As temperatures remained below freezing last week, the Binghamton City Council passed legislation setting limits on how long dogs can spend outside in extreme weather.

An adaptation of Syracuse’s “Adrian’s Law,” the law criminalizes leaving pets outdoors for longer than two hours when temperatures reach below 32 degrees or above 90 degrees Fahrenheit. Penalties for defying the ordinance include civil fines from $150 to $500, criminal sentencing up to 15 days and, in severe cases, possible removal of dogs from their owners. The ordinance passed unanimously last Wednesday and Mayor Jared Kraham signed the legislation soon after.

“This ordinance is about ensuring the well-being of animals and reflecting the values of our community,” Karen Matson, the executive director of the Broome County Humane Society, said in a press release. “It promotes humane treatment, protects dogs from extreme weather, and represents progress toward giving animals the protection and respect they deserve.”

Introduced by Councilwoman Hadassah Mativetsky ‘07 MS ‘12, the Binghamton ordinance differs from Syracuse’s law by specifically addressing “unaccompanied” dogs. This change ensures that individuals without permanent shelter can maintain custody of their pets.

In an interview with Pipe Dream, Mativetsky explained that while the drafting of this ordinance began on Sept. 30, the law was eventually revised so that it would not “be a tool to harm unhoused people who have companion animals.”

Mativetsky said that the law was not designed to punish unhoused pet owners, but rather those who left their pets outside in extreme temperatures while living in heated homes.

Residents in Binghamton’s South Side, an area that both Mativetsky and State Assemblywoman Donna Lupardo MA ’84 represent, witnessed cases of people leaving their dogs outside in extreme temperatures.

“It’s pretty traumatic, not just for the dog, but for the neighbors that are observing and can’t get action from the city,” Mativetsky said.

Mativetsky, Lupardo, Broome County Legislator Mary Kaminsky, representatives from the Broome County Humane Society and local constituents met in late September to create the new dog ordinance.

“I’m glad to see that the City of Binghamton has taken steps to protect dogs in extreme weather conditions by passing their Dog Protection Ordinance,” Lupardo said in a statement to Pipe Dream. “With the extreme winter weather we’ve seen over the last few weeks, it’s certainly a timely and welcome measure. Since weather fluctuates so much from one corner of the state to another, solutions to this problem truly have to happen at the local level. I hope to see similar initiatives implemented elsewhere in the County and across the state.”

As for next steps to promote animal safety, Mativetsky told Pipe Dream that she is interested in advocating for animal control officers to be promoted to the status of peace officers. This could allow animal control officers to fully testify in court, rather than only completing an investigation before handing the case over to police officers for official testimony.

Erin Castner is the only animal control officer in Broome County.

“I am grateful to Assemblywoman Lupardo for bringing this challenge and a proposed solution to my attention and to our Animal Control officer for her help and support,” Mativetsky said in a press release. “While most problems cannot be solved with simply more legislation, this is an area where I think it was the correct course of action.”