Animal Response Team Advisory Committee

Hampton Animal Control Advisory Committee -Lawson Conference Room- Meeting Minutes - November 14, 2019 Voting Members Present: AndyAnderson, Gordy Brightbill, Shelly Keller, Henry McKelvin, Tiffany Young Ex-Officio Members Present: Steven Bond (Assistant City Manager), Angela Taylor (Animal Control Manager) Staff Present: Annette Oakley (City Manager's Office), Olivia Wiggins (City Attorney's Office) Call to Order & Welcome Vice Chairman Anderson welcomed everyone and called the meeting to order at 5:31 p.m. He informed the committee that Committee member, Dan Winters/ passed away in October. He stated Mr. Winters will be missed and that expressions of sympathy can go to contributions to the CNU Sailing Foundation. Ms. Oakley mentioned that Mr. Winter's son sent an email that Mr. Winter's enjoyed being on the committee and helping the animals in the community. The committee will send a card of expressions of sympathy to the family. Review Agenda & Approval of Minutes Vice Chairman Anderson stated the draft minutes from September 18, 2019, were distributed for review in advance of the meeting and asked if there were any changes. There being none, he called for a motion to approve. ACTION: Gordy Brightbill made a motion to approve the minutes as written and Shelly Keller seconded. A vote was taken and motion passed. City Manager's Report Steven Bond reported the following items: <* The City is working on the Capital Improvement Projects (CIP) budget. *;* He commended Ms. Wiggins on her presentation to City Council and that she did a great job on updating the animal ordinance and Pet Shop ordinance. City Council approved the ordinance. Animal Control Report Angela Taylor gave a brief update, highlighting the following items: <* She stated she will need to leave the meeting a little early and does not have a backup to attend in her place, as they are short staffed. They will have three officers to cover the City and she is putting in a request to shut down on the weekends to provide optimum service during Monday through Friday. She mentioned Tuesdays and Wednesdays are their busiest days. <* Animal Control is moving forward with their name change. One of the officers has come up with the new proposed logo; she shared a picture of the sample logo. She stated they hope to have this on the December City Council meeting. Mr. Bond mentioned he is not sure it will make it on the December agenda. Ms. Taylor said she would find out and send an email to the committee. Ms. Taylor  mentioned a Council member discussed with her to possibly have the logo presented during the month of February, since the proposed logo includes a heart. <* The Office Assistant position has been filled and she is currently being trained on the administrative duties. *I4 There is an assembly next week for the Animal Control Officer position, and she also has an over hire position, which makes two positions to fill. Current Issues/Trends No Report Old Business Animal Licenses: Ms. Wiggins mentioned this discussion was with the individual committees that were to come up with ideas on how to get the word out about animal license. Trae,_Neuter & Release (TNR): Ms. Wiggins stated she still needs to meet with Ms. Taylor and Mr. Sturk to discuss next steps on TNR. New Business Proposed Ordinance: Ms. Wiggins stated this is the pet store ordinance and provided a red-lined document of ail the amendments she made to Chapter 5, which is the animal chapter for City Code; the new ordinance is included (copy on file). She reviewed the document with the committee. She stated City Council unanimously adopted all of the proposed amendments at their meeting yesterday. Ms. Wiggins suggested for the next agenda/ to include dogs at large, and amending it to strict liability. She hopes to send a draft of the proposed changes to the committee. Mr. Brightbill inquired what other municipalities have a code on dogs at large. Ms. Wiggins provided a spreadsheet on the information and stated some do straight strict liability/ some do a combination and others do what we do. Mr. Bond inquired about the penalty for dogs at large. Ms. Wiggins responded without the attacking attached to it/ it is a Class III misdemeanor and if the dogs have gotten out before, it's a Class II. For dogs at large while attacking is a Class Ill misdemeanor. Mr. Brightbill inquired what Ms. Wiggins would average a month. She responded that in regards to charges, about three to eight defendants a week. Ms. Taylor stated for the Class III misdemeanor, the Animal Control officers handle those in court. Bylaws: Ms. Wiggins provided a copy of the Animal Control Advisory Committee bylaws and reviewed the proposed changes (copy on file). She stated there are some requirements set by City Council that the committee cannot change unless they go before the City Council with the proposed changes. She stated there have been two bylaw changes since the committee has been enacted. Ms. Wiggins reviewed and discussed the following proposed changes with the committee: • SPCA Board Member requirement-Ms. Wiggins conferred with the City Attorney and stated if there is no one in the board bank with this requirement, then there doesn't necessarily have to be someone on the committee from the SPCA. She mentioned the language in the bylaws states 'whenever legally and  practically feasible'. Ms. Wlggins stated to change theSPCA requirement would have to go before City Council. • Certified veterinarian requirement- Ms. Young inquired ifavettech could serve in place of the certified vet/ and Ms. Wiggins stated yes, as long as they are a Hampton citizen. Ms. Wiggins stated if committee members know of someone who is interested that would like to be on the committee/ to please encourage them to apply to the board bank. After further discussion, there was a consensus to move forward with eliminating the requirement to have an SPCA representative on the Animal Control Advisory Committee. In regards to the bylaws, Ms. Wiggins also pointed out the committee is required to meet twice a year; one being the third Thursday in January. She stated in order to vote/ there has to be a quorum, which is a majority of the voting members; at least four present. As far as attendance/ those who need to be absent, should notify the Chairman. The length of the meeting is two hours and members can vote to continue past two hours. And lastly, Ms. Wiggins mentioned the time limit for the public comment is three minutes/ unless the committee votes to extend it. Mr. Brightbill inquired if there isa health issue the committee should be informed about, would the vet tech be informed and can make the committee aware. Dr. McKeIvin stated if they are a working licenses vet technician, they should be aware of what is going on. Ms. Wiggins added that Animal Control would also be at the forefront of any issues. Ms. Taylor stated the Health Department also gets involved. Vice Chairman Anderson stated there used to be a representative from the Health Department who attended these meetings. Mr. Bond stated part of the issue is staffing; they have been short-staffed. He mentioned he was on the interview panel for a new Director and hopes to have someone on board soon. Public Comment No one from the public was in attendance. Next Meeting Ms. Oakley will send out board bank applications for the committee to review and discuss their recommendations at the next meeting. There was a consensus to hold the next meeting on Thursday, January 16, 2020 at 5:30 p.m. Adjournment There being no further business, Chairman Thornton called for a motion to adjourn the meeting. ACTION: A motion was made by Gordy Brightbill and seconded by Shelly Keller to adjourn.