By DAVID REAGOR
Los Alamos County Councilor

Ref: Letter to the Editor: Reasonable Notice To Public For County Council Meetings (link)

First, I just want to point out that the agendas are released on Friday afternoon, more than 96 hours from the meeting. Thursday at 5 p.m. is 121 hours before the meeting. Your numbers are all shifted.

Second, Friday is a work day and staff are often preparing documents for the agenda. If something is not ready it is typically kicked back two weeks. Things are already slow enough  and this change could add delays.

Third, we usually avoid the weeks with a holiday on Monday.

This month MLK day is the 20th and we have our second regular meeting on the 28th, leaving the 21st open. We had to use a holiday week last year, but that is rare.

Fourth, The big items should be disclosed earlier and span more than one meeting. The broadband contract was here for 5 months and the public (and I) get four days to make a final decision on a 50M$ investment. All I knew about the contractor is what I could google over the weekend and learn from the presentation. We have had many meetings on broadband, but the final deal drops with a today or never deadline and massive paperwork to read. I hope we made a good decision.

That process is the real problem. A better process is the wildlife ordinance, an issue that has been discussed widely in the media and at several meetings.