Orangeburg County pet owners will be required to register and microchip their pets under an animal control ordinance being considered by county council.

If it’s passed, the ordinance will require an annual licensing and registration fee for all pets. The fee will be higher for pets that are not spayed or neutered.

The registration and license fee will be $1 for a one-year registration or $5 for a three-year registration for animals that are spayed or neutered.

The fee will be waived for seniors, the disabled, service dogs and dogs and cats that are rescued from a certified, non-profit animal rescue. Appropriate documentation will have to be presented to qualify for the waiver.

“We are trying our hardest to do low-cost options for people,” Orangeburg County Code Enforcement Officer Jasmine Quarles told members of the county’s Parks, Recreation and Agriculture Committee last week.

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“If your animal is not fixed, you will pay a higher cost,” Quarles said.

The program is intended to encourage owners to spay or neuter their pets.

Orangeburg County Animal Control has about 800 to 900 stray dogs come through its doors annually, Quarles said.

The licensing and registration fee for those pets that are not spayed or neutered would be about $250 a year. Those not abiding by the spaying and neutering law would face fines and citations of $250.

The ordinance will only apply to those who do not live within the limits of one of county’s 17 municipalities.

Without a licensing fee, the county is responsible for housing and caring for abandoned animals at taxpayer expense.

“The problem we are running into now is it is costing us money,” Orangeburg County Code Enforcement Director Mernard Clarkson said.

He noted the county is being overrun with stray animals due to overpopulation.

“We are constantly trying to look at innovative programs to try to minimize the number of animals out here,” Clarkson said. “If we don’t do something today, this problem is going to continue to manifest.”

The committee met prior to the full council meeting. Members unanimously made the recommendation to move the matter to the full body for a vote.

Later in the evening, Orangeburg County Council gave the amended ordinance unanimous first reading. Three readings are required.

The ordinance would also require pet owners to have their pets microchipped. The county’s animal control department would handle microchipping animals for a one-time fee of about $10.

County officials say microchipping pets will help law enforcement identify owners in the event of abuse or abandonment, or if an animal is stolen.

The ordinance would also strengthen animal tethering laws in an effort to improve animal welfare.

The change would make it unlawful to tether a dog while outdoors except under a number of conditions listed in the ordinance.

County officials say they created the ordinance by looking at neighboring counties’ ordinances.

Both Clarkson and Quarles said the new ordinance is not meant to be punitive or intended as a law enforcement crackdown.

“We are not going to be going door to door,” Quarles said.

Orangeburg County Councilman Johnny Ravenell expressed concerns about requiring pet owners to register their pets every year, noting he knows many people who have several dogs that will not want to go through the process.

Clarkson said some places charge a lifetime fee that is higher, though the county is starting with a low fee that can be amended in the future.

County officials say the annual fee will allow the county to track pet ownership to ensure animal licensing regulations are properly enforced. For example, individuals with six or more animals are considered a kennel. That requires a specific license to operate.

Clarkson said the problem with a lifetime fee is that if the pet dies or is given away, the lifetime fee would have been paid once and there would be no refunds.

“We are in the position of being an animal advocate, too, for those that get thrown out by their owner on the side of the road and don’t have anywhere to go,” Clarkson. “If you own me, you bought me, and you decide to let me go, I have some consequence.

“If you just let them on the side of the road, that is a problem.”

The details of the registration and licensing process have not been finalized but the intent is to provide pet owners with an online means to register their pets. Owners would be reminded electronically on an annual basis about the need to register.

The registration fees also coincide with rabies vaccination schedules, enabling the county to better track public welfare when it comes to animal safety.

The licensing fee would be for any dog or cat over 6 months old.

Pet owners will have about six months or a year to comply if the law is passed.

The county plans to have community outreach events and other efforts to inform the public about the new law, Clarkson said.

In other business:

  • Council gave unanimous third and final reading to the repeal of a rule requiring the county to bury large animals on private property. The repeal was deemed necessary due to S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control regulations on the burying of animals.

The county has been responding to calls to bury large dead animals such as horses, cows and hogs. That’s been required since 1983.

County public works officials say the work is costly and has placed a burden on county resources and manpower as some cases have required a response to the same properties multiple times.

  • Council unanimously approved the purchase of about two acres from Tommy Stillinger at 1108 Pen Branch Road in North.

The county purchased the property for about $40,000. The property will be used for potential economic development.

  • Council gave unanimous second reading to the rezoning of about 2.6 acres of a 36-acre property on North Road to rural community district for the placement of a mini storage warehouse.

The property is currently zoned forest agriculture and is located across from St. Mark United Methodist Church near North and adjacent to the North Auxiliary Airfield. Airbase Road runs through the property.

Three individuals expressed their opposition to the rezoning and one resident had questions and concerns. The county Planning Commission had previously approved the rezoning 4-1.

  • Council gave unanimous second reading to the rezoning of about two acres of property at 731 Dawson Street in Eutawville to commercial general for an events rental store.

The property is currently zoned commercial neighborhood/residential general. The property is located near the intersection with Gardensgate Road in Eutawville.

The Orangeburg County Planning Commission previously unanimously voted in favor of the request.

  • Residents along Ash Hill Drive near Eutaw Springs expressed concerns about developers’ plans to open properties in their neighborhood for community usage. Residents expressed concerns about traffic, noise, litter and crime.

They also raised questions about whether developers have to abide by existing neighborhood covenants or if they have the authority to create new covenants that will oblige the neighborhood. The residents were encouraged to consult an attorney about their covenants and their rights in the matter.

  • Orangeburg County resident Jeannette Jeffrey expressed concerns about the lack of communication by the Orangeburg County Sheriff’s Office in a case involving her son. Jeffrey said her son was severely beaten Sept. 2.

“We have to have better communication with the sheriff’s department,” Jeffrey said. “They are supposed to be accessible aren’t they?”

  • The Orangeburg County Voter Registration and Election Board will conduct the Elloree and Eutawville municipal elections scheduled for Nov. 7. Council gave unanimous second reading to an ordinance giving the county’s voter registration department the authority to handle the elections for the towns.
  • Council appointed Cynthia Douglas to the Santee Fire Service District.
  • Council read and unanimously passed a proclamation recognizing American Business Women’s Day on Sept. 22.

The local American Business Women’s Association was established in 1981 and the EmpowerHer ABWA was established in 2018 by Orangeburg resident Rachelle Jamerson-Holmes. Jamerson-Holmes owns Rachelle’s Island and Thee Matriarch Bed and Breakfast in Orangeburg.

  • Councilwoman Deloris Frazier noted that the Orangeburg County community has lost two publicly known individuals recently. Donald Jarvis, a member of the Jarvis Brothers, and Gladys Moss, the wife of the late Dr. Thomas Moss.

Thomas Moss was hired in 1971 by the late U.S. Sen. Strom Thurmond as a state field representative. Moss was the first Black member on any South Carolina congressional staff. U.S. Highway 301 from Interstate 26 to Homestead Road is named in honor of Thomas Moss.

  • Council went into closed session to discuss a personnel matter related to the county’s library board.

Contact the writer: gzaleski@timesanddemocrat.com or 803-533-5551. Check out Zaleski on Twitter at @ZaleskiTD.

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