Document text
Nolte passes Patriot's ordinance to council By Myles Murphy Ashland Daily Tidings The Ashland City Council will have not one, but two alternate civil liberties protection ordinances to look at Tuesday. City Attorney Paul Nolte has written up two versions of an ordinance first crafted by a group of Ashland residents called Ashland Patriots to define the actions of city employees - especially police - under the federal USA Patriot Act. The council will consider the issue when it meets at 7 p.m. Tuesday at the Ashland Civic Center Council Chambers, 1175 E. Main St. The meeting will be carried live on Rogue Valley Community Television Channel 9. "Adoption of either resolution would reaffirm the city's commitment to preserving and protecting the civil rights and liberties of all citizens �" Nolte wrote in a memo to the council. Parts of the draft ordinance which referred to schools and libraries were removed, as those bodies have their own governing policies. The second, shorter alternative drops much of the original language explaining why the Patriot Act might threaten civil liberties, and the Ashland Patriots are taking their own look at it. "The city attorney is not objecting to the main provisions of the resolution," Paul Copeland - a member of the Ashland Patriots group - wrote in an e-mailed examination of the proposed ordinance. "The alternative maintains strong police department directives, which is good. But it drops most of the statements about why the Patriot Act is a threat to civil liberties, so the educational value of the alternative resolution is less explicit." The proposed ordinance seeks to: Ensure people who are arrested have access to counsel; limit the collection of surveillance of individuals or groups unless related to a criminal investigation; eliminate targeting of people based on race, religion, ethnicity, national origin or other attributes; require notice be given before executing a search warrant in the city; keep police from participating in "any federal clandestine program � which encourages" people to spy on their neighbors; receive annual reports from the government on any information on Patriot Act-related activities, including the names of residents arrested by federal authorities, the number of search warrants executed, extent of electronic surveillance, the extent to which political or religious meetings are monitored, the number of times school, library or bookstore records have been scrutinized in the city. In other business, the council will: hear a report on a proposed increase in Food & Beverage Tax from 5 percent to 6 percent to bring in additional funding - about $336,000 a year - for the city's open space acquisition plan; hold a public hearing and first reading of an ordinance allowing theaters and similar entertainment uses as a conditional use in the E-1 zone; read by title only a resolution establishing 7-percent increase in cable television rates and a $3 monthly increase for residential cable modems and a $5 increase for business cable modem service for the Ashland Fiber Network; discuss the possible sale of the city-owned Lithia Springs property, which is now leased to the Ashland Gun Club, city staff recommends the city keep the land; review a draft of the 2003-2004 council goals; discuss this year's citizen survey, a $15,000 telephone survey the city performs every two years to get a picture of residents' attitudes and understanding of city and government issues; consider request for co-sponsorship of Ashland Independent Film Festival; read by title only a resolution supporting the Oregon Department of Transportation grant application for $580,000 for construction of a multi-use path from Hearsey Street at the railroad tracks to Jackson Road, the city will pay about $60,000 of the estimated $868,000 project; read by title only a resolution authorizing the issuance of water reserve bonds not to exceed $2,943,000; consider proclamation of Feb. 28 as Peace Corps Day in Ashland; consider liquor license applications from Gary Mallicoat for Ashland Hills Shell at 2495 Ashland St.; and from Steve Apted for Good Times at 1951 Highway 66; consider confirmation of mayor's appointment of Pam Hammond to the Traffic Safety Commission for a term to expire April 30, 2003; and, consider approval of minutes of the Feb. 5 council study session, the Jan. 8 Forest Lands Commission, the Jan 15 Public Arts Commission, the Jan 14 Planning Hearings Board and Planning Commission meetings. LINKS: DAILY TIDINGS: Main | News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Opinion | Columnists | AP News | Subscribe | Archives | Weather | Classifieds | Contact Us | Privacy REVELS: Main | Calendar | Dining | Movies | T.V. OTHER: Road Cams Copyright 2003 Ashland Daily Tidings 541.482.3456. 1661 Siskiyou Blvd., Ashland, OR 97520. Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. - Advertisers -