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HomeMy WebLinkAboutOrdinance 7548 ORDINANCE NO. -7 5 AN ORDINANCE AMENDING CHAPTER 7, "ANIMALS AND FOWL", OF THE CODE OF THE CITY OF FORT WORTH (1964) , AS AMENDED, BY INCREASING POUNDAGE FEES, INCREASING LICENSE FEES, INCREASING REDEMPTION FEES AND PRO- VIDING ADOPTION FEES; INCREASING QUARANTINE FEES; PROVIDING THAT THIS ORDINANCE SHALL BE CUMULATIVE OF ALL PROVISIONS OF ORDINANCES AND OF SUCH CODE AFFECTING ANIMALS AND FOWL, PROVIDING A SAVINGS CLAUSE, PROVIDING A SEVERABILITY CLAUSE, AUTHORIZING PUBLICATION IN PAMPHLET FORM; DIRECTING PUBLICATION OF THE CAPTION AND PENALTY CLAUSE; DIRECTING THE ENGROSSMENT AND ENROLLMENT OF THE CAPTION AND PENALTY CLAUSE AND THE FILING OF THIS ORDINANCE, PROVIDING A PENAL CLAUSE; AND NAMING AN EFFECTIVE DATE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT WORTH, TEXAS: SECTION 1, That Section 7-17 of Chapter 7 of the Code of the City of Fort Worth (1964) , as amended., be, and the same is hereby amended so that hereafter same shall read and be as follows: "Sec. 7-17. Poundage fees. "The following shall be the fees charged for poundage: For taking up and impounding, per head . . . . . . . . . . . ,$25.00 For taking care of animals per day, per head . . . . . . . . . 3.00 For selling animals, per head 3.00 For preparing and posting ad- vertisement of sale . . . . . . 3.00 For newspaper advertisement. The actual costs as determined from time to time; and in the event more than one animal is advertised in the same advertisement, the cost per head shall be divided equally among the animals sold or redeemed. " SECTION 2, That Section 7-20 of Chapter 7 of the Code of the City of Fort Worth (1964) , as amended, be, and. the same is hereby amended so that hereafter same shall read and be as follows: "Sec. 7-20. License--Required; fees; term. "It shall be unlawful for any person within the city to own, keep, possess, harbor or to allow to remain upon premises under his control, any dog, male or female, without having obtained a license therefor. "The fee for such license shall be Three Dollars ($3.00) per year for each dog, payable in advance. All licenses shall expire December thirty-first and shall not be issued for less than one year. "Any dog owned and used by a blind person as a guide dog is exempt from the license fee while so owned and used but is not exempt from being licensed or from any required vaccination. "Moreover, any dog owned by or in the care of a nonresident of the City of Fort Worth who is traveling through the city or temporarily sojourning therein for a period not exceeding thirty (30) days is exempt from any of the provisions of this section. " SECTION 3. That Section 7-27 of Chapter 7 of the Code of the City of Fort Worth (1964) , as amended, be, and the same is hereby amended so that hereafter same shall read and be as follows: "Sec. 7-27. Impounding dogs running at large; redemption; receipts, adoption fees. "It shall be the duty of the poundmaster or any police officer of the city to take up any dog found running at large and confine such dog in the city pound for seventy-two (72) hours, during which time the owner, upon satisfactory proof to the poundmaster of ownership, may redeem his dog upon payment of a fee of twenty dollars ($20.00) -2- and all other fees provided by this article. For taking up and impounding a female dog in season, there will be a fee of thirty- five dollars ($35.00) for the owner to reclaim such dog. Upon payment of such fees, the poundmaster shall issue an official receipt for the amount paid. Such fees shall be delivered to the city treasurer and credited to the general fund of the city. The poundmaster shall provide, at the cost of the city, suitable and necessary sustenance for all dogs so impounded. "Animals taken up by the poundmaster or any police officer and unclaimed after seventy-two (72) hours may be adopted from the shelter by paying the following fees: Spaying (female) $25.00 Neutering (male) $25.00 License fee $ 3.00 Rabies vaccination - The actual cost as determined from time to time. " SECTION 4. That Section 7-31 of Chapter 7 of the Code of the City of Fort Worth (1964) , as amended, be, and the same is hereby amended so that hereafter same shall read and be as follows: "Sec. 7-31. Fees for quarantine in city pound. "In the event that an animal is quarantined in the city pound under the terms and provisions of Section 7-30, the owner or person entitled to possession of such animal shall pay the sum of two dollars ($2.00) per day as board for such animal, during the time such animal is so quarantined. " SECTION 5. That this ordinance shall be cumulative of all provisions of ordinances and of the Code of the City of Fort Worth (1964) , as amended, affecting animals and fowl, except where the provisions of this ordinance are in direct conflict with -3- the provisions of such ordinance and such Code, in which event such conflicting provisions of such ordinances and such Code are hereby repealed. SECTION 6. That all rights or remedies of the City of Fort Worth, Texas, are expressly saved as to any and all violations of the provisions of Chapter 7 of the Code of the City of Fort Worth (1964) , as amended, and of any other ordinance affecting animals and fowl which have accrued at the time of the effective date of this ordinance; and, as to such accrued