Teton commissioners to weigh $30k FY27 grant request from PAWS for Alta shelter intake

PAWS — which operates the open-admission Teton Valley Animal Shelter in Driggs — is requesting $30,000 from Teton County in FY2027 community-development funding to “accept all stray, abandoned, and owner surrendered animals from Alta, WY,” according to the county’s April 27 packet materials. PAWS is not requesting Town of Jackson funding. Community Development Funding Request Application — PAWS Staff Report.

In its application, PAWS says it provides emergency vet-bill assistance, low-cost spay/neuter, temporary housing for pets of domestic-violence victims, and other outreach programs, and that since acquiring the shelter in 2022 it has “saved more than 1,500 pets” in the Teton Valley community, including Alta. It lists an annual budget of about $1.8 million and says the $30,000 request represents about 1% of its operating budget.

As a performance and need justification, PAWS reports increasing shelter intakes from Alta: 2 pets in 2022; 4 in 2023; 10 in 2024; and 19 in 2025. PAWS asks the county to pair any funding with a formal memorandum of understanding defining service expectations, plus annual data review to track utilization and “equitable cost-sharing.”