Dog license a bargain

Courier Editorial Board

September 05, 2008 12:05 am

— This is not a case of inflation. Animal Control Officer Jeff Williams came across an old Ottumwa dog license a while back. The license dates from 1927 and it’s in remarkable shape. The ink is a bit faded, but what do you expect from a paper signed back in 1927?
The paper is thinner than most paper now, but it still shows the city’s embossed stamp on the bottom left corner. Williams came across it in a box of old papers and keeps it on a board above his desk at the police station.
The most remarkable thing is that the price of the license was $3.
Why is that remarkable? The license now costs $2.
Take that number to one of the online inflation calculators. The 1927 license cost the equivalent of $35.50 in today’s money. Not only has the price not kept up with inflation, it went down.
There is no reason for people to complain about the price of a license today, not with how inflation has impacted everything else. In fact, the old license would seem to suggest some sort of an increase in the cost of a new dog license is warranted.
We’re not suggesting hiking it to $35.50, but an increase to $5 or $10 seems much more reasonable in light of the former amount involved. And it’s still a small price to pay to get a family pet back after it slips out the door and runs off down the street after the neighbor’s cat.