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The SPCA of Luzerne County still plans to charge a fee next year to municipalities that drop off strays, but it will be delayed and could be less expensive than originally proposed.
The Jan. 1 start will be put off until March and both sides that met Wednesday will continue their discussions about the Municipal Service Partnership initiative first introduced 20 months ago, said Todd Hevner, Luzerne County SPCA executive director.
The initiative aims to address the increasing cost of care, provided free so far, by charging municipalities a fee for each animal brought to the SPCA’s building in Plains Township. Without the proposed fee, the SPCA said it will continue to run deficits and be forced to cut operations within four years.
“What it boils down to animal welfare is a community problem, not an SPCA problem,” Hevner said Thursday. Under state law, municipalities are responsible for the care and shelter of stray dogs, but for 60 years, the local SPCA has been providing that service at no cost, he noted.
Municipal representatives and SPCA officials and board members held a private meeting at Wilkes University on Wednesday to discuss concerns and review financial information provided by the nonprofit.
Even though the SPCA had an endowment of $8.1 million in 2016, it reported a net loss of $237,141, according to a handout from the meeting.
The SPCA relies on only the interest earned from its beneficial trust, as well as fundraising proceeds and donations to operate. Expenses in animal care, cruelty investigations and preventive care outpaced revenues in those areas. Cemetery operations, however, showed a positive balance. Overall income was $981,413 compared to expenses of $1.2 million, according to the handout.
The partnership fee dropped to $95 per animal from $100, due to the updated 2016 financials, Hevner said. Municipalities would be charged the full amount for a one-year contract. It was graduated if a municipality entered a five-year contract, starting at $19 the first year and ending in $95 in the final year.
A second option based on 2010 U.S. Census data is also being considered. It would charge 55 cents per person until the new census data is available in 2020 and would be offered annually at the full cost or on a graduated scale over five years.
“It will be one or the other,” Hevner said, adding the decision will be made as the discussions continue.
Wilkes-Barre city Administrator Ted Wampole, who attended the meeting, said per capita fee is preferable and less expensive than the per-animal fee.
“This is something we can work with,” Wampole said.
The city would be charged $22,823 for one year using the census data, compared to $77,995 based on the per-animal fee.
The city has budgeted a $12,000 donation to the SPCA for 2018, doubling its contribution from this year.
There is still a lot of ground to cover before the city and other municipalities reach an agreement with the SPCA, he said, especially concerning the organization’s finances and access to that information.
“There’s got to more transparency if we’re going to enter any kind of agreement with you,” Wampole said he told the SPCA.
Still, he said there appears to be a willingness to talk.
“We made it very clear we’re not out to hurt the SPCA, but we’re out to protect the interest of our individual taxpayers,” said Wampole.