"Below is a portion of the public forum from the Apr. 8,2008 St. Louis County Council meeting.
I thought it was quite interesting that Pat Redington seems to think that County laws out rule State. I was taught in college that State Statutes over ride all - with the exception of Federal.
From what I understand, this Pat Redington seems to leave out key information when referring to laws. I guess she wants it to read the way she thinks it should read which is, of course, in favor of the County.
"Mr. Chuck (Charles) Barcom, representing Meridian Waste, addressed the County Council and questioned if the Council was aware of information recently sent out by the Attorney General's Office. Mr. Barcom related the Attorney General's Office had stated that there should have been a two-year notification regarding the Trash Districts.Public Forum. Chair Burkett responded that she had not seen the information Mr. Barcom referenced. She then referred to County Counselor Pat Redington.
County Counselor Redington related that she was aware of the information Mr. Barcom referenced. However, she pointed out that this information was not applicable to St. Louis County, stating that St. Louis County is a Charter County with its own provisions for dealing with trash as authorized by the State Constitution and St. Louis County's Charter".
Added comments:
It's surprising the County Council was not aware of the ruling from the Attorney General's office. Lack of communications between Ms. Redington's office and the Council has been an on-going problem for some time, dating back before Ms. Redington approved the trash sub-station in South County without advising the Council.
A Council member learned of the Council's special meeting set for April 22 from an attendee at the trash sub-station meeting on April 10. He was not aware of the meeting or the article in the newspaper. It's a shame that Council members must learn of scheduled meetings from residents and other sources of an un-official nature.
Don't be fooled. St. Louis County is fully aware of where they stand, and continues to view this as an acceptable risk. The County is betting that no one will challenge the County Ordinance and action in Court. Unless this ordinance is challenged in court, the county will continue in the same direction, snubbing State statute and the residents they represent. Hopefully, someone will file legal action to end this thing.
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