HomeMy WebLinkAbout2007-011 Animal Control Ordinance Amendment (re Pit Bull Impounds and Redeeming); YMC Amendment ORDINANCE NO. 2007- 11
AN ORDINANCE relating to public safety and morals, relating to impounding and
redeeming pit bull dogs, updating the Pit Bull Dogs ordinance,
Chapter 6 18, to be compatible with the Animal Control ordinance,
Chapter 6.20; amending Section 618.025, amending Section
6 18 026, amending Section 6.20 300; amending Section 6 20 305,
and amending Section 6.20 320
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF YAKIMA.
Section 1 Section 6 18 025 of the City of Yakima Municipal Code is hereby amended
to read as follows.
A. Whenever a pit bull dog is found within the city of Yakima, the owner shall be notified in
writing of the prohibitions contained in this chapter and of the procedure required to redeem
the animal. Such notice shall be served upon the owner or, if the owner is not present, then
upon any person of suitable age and discretion residing at owner's residence Whenever a
pit bull dog is found within the city of Yakima, the animal may be impounded pursuant to
Chapter 6.20
B If the pit bull dog is not immediately impounded pursuant to Chapter 6 20, the owner
must permanently remove the pit bull dog from the city of Yakima within forty -eight hours of
issuance of the notice required by this section Failure to remove a pit bull dog within forty -
eight hours of such notice shall result in the immediate impoundment of the animal.
Whenever any pit bull dog is found within the city of Yakima and the owner has previously
had the notice required by this section, the dog shall immediately be taken up and
impounded by such officer charged with the enforcement of this chapter Pit bull dogs
impounded under this subsection may be redeemed or adopted pursuant to the provisions
of Section 6 20 320 of the Yakima Municipal Code
Section 2. Section 6 18.026 of the City of Yakima Municipal Code is hereby amended
to read as follows.
Notwithstanding the provisions of Section 6 18 020(B) or 6 18 025, any pit bull dog found
running at large in the city of Yakima which is not in the possession or control of its owner or
owner's agent shall be immediately impounded by a Yakima animal control officer or
Yakima police officer Any pit bull dog which is a dangerous dog or potentially dangerous
dog as those terms are defined in Chapter 6.20 of this code shall be handled according to
Chapter 6.20 Such animal shall be redeemed, adopted or destroyed pursuant to the
provisions of Chapter 6.20 of the Yakima Municipal Code
Section 3. Section 6.20 300 of the City of Yakima Municipal Code is hereby amended
to read as follows.
Dogs found or reasonably believed to be kept in violation of this chapter or chapter 6 18
may be impounded by the department. If impounded, a dog shall not be redeemed until it
has been micro - chipped at the owner's expense Provided, that if a complaint identifying
BHF /ORDINANCE Page 1 of 5
the dog owner of a dog at large, a barking dog or an unlicensed dog is received and the dog
owner can be immediately located, the dog shall be left with the dog owner, and a summons
and notice to appear in regard to the violation may be issued to such dog owner
Section 4. Section 6.20 305 of the City of Yakima Municipal Code is hereby amended
to read as follows.
It is unlawful for any person in control of premises to refuse to surrender to any law
enforcement or animal control officer of the City of Yakima any dog or dogs sought to be
confiscated or impounded under the provisions of Chapters 6.20 or 6 18 of the city of
Yakima Municipal Code The maximum penalty for a violation of this section shall be ninety
days in jail or one thousand dollars fine or both.
Section 5. Section 6.20 320 of the City of Yakima Municipal Code is hereby amended
to read as follows:
(1) The owner or owner's agent of any dog or other animal impounded pursuant to
Chapters 6 18 or 6.20 of this title may redeem the impounded dog or animal within forty -
eight hours, exclusive of Sundays and holidays, after notice of the impoundment is given
pursuant to Section 6.20 310 of this chapter Such redemption shall be effected as
provided by either subsection (2)(B) or subsection (2)(C) of this section.
(2) (A) Except for animals contemplated by subsection (2)(B) of this section, redemption for
each dog may be accomplished by payment to the impounding authority of the amount of
twenty dollars for the first impoundment of the same dog during any twelve -month period;
and the redemption fee shall increase by increments of twenty dollars for each subsequent
impoundment of that same dog during that twelve -month period. In addition to the
redemption fee provided by this subsection, a person redeeming an unlicensed dog shall
also pay for and obtain a current city of Yakima dog license before the dog is redeemed In
addition to the redemption fee, an additional charge of ten dollars per day shall be imposed
for the period of time that the impounded dog is kept in the pound after impoundment,
together with the cost for mandatory micro - chipping, prior to redemption.