violations and all pending litigation, both civil and criminal, whether pending in court or not, under such chapter and/or other ordinances, same shall not be affected by this ordinance but may be prosecuted until final disposition by the courts. SECTION 7. That it is hereby declared to be the intention of the City Council that the sections, paragraphs, sentences, clauses and phrases of this ordinance are severable, and if any phrase, clause, sentence, paragraph or section of this ordinance shall be declared void, ineffective or unconstitutional by the valid judgment or final decree of a court of competent jurisdiction, such voidness, ineffectiveness or unconstitutionality shall mot affect any of the remaining phrases, clauses, sentences, para- graphs and sections of this ordinance, since the same would have been enacted by the City Council without the incorporation herein of any such void, ineffective or unconstitutional phrase, clause, sentence, paragraph or section. -4- SECTION 8. That the City Secretary of the City of Fort Worth is hereby authorized to publish this ordinance in pamphlet form for general distribution among the public, and this ordinance as so published shall be admissible in evidence in all courts without further proof than the production of said pamphlet, as provided in Section 3, Chapter XXVI of the Charter of the City of Fort Worth. SECTION 9. That the City Secretary of the City of Fort Worth is hereby directed to publish the caption and penalty clause of this ordinance for five (5) days in the official newspaper of the City of Fort worth, as authorized by Article 1176b-1, Revised Civil Statutes of Texas. SECTION 10. That the City Secretary of the City of Fort Worth is hereby directed to engross and enroll this ordinance by copying the caption and penalty clause of same in the minutes of the City Council of Fort Worth and by filing the ordinance in the ordinance records of said City_ SECTION11. That any person violating any of the provisions of this ordinance shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and each such person shall be deemed guilty of a separate offense for each day or portion thereof during which any violation of any of the provisions of this ordinance is committed, continued or permitted, and each violation shall be punishable by a fine not to exceed Two Hundred Dollars ($200.00) . -5- SECTION 12, That this ordinance shall be in full force and effect from and after the date of its passage and publication as required by law, and it is so ordained, APPROVED AS TO FORM AND LEGALITY: 5'0�wr 1 S. G. Johndroe, Jr, , City Attorney -6- IM City of Fort Worth, Texas SAIN.IFF Mayor and Council Communication DAT OlsonRasFEREracE � son Proposae Animal Regulation PAGE mem#a ma NmJN19ER 5/17/77i 34 15 Code; Amendment 1 of , The City 6f fort Worth, like other cities throughout the nation Is experiencing problems from an ever increasing number of dogs. This problem is reflected by the number of animals destroyed annually and the number of mew°nest animals which are picked up more than one tete. Statistics reported by the Health, Department show the totam.l number of animals plumed mag by the Anival Control Center has increased from 35,391 to FY 1970 to 40,416 in FY 1976. This includes a 37% increase in the number of dead animal careasseo picked mils since 1970. 0f the total number of retrievals in 1976, 27,420 or 68% ,were dead animal carcasses. The time spent on retrieving dead animals is reducing the time spent In responding to stray animal complaints. This is evideacK by as corresponding decrease of approximately 3 from FY 1970 to FY 1976 in time number of lie animals tricked rile,. mtdditional information shows that of the 15,040 dogs licked up or received at time ACC in 1976, 12,020 0%) had to he destroyed. The severity of the problem of uncontrolled animals can be reflected in time number of persons attacked and bitten. Since 1970, there has been an annual„ average of 1240 people attacked and bitten by dogs. The seriousness of the attacks range t°root minor bites' to the death of one child. In addition to the number of animals picked up by the City, the Tarrant County Humane Society reports to hnaae received 28,000 animals at their facility in 1976. Of these 3,440 were plated In homes .and the remaining 25,400 were destroyed As evidenced lad, these reports, as total of almost 65,000 animals were ladled last year in the City of ',Fort Worth. Each year sees more animals destroyed than the preceeding year, which indicates either a larger anlmmmsal, population or less control y owners, or ax combination of "doth;. The lack of owner control of their ,pets is further evidenced by the following geamlt' Department statistics,. 