Washington Twp. Council Introduces Meeting Broadcast Rules

Local government meetings in Washington Township could be televised on local TV channel WCTV if the council approves a new ordinance setting guidelines for the broadcasts, but officials still have questions about the cost of the project and whether they even have the authority to tell the station's volunteers what to do.

The Washington Township Council voted 3-2 to introduce the ordinance during their meeting Monday night, with Steve Cascio, Joe D'Urso and Fred Goetz supporting the motion and Rich Hrbek and Glenn Beckmeyer voting against. The final vote on the ordinance will come at a later meeting.

Goetz said he thought it would be "a great thing" to broadcast the meetings because it would help make them available to residents who can't attend them in person.

Township attorney Ken Poller said there were still unanswered questions about the relationship between the town and WCTV. Though the town funds the station, it is run by volunteers and may count as an autonomous entity like the library, senior club or ambulance corps, he said.

Hrbek said he would prefer to figure out the exact relationship between the two before voting on an ordinance which could potentially set the number of times a meeting is required to be televised. He also questioned if the council setting it by law would be a potential violation of the station's freedom of the press.

"This is half-baked," Hrbek said. "We don't understand the relationship, we don't know what's going on."

Beckmeyer said he still wanted to know how much the equipment would cost and said they should consult with the WCTV volunteers to see if the requirements in the ordinance would create any hardships.

"I am still concerned about the cost of the whole program," he said.

Councilmen who supported the ordinance said discussions with officials from other towns led them to believe the costs would be a few thousand dollars.

"I don't think this is rocket science," D'Urso said. Other towns are doing it."

The next council meeting is scheduled for Dec. 9 at 7:30 p.m. in the township municipal building.