"What we are scared about is the dog-law restricted fund," said Michael Pechart, executive deputy secretary to the Corbett administration's agriculture secretary, George Greig.
Pechart said in a recent interview that the balance of the account, which is supported primarily by license fees for nearly a million dogs statewide plus fines from enforcement actions, now stands at about $2 million.
The fund pays salaries for 92 positions (19 of which are now vacant) within the Department of Agriculture - most of them dog wardens who inspect almost 3,000 kennels in Pennsylvania and enforce the dog law.
In addition to kennel inspections, dog wardens are responsible for picking up strays and responding to dangerous-dog calls.
The fund also is used to compensate farmers for livestock killed by dogs and coyotes, and provides grants to local humane societies around the state.
The Bureau of Dog Law Enforcement - which has since been downgraded to the Office of Dog Law Enforcement by Corbett's administration - grew out of a years-long debate as advocates fought for and won passage of legislation to crack down on large commercial kennels, also known as puppy mills.
The state has responded to the funding crisis by curbing wardens' overtime, leaving jobs unfilled and eliminating one high-level position - deputy secretary of dog law, a post created by then-Gov. Ed Rendell to lead efforts to crack down on substandard kennels.
Officials also considered eliminating a grant program that helps dozens of local humane societies pay utility bills. Last year that program gave out $550,000, mostly in $10,000-to-$15,000 grants to small shelters which depend on the funding, advocates say.
Instead funding will likely be scaled back in this year's budget, but state officials would not say by how much.
