Stanford Legislative and Rules Committee Meeting: October 27, 2025
Stanford Legislative and Rules Committee Meeting: October 27, 2025
The Legislative and Rules Committee of the Stanford Board of Representatives convened to address three major legislative items: a tax exemption for veterans, a comprehensive tree preservation ordinance, and a regulation on the sale of dogs and cats in pet stores. The meeting addressed public misinformation regarding the timing of a public hearing for the first item and featured significant debate regarding municipal authority versus state preemption, particularly concerning the pet store ordinance.
Consent Calendar
- No specific consent calendar items were listed in the transcript; items were addressed individually as agenda items.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Kieran Edmondson (Waterside Community Resident): Expressed strong support for the veteran tax exemption ordinance, urging the committee to pass it to ensure veterans receive benefits and can own housing with lower costs.
- Stephen Fisher (Commander, Stanford Veterans Council): Expressed full support for the tax relief legislation but requested specific clarifications in the wording regarding disability classifications (100% disability, permanent total disability, or individual unemployability) to align with Veterans Administration terminology.
- Thomas Bouchard: Concerned that the proposed income qualification limits (cited by him as $14,000 for individuals and $16,000 for couples) were too low to be practical for veterans in the community and asked the committee to consider higher limits.
- David Adams: Expressed full support for the ordinance, citing the emotional distress caused by veterans living on the streets due to lack of care.
- Fern Galperin: Expressed strong support for the tree preservation ordinance, highlighting its role in improving stormwater management and air quality.
- Chris Donnelly (Retired Urban Forester): Expressed support for the tree ordinance, noting its clarity and leadership, though he had previously submitted written testimony regarding the division of roles between the Tree Warden and Urban Forester.
- Diana Collage: Expressed support, using a personal example of a "legacy tree" providing shade for nine neighbors to illustrate collective reliance on private trees for public benefit.
- Michael Moore (President, Stanford Downtown): Expressed conditional support, welcoming the program but registering concern that the Tree Commission's authority to deny tree removal applications could stifle mixed-use development and economic momentum in the downtown area.
- Robert Stein (50+ Year Resident): Expressed support, emphasizing the ecological importance of "legacy" or "mother trees" and calling for their protection.
- David Michelle: Expressed strong support, praising the ordinance for treating mature trees as "living infrastructure" and for the collaborative process leading to the update.
- Annie Hornish (CT Director, Humane World for Animals): Expressed strong support for the pet store dog/cat sale ban, stating the ordinance is legally sound under municipal police powers and offering to assist with legal defense if challenged.
Discussion Items
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Veterans Tax Exemption (LR 31.108):
- Greg Stackpole (City Assessor): Clarified that the state mandate originally intended for 100% disabled veterans only, but a subsequent amendment allowed municipalities to create a local option for those with "Permanent and Total" (PNT) ratings even if not 100%, and to include veterans who served during peacetime (capped at a $5,000 exemption on assessed value). He clarified the income limit intent as $100,000 for singles and $120,000 for couples.
- Seth Lepine (Veterans Affairs Trustee): Clarified that the VA rating system is confusing, does not distinguish between combat and non-combat injuries (rating based on active duty service), and that a zero percent rating still allows for the application process.
- Representative Boger & Representative Sherwood: Discussed the proposed amendment from Stephen Fisher regarding disability language. It was decided to forward the email to Corporation Counsel.
- Representative Camparelli: Asked why full benefits aren't given to all disabled veterans and raised questions about unseen disabilities (PTSD); Stackpole reiterated the strict state guidelines regarding service time and war periods.
- Representative Cotrell: Suggested passing the ordinance as is to avoid the need for a new public hearing, given the tight timing before the December board change.
- Representative Thomas: Expressed uncertainty on how to vote due to constituent concerns about government authority on private property regarding the tree ordinance (though this was a side comment during the tree discussion).
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Tree Preservation Ordinance (LR 31.106):
- Representative Boger: Defended the ordinance, stating Stanford is "last man standing" in the state regarding tree preservation and emphasizing the 50-year timeline for trees to mature.
- Representative Goldberg: Expressed serious concerns about the regulation of private property and fees ($40/inch), arguing it feels like control rather than collaboration and that the city should invest in incentives (planting) rather than fees for removal.
- Representative Sherwood: Countered Goldberg strongly, citing that Hartford, New Haven, and New York City have broader ordinances and that Stanford is significantly behind. She argued the fee is designed to encourage a pause for reflection and can be avoided by replanting.
- Representative Lally & Representative Camparelli: Discussed the legal standard of "substantial evidence" required for the Tree Commission to deny removals, confirming the commission cannot act on personal preference but must rely on factual data.
- Melanie Hollis (Parks & Rec Commission Chair): Noted that Stanford received less funding for urban forestry projects due to lacking an ordinance and shared data that 37 towns require private property tree removal permits.
- Attorney Toma: Confirmed that under Connecticut law, the city has the authority to pass tree ordinances despite state statutes, though the specific fee structure requires careful legal grounding.
