Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Solid Waste Management topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
HRRA seeks modernized solid-waste ordinance; attorney to review voting language
Summary
At the March 9 meeting, HRRA Executive Director Jennifer Heaton-Jones described three proposed changes to a regional solid waste ordinance—switching to one-town/one-vote, modernizing a 1991 ordinance, and adding enforcement tools—and the town attorney said he will review the proposed voting-language changes.
The Housatonic Resource Recovery Authority (HRRA) requested updates to its solid waste ordinance during the March 9 New Milford Town Council meeting, including a change to voting structure, a full replacement of the 1991 ordinance text to modernize procedures, and enhanced enforcement powers to address noncompliant haulers.
HRRA Executive Director Jennifer Heaton-Jones told the council there are "three changes they are requesting" and that while "most are compliant," HRRA currently "does not have the authority to enforce the laws." Town Attorney Joseph Mortelliti said he would examine the proposed revisions to the voting section (Sec. 7-64) because the draft ordinance did not appear to fully reflect the intended change from a historical weighted voting model.
Councilor Ari Rosenberg asked about a clause in the draft that treats a mayor's failure to respond to a violation notice within three days as a disapproval, suggesting the draft presumes disapproval where Rosenberg said the burden should be reversed (presume approval unless there is cause to disapprove). No final ordinance vote was recorded at the meeting; the attorney's review of the voting language was requested and will be a prerequisite to any final action.
Council members did not take a final approval vote on the ordinance during the session; the public hearing for this item had been closed earlier that night, and the council deferred final determination pending legal review.
