New board could determine dangerous dogs’ fate

Pet owners who disapprove of their dog being deemed dangerous could have a different board hear their cases in Macon-Bibb County.

The County Commission will take up a proposal Tuesday to form a new board to handle appeals after a dog has been categorized as vicious by the Animal Welfare Department. The ordinance comes at the request of the Macon-Bibb County Board of Health, which now hears the appeal cases.

The volunteer health board now holds dangerous dog hearings every other month after its members agreed to streamline a process that became onerous early on, former Macon-Bibb health administrator Nancy White said.

White, now the executive director of Pilot International, worked for the health department when the decision was made to ask county officials to create a new board to oversee the cases.

“It became more and more apparent that this was a public safety issue and not a public health issue like rabies,” White said. “Our board was not necessarily suited to be the appeal board.”

The measure calls for the new Animal Welfare Appeal Board to be comprised of a veterinarian, professional animal handler, health care provider and three at-large members, with at least one having “demonstrated a commitment to animal welfare.”

The ordinance is sponsored by Commissioners Bert Bivins and Elaine Lucas, who both serve on the health board, as well as Mayor Robert Reichert.

Elections board

Two commissioners are asking colleagues to support maintaining how the independent elections board member is selected.

A resolution from Commissioner Larry Schlesinger and Lucas requests the commission to show it favors having the commission continue approving the independent board member. The move comes after some Republican state legislators and elections board members advocated having a state judge approve the position if the elections board can’t come to an agreement.

They say it makes the decision less political, a claim that Democratic leaders say is untrue.

The five-member elections board includes two people selected by the Bibb County Democratic Party and two people selected by the Bibb County Republican Party. The County Commission approves the independent member from a list of one or more candidates submitted by the elections board.

“We feel that the decision should remain with the mayor and commission,” Schlesinger said.

Among the duties of the Bibb County Board of Elections are verifying election results and establishing precinct boundaries.

This story was originally published January 9, 2017 at 4:10 PM with the headline "New board could determine dangerous dogs’ fate."