Fair Lawn Council Approves 'Dangerous Dog' Law

Any Fair Lawn residents with a dog ruled to be "potentially dangerous" will have to pony up $700 per year due to a new ordinance.

The borough council approved the new law, which sets the fee at the maximum level allowed by the state, during their meeting Tuesday night. The fee defaults at $150 in towns where they don't specify the amount, according to state law.

Officials responded to dog owners' concerns that they would have to bear the new fee. Only a judge that can classify a dog as being "potentially dangerous" after it severely injures another animal.

"Nobody's going to be coming around saying 'this dog' or 'that dog,'" Deputy Mayor Jeanne Baratta said.

Fair Lawn .

Residents from Fair Lawn and elsewhere in the county asked officials to consider creating a "responsible pet ownership committee" like Ridgewood did after their council approved a similar law earlier this year.

The committee has provided community programs to educate people about pet ownership issues and helped residents get microchips installed in their pets in case they get lost, reducing the need for animal control, according to Sharon Fremer, the president of the Ramapo Kennel Club.

"It's been a really good experience for everyone that's ben involved," Fremer said.

Fair Lawn officials said they were open to the idea of starting a similar group.

"We would certainly entertain a program like this," Mayor John Cosgrove said.

Officials will discuss the issue at a future work session, he said.

Residents also said they liked the idea of the new group.

"I fully support the idea of responsible dog ownership," Fair Lawn resident JoAnn Bierchuk said.

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