A4
ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT
Date: October 8, 1996
TO: Vancouver City Council
FROM: Director of Finance and
Director of Permits & Licenses
SUBJECT: 1997 Pound Fee Review
RECOMMENDATION
A. THAT Council approve adjustments to the licence, impoundment
and other fees in the Licence and Pound By-laws as outlined
in this report and detailed in Appendix I, including
maintaining licence fees at the 1993 level.
B. THAT the Director of Legal Services be instructed to amend
the Licences and Pound By-laws accordingly, to be effective
January 1, 1997.
GENERAL MANAGERS' COMMENTS
The General Managers of Community Services and Corporate Services
RECOMMEND approval of A and B.
COUNCIL POLICY
Council, on January 17, 1991, resolved:
THAT every department/board review services for which fees
are now charged to ensure full cost recovery, or that fees
are equivalent to competitive charges where the fee is of a
market nature.
PURPOSE
The purpose of this report is to recommend changes to fees under the
Licence and Pound By-laws which will have the effect of increasing
Pound revenues by approximately 2% in 1997.
DISCUSSION
It is Council policy that the Pound operation be self-supporting. As
described in Table 1, the Pound has failed to reach break-even in
recent years.
Table 1: Pound Operations
Revenues and Expenditures
Revenues Expenditures Recovery
($) ($) (%)
1988 520,295 551,243 94
1989 510,214 560,612 91
1990 498,884 585,275 85
1991 477,086 692,655 69
1992 500,589 647,249 77
1993 505,253 712,966 71
1994 532,339 658,217 81
1995 563,272 711,340 79
% change
1988-95 8% 29%
1996 (budget) 560,000 696,600 80
The Director of Finance and the Director of Permits & Licenses
recommended in 1994 and 1995 that there be no change in dog licence
fees to ensure that fees would:
- not be so high as to be a deterrent for dog owners to licence
their pets, and
- be similar to other municipalities (see Appendix II).
A review of operating data of the Pound (see Appendix III) would
indicate that stabilizing dog licence fees has had a positive effect on
the sale of dog licences. Moreover, increases in impoundment fees had
shifted the burden of costs to those who fail to comply with the
By-law. The overall effect has been higher revenue at the Pound.
Given the long term deficit in operations it is unlikely that the Pound
will reach cost recovery through increases in dog licence fees.
However, the Director of Permits & Licences does not support
expenditure reduction as this would mean staffing cuts and a consequent
deterioration of enforcement services.
LOWER MAINLAND POUND OPERATIONS
Dog licence fees within the Lower Mainland have increased nominally in
recent years, and range from $10 to $59. There are two classifications
under which dog licences are sold, open or altered (spayed/neutered)
dogs. Dog licence fees for altered dogs are substantially lower than
for open dogs in an effort to encourage the control of the dog
population (see Appendix II). Most municipalities keep increases to
dog licence fees to the rate of inflation or lower.
Pound operations throughout the Lower Mainland have dog licence fees
that vary considerably. Typically the fee is set to try to recover the
costs of operating the Pound, while not becoming prohibitive to dog
owners. Labour is the most substantial operating cost. The total
number of staff at each Pound ranges between 4 - 19 full and part time
staff. Currently Vancouver employs 11 full-time and 8 part-time staff.
Discussions with various municipal representatives indicates that the
number of dog licences sold relates closely to enforcement and
communication initiatives such as sending out notices to individuals
that had a dog licensed in the previous year.
1997 POUND FEES
It is expected that the deficit in Pound operations for 1996 will be
approximately $136,000, down from $148,000 in 1995. A large reason for
this has been a steady increase in the number of dog licences sold.
The sale of dog licences has increased by over 900 licences in the last
two years and now accounts for 80% of revenues at the Pound. Overall,
revenues have increased significantly, up by 14% since 1993.
The applicable licence and impoundment fees proposed for 1997 are
outlined in Table 2 and detailed in Appendix I. They are similar to
last year's fee increases, and impoundment fees will increase by $5 -
$10 depending on whether it is a first offence or vicious dog.
The fee schedule outlined in Table 2 will not bring the Pound operation
to a position of cost recovery, as any attempt to raise fees to cost
recovery levels will require a 25% increase on all fees. This will
result in fees that are considered too high when compared to other
municipalities and people's willingness or ability to pay. The
negative consequence could be lower revenues. Through public
education, effective notification and other efforts revenues at the
Pound can be enhanced on an incremental basis with changes to
impoundment fees.
Table 2: Pound Operations
Current and 1997 Proposed Fees
License Fees Current 1997 Proposed
Male/Female $44 $44
After March 1st $54 $54
Spayed/Neutered $24 $24
After March 1st $34 $34
Replacement Tag $5 $5
Table 2 (Cont'd): Pound Operations
Current and 1997 Proposed Fees
Impoundment Fees Current 1997 Proposed
Unlicensed Dog $126 $131
(plus license fee)
Licensed Dog:
First $65 $70
Second $90 $100
Additional $125 $135
Vicious Dog $250 $260
The proposed fee increases will generate an additional 2% in revenues
at the Pound, as shown in Table 3.
Table 3: 1997 Pound Operations
Impact of Proposed Fee Increases
1996 1997
Current Proposed
Revenues 560,000 575,000
*Expenditures 696,600 711,000
Deficit 136,600 136,000
Cost Recovery 80% 81%
* Excludes any provision for Department or City overhead costs.
CONCLUSION
Based on anticipated increases in Pound operating costs in 1997,
impoundment and other fees should be increased to raise an additional
2% in revenue at the Pound and avoid an increase in the overall deficit
for Pound operations. The schedule for 1997 Pound fees is provided for
in Appendix I.
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