Council goes beyond scolding

I am of the opinion that your Jan. 20 editorial which again scolded Oak Harbor officials for ongoing disrespect of the Open Public Meetings Act is going to be ineffective. Methinks we are well past the stage of simple scolding and other disincentives are warranted. Ignorance of the law on the part of all these folks is simply no longer believable.

February 7, 2012 5:35 pm

I am of the opinion that your Jan. 20 editorial which again scolded Oak Harbor officials for ongoing disrespect of the Open Public Meetings Act is going to be ineffective. Methinks we are well past the stage of simple scolding and other disincentives are warranted. Ignorance of the law on the part of all these folks is simply no longer believable.

Each and every person associated with this most recent event should make a personal act of contrition: a $100 personal check presented at the next city council meeting to be placed into the city of Oak Harbor coffers, and that includes, minimally, the mayor, the acting city attorney and the entire city council.

Violations of this RCW call for a $100 penalty. It’s time these people started paying up for each and every violation. Unfortunately, I am not very hopeful that any of these folks has the gumption to be the first person to do the right thing here and start the ball rolling. If not, I am wondering if we can get the county prosecutor to take up this issue on the public’s behalf.

William Burnett
Oak Harbor