Dear editor:

A public hearing of the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) was held last Monday to review the Draft of the Development Standards and Regulations (DSR). The presenters portrayed the new DSR as just formatting and administrative changes, updating definitions, and updates impacted by statutory language changes that bring the DSR into alignment with state and federal law. The presenters said this round was intended simply to address “low hanging fruit.” 

Most citizens lack sufficient stamina or time to go through 307 pages of the redline draft but you only need to go to page 16 (Chapter 1, Section 5 (Appeals)), describing how someone may appeal a decision made by the Planning and Zoning Commission, Planning and Zoning director, or county engineer, to find the first serious issue. 

The draft makes clear that person appealing a decision (appellant) may appear before the BOCC where the appellant, staff and members of the public may testify. The burden of proof rests with the appellant, but a new item has now been added, “(1) Evidence: Formal rules of evidence shall not be followed during the hearings.  The Chair, or presiding officer shall have the power to decide what evidence is material to the appeal,” and the full board shall not have the authority to override these regulations. 

This differs from the procedures for abatement hearings that must meet the requirements of the Wyoming Administrative Procedures Act requiring that all relevant evidence, objections or protests and sworn testimony of the hearing’s participants be heard.  

We live in a democracy but it would appear that some leaders and staff of Park County government believe that the board is somehow a monarchy where a queen can discard or amend administrative procedures individually and arbitrarily to meet her whim. The queen alone gets to tip the scales of the hearing in whatever way she likes. Long Live the Queen!

This single chapter is just one of the many serious problems with this draft. They have advertised this phase as a very modest updating but don’t believe them. This is a blatant grab for power that is hidden deep in a tome they think no citizen will wade through and uncover. I propose the BOCC table this draft at least until after the next election. Three of the five commissioners will be up for reelection in 2026 (Steward, Overfield and Thiel) and the voters of Park County can be heard. The new BOCC can then decide if the current directors and their staffs have been reflecting the will of the people. Let’s do away with the entitled monarchy and let democracy reign.  

Jim Dougherty

Cody