Humane Society leaders outline $260,000 shortfall, seek contract renegotiation with Collegedale

Humane Society of Hamilton County volunteer board president Jim Kennedy and interim director Dr. Tai (Ty) Federico told the Collegedale City Commission during a workshop presentation that the shelter is operating with a structural funding gap and is asking municipalities, including Collegedale, to revisit service contracts.

Kennedy said the shelter expects about a $260,000 shortfall for the fiscal year that reflects anticipated municipal and county revenue that did not materialize after Hamilton County tabled a proposed American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) resolution. “We had worked out with Mayor Watt what we thought was an agreement to get some funding … the county was going to put up $200,000 and then work with the municipalities to generate another $50,000… that would then be matched by the private sector,” Kennedy said.

The request matters because the Humane Society operates under an auto-renewing municipal service contract with Collegedale that has not been substantively renegotiated since 2019. Kennedy summarized the contract’s core obligations—animal control response, sheltering and animal care, low-cost sterilization and outreach, rabies control and public education—and said the Society wants to sit down with the county and cities to align services, response expectations and fees with current costs.

Why it matters: the Humane Society reports it has relied on reserve funds and investment draws to cover recurring shortfalls. Kennedy said the organization drew about $1 million from a building/investment fund this year to keep operations running; that approach is not sustainable. Commissioner and staff questions focused on timeliness and scope of field response (for example, nighttime barking complaints), lines of coordination with police and code enforcement, and whether the existing municipal fee covers the shelter’s actual per-animal housing costs.

Kennedy and Federico gave Collegedale-specific service figures for recent reporting periods: the city paid $50,859.60 per year under the current contract; Fiscal Year 2024 intake and outcome data showed 90 animals from Collegedale in one reported period with an average stay around 36 days. Federico highlighted that shelter housing and daily-care days are a major portion of operating expense: “If you come up with a very conservative number of how much we spend per animal per day of say $10, that’s $32,000 worth of housing right there,” he said.

Kennedy also described a separate, unresolved property-tax issue. He said a clerical error associated with the Society’s move to a new facility led to a lapse in tax-exempt filing and to three years of unbilled property taxes that totalled roughly $530,000 in arrears to city and county (about half owed to each). He said Hamilton County recently agreed to pass a resolution to pay the county’s portion and accept a refunding check from the shelter so the county can clear the arrearage; Kennedy said he is hopeful of a similar city resolution in February.

Discussion vs. decisions: no formal vote was recorded at the Collegedale workshop on any contract or appropriation. Commissioners directed staff to participate in contract-renegotiation conversations and to return with a recommendation about expectations and any associated cost changes. The Humane Society said it had already exercised a 90‑day cancellation clause with Hamilton County and wants to renegotiate terms going forward.

Ending: Commissioners pressed for clearer response expectations (night vs. daytime calls, triage priorities with law enforcement) and more precise cost estimates to inform Collegedale’s budget decisions. Humane Society leaders said they will provide additional data and meet with county and municipal partners to align services and funding.