According to city records, there are officially 103 dogs in Hermiston.
OK, there’s certainly a lot more than that, but in 2014, the city issued just 103 dog licenses, collecting $715 in revenue. What that means is that the vast majority of dog owners are not purchasing licenses on an annual basis.
After Monday night, however, they won’t have to now that the council voted to make dog licenses a one-time purchase. The hope is the new ordinance will encourage people to register their dogs with the city.
“People aren’t licensing their dogs so you have a lot of animals running at large which puts a strain on Pet Rescue,” said Hermiston Assistant City Manager Mark Morgan.
The new ordinance raises the cost of licensing an unaltered dog from $10 to $25. The cost of licensing an altered dog will remain at $5.
“This one-time license fee is less onerous on the dog owner,” said Morgan. He added that having a dog licensed will allow the owner of a dog running at large to be identified.
Hermiston Mayor Dave Drotzmann thanked the city administration, Pet Rescue and the public for finding a workable ordinance.
“This is not the solution,” he said. “But there is no great solution when you don’t have unlimited resources.”
