Commissioners’ sworn to defend constitutions
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Editor,
I was truly surprised to read that our three elected Republican Commissioners would openly endorse the proposed water compact. As individuals they are certainly within their constitutional right to an opinion. But folks remember that the key issues of compact discord revolve around the same constitutional rights of those who oppose “the compact as presented.”
Commissioners in taking elected office swear an oath to defend the State and National Constitutions. Which is where I see a problem. The water compact, in detail, will remove the protections of recourse from those individuals who will be forced to relinquish water claims as granted by the U.S. Government. The state will cease to defend any claims against violation of privately owned water rights. Management and total control will pass to a unitarian control board who will be appointed by the three governing jurisdictions: federal, state and tribal. Appointees to the board may, or may not, have local roots. To be clear, I favor a water compact that addresses all the issues. No citizen’s rights can be excluded. Address those issues. As commissioners I would ask you to work “towards a good compact” and not one that is lopsided from the go.
One last thought, since all three of our commissioners indicated in their campaigns, either by response to questions or by advertising in the papers, their promise to get the issue of density allocation and the Lake County Planning Department in check, how about a progress report? Some of us who were subject to the abuse of density control, as envisioned by the Lake County Planning Department, would like to hear.
Joseph G. Brooks
Ronan
