Holmes County dog warden set to raise tag fees to $19
The Holmes County Dog Warden and Adoption Center Warden Jonathan Beam met with the Holmes County Commissioners on June 30 to discuss the increase in county dog tags and the possibility of finding community support to build a new facility.
As the number of dog license tags continues to fall and revenue falls short of expenses, Jonathan Beam, Holmes County dog warden, is set to raise dog tag fees to $19 beginning next year.
Beam met with Holmes County Commissioners on Monday, June 30 to discuss two topics, the first being the increase of tags by $2 and the second being a discussion centered around the possibility of the department getting county financial support.
The Holmes County Dog Warden and Adoption Center has always been self-reliant, having never been on the county budget prior to this, but Beam told the commissioners rising expenses and a reduction in the community purchasing dog tag licenses has made a large impact on the department’s ability to remain in the black.
According to Beam, Holmes County’s current rate of $17 per tag actually falls below the statewide average, and bumping up the tag license fee to $19 would generate around $13,000, should the number of people purchasing dog tag licenses remain where it is, which was at 6,687 last year, not including kennel licenses, which are cheaper.
Beam said the $2 incremental increase is the maximum increase allowed per year under state mandate.
“Counties around us have all gone up to $20, $22, bringing the average license fee up to $18,” Beam said.
Beam said in 2022 and 2023, the department had a 6% increase in revenue, but that came with a 15% increase in expenses. There was a 12% increase in expenses in 2024.
“We saw a jump in revenue when we changed (the last) fee; however, we also saw a drop in regular tags by almost 1,500 for regular tags, and we also saw a drop in kennel license fees,” Beam said. “We were expecting this huge gain when we made the last increase, and that didn’t happen. We are at a place where we have to do something to counterbalance those expenses.”
Beam said people purchasing dogs rose abruptly during the pandemic years but has since dropped off significantly. He said his staff has worked diligently to bring in other sources of revenue including seeking additional donations from the community, in which they did see a rise.
“Our staff did a really good job of bringing in extra income; however, it just wasn’t enough to counterbalance the effects of the (decrease in) license fees,” Beam said.
He said they also have experienced an influx of people surrendering their dogs in recent months, showing people are surrendering more dogs and purchasing fewer tags.
“I’d like to think that we are getting fewer calls from kennels wanting to get rid of their stock, so I’d like to think that we are leveling off, but we’ve also found new kennels that weren’t registered, so the numbers are hard to determine,” Beam said.
Beam said the hope in raising the fee $2 this year is to see where that leaves the county moving forward. He said he doesn’t want to raise the fees unnecessarily.
He went on to say he knows the commissioners want the department to be self-sufficient, but right now he believes his department isn’t able to do so without getting support from the county.
“When anyone complains, they usually say, ‘There’s my tax dollars at work.’ We don’t get tax dollars to run our department,” Beam said.
Commissioner Dave Hall said the commissioners would explore the idea of providing additional funding.
Commissioner Chair Joe Miller said the commissioners would look into beginning a capital fund to support the department, especially with the county looking into erecting a new building for the dog warden department.
“We do need to build something out there, and you have to start somewhere,” Miller said.
“I’m glad you see the needs,” Beam said, noting his department has several additional upcoming expenses like new computers and new body protection. “We don’t want to simply keep putting Band-Aids on it.”
Hall said he liked the idea of creating a capital fund for the dog warden and adoption department, perhaps out of sales tax funds. Miller said the discussion to do so can come well before next year’s budget is set in place.
Beam said creating a capital campaign to generate excitement and interest surrounding the construction of a new building would be a great idea.
“If we look at the new building idea, if we have something for people to look at that says, ‘This is what we’re shooting for,’ I think you’d be surprised how many people would be willing to get behind it,” Beam said.
Beam said he has a sketch detailing what the new building would look like.
Miller told Beam to develop the capital campaign project, get it on paper, figure out the cost and bring it to the commissioners to get the ball rolling.
The commissioners agreed to create a resolution accepting the additional $2 tag fee.