Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Burn Ordinance topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
County counsel proposes faster, administratively driven burn ordinance; commissioners debate exceptions and enforcement
Summary
County Counsel Paige Sully presented a first‑draft revision to Lake County Ordinance 27 to allow administrative declarations of burn restrictions; commissioners raised enforceability, notification and geographic wording concerns and postponed further action until May 20 for additional review.
County Counsel Paige Sully told the board that the proposed revisions to Lake County Outdoor Burning Ordinance No. 27 are intended to allow quicker administrative declarations and lifting of burn restrictions rather than adopting and repealing ordinances each season.
Sully said the draft preserves much of the original ordinance language while tightening some provisions to make a response timelier and more workable in emergencies. She explained the draft provides framework language (expectations, notification procedures, and decision authorities) but leaves specific timeframes and implementation details to a future resolution so the board can respond quickly as conditions change.
Commissioners expressed several substantive concerns: the draft contains many exceptions that could undermine enforceability; some geographic language incorrectly describes incorporated areas and needs revision to be county‑wide; listing 911 as a notification agency was criticized and commissioners agreed 911 should not be used for burn permits; and removing sheriff’s deputies from a previous enforcement list (leaving only the sheriff and fire chiefs) prompted questions about whether enforcement would be improved.
Members also debated a proposed tightening of allowed burn‑barrel timeframes and a blanket prohibition on fireworks on public property, with several commissioners warning of community backlash and noting sparse evidence that compliant burn barrels have caused local fires. Public comments received on the draft suggested simplifying the term "burn ban" to "county burn ordinance" to reduce confusion.
The board agreed to continue work on the draft, solicit input from the Fire Defense Board and other stakeholders, and resume discussion on May 20. No ordinance was adopted at the meeting.
