City of Bellingham Hearing Examiner

The City of Bellingham Hearing Examiner convened on January 5, 2026, for a scheduled vehicle impound appeal hearing, but the proceedings were immediately derailed by technical difficulties that prevented effective communication between the parties. The hearing involved file number HE25-VI050, an appeal by Chris Rossmiller challenging both the validity of a vehicle impound and associated towing and storage fees under Public Works file number 25B-71907. Hearing Examiner Sharon Rice, who serves the City of Bellingham and nine other jurisdictions under contract, attempted to conduct the hearing remotely with Rossmiller participating by phone while Budget Towing's representative joined via Zoom. However, severe audio connectivity issues made it impossible for Rossmiller to hear the examiner clearly, despite multiple attempts to adjust equipment and positioning. The technical problems stemmed from Rossmiller using a new phone that lacked Zoom software, forcing him to participate via a standard phone connection while other parties used video conferencing. After several minutes of troubleshooting proved unsuccessful, all parties agreed to reschedule the hearing to January 23, 2026, at 10:00 AM to allow Rossmiller time to resolve his technical setup. The brief session highlighted the ongoing challenges of conducting administrative hearings remotely, particularly when participants have varying levels of technical capability or equipment limitations. No substantive discussion of the impound appeal occurred due to the connectivity issues.