King County Council warns exec to fix Animal Control or else

A Metropolitan King County Council committee gave an ultimatum to County Executive Kurt Triplett on Tuesday: He has two weeks to explain failures by the animal-control agency, including why it typically takes more than a day to respond to calls about dangerous dogs.

"This agency is a failing agency, and we will fix it for you if the executive branch does not take action," said Councilmember Reagan Dunn, who chairs the committee on government accountability and oversight. "We will move forward together to reform this agency because it is in desperate need of it."

Natasha Jones, a spokeswoman for the County Executive, said Triplett would respond by Sept. 27, when he will submit his 2010 proposed budget to the council. That budget will include a new model for paying for Animal Care and Control services, she said.

County managers were not at the meeting. They had said they were too busy working on the budget and plans to move the Kent shelter in case of winter flooding.

Dunn said he was "shocked" at long response times reported Sunday by The Seattle Times, and "even more shocked that we had never heard of this problem from the executive branch."

In the spring of 2008, the council and the executive agreed to put priority on public safety above all else, he said.

The council and executive have clashed before over the agency, which has had three managers in the past three years. The county is awaiting reports it requested from the King County Auditor that will examine how the agency monitors shelter animals, whether the agency's euthanasia rates are accurate and whether the agency has carried out recommended changes.

Despite what council members contend, former County Executive Ron Sims did ask the council for more funds for Animal Control last year, Jones said. The agency has been working under a 2007 council mandate to lower euthanasia rates.

The poor field response "has been a consequence, whether it was intended or unintended. It is what it is," Jones said. "It's a policy decision as to whether that should continue in that way, now that we see what some of those impacts are."

The council committee also voted 3-1 to send legislation to the full council that would require the agency to be ready to start transferring adoptable pets from its shelter to animal-rescue groups by Feb. 1, 2010. Animal-rescue groups have criticized the agency for delaying the transfer of adoptable pets.

Sanjay Bhatt: 206-464-3103 or sbhatt@seattletimes.com