HomeMy WebLinkAbout2022_09_13 JKunzler_In-person meetingsFrom:Joe A. Kunzler
To:Board of Health; Allison Berry
Subject:JAK Public Comment for 15 Sept. 2022 - OPMA
Date:Tuesday, September 13, 2022 4:33:35 PM
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13 Sept. 2022
RE: Item V.1 and Hybrid Meetings
Dear Jefferson County Board of Health;
I want to begin by stating this is certainly a difficult e-mail missive to write, but I think it'stime we had this conversation about your all-remote meetings policy that will be brought upin V.1. Folks, no easy way to say this: It's time that this resourceful Board of Health came
to grips with the fact that leading elements of the Washington State Legislature - egged onby some of the Seattle-centric media establishment - were really uncomfortable with theidea of remote-meetings-forever.
Granted, I wish we could have a remote-meetings-forever policy. Traveling to/frommeetings is a genuine hardship. But we have laws to uphold, even with our favorite peoplewho helped out when others... cowered.
As the Governor's emergency powers are being retracted soon, I call upon the JeffersonCounty Board of Health to please have an in-person component starting next month.
Failure to have an in-person component may result in serious consequences up to andincluding litigation under RCW 42.30.120 which includes personal liability for fines and
attorney's fee$. I am also certain the pro-COVID19 forces will be agitated again and goafter Dr. Berry, MD, personally again if action is not taken to have an in-person componentwith security, please. At an absolute bare minimum, I will take this to the state's OpenGovernment Ombudsman and my Washington Coalition for Open Government partners in
transparency.
You can just tell how difficult this is, I hope. But we need to get brave, get bold and realizethat public life requires bravery and mission first. Even when the state legislature does not
give us everything we want or think is the right science. It is also my understanding thatthere are negotiations between local government lobbyists and senior state legislators about"clarifying" the Open Public Meetings Act, so you may want to reach out to your localgovernment lobbyists and state legislators.
If it makes this difficult missive go down any better, a big chunk of this is I don't want tosee anything happen to any of you. Especially Dr. Allison Berry, MD I wish to thank in-person please. I will stop there.
Very thoughtfully;
Joe A. Kunzlergrowlernoise@gmail.com