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Coupeville council delays fireworks ban after detailed enforcement, scope debates
Summary
Councilors and the marshal's office debated a proposed amendment to the town's fireworks code, focusing on mortar-type devices, enforcement classification, jurisdiction over public property and times of discharge; the ordinance was postponed to allow staff to redraft.
Councilors on May 13 debated proposed changes to Coupeville's fireworks ordinance (Ordinance 804), including whether to ban mortar-style fireworks, how to classify enforcement for illegal discharge and the geographic scope of any ban on public property.
The town marshal's office recommended targeting mortar-type devices that are loud, scatter debris and present higher fire risk; council members referenced an Allen County ban on mortars as a drafting model and discussed whether locally allowed fireworks should mirror Washington state standards or be more restrictive. One council member asked whether mortars sold on tribal lands would be affected; the draft was noted to rely on clearer language to spell out permitted and prohibited devices.
Council discussion also centered on enforcement. Staff explained that making illegal discharge a misdemeanor had proven difficult to enforce, with prosecutions rare and lengthy; the marshal recommended moving illegal discharge back to a class 1 infraction (a fineable offense) to allow faster, on-the-spot enforcement. Councilors asked for clearer timing language for July 4 discharges (for example, 9 a.m. to 11 p.m.) and for explicit language about banning discharge on "publicly owned or leased property, including but not limited to parks, sidewalks, trails, parking lots and town-owned buildings." Several members suggested adding signage and public education as part of implementation.
After extensive discussion and line-by-line suggestions, the council moved and seconded a motion to postpone action on Ordinance 804 until the next meeting so staff could incorporate the edits, clarify the title text and determine the appropriate references to county/state authority in the ordinance text. Councilors noted any ordinance adopted now would not take effect until the date specified in the code (the staff memo referenced July 4, 2026, as the earliest practical effective date if adopted with a one-year delay).
The council asked staff to consult with the Island County Fire Marshal (and the town's building official) to confirm titles and to redraft the ordinance so it explicitly states the types of fireworks banned, the allowed discharge times, the jurisdictional scope of public-property bans and how confiscation or disposal of illegal fireworks would be handled.
No final ordinance language was adopted at this meeting.
