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Residents urge Longmont to allow analog meters, allege ADA appeal denied in hearing officers' ruling
Summary
Multiple residents told the council they had been denied reasonable accommodations related to Longmont Power & Communications' smart meter program and said the city's appeal process excluded expert testimony. Speakers asked council to add an analog opt-out, investigate hearing procedures, and stop discriminatory surcharges.
Several residents used the public-comment period at the Longmont City Council meeting to press the council to change the city's approach to smart meters and to revisit recent Americans with Disabilities Act accommodation denials.
Susan Foster and several people speaking on her behalf described a multi-stage administrative appeal that they said excluded expert testimony and denied requested accommodations. Foster said she submitted an ADA accommodation request to the city's ADA coordinator in April seeking to "keep my analog meter because of the critical impact wireless technology can have on my damaged spinal nerves and my heart," and that she was denied by staff, city attorneys and a hearing officer. She told the council her 12-page appeal included five experts but that the hearing officer rejected some testimony and denied the appeal in a written decision dated Aug. 23.
Several other speakers echoed Foster's claims and described health and housing impacts. In public testimony, Rosanna Jenny and Linda Lee said experts were…
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