Title
Discussion and Possible Action on Potential Ordinances to Consider in 2025
Recommended Action
For each potential ordinance:
I move that Council direct the County Manager to remand an ordinance on _____________ to the __________________ Board/Commission/Task Force/Working Group and ask that the group provide a recommendation.
OR
I move that Council support _______________ ordinance(s) and further specify the engagement and input process specific to each ordinance.
OR
I move that Council not support an ordinance on ______________.
Body
In previous Council and staff discussions, several potential ordinances have been discussed. It was requested by Councilor Ryti to bring to Council several ordinances to discuss and decide on the path forward for each one. These ordinances include ones that have had some prior Council discussions and public engagement including: charging a fee for single-use plastics; discouraging vacant and abandoned properties; and raising the minimum wage. A brief history of these ordinances is below.
Single-use plastics
The effort to address plastic bag use in Los Alamos began in 2015 with a citizen petition to ban single-use plastic bags and impose a $0.10 fee on paper bags. After public meetings and surveys, where 80% opposed a ban and 72% opposed reducing distribution, the Environmental Sustainability Board (ESB) recommended education over regulation. In 2019, another petition sought to ban plastic bags, straws, and Styrofoam, prompting the County Council to form a subcommittee. By FY2021 budget process, Council actions focused on education campaigns, funding washable utensils for schools, and a feasibility study on food composting, but no plastic bag ban was implemented.
Vacant and abandoned properties
Council sponsored a town hall focused on a possible ordinance on commercial vacant properties on January 24, 2022. The public hearing for this ordinance, based on a similar ordinance in Raton, NM, was brought to the Coun...
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