My uninformed opinion is that if you have a pet cat keep it inside. Where I live we have a leash law for dogs AND cats. If a pet dog or cat happens to get out and I find it, if I know whose it is or it has tags with a # then I try and get it back to the owner. But this comes with some nagging and that is this:
1. If at all possible, do have a collar with the up to date #. I know that collars slip off, but don't be like the two young frat fellows whose dogs that I grabbed off the street before they got run over. I went out with my son to see if anyone was looking for the dogs (after pinning them up in our backyard). After finally locating the searching owners, I commented on the lack of tags. "Well, they're microchipped."
Do I look like I keep one of those readers in my back pocket? Yes, I know that microchips are great, but tags often circumvent the need to call the shelter. Which brings me to:
2. Your cat that you let out at night has a secret life. This life consists of roaming your neighbors' yards looking for love (if not fixed) or trouble. This trouble is usually a massive cat fight at 3 o'clock in the morning underneath my bedroom window. Apparently this fight is either over a love interest or who gets to use my back yard as a litter box. Just so you know, if I see your cat in my yard, the first time it gets a pass, the second time, it is considered a nuisance. Yes, I like doves and other birds. Yes, I know how to catch cats and take them to the shelter. I don't shoot them, but College Station will fine you if your cat is a nuisance. This sounds cranky (and it is) coming from someone who has had cats as pets, but my spouse is allergic and I love him more than your cat. Oh, and I have red hair (I may have a few gray ones now, I don't color) so you know what that means.