Swain County schedules public hearings to repeal 2014 animal-control ordinance and consider new code

Swain County commissioners agreed at their Oct. 7 work session to schedule public hearings on a proposed animal-control ordinance and the repeal of the 2014 ordinance.

Staff said the revised ordinance updates statutory references, adds explicitly listed violations and expands penalties to include criminal penalties where permitted by law. "The biggest addition to it was under penalties...We have added criminal because that is an allowable thing," staff said.

The chair (unnamed) set back-to-back public hearings "on the 20 first for both the 2014 ordinance as well as the '25 2025 ordinance back to back at 05:30 followed by our regular session," and staff said printed copies of the draft ordinance would be available from Lottie or Cindy for members of the public.

Commissioners discussed advertising the hearings in the newspaper and asked staff to make the draft available well before the hearing so residents can review the proposed fines and violations. One commissioner noted a line-item fine example of about $100 for certain infractions and urged clarity for the public on definitions such as "unattended dog." Staff and commissioners said the board must repeal the older ordinance before adopting the replacement.

During public comment, Courtney Dils urged transparency and stressed the importance of public engagement in the hearings, saying the animal-control officer's role needs clearer accountability. "That man's position, we have paid him for 2 years and he has done I'm not really sure what," Dils said, adding that some appointments in the past were made "behind the scenes." Dils encouraged commissioners to make decisions that prioritize citizens.

Next steps: the board will advertise the hearings and hold them at the scheduled time; after public comment on repeal and adoption, the board will discuss repeal and acceptance in a subsequent regular session.