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Council weighs ordinance to publish ordinances 15 days before meetings
Summary
La Porte County Commissioner Joe Haney presented an ordinance to require online publication of ordinances and resolutions 15 days before meetings to improve transparency. Council read the ordinance by title; members agreed to coordinate with the commissioners and defer final action until the commission's review.
Commissioner Joe Haney presented an ordinance (Council Ordinance 2026-7) changing the county's publication window for ordinances and resolutions from 5 days to 15 days to align with the state's publishing timeline and give the public more time to review proposals. "The gist of this is both for transparency on the front end so the public can have a better idea of what we're voting on," Haney said, urging favorable consideration.
Council members discussed practical effects and cross-branch coordination. Councilman Kiel said the goal was to make documents "more accessible for the public so they can effectively comment," while others noted that the county recorder's records provide a definitive archive. The council read the ordinance by title only and debated whether to proceed immediately; after noting that county commissioners had held over a second reading, members elected to wait for commissioners' input before taking final action. The motion to read by title passed, and the item will return for further action after the commissioners' review.