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Pet Store Sales Regulation (LR 31.072):
- Attorney Toma (Law Department): Stated the committee lacks the authority to pass the ordinance due to state preemption. He cited that the state has occupied the field with ~15 statutes and regulations administered by the Department of Agriculture. He advised there is an 80% chance of losing in court if challenged, though a 20% chance exists based on general municipal welfare powers.
- Representative Sherwood: Argued that state inaction (failure to pass HB 6832 in time) does not equal preemption. She suggested passing the ordinance anyway to force a legal resolution and potentially change state law, noting other municipalities (like Hartford) have successfully done this.
- Representative De la Cruz: Concur with Sherwood, stating there is no explicit statute barring municipalities and that the city should have the "courage to take the risk" to clarify the law for everyone.
- Representative Fidely: Expressed discomfort with passing an ordinance deemed illegal by the law department, despite the intention to stop puppy mills.
- Representative Camparelli: Argued the reward outweighs the risk, noting major chains (Petco, PetSmart) no longer sell these animals, reducing the likelihood of a lawsuit.
- Discussion on Litigation Funding: Representative Boger inquired about a written agreement with the Humane Society to cover legal costs. Attorney Toma noted that while possible, the city law department could not represent the committee in court if the committee voted against the law department's opinion, requiring outside counsel.
Key Outcomes
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Veterans Tax Exemption (LR 31.108):
- Vote: Passed unanimously by voice vote (Aye).
- Directives: The ordinance for the public hearing and final adoption of the tax exemption is approved as is. The committee will forward Stephen Fisher's proposed wording changes to Corporation Counsel for review for future consideration.
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Tree Preservation Ordinance (LR 31.106):
- Vote: Passed unanimously by voice vote (Aye).
- Directives: The ordinance amending Chapter 227 to establish a comprehensive tree preservation and urban forestry program is approved.
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Pet Store Sales Regulation (LR 31.072):
- Vote: Passed unanimously by voice vote (Aye) after a motion to suspend rules was made to take up the item out of turn.
- Directives: The committee voted to adopt the ordinance regulating the sale of dogs and cats in pet stores, effectively overriding the Law Department's recommendation regarding authority, in hopes of forcing a legal clarification of municipal powers. The item now moves to the full Board of Representatives.
Meeting Transcript
My name is Philip Burns. I am the chair of the legislative and rules committee. Also in this meeting this evening is Sean Boger, the vice chair of this committee. And I want to apologize to members of the public that I called me today on the first item on the agenda, which is the tax exemption for veterans, or at least certain veterans, and that I was misinformed by one of them who I asked to read the agenda item, and they told me the word hearing did not pop up here in there. And so there is a public hearing, so they are permitted. So anyone from the public may speak on this matter. Um to do so Barbara, they can call. Can you tell us what number they can call, please? The time for signing up in advance has closed. So what we would do is we would go through the uh list of people who had signed up by two o'clock today, and then at the end of that period, we would ask anyone who wants to speak but was not already called to go ahead and raise their hand and we would take them in turn. Right. But the but the step. I guess anybody hearing me, I guess anybody hearing me already is signed on, but if you have friends, relatives, acquaintances, neighbors, coworkers, et cetera, who want to be involved, uh they can uh if they don't have access to teams for any reason, they can call by telephone 929346 72 76. I'm sorry, 7262. I'm dyslexic this evening, but um and uh and the way to so then there's a way to mute and unmute, and there's a way to raise your hand and lower your hand. And Barbara, what are those ways, please? Star five is to raise your hand, star six is to mute and unmute. If you do use the phone or tell someone to use the phone to call in, there is a phone conference ID number they will be asked. That number is highlighted on the agenda on the screen. If anyone has their camera on or is using a device and can see it, if you can't, I'll read it out for you nice and slowly. The phone conference ID number is 22934 901, and then it will have you hit pound. So if you need to share the information with someone, they can do that, or they can open the agenda on our website, board of reps.org, and they can use the little join meeting now link, and that would take you in on a computer or a smartphone or a tablet. Would it take them in if they did not have teams loaded on their computer? That one I'm not sure about. So at the very least, they can call the number that's vaguely in the middle of the screen, uh, and then enter the phone conference identification, which is on the following line. All right, so again, Phil Burns, this is legislative and rules committee of the Board of Representatives, the legislative body of the city of Stanford. Today is Monday, October 27th, 2025, and I'm going to ask Barbara Montalvo, our staff person, to please call roll. Thank you. Let me get the roll call. I already have updated a few folks as I saw them enter. Let me go with committee members that are not accounted for yet. Representative Pierre Louis, are you here? Representative Sherwood. President. Thank you. Representative Vanderboard. I'm here. Thank you. I also see Representative Tomas. And I see Representative Goldberg. Mark you here. If any other representatives are on the line and are not presently accounted for on the sheet, please feel free to unmute yourself and announce yourself, and I will put you on the list. Barbara, I'm going to ask, please, that we do an oral road roll call for the for the record. Okay. Representative Burns. I am present. Representative Blank is excused. Representative Boger. Present. Representative Cottrell.
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