Rathdrum Council to mull dog licensing

RATHDRUM - The Rathdrum City Council tonight will consider whether the city should stop dog licensing and require owners to do it on their own.

The council meets at 6 p.m. at City Hall, 8047 W. Main St.

The council earlier directed staff to look into the pros and cons of doing away with the licensing after just 154 permits were issued through the city last year.

"If half the (2,200) residential units had one dog, we would be at 14 percent compliance," City Administrator Brett Boyer wrote in a memo to the council, adding that the city does not have a firm estimate on the number of dogs in the city.

"The bar is already low ... so our thought was that we should be able to improve on that."

Residents are currently required to license any dog more than 6 months old. The license is good for one year. Prior to issuance of a license, the owner must provide proof of rabies vaccination.

Boyer said citizens generally prefer less government interference in their lives, so perhaps the city stepping away from licensing may increase compliance. Abolishing licensing would also free up staff time to do other tasks.

He said having owners get identification tags at area pet stores would support local businesses.

Boyer said licensing generated more than $3,000 in income for the city last year, but that loss in income would partially be made up by not having to spend staff time on the program.

Identifying dogs and having them get shots would still be required and violators would be cited.

"Regardless of which decision is made, we need to focus on educating the public on their responsibilities as dog owners so that we can increase the number of dogs with tags and shots," Boyer wrote.

* In other business, the council will consider an agreement to have Knife River do $14,216 worth of further improvements to Mill Street downtown so train noise will be reduced.

"Although the timing of the BNSF (Railway) comments is well after the conclusion of our construction project, the additional work identified ... will make our Mill Street improvements compliant with the federal rule for establishing a quiet zone," City Engineer Kevin Jump said.

Jump said the work is expected to take five to eight days.