MOUNT VERNON — Knox County dog owners were shocked when they received their renewal mailings indicating dog licenses would increase from $10 to $16 for the year 2009.
The papers the auditor mailed to residents included a slip informing those who read it that the license increase was arranged by the Knox County Commissioners. Since then, both the commissioners and the editors of the News have heard from a number of citizens who want to know more about how this leap in costs happened.
The Ohio Revised Code, which is the code of laws for the entire state, dictates how many elements of animal licensing and caring must be handled, so that consistent processes are in place statewide. First, the ORC puts county commissioners in charge of fees for dog and kennel registrations. To do this, they must estimate how much it will cost in a year to pay for all the administrative expenses to run all support facilities, which in this case is the animal shelter on Columbus Road. These costs include records, tags, nets, other equipment; compensation of wardens, deputies, pound keepers and other necessary employees; the expenses incurred in lawfully seizing, impounding and destroying dogs; and the amounts expended by the auditor for registration tags, blanks, records and clerk’s salary for administering the licensing process.
The fees for licenses can only be increased in $2 amounts, according to the ORC, and can only be increased if the estimated expenses for the following year exceed projected revenues. The commissioners, working with cost estimates supplied by the county auditor, determined that $10 license fees would no longer cover current operating costs for 2009. The first two full years of operation at the new facility saw increased costs, but those increased costs were covered by excess funds carried over from the previous years’ Dog and Kennel Funds.
In essence, what happened was this. Costs were low at the old animal shelter earlier in the decade, and some excess funds remained. Instead of dropping the license fees at that time, the commissioners opted to let the surplus ride, in hopes that this money would smooth the transition to the new facility already being proposed. This stabilized prices instead of reflecting volatile fee changes every year. Unfortunately, the surplus made the transition so smooth that many residents did not see the inevitable approach of higher fees to pay for the new facility.
In number-crunching terms, the 11,000-plus dog licenses sold per year in Knox County would generate $117,250 in revenue at the $10 level. Adding in adoption fees and other revenue brings the total revenue stream to $158,250. According to figures furnished by the auditor, total costs for the old facility in 2005 were $105,723. During the transition year between the two facilities in 2006, costs were $171,428. The first full year in the new building, 2007, cost $255,235. This year’s budget puts expenses to come in around $234,000, thus next year’s figures have been estimated at a comparable $235,000.
With costs of $235,000, the revenue of $158,250 would fall drastically short. The increase in license fees to $16 would see an additional $66,000 in revenue, which brings the revenue up to $224,250. The final carry over of funds from previous budget years woTuld add the final $10,000-11,000 needed to cover expenses.
Some have wondered if dog owners alone should be burdened with supporting animal control, when the handling of stray dogs is very much a public health issue, but as the current laws of the state dictate, dog owners must purchase the licenses which support the shelters. This cannot be changed in Knox County.
According to figures supplied by Knox County Animal Control, the shelter has processed around 1,000 dogs per year in recent years. To date this year, 330 animals have been transferred to rescue/humane agencies, 209 have been returned to owners, and 158 have been adopted. Of the 168 animals euthanized, 71 were healthy animals put down at the shelter’s behest, 34 were nuisance wildlife, 19 were healthy animals put down per owner, 18 were unhealthy and untreatable per shelter, 14 were unhealthy and untreatable per owner, and 12 were sick or injured wildlife.
Six animals were placed in foster care, four died in the facility, two were dead on arrival, two were deemed aggressive/vicious and were euthanized, while one additional animal was euthanized at the request of the Health Department.