(B) In the case of smaller animals other than dogs not requiring special equipment for
transporting the same to the pound, the impounding fee shall be twenty dollars, and a
charge of not Tess than ten dollars per day may be imposed by the impounding authority for
the care and feeding of such animals In the case of larger animals requiring special
equipment for transporting the same to the pound (any equipment larger than a pickup or
panel delivery truck), the basic impounding fee shall be twenty dollars, and in the event
such an impoundment occurs at any time other than between nine a.m to five p m on
weekdays, or between ten a m and four p m on a Saturday, or if the impoundment occurs
on a legal holiday, the impoundment fee shall be forty -five dollars An additional charge of
ten dollars per day shall be made for the care and feeding of such animals
(C) Any payment required by this subsection for the redemption of an impounded dog or
other animal may be made with any commercially reasonable tender, including but not
limited to cash, money orders or major credit or debit cards, on sufficient identification being
made
BHF /ORDINANCE Page 2 of 5
(3) In the event an owner of an impounded dog or other animal desires to contest the
validity of the impoundment, the impounded dog or other animal nevertheless may be
redeemed by the execution and delivery to the impoundment authority of a promissory note
payable to the city of Yakima in the amount of fifty dollars plus the appropriate
impoundment fee, and the simultaneous filing with the impoundment authority of a request
for animal impoundment hearing on a form to be provided by the impoundment authority
and which shall read substantially as follows.
"IN THE MUNICIPAL COURT FOR THE CITY OF YAKIMA
CITY OF YAKIMA,
Plaintiff, ] NO /
v ]
] REQUEST FOR
] ANIMAL IMPOUNDMENT
] HEARING
]
(name of owner) ]
Defendant. ]
I, (full name), as owner or owner's agent of a (dog or animal
description /license number) hereby request a hearing to contest its impoundment of
(date) at (place)
Grounds for contesting the validity of the impoundment:
I understand that if I fail to appear at the time set for hearing, in accordance with a notice to
be given to me by the court, judgment will be entered against me for the amount of my
promissory note payable to the City of Yakima, given in connection with this request for
hearing, together with additional court costs
Dated
(signature of owner or agent)
Address
Telephone number
The impounding authority shall cause all timely requests for animal impoundment hearing to
be filed with the city of Yakima Municipal Court.
(4) If an impounded dog or other animal is not redeemed by its owner within the forty -eight
hour period following the notice of impoundment, then any person may redeem the dog or
other animal by complying with the provisions of subsection (2)(A) of this section, provided,
however, that within the discretion of the impounding authority, any such impounded dog or
other animal may be humanely destroyed or otherwise disposed of; provided, further, that in
the case of any horse, mule, cattle, hog or other stock animals that may be impounded
when running at large within the city of Yakima, the impounding authority shall follow the
procedure established by the laws of the state of Washington in Title 16 of the Revised
Code of Washington relative to the care and sale of strays.
BHF /ORDINANCE Page 3 of 5
(5) Redemption of Dangerous Dogs. Any dangerous dog, as defined in this chapter and
which is confiscated pursuant to Section 6.20 300 of this chapter shall be humanely
destroyed within forty -eight hours after its notice of confiscation is served or posted
pursuant to Section 6.20 310 of this chapter, unless its owner or his agent requests a
hearing as provided in this subsection and the dog is ordered released by the court. In the
event of a hearing at which the city prevails, the dog shall be humanely destroyed. The
person requesting the hearing shall be liable to the city for the sum of twenty dollars
confiscation fee and ten dollars for each day such dog is confined by the city Requests for
such hearing shall be filed with the Yakima Municipal Court by the dog owner or his agent
with a copy served upon the department of economics or its designee and shall be made on
a form which shall read substantially as follows
"IN THE MUNICIPAL COURT FOR THE CITY OF YAKIMA
IN RE THE
CONFISCATION OF A ) NO
DOG NAMED ) Request for Dangerous Dog
) Dog Confiscation Hearing
owner's name
, as owner of a
full name
request a hearing to
dog's name and description
contest its confiscation. The dog is currently being held at the city impoundment facility I
understand that if I fail to appear at the time set by the Court for hearing, the City shall
humanely destroy the dog.
