A Pet Tax in Japan

Pro-pet lawmakers in Japan are considering a pet tax to be levied on owners of dogs, cats and other animals in hopes of decreasing the growing number of abandoned pets. Led by Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications, Kunio Hatoyama, the ruling Liberal Democratic Party is said to be considering whether or not such a tax would have the desired result.

Apparently the idea has been recommended to Hatoyama by numerous pet owners who hope that the tax will not only deter some people from becoming pet owners but also help pay some of the costs associated with caring for those that have already been abandoned.

According to the Japanese Bureau of National Affairs, municipal governments across Japan had accepted or captured some 374,000 pets by the end of March 2007. Most of these predominantly dogs and cats were euthanized, sparking widespread criticism from animal welfare advocates.

And while the government has stated it hopes to limit the number of pets municipalities will accept to about 210,000 by 2017, the problem seems to be what to do with the ones that are already in existence. It seems Japan is facing the same budget constraints we are when it comes to paying the costs associated with keeping the animals in shelters until new owners can be found.

It is certainly an interesting idea and it will be even more interesting to see whether or not it is adopted and then enforced. It seems to me that this tax is the equivalent of a license fee, which most municipalities do not enforce. In addition, it very well may be that the cost of hiring a pet-tax enforcement officer would obliterate any revenue the tax might produce unless of course it is so exorbitantly high that it would do nothing to eliminate the problem of stray and abandoned pets that currently exist.

A better option might be to waive the tax for those who are willing to adopt a shelter pet and lower it each year that the owner keeps his/her pet.