County reschedules public hearing on shooting ordinance

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Jefferson County is considering whether to require commercial shooting facilities to have operating permits, but it needs public input before a decision can be rendered.

The county has rescheduled a public hearing to solicit oral and written testimony regarding a proposed ordinance, which, if enacted, would require an operating permit for both existing and proposed commercial shooting facilities.

“It's a complicated ordinance,” Board of County Commissioners Chairman David Sullivan told The Leader. “It's based on health and safety issues that have been cited at gun facilities.”

Sullivan noted that an advisory board had met throughout the summer to develop recommendations for county staff, with a culminating discussion Sept. 10.

“Of course, we have to remain within federal rules and regulations, and the Constitution,” Sullivan said. “But we're focused on what we can do, within those limitations, to protect people.”

Sullivan clarified land use issues will not fall under the proposed ordinance.

“These are already covered very well under the State Environmental Policy Act and our conditional-use permits, even if they don't satisfy all sides,” Sullivan said. “Rather than just saying yes or no, we tell people, 'Maybe, if you do x, y and z.'”

At the heart of this proposed ordinance, as far as Sullivan is concerned, is the question of what rules a gun range should have to follow in order to operate within the county.

“We're trying to look to the future, because we as a county haven't always looked far enough ahead,” Sullivan said. “It can be difficult.”

Peter Newland, president of the Tarboo Ridge Coalition, said his group is studying the proposed ordinance and plans to testify at the public hearing, but in the meantime, he offered some thoughts on it to The Leader.

“There's much about it that's good,” Newland said. “But there are a number of areas we're concerned about, such as the allowance of military training on local gun ranges.”

Newland cited neighboring Kitsap County as having stricter regulations on that score, as well as in its provisions for protecting lowland lakes, another area that Newland believes this ordinance should address, given that Jefferson County often uses Kitsap County as a model for such ordinances.

Newland also suggested applicants for permits under such an ordinance should be expected to shoulder at least some portion of the resultant expense to the county so that it's not “subsidized by the taxpayers.”

The full 38 pages of the proposed ordinance can be found online at the county's website at www.co.jefferson.wa.us/CivicAlerts.aspx?AID=180.

 

Postponing

Under state statute, the county must place a legal notice for the public to be notified about the proposed ordinance in the county’s designated newspaper, which is The Leader.

Due to a mishap in system updates, the legal notification was not received by Leader staff to run in the Sept. 12 issue of The Leader. To give proper notice to the public, the commissioners had to push back the meeting to 6:30 p.m. Oct. 1 in the Jefferson County Superior Courtroom. The county is also extending the public comment period to 4:30 p.m. Oct. 5.

“It was an unfortunate, unforeseen circumstance that came with updating our email system,” said Leader Publisher Lloyd Mullen. “We apologize to the county, and anyone who was affected, for the delay and have taken steps to help ensure this does not happen again.”