Scrap Toronto animal licensing program, report suggests

TORONTO – A new report questions the value of Toronto’s cat and dog and licensing program, suggesting it and other animal care services be scrapped or cut back in order to shave down the city’s budget.

In addition to eliminating animal licensing, consultants from the KPMG firm say the city could outsource of animal care services, lengthen the amount of time it takes to respond to rescues or emergencies, and cease to pick up pets placed for adoption.

Toronto licenses a number of businesses, from bake shops to bowling alleys to building renovators, and consultants believe there are savings to be had by thinning out the list to only include those that are “serving a clear purpose.” It did not provide any suggestions.

This is the fifth installment in a series of reports reviewing everything the municipal government does in order to cut costs. The licensing and standards committee oversees programs that cost the city about $21-million a year, 100% of which are deemed as “traditional,” which means that they are not essential or mandatory programs.

Licensing and standards is one of those areas that makes the city money. Business licensing and enforcement, for example, nets nearly $6-million a year. The licensing of dog and cats, meanwhile, brings in $660,000 a year.

However, consultants note that other cities take different approaches to licensing pets. Philadelphia provides animal licensing and management services through its public health office, while Melbourne contracts out services to a non-profit animal shelter.

In Toronto, just 30% of owned dogs and 10% of cats are licensed, KPMG says, and, as a result, “the value of the program is not evident.”

It believes that pet stores or other commercial outfits could ID animals. Toronto Animal Services responds to 37,000 emergency animal and rescue calls a year. Extending the response time from the current two hours could “result in negative public reactions,” the report states.

It also suggests outsourcing waste diversion enforcement and says the city can save money by enforcing property standards on a city-wide basis, instead of by district as it does now.