Agenda - 01-28-2010 - 1 - Laserfiche WebLink

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,,,~. ~., ;~ a Orange County Animal Services 501 W. Franklin. St, Suite 106, Chapel Hill, NC 2751.4 (919) 968-2287 To: Donna Coffey, Budget Director, Orange County From; Bob Marotta, Director, Orange County Animal Services Date: April 10; 2007 Subject: Creating a Community Spay/1Veuler Fund from Licensing Fee Increase In light of our very productive discussion of fee increases with. the Animal Services. Advisory .Board {ASAB), staff is proposing that a portion of the increased.. license fee for intact animals be dedicated to promoting spaying and neutering in Orange County. Mare specifically, our proposal is that same or all of the $~Q increase. for the license fee for intact animals-which the A;SAB recommended be increased from $10 to $30-be placed in a dedicated and accruing :fund that is separate from the Animal Service Department operating budget. It is estimated that between $40,000 and $50,000 will accrue from the proposed license fee increase for intact animals.. This estimate, is based upon the fact that in the. last calm. dar year 2039 licenses were issued for intact animals in Orange County {inclusive of its towns) and for calendar year 2005 that number was 2447. Our estimate assumes that the.level of compliance with the County's. licensing requirement remains unchanged in future years (although it should.. be said that strategies are being developed to increase that level of compliance). With regard to financial support for this proposal; one option is to dedicate all funds from an increased license fee for intact animals to a fund available solely for .the spaying and neutering of cats;, dogs and other animal companions in Orange County. This: option is supported by the ASAB,:which at its March. meeting unanimously voted in favor of the dedicated -use of all such funds. Qf course, another option is to dedicate a specific portion or percentage of funds, say, fifty (50) or seventy-five (75 j percent of the sum total of funds due to the increase in the license fee for intact animals. While there is a definite need to dedicate all such funds in a progressive community spay/neuter effort, the latter option allows for the creation of a substantal'fund in the event that it is determined that some increased income related to the License fee for intact.animals must be used to offset operating costs. With regard to fund utilization, one option is to financially support the spaying .and neutering of cats, dogs and other animal companions in Orange County, and to do so with regard to the demonstrated financial need. of pet owners. This option. is supported by the ASLIB, which at its' March meeting. unanimously voted in favor of such. fund usage, stressing the desirability of focusing-their use on community members of limited means.. Thus funds would be. used to support- low-cost spay and neuter programs, whether these were pursued solely by the Animal Services Department or in partnership with other organizations.: Another option is to define the scope of use of these funds more broadly and flexibly under a fund heading such as Pet Overpopulation Management Fund. In this scenario, funds could and would be used to ..support love=-cost spay and neuter programs, but the use of funds would not be limited. to the costs of 26 surgical procedures for spaying and neutering companion animals. Instead, funds could. be used. for the