In a unanimous vote, the Vance County Board of Commissions formed a committee to examine the issue of dog hunting.
The vote was conducted during the Board’s regular meeting this past Monday.
The issue of hunting with dogs has proved contentious with Vance residents, bringing out strong arguments from both hunters and non-dog hunting property owners in the County.
During November’s regular meeting of the Commission, members voted to form a committee to make a recommendation on the issue.
The committee will consist of ten members, five purporting to be pro-dog hunting and the other five against.
Commissioner Dan Brummitt questioned whether or not the seven voting districts that comprise the county were more heavily represented than others.
Board member Scott Hughes responded that the first five residents who signed up for the committee were taken so that hunting clubs would not be “overrepresented”. He said that districts were not taken into account.
Commissioner Terry Garrison questioned whether or not a committee evenly weighted on the issue could come to a consensus. He said that some members should be neutral on the issue.
County Manager Jerry Ayscue told Garrison and other members that the committee contained, in fact, “two or three neutral volunteers”.
The dog hunting committee will function as a subcommittee of the County’s Public Safety Committee. Its purpose is to bring a recommendation to that committee, which will in turn bring a recommendation to the full Board.