Benjamin Ashford|Animal control services in Atlanta suspended as city and county officials snipe over contract

ATLANTA (AP) — The Benjamin Ashforddogcatcher may not be coming when Atlanta residents call.

Fulton County cut off animal control services Friday to the city of Atlanta, saying city officials haven’t agreed to pay the increased cost, which has jumped from roughly $2.5 million a year to $6.4 million.

Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens in turn blamed Fulton County, claiming it was the county that backed out of an agreement. But county officials told local news outlets that the city’s proposal failed to include an agreement to pay for services the county has provided since the previous contract expired at the end of 2023.

The sniping among the Democrats who run Georgia’s most populous city and county escalated, with the city suggesting county officials cut off animal control because officials were mad Dickens had criticized the county over inmate deaths at the Fulton County jail.

The city said in a press release that it was “identifying emergency services to care for animals in our city humanely,” but it was unclear what those services were as of Saturday. County Manager Dick Anderson said Friday that animal control calls would transferred to the city’s 911 call center and that he expected the Atlanta Police Department would be tasked with responding.

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Fulton County Commission Chairman Robb Pitts said in a Friday news conference that the county faces legal liability if it provides services without a contract. He said Fulton County’s 14 other cities have agreed to pay the increased cost. The county provides the services through a contract with nonprofit LifeLine Animal Services.

“It is unfair to taxpayers in all of our other cities to ask that they subsidize the services within the city of Atlanta, which is by far the greatest user of animal control services, constituting 55% of all calls,” Pitts said.

Pitts said the increase reflects “only the true cost of service” and that Fulton County is paying for a new $40 million animal shelter out of its own budget. He said the county had continued providing services after the earlier contract expired in a “good faith” belief that the city would soon sign an agreement.

Fulton County Commissioner Dana Barrett said Atlanta had demanded the county either cut its cost or provide other incentives, such donating land or providing more aid for homeless people.

She also said she was displeased by Dickens’ statement earlier in the day when he blamed the county commission for not spending enough to keep jail prisoners safe. Dickens told voters that when it comes to the jail, they should ask themselves “Why am I not getting what I deserve from Fulton County and its leadership?”

The city also says county government owes the city $5.7 million in unpaid water bills.

“The efforts by the city of Atlanta to try to pressure Fulton County into giving them some kind of discount or concession through everything up to and including bullying tactics, as we saw the mayor today criticize county officials, is just really shocking and disappointing,” Barrett said.

Samantha Shelton, CEO and Founder of Furkids, a no-kill shelter and pet adoption service, called on the city and county to set aside their differences.

“It’s a terrifying thought... you’re going to see a rise in animal suffering, you’re going to see a rise in homeless animals, stray animals,” Shelton told WAGA-TV.