public record lawmakers could point to.
Read the petition → - February 2025
First 500 signatures
The first 500 people signed in the opening weeks, most of them followers who knew the cats by name before they knew there was a bill to want.
- March 2025
First press wave
The petition hit 6,600 signatures. Coverage followed from ABC7 New York, News 12 Brooklyn, Gothamist, New York Post, and Yahoo.
- April 2025
10,000 signatures
The petition crossed 10,000 signatures as national coverage picked up.
- April 20, 2025
Fundraiser launches
The Bodega Cat Collective, a coalition of Instagram accounts with 1.7 million combined followers, launched the Bodega Cat Fundraiser for emergency vet visits, vaccines, spay/neuter services, and rescue support. Sponsors included Smalls, Arm & Hammer Cat Litter, Bodega Cat Whiskey, and Pad Home Pet Services.
View the fundraiser → - April 24-25, 2025
NPR national feature
NPR aired a feature story on Morning Edition and All Things Considered. The segment reached affiliates across the country, from Boston to Seattle.
Listen to the segment → - May 15, 2025
13,500+ signatures
More than 13,500 people signed on for bodega cat protections.
- June 13, 2025
City legislation announced
Council Member Keith Powers announced he would introduce city legislation focused on bodega cats, local enforcement, and care programs. Coverage followed from NBC New York, Fox 5, NY1, amNewYork, and PIX11.
"Your campaign is the reason this conversation is happening."
- July 6, 2025
Fundraiser closes
The fundraiser raised $7,435.24. Funds were distributed equally among Bronx Community Cats, Sassee Cats, Catstoria Rescue, and Bronx Tails Cat Rescue. Each received $1,858.81 for vaccinations, spay/neuter procedures, wellness checkups, and emergency care.
View fundraiser results → - November 12, 2025
First city bill filed
Council Member Keith Powers filed Int. 1471, the first New York City bill addressing cats in retail food establishments. Co-sponsors included Francisco P. Moya, Sandy Nurse, Chi A. Ossé, Frank Morano, and David M. Carr.
- Ensures NYC agencies cannot treat cats in retail food stores as a violation of local laws or health code rules
- Creates voluntary, free programs to provide vaccinations and spay/neuter services for cats living in stores
- Requires outreach to help stores and rescue partners understand and access these programs
- Clarifies that state regulations still apply, meaning full legalization depends on future state action
- January 7, 2026
State standards bill moves forward
Assembly Member Linda Rosenthal's state bill was re-referred to the Assembly Agriculture Committee for the new legislative session. The bill would set up the first statewide standards of care for cats in retail food stores.
Read A. 8341 → - April 16, 2026
City bill reintroduced
After Powers left the Council, Council Member Frank Morano reintroduced the city bill as Int. 0830-2026. Council Member Virginia Maloney and Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams joined as sponsors. The bill keeps the city path for care programs and local enforcement moving forward.
Read Int. 0830-2026 → - July 2026
14,284 signatures and a meeting at City Hall
The petition reached 14,284 signatures. We briefed the executive director of the Council's new Animal Welfare Caucus and legislative staff from a council member's office on Int. 0830. The caucus, formed this spring, is the first body of its kind in the city's history.
Read about the meeting →
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