Board approves contract with Starlink

SANDPOINT — Bonner County commissioners doubled back on a contract Tuesday with a satellite internet provider after an open meeting violation was reported.

Commissioners initially approved the contract with Starlink on Nov. 24 to purchase equipment and fund a service contract which will enable 26 essential county employees to work from home. The item was placed on the board's agenda as an emergency action due to the looming deadline for Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act funding, also known as the CARES Act.

However, Priest River resident Anne Wilder filed an open meeting law complaint because the nature of the emergency was not specifically addressed by the board.

"This purchase needs to be deemed null and void and with a public acknowledgement of the void," Wilder said in her open meeting complaint.

Bonner County Deputy Prosecutor Bill Wilson, the board's civil counsel, said there was a discussion on the action item and its emergency nature.

"We essentially failed to talk about that at the beginning of the meeting. We did it in the middle — kind of a procedural error but an error nonetheless," Wilson said on Tuesday.

Commissioners voided the board's prior action, prompting them to revisit the matter on Tuesday. Commissioners Dan McDonald and Jeff Connolly approved the $45,162 contract with Starlink without discussion.

"The Starlink contract was added at the last minute as we received late notice of approval from Starlink, the desire to get connectivity from home, and the potential to be reimbursed by the state of Idaho (risk of financial loss)," The board said in a memo on Tuesday.

The county is contracting with Starlink, a satellite internet constellation being constructed by SpaceX, so employees are able to work from home during the novel coronavirus pandemic.

"This purchase is in response to COVID-19 and essential employees having the ability to tele-work from home to maintain the continuity of operations for Bonner County government services," Bob Howard, director of Bonner County Emergency Management, said on Nov. 24.

The presence of a Starlink facility along Colburn Culver Road has been a source of consternation for nearby residents who contend it poses a public health risk and due to radio wave sickness.

Opponents of the installation further argue that it was put in place without any public review of the proposal. Residents have used the public comment portion of the county commission's agenda in recent months to voice their disapproval of the installation.