HomeMy WebLinkAbout032924 email - Ordinance on the Adoption of Ordinances- Public CommentALERT: BE CAUTIOUS This email originated outside the organization. Do not open attachments or click on links if you are not expecting them.
Hello Commissioners:
Years ago I swore I wasn't going to be one of the citizens who nitpicks County efforts, but here I am doing exactly that. My bad.
The legal notice:
the proposed text of the Ordinance is NOT available where the legal notice says it is. That is an empty folder. Also the public comment period apparently expires on August 8, when I
think you meant April 8. The LEADER will correct it I would think, based on the fact you caught it after first publication.
I always hated proofreading my work, so I get how this could happen.
Substance of the proposed ordinance:
Barbara or Phil may have thought these issues through already, if so I this email becomes unnecessary. Sorry.
Per the County Code Section 1.01.160 any violation of a mandatory regulation of the County Code is a misdemeanor.
While you have limited who can enforce Title 2.55, you may have a citizen cause a ruckus by demanding that a violator of 2.55 be charged with a crime as a way of attacking procedurally
an ordinance that is substantively sound and lawful but not to their liking.
You may want to add a section like this "The provisions of 1.01.160 do not apply to any alleged violation of this chapter."
You also may get a citizen stating that 2.55 wasn't followed. While you have the waiver provisions and the "who can enforce" provisions the optics may not look good.
As a result, you might also want to add a remedy section making it easier to fix unintentional and harmless failures to follow 2.55. It could read like this:
"Any action taken pursuant to this chapter that is deemed by the BoCC, BoH or County Administrator to have varied from the rules of this chapter may be cured by a motion in a public
meeting approved by a majority vote of the relevant legislative authority stating the variance is of no impact and the action taken remains lawful."
A retired lawyer cannot write a short email. Curse of the trade.
David Alvarez, Port Townsend, WA