To the editor — The Yakima City Council action on Jan. 2 violated the Washington State Open Public Meetings Act, which requires that actions must be publicly announced and on the agenda except in an objective emergency.
To say that, “the City Council did not have time to put the resolution on the agenda before the meeting” is like saying, “I didn’t have time to dribble the ball to the basket, so I just carried it.” It is a violation of the rules.
It is also a violation for a majority of the voting members to conspire behind closed doors, except for a justifiable executive session. The council is legally entitled to hire a new city manager who is “aligned with the new City Council.” In effect, they will hire a “hometown referee.” Now the council and the city manager can conspire together behind closed doors. That is illegal, but the law is not enforceable.
The purpose of constitutional law, like a referee, is to ensure that the rules for establishing policy apply equally to all elected officials. It is currently popular to claim that elected officials are empowered to ignore the law. They may have opportunity and authority, but it is not lawful.
KAY FUNK
San Mateo, Calif.
