Lewiston council sets burn-ban fine, removes library fees and adopts ordinance to auto-adopt higher-jurisdiction burn bans

Lewiston’s City Council voted March 17 to add an enforceable monetary penalty for burn-ban violations to the city’s master fee schedule, remove library fees from that schedule, and adopt an ordinance allowing the city to automatically adopt burn bans issued by higher authorities.

Mayor (S1) said the city needed a fine "for the burn ban, so that it's enforceable without a fine," arguing that without a listed penalty there were no local repercussions for violations. After council discussion about appropriate amounts — members referenced a wide range of existing penalties in other places and the cost of calling out a fire engine — Council member (S6) moved “I make a motion we apply the $2.50 $250 fine for violations of the burn permit, burn code, whatever. Fire restrictions and bans.” The motion was seconded and approved unanimously.

The council also voted unanimously to remove library fees from the city master fee schedule. Council member (S3) said library fees belong to the library board, a separate governing body that can change fees itself, and moved to remove those fees from the city schedule. The motion carried.

Separately, the council opened and closed a public hearing on ordinance No. 26-01 and then adopted it. The ordinance, as presented by the mayor, "allows the city to automatically adopt any burn bans issued from the county or state or any agency that's authorized inside of the county." The version adopted includes a subsection added since the prior draft (section g) that the mayor described as allowing the fire chief to tailor or remove restrictions that don’t apply locally; the chief must notify the mayor and council of any such changes.

Council also confirmed several appointments. The council voted to place Jason Trexler and Deborah Nelson Williams on the library board and to add Amy Johnson and Jenny Tanner to the events council. Council member (S6) moved to appoint John Westover as vice mayor for the time the mayor will be out of town; that motion carried unanimously.

The ordinance adoption and fee-schedule votes were all passed by unanimous voice vote; minutes record the motions, seconds and that the motions "carried unanimously." No recorded roll-call tallies or names tied to individual aye/no votes were provided in the transcript.

What’s next: the adopted ordinance requires the city to track higher-jurisdiction burn bans and the fire chief to notify the mayor and council of local modifications. The proposed resolution on fundraising/ donation controls discussed during the mayor’s report will return on next month’s agenda for formal council action.