2012/07/25 Council Agenda Packet

bull terriers test better than golden retrievers on some occasions.22The information provided by the test can thus be an extremely persuasive tool in shaping good legislation. Fiscal Bite: The High Cost of Breed Discrimination Government officials need to understand that they are incurring significant costs when they enact breed-discriminatory laws. Even before costly DNA testing entered the picture—the cost varies from $125-$200 per dog— breed- discriminatory laws were found to be expensive, but city officials gave little thought to the implementation of these laws. In 1997, Prince George's County in Maryland enacted CB-104-1996, which banned pit-bull dogs. In 2002, CR-68-2002 created the Vicious Animal Legislation Task Force to evaluate the effectiveness of existing legislation and administrative regulations concerning vicious animals and to advise the county on improvements and amendments to current policies or laws. The task force found that the cost to the Animal Management Division for maintenance of pit bulls over a two-year period was approximately $560,000. The task force found the breed- discriminatory policy to be inefficient, costly, difficulty to enforce, subjective and questionable in results. It recommended repealing the breed-specific ban.23 Despite these findings, Prince George's County has yet to repeal its breed ban. The county impounds more than 900 "pit bulls" per year. On average, more than 80 percent of the "pit bulls" impounded are maintained by the Animal Management Division throughout a lengthy hearing process and eventually euthanized merely because of their appearance.24 As the Prince George's County experience attests, the rising costs of enforcing breed-discriminatory measures in these austere times should encourage officials to contemplate the fiscal impact of enacting such laws. 22 Stefanie A.Ott,Esther Schalke,Amelie M.Von Gaertner,Hansjoachim Hackbarth,Is There a Difference?Comparison of Golden Retrievers and Dogs Affected by Breed-Specific Legislation Regarding Aggressive Behavior, Journal of Veterinary Behavior 3,134-140(2008). 23 Report of the Vicious Animal Legislation Task Force,Presented to Prince George's County Council, July 2003. 24 Supra,at 6.