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Council postpones action on King County deportation-flight issue after lengthy debate
Summary
Council members discussed recent King County code changes that appear to exempt the airport from public-land protections related to immigration flights. Julie Brown moved a motion addressing the county action; the council voted to postpone the original motion indefinitely and agreed to pursue further legal and advocacy options.
The Vashon-Maury Community Council debated county-level policy on deportation flights and voted to postpone council action indefinitely after members raised legal and practical concerns about King County's recent code change.
Julie Brown introduced the item and described the March 24 King County meeting and subsequent code changes, saying the revision appears to exclude the county airport from certain public-land definitions. She said activists and affected organizations have been pressing the county since 2019 and that the county's actions "put an endpoint on what we're going to get from the county." Diane Emerson was recorded as seconding the original motion.
Speakers reviewed legal history and possible next steps. One speaker noted that when the county previously tried to limit flights it was sued in federal court and lost; several council members said the issue should be escalated to the state attorney general or federal courts rather than relying on a county code change. After discussion the chair called a vote on a motion to postpone consideration indefinitely; meeting minutes record the motion as carried following a roll call.
