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Residents urge board to delay petition-collection policy, citing First Amendment concerns
Summary
Residents told the Alpena County Board on Jan. 27 they fear a proposed policy or ordinance restricting petition-signature collection on county property could chill free speech; the board removed the item from the agenda and took no further action.
Chairman John Kozlowski and county officials heard pleas from residents at the Jan. 27 Alpena County Board meeting who asked the board to postpone any policy that would change how petitions are gathered on county property.
Yvonne Johnson of Alpena Township told the board she filed recall-petition language on Jan. 12 to recall three members of the Alpena School Board and asked the county to "wait on any type of policy or ordinance until after the November 2026 election" to avoid the appearance of trying to influence the recall and to protect First Amendment rights. Barb Beamish of Alpena said the county must "abide by the United States Constitution" and warned the proposed ordinance could infringe on free-speech protections.
County Clerk Keri Bertrand, County Administrator Jesse Osmer and Chairman Kozlowski clarified that, under current practice, campaigning to collect signatures is not allowed inside county buildings but that a county ordinance could grant permission to collect signatures on county property outside the building while keeping interior spaces off-limits. The board had earlier amended the meeting agenda to remove the Policy on Protests and Petitions on County Property, and no formal action on that policy was taken during the meeting.
The public comments came amid other business the board handled that day, including routine bills, contract approvals and budget items. The board did not set a date to revisit the petition-collection policy during the Jan. 27 session.
The meeting record shows the county did not adopt a change to the petition-collection rules at this meeting; residents who spoke asked the board to delay any action until after the November 2026 election.
