Monroe County will soon launch an animal abuse registry after the Monroe County Legislature approved the proposal Tuesday evening, Oct. 13.
The proposal for a registry comes after the Ontario County Board of Supervisors approved an animal abuse registry on July 16. The New York State Humane Society shows that slightly more than half of the state’s 62 counties have such laws.
The registry would identify individuals residing in Monroe County convicted of animal abuse crimes that prevent them from adopting or purchasing pets. A person's name, address, date of birth and a photograph will be included on the registry.
Individuals who have committed crimes such as poisoning, stealing, abandoning or torturing an animal will be required to register. They
will remain on the animal abuse registry for 10 years following their release date or the date their judgment of conviction was made, whichever is later.
Those who are required to register will have to pay an annual fee of $50 to the Monroe County sheriff, which will be used to pay administrative and maintenance costs.
If an animal abuse offender fails to register, they would be guilty of a misdemeanor and could face penalties including up to one year in jail and fines of up to $1,000 for each day of noncompliance.
Aquatics nursery owner raises concerns about registry
Larry Nau, owner of Bergen Water Gardens and Nursery, attended the meeting and spoke about his concerns with the animal abuse registry.
At his nursery, Nau sells tadpoles, pond fish, snails and a variety of other pond supplies. He described how January through March are busy months with tropical fish being their number one seller.
"You're talking a couple hundred people buying thousands of fish and we're supposed to check each [customer] to make sure they are not on this registry," Nau said. "That's going to be a challenging issue to do."
Before approval, Legislator Susan Hughes-Smith raised several questions about the measure such as how many people would be on the registry and how many animals are adopted or purchased annually in Monroe County.
County officials did not have the data available at the time, which prompted Hughes-Smith to make a motion to table the item until more data was provided, but the motion failed in a 22-4 vote.
Legislator Jackie Smith worked as a sponsor of the legislation and described how this was a major accomplishment for Monroe County and for the well-being of animals throughout the area.
"When I learned that over half of New York's counties had already established their own animal abuse registries, it was clear that Monroe County had to follow suit," Smith said. "The local law is essential to protecting our vulnerable and defenseless animals."
— Kerria Weaver works as the Government and You reporter for the Democrat and Chronicle, with a focus on how government actions affect communities and neighborhoods in Rochester and in Monroe County. Get in touch at kweaver@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Registry will prevent animal abusers from owning pets in Monroe County
