NYC proposes new Pest Control Board

NEW YORK, Nov. 23 (UPI) -- A New York City Council report found a 40 percent increase in pest complaints from two years ago and some lawmakers are demanding a new Pest Control Board.

At a joint hearing of the council's health and governmental operations committees Monday, Christine Quinn, chairwoman of Council's Health Committee criticized the New York City Health Department for not giving the 11,146 complaints about rats received by the city's 311 call center enough attention, the New York Times reported Tuesday.

However, Edgar Butts, the city health department official in charge of pest control, defended his agency and suggested the increase in the complaints stem from citizens reporting all rodent complaints to a single agency, rather than several departments.

Butts said the Bloomberg administration opposed creating a Pest Control Board because it would create "an unnecessary structure that is not only costly, but also duplicative."