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BALLSTON SPA – If, say, a dog is on the loose in any of Saratoga County’s municipalities and local animal control officers are unavailable, the county has to send its own officers to handle the matter. The county then charges the municipality $45 for the trouble.
On Tuesday, the county’s Public Safety Committee voted to double that fee upon the request of Animal Shelter Director Jason Hayes.
“Percentage wise, it’s a pretty steep increase,” noted Galway Supervisor Paul Lent, who chairs the seven-member committee. “Prior to 2015, the fee was zero,” he added.
Lent was the sole committee member opposed to the increase, which must receive a final approval by the county Board of Supervisors at its Sept. 19 meeting.
The proposed $90 fee in question is separate from the charge levied on owners who fail to contain their pets. When an animal control officer is called, the county charges owners $10 for an initial “redemption” and $50 for each additional one.
According to Hayes, last year there were only 14 calls countywide that were not handled by local animal control officers—of whom there are nearly 30 spread across more than 20 municipalities.
“Our budgets are very tight,” Hayes said. “It’s not to be punitive. It’s just to cover our basic costs.”
The Saratoga County Animal Shelter operates with 19 staff members, Hayes said, including seven full-time and the remainder part-time or seasonal.
Lent also called for the appointment of a subcommittee to review disbursements from the animal shelter’s trust fund, which exists largely because of personal donations.
Supervisors Preston Allen of Day, Daniel Pemrick of Greenfield and Kevin Tollisen of Halfmoon will form that subcommittee.
The supervisors will ascertain whether or not disbursements from the trust fund are being used for unintended purposes, such as to cover operating expenses.
Tollisen said it may take up to two months for that review to be completed.
Hayes explained that the Board of Supervisors controls all disbursements from the animal shelter’s trust fund.
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