1"n FY 1976, almost 1400 dogs were released to their owners by the Animal Control Center. In addition;, there were 4100 citations and notices issued to pet owners who were in violation of the City Code. nimmmal", Control, officials estimate between 30-35%5 of these offenders are repeat violators. Al to urea t ien The staff met with representatives of the Tarrant C'ounty llmmmmsane Society and the Vetetlmaarianas Association in an effort to determine alternate ways to resolve the problems of animals running at large and mays to reduce the large number of aanInalss being killed. Several alternatives emerged as ways to reduce the number of dogs ot the streets. One of the alternatives included providing an alternate mmethod of picking up deed animals, thaws increasing the timme, available for picking anis strays and owned animals which are allowed to roam. Another alternative was to reduce the animal population through birth control measures, For anuniber of years, the Humane Society has been recommending that dogs adopted from the "found be spayed or neutered. This program has been instituted or considered in many other cities throughout the country. DATE REFERENCE SUBJEM PAGE NUMBER Proposed Animal 'Regulation 5/11/77 3435 Code Amendment µ,. Stall al,so considered the feasibility of a fine structure which would be aimed directly at repeat violators. Rowever, the Department of Law a d laea that. the setting of fines is the responsibility of the d unitlpa . Judges since they have the flexibility to establish ranging from $, - $200 per offense. An expression ;ity Council concern to the Municipal Cowart, however, would be an appropriate action. Conclusions To resolve the problem of animals running loose, it was suggested that the Animal Control Center Increase patrols to encourage pet era t , .� animals on their premises. In add° tion, It was gge t /I is of collecting, maintaining and disposing of animals. "h % costs should include .�� the salaries, equipment, supplies, etc. of animal, cont°tol and the costa of disposing of so650,000pounds of cdead, animal carcasses In sanitary land lill,s. The present charge to reclaim a pet is $5. If necessary a $6 vaccination fee and $1 animal tag license fee is assessed for a total reclamation cost of $12. It is proposed that this be increased t $20 for the reclamation lee, (current lee) for the vaccination fee and $3 for the tag, for a total reclama- tion ecta a-tion chs, ge o $29 (if the animal has not been vaccinated and has no tag). An additional proposal to offset t'he promiscuous Breeding of these animals 1 to spay or neuter all animals chosen dor adoption. A total tee of $ would be charged for these animals, which would include spaying or neutering, vaccination and licensing An average cost of picking up a dog and holding it at the Pound, as required by ordinance, using the present ley 1976-1977 budget, is calculated to be "r o i- rely $1, per dog. This does not incl'uAe other costs cited abase such as disposal of animal carcasses. lee k� w� is 1970 to Present Peed Pound and Reclaim Fee Unclud s cost for care andfeeding) $ 20 Pound and: Relcaim Fee /or dogs 'in season 75 35 Vaccination lee Not specified The actual cost as (was $ determined Wmmine tom time Coat) License lee 1 3 Spay, neuter fee 0 25 DATE 1j SJ ECT;Proposed Animal emlatmmm PANE 5/17/77 G 5 Code Amendment w ...� llie Health Department staff has also proposed a fed increase forreclaiming ,Large animals (cows, horses, mules from $15 to per "mead because of time increased post e , transporting and feeding these; animals. In response to a, citizen proposal, a modification to Nene City Least- Law 'mfr Worth City Code Sec.,,",. 26 tmm include the muzzling of animals at: a certain size or weight has been studied. The effectiveness of suich a proposal Is questionable, avid it is sexiously doubted that it can be enforced, Deterviining time size. mem: weight of an animal which would require mmmmmrzlin would be a problem, since small dogs can, also inflict painful bites. if weight ort guidel.i es were used, disputes over the true weight of an animal clould cause delays in time enforcement of tete muzzling provisions, onse jmueatl , it is s,taff Is opinion that enforcement of the Code's current ammttmal control provisions would preclude the majority of mrmtlb,lesms 'which might result in, dog attacks. Attached is a proposed ordinance amending hapter 7 of the Fart Worth City Code which includes time changes as pra used above. It has been prepared and approved by time Department of' Law,, summer ordinance Section, -17, Poundage fees for large animals. Increasing u da e fees for picking up large animals from �15 toren 25. Increasing the board bill foir large animals from to $3 per day. Increasing the fee for se l n,g large animals ; rDmmm to $3 per head. Increasing time fee for preparing and posting advertisement for sale Roam $2 t , . Sett oa 7-20. license - re a red, fees terms Increasing the city license from $l to $3. Section 27Impounding dogs running at large; redemption; receipts adoption fees Increasing fees for redemption of animals from $5 to X20, plus vaccination and license fees if necessary,, Increasing adoption fees from $12t $34. This includes $25 for spaying or neutering, $3 for license and current: cost emit far, vaccination Fees curr ntl $6.) Section 1, Fees for quarantining dogs ;in City Pound Increasing .fee from l toren per day, U,commendation It is recommended genet the City Council approve the proposed Ordinance amending Chapter 7 of the Fort Worth City Code,, as espl.ained above,, to be effective prtl 1., 1977, It is ;also recd, end d that the City Council express its Concern about appropriate fines being levied againist repeat via titers of the City's rmtmmma. , Control Ordinance. SUBMITTED m3Y: M =vin' DISPOSITION SY COUNCIL. P CESS Y JeAPPROVED [3 OTHER (DESCRmBE) AD0fTM._(LRQ1NNNCE NO. -7,6 14- w...... . DATE ars 1. � mrl�.0 for reC�:a C$TY MANAGER "tion of animals which. -wi 1j. allow staff to ea ten boldifig rind for up to 15 days.