Agenda - 10-01-2013 - 7a - Laserfiche WebLink

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the town manager, the police chief of Hillsborough and the Animal Services Advisory Board (ASAB). He said staff met with the ASAB three times this year in developing the ordinance being presented tonight. Annette Moore said the court system was confused about which ordinances would apply to a case. The issue was confusing for Animal Services itself, since there are three ordinances in effect in Orange County. She said the advisory board used Orange County's ordinance as a base and merged the three ordinances into one; but there were still missing pieces. She referenced examples, such as no set appeal process and no humane euthanasia plan for suffering animals. She reviewed information from the ordinance and the abstract below: Background: Beginning July 1, 2013, Orange County Animal Services will be providing Animal Control Services to all parts Orange County except for the portion of Orange County within Mebane. Despite the increasing integration of animal services through Orange County Animal Services, there are three different animal ordinances in force (all available onlinhttp: // orangecountync .gov /Anima]Services /info.asp). Orange County, Chapel Hill and Carrboro all have their own ordinances, while Hillsborough has adopted the County's ordinance. The differences in the local Ordinances have proven to be complicated and confusing, not only for staff charged with responsibility for regulatory functions and the Court system, but perhaps most importantly for the residents of Orange County. Because animal services within the County have become more unified and integrated than they have been in the past, for the past year County staff has been working on a proposed Unified Animal Control Ordinance with the Towns of Chapel Hill and Carrboro. In this context, County staff initiated the effort to create a unified animal ordinance by convening a work group of staff from the involved jurisdictions. Staff from Chapel Hill and Carrboro have been integral to the process responsible for the proposed ordinance, and upon County adoption of the ordinance, the towns' staffs will present the ordinance for consideration by their respective governing boards. More specifically, the work group has consisted of the staff attorney for the Chapel Hill Police Department with animal control responsibilities, the Carrboro Police Chief and a Carrboro Police Captain, the staff attorney for County Animal Services, and the County's Animal Services Director and Animal Control Manager. Hillsborough staff elected not to, participate in the work group but are fully aware of this project. Most recently, the Town Manager and Police Chief received a copy of the draft unified ordinance and an invitation to offer comment. The objectives of the work group were to: 1. Create a unified ordinance. The group's work practice has essentially been to compare the same or similar sections of the three existing ordinances and decide which made the most sense in light of experience providing effective animal services in the different jurisdictions. The County's current Animal Control Ordinance remains the backbone for the proposed unified ordinance. In addition, the comparative methodology assured a finished product that was complete, strong and worthy of designation as a unified ordinance for the County. 2. Fill in necessary "gaps" in the Ordinance to create the needed authority to assure the public health and safety and welfare of animals within Orange County. One illustration of such authority would be to have an animal euthanized for humane reasons in exigent circumstances. Another illustration would be the authority to hold a vicious animal that has repeatedly bitten or attacked members of the public. While there may well be a need for new laws under the animal control ordinance, staff did not make any effort to create new laws but deferred such efforts until it could occur under a unified ordinance. Throughout the process requests to create new law were resisted to ensure there was'no "scope creep ". Staff attempted to propose changes to the existing Ordinances that would not be controversial, refined existing services being provided, and assured the public health and the safety of animals. During the initial process, the existence of "gaps" in the existing ordinances become apparent in trying to address and resolve the concerns of residents in different parts of Orange County.