(Signature of owner or agent)
Address
Telephone number
(6) The daily boarding fees set forth in this section as costs to the individual redeeming an
impounded dog may be increased from time to time to reflect actual increased cost
assessments by the humane society for boarding city animal impounds
(7) Redemption of Pit Bull Dog. In addition to the provisions provided in this section, an
owner or owner's agent redeeming a pit bull dog must sign a promise to remove the dog
from the city of Yakima and provide the address to which the animal will then reside.
Section 5. This ordinance shall be in full force and effect 30 days after its passage, approval,
and publication as provided by law and by the City Charter
BHF /ORDINANCE Page 4 of 5
th
ADOPTED BY THE CITY COUNCIL this 20 day of March, , 2007
/LW, /
avid Edler, Mayor
ATTEST
B -e_i_75 - ‘0-44_) ( >1)2
City Clerk
Publication Date: 3 - 23 - 2007
Effective Date 4 - 22 - 2007
BHF /ORDINANCE Page 5 of 5
BUSINESS OF THE CITY COUNCIL
YAKIMA, WASHINGTON
AGENDA STATEMENT �g
Item No
For Meeting Of 3/20/07
ITEM TITLE. Consideration of an Ordinance relating to public safety and morals, relating to
impounding and redeeming pit bull dogs, updating the Pit Bull Dogs ordinance,
Chapter 6.18, to be compatible with the Animal Control ordinance, Chapter
6.20; amending Section 618.025, amending Section 618.026, amending
Section 6.20 300; amending Section 6.20 305, and amending Section
6.20 320
SUBMITTED BY Doug Maples, Code Administration & Planning Manager
CONTACT PERSON/TELEPHONE. Doug Maples, 575 -6262
Bronson Faul, Assistant City Attorney, 575 -6033
SUMMARY EXPLANATION The City of Yakima has recently adopted an animal control
ordinance that includes sections on impounding and redeeming dogs. When the animal
control ordinance was passed, the pit bull ordinance was not updated to reference the new
animal control sections. The pit bull ordinance also contains some superfluous language.
This ordinance will work to make the two chapters compatible and consistent. The
amendments will be in the best interest of public health, safety, and general welfare of the
community
Resolution Ordinance X Other (Specify)
Funding Source
APPROVED FOR SUBMITTAL. �- .0 City Manager
STAFF RECOMMENDATION
BOARD /COMMISSION RECOMMENDATION:
The Public Safety Committee recommends approval
COUNCIL ACTION Ordinance passed. ORDINANCE NO. 2007-11
fee
Brons, Vickey
From on behalf of City Council
To All City Council, All City Managers Office
Subject: FW Pit Bull ban in Yakima.
Importance High
Original Message
From dan @danhillman net [mailto dan @danhillman net]
Sent: Monday, March 19, 2007 4 35 PM
To City Council
Subject: Pit Bull ban in Yakima.
Importance High
Thank you for taking the time to review my comments
I understand from media reports that you will be considering additional penalties for people who are identified as owners of
dogs that Yakima categorizes as "Pit Bulls"
I would encourage you to reconsider increasing enforcement of this regulation as I believe the regulation itself to be fatally
flawed and worthy of being replaced by a more effective and less arbitrary policy
Main flaws of the existing approach are
1 I believe this to be a knee -jerk approach that is meant to allay some fears of the community without addressing the
problem itself
2 I am unaware of any actual data that supports this as an effective means of reducing dog attacks
3.Attacks by other breeds of dogs are not addressed at all.
With all due respect might I suggest that we look at a non -breed specific ordinance that targets problem dog owners rather
than a blanket approach that prevents good dog owners from giving, a pit bull a good home
In support of this I offer the following report from the CDC
http. / /wonder cdc.gov/ wonder /PrevGuid /m0047723/m0047723 asp
Dr Stephen Collier has written a paper on the subject that go into more details that I would bring to your attention
http. / /www dapbt.org /collier htm
The reason for my interest in this issue is that I have twice rescued stray dogs that appeared to be all or part PBT These
dogs were sent off to a pit bull rescue group in Western Washington and now have good homes
In the past I have owned two Staffordshire Terriers of my own and believe them to be the best family dog in the world I
would love to see us try and reduce dog attacks and animal cruelty by going after those pet owners who treat their dogs
and their neighbors so poorly They can be fine dog, lets get them out of the hands of the abusers and into the living room
with a loving family where all dogs belong
Thank you for your time and consideration, for the record I do live in Yakima and do not have any Pit bulls
Dan Hillman
Dan Hillman, 506 n 29th place Yakima WA 98902