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Keith County amends fireworks resolution to ban use, empowers chairman to rescind on fire chiefs' recommendation
Summary
The county amended a draft resolution to remove a sale ban and instead declare support for a ban on the use of fireworks; the amendment grants the board chairman authority to lift the ban if fire chiefs recommend it.
The Keith County Board of Commissioners on June 2 amended a proposed resolution about fireworks to state that the county supports banning the use of fireworks — not the sale of fireworks — and granted the board chairman authority to rescind the ban on the recommendation of county fire chiefs.
Commissioners debated whether the county has authority over sales; several said sale restrictions exceed county authority and that the county’s role should be limited to usage-based restrictions tied to fire-safety recommendations. One commissioner noted the county does not issue fireworks sales licenses and therefore should not purport to regulate sales.
The amended resolution names the county’s fire chiefs — including Ogallala Fire Chief Del Zimmerman, Paxton Fire Chief Kyle Gartrell, Brule Fire Chief Lonnie Olson, and a listed Keystone/other chief — as the recommending authorities for any rescission. The board moved and seconded the amendment and approved it by roll call.
The resolution as amended declares support for a ban on the use of all fireworks in Keith County effective immediately, and states that the chairman may rescind the ban on the recommendation of the county’s fire chiefs. The board approved the amended language during the same meeting in which members also discussed clarifying the document’s wording prior to final filing.
