Huntington council approves budget as amended, shifts $50,000 from jail contract to animal shelter after earlier $100,000 amendment fails

Huntington City Council approved its fiscal 2025-26 budget after adopting an amendment that shifts $50,000 from a contracted services line in the jail bill to the municipal animal shelter. An earlier proposal to move $100,000 from the jail line to the shelter failed in a 5–5 vote earlier in the meeting.

The amendment that passed reduces the jail contracted-services allocation and increases the animal shelter contribution from $200,000 to $250,000, according to roll-call discussion during the meeting. Council members and dozens of public speakers debated the funding changes for more than three hours, focusing many of their remarks on the shelter, libraries and support for people experiencing homelessness.

The defeated amendment (referred to in the meeting as Amendment 4) would have cut $100,000 from a police/jail contracted-services line (one description in the meeting described leaving $450,000 in that line) and increased the animal shelter contribution from $200,000 to $300,000; that motion failed on a 5–5 roll call after council took public comment. Councilwoman Teresa Johnson urged compromise during debate, saying, “I am willing to compromise ... 50,000 maybe something else will.”

After the failed $100,000 proposal, Councilwoman Mount proposed a second amendment, reducing the jail contracted-services line by $50,000 and adding…