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Executive Dvector (and probably many other people) Members of WHHS testify against HIIIS, and a group that includes former WHHS employees seeks the contract October 20, 1991 The HIHS Board of Directors wntes to the mayor "We support the County rn ?ts efforts to revise the ordinance governing animal control. However, the way that this action was initiated, by stripping our employees of them police badges without first having a new ordinance rn place, has created an unnecessary crisis. It has been more than a month since this happened, yet we have received »o rna6cahon that a new ordinance is being drafted In the meantime, the animal control officers no longer have the authority Jo pursue stray animals onto private property, issue citations, or seize dangerous or abused animals. The County's irresponsible actions have severely undermined the morale of Humane Society workers Our employees perform a d~crrlt, stressful, and often dangerous service for society Summarily stripping the animal control officers of their badges carries the imphcahon that they have abused their specs! deputy status. This rs not the case. We do not want an adversarial relationship with the County. The Humane Society exists to help animals and people who acre having problems with animals We do not want to waste our limited resources on fighting poletrcal battles. We provide a valuable service for the County, a»d rn return we are now being asked to perform our contractual duties with both hands tied behind our back. " Apri16,1992 In a letter to the Mayor, Corporation Counsel, Police Cluef, and Councd Chair, the HIHS board comments on the new proposed ordinance that removes the authority to issue citations from the humane society 'i1Mr. Matsukawa (the Corporation Counsel) is looking out for the county, but the Humane Society must also worry about lrabil~ty. As we all know, this whole issue began with Janet Srhn's allegations of misconduct on the part of cinrmal control officers. Her accusations were investigated, and the animal control officers were cleared of the charges by the Corporation Counsel's Office Even so, the county legrtimrzedMrs. S~lva's complaints both by rescinding the special deputy status ojthe animal control officers and by conirmirng to consult with her out of obvious fear that she would sue. By such actions the county has created a climate wherein we must seriously consider our own lrabthty Given these conditions, we are questioning whether rt makes sense for us to continue to provide animal control services for the county " Throughout 1993, the Corporation Counsel works on a new ordinance, eventually producing one that is essentially the same as the original January 11, 1993 minutes of the HIHS Board of Directors meeting "Ordinance: Pat (Gorman, H1HSExecutive Director) hasn't been able to get a hold of Matsukawa. The Police Dept has been moving slowly on providing the training necessary for getting the badges back Training rs now set for 1-15 to Htlo rnrd I-29 in Kona. After training, the animal control officers have to have background checks, then everything goes to Finance Dept for final approval " 3