Just when we thought the decision to reassign Richmond Animal Care and Control (RAC&C) could not be delayed another time, City Council proved us wrong, and in doing so, sacrificed sound judgment for more bureaucracy.
After nearly three months of discussing the ultimate placement of RAC&C within the City structure, and pouring over national and statewide studies, reading and hearing the recommendations of national and local thought leaders in animal welfare, examining the placement of other local animal control agencies in County governments, conducting polls among their own constituents, and receiving hundreds of emails and phone calls from residents in their districts, a majority of City Council members last night voted to temporarily place RAC&C under the direct supervision of the deputy chief administrative officer for operations for six months while they establish a commission to research the division’s most appropriate placement.
Huh? I thought that is what Council had been doing since the beginning of February. Apparently the answers to their questions and the results of their own research didn’t jive with the wishes and desires of the City Administration, and so, we must form a commission at taxpayer’s expense to collect more information.
While City Administration has advocated for RAC&C’s reassignment to the Department of Public Works (DPW) or as an independent agency, national and local humane organizations, including the Richmond SPCA, and Richmond residents have consistently urged that RAC&C, an important law enforcement and public safety agency, be moved to the Police Department. The rationale for this opinion can be found in a prior blog post.
Yesterday evening, close to a dozen people appeared before Council to oppose relocation of RAC&C to DPW or as a standalone division. We provided sound reasons for this view and were joined in the audience by an additional 20 or more people who shared the same judgment. Not a single person spoke in favor of either of the City Administration’s proposed reassignment options. And, shocker, no representative from City Administration was present to publicly express a cogent argument for administration’s proposals.
Despite these facts, five out of eight members of Council took the position that a commission must be created to glean additional information and to examine best practices (Bruce Tyler, Reva Trammell and Doug Conner voted against the paper). If the work product of the commission is to have intellectual value and to be accepted as a fair and well-informed analysis, then the commission must include representatives from the Richmond SPCA, the Richmond Animal Welfare Foundation and possibly national humane organizations.
Comments made by a Council member at the conclusion of the discussion last night implied that the controversy reflects that RAC&C is broken and requires fixing in an effort to deflect attention from the real problem which is inadequate and unsupportive supervision at higher levels within the City Administration. RAC&C is a dynamic and progressive division led by Program Manager Jody Jones. During her tenure, the agency has distinguished itself as one of the best animal care and control agencies in the state and country despite the lack of support the agency has received from upper level management for many years. Reassignment to Police would insure that RAC&C receives the support and resources it needs to continue to excel and grow and to deliver the best services possible to the pets and people of Richmond.
If the commission is sincere and serious in its efforts to place RAC&C where it truly belongs and includes the representatives of outside humane organizations mentioned above, it will arrive at the right decision, which is undoubtedly the Police Department. Or, it could cover the issue with even more red tape than it already has and delay the decision for yet another six months. Tick tock. Tick tock.
We are grateful to Councilmen Tyler, Trammell and Conner for having the courage and leadership to oppose the City Administration’s proposals and to advocate for the reassignment of RAC&C to the Police Department.
Tamsen Kingry is the chief operating officer for the Richmond SPCA. To read her complete biography, and that of our other bloggers, please click here.
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