I want to take a minute to chime in on this topic if I may. I am a new beekeeper but I'm not new to government works. As someone who worked in county government (many of those years in a court room) for almost 20-years, I can give you a little insight as I how see this. While this is a public forum and many people want to try to help, some have given misleading or completely wrong advice. And while I'm not in your state, my information is generic, so it could cross state lines.
When the city says that the information is private, it may be because someone filed an anonymous complaint. It happens. Not everyone wants to get "involved" other than to complain, so some local and county governments use the anonymous complaint option, almost like Crime Stoppers. Mine does. They do it with crime and they do it with zoning issues too. So they truly may not know who filed the complaint. If they do know who filed it, they may, and I said, may, be forced to reveal their source if it goes to court -- depends on the law there. Some courts say that the accused have the right to face their accuser - but if you're dealing with compliance issues and not a criminal or civil charge, that may not be the case of facing your accuser.
Regardless of what some are telling you here, its not so easy to fight city hall. Running down to the court house to fight in a court room is just fine if you have the time and the money. But remember, you're dealing with an entity with lots of money, so they have the upper hand. Believe me, I'm all for fighting for your rights, and if you are passionate enough about your cause, then go for the gusto. But..before you endeavor to fight city hall in a court room, you better do some price comparisons with attorneys who may represent you. They don't come cheap. Then there are the untold days you'll spend going to court, days out of work, untold delays for your side or the city's side -- and it could last months or a year or more. And for each time your lawyer works on your case, it is added to the bill. Example: a friend of mine was taken to civil court by another individual last year. My friend retained a civil attorney, but before the lawyer would take the case, my friend had to plunk down $10,000 cash as a retainer -- and his fee was $200 per hour, not including expenses. In the end, the plaintiff dropped the case against my friend...but his final bill anyway -- and they never stepped in the court house -- was $8,500. Think you could do it yourself? Looks good on television with Judge Judy but its not easy, rarely does the defendant win, and judges have little tolerance for the ignorance of counsel, especially if you act as yor own lawyer. There is a lot of truth to the saying, "a lawyer who represents himself has a fool for a client" -- so don't go into this blind. It ain't cheap.
I think you'll get more passion for your cause if you try to work with the city moreso than raise a stink. For example, call the zoning office and ask them just what ordinance(s) you're breaking and how could you comply. If they don't have ordinances that cover bee hives as a nuisance, then you might be in good shape -- because if the city decides to create one, you might be "grandfathered" as they say, meaning that your present hives could stay, but all future hives would be regulated. If they do have an ordinance, and you failed to abide by it, then you're probably in trouble -- and you'll have to face the music. Ignorance of the law (or an ordinance) is no defense in most courts. They'll just say it was your responsibilty to find out the law before you put them in.
By the way, someone here posted that you could ignore it. Sure you can, but that's really bad, bad advice from someone who chances are has no clue how the system works. Its foolish. Say the city tells you to move them and you don't. You think.."you know, maybe it will all go away..." and you ignore it. Some municipalities levy fines of $25, $50 or as much as $100 a day for violations, and if you say you don't have it to pay, they just put liens against your property so you can't sell it, and if you do, through a judgement they get their money first before you or anyone else. If you own no property but you owe fines, in some jurisdictions, they can ask a judge to issue a judgement that orders your wages to be garnished..including unemployment or government assistance benefits. Its never, ever wise to ignore something like this.
One more thing, many governments that have nuisance ordinances or laws can deal with the problem if you won't. That includes tearing down dangerous houses, mowing or bush-hogging out of control property, picking up problem dogs and cats -- and I suspect dealing with "problem" bees would fall under that umbrella too. Imagine coming home one day and your hives are gone because you failed to act on a nuisance complaint or you just ignored them. Do you want some public works employee showing up and dousing your hives down with insecticide and then carting away what's left? Good luck in getting a judge or jury to feel sorry for you when you ignored the issue. I've worked too hard for what I have and I'm sure you have too. I would never ignore something like this. My advice, whatever you do, do not ignore this!
Try to be friendly. Most city and county employees I know are nice people who just have a job to do. Of course, there are total jerks too, but most just want to do their jobs and go home like the rest of us. Like the old saying, you get more flies with honey than vinegar. Be cooperative. If you're are defensive right off the bat, then you can bet, it will work against you. I'm not saying to bow down and give up, not at all. But if you come across as willing to work WITH them instead of against them, you'll get farther. If they simply refuse, then go to the next level.
If it looks like zoning or compliance officials are unwilling to work with you, then go to the next step of the city manager or the city council. Ask to be put on the council's agenda -- and notify the compliance officer that you're taking it to the appeals process so they can stop possible fines until the city's leaders can hear your case. And remember, when you apear before a city council, the very people in zoning and compliance will be there so they can present their side, and if you've been uncooperative or nasty, they'll use it against you and your cause.
From there, get every possible bit of information on cities that have enacted ordinances involving beekeeping so you can present it. If you Google it, you'll find where quite a few cities that have enacted beekeeping ordinances, and many have actually made their ordinances workable for the beekeeper. Some cities have even relaxed their standards because of plight of the honey bee in recent years. One city to the north even dropped their ban to two hives per acre, and another dropped their ban on rooftop hives. There is a wealth of information out there. Use it.
Get help from beekeeping organizations in your state. I'm sure they can help too if you ask...maybe they've already helped someone in your state. If you have to appear before city council to fight for your cause, then having expert witnesses who know beekeeping inside and out can be a huge plus. Why? Because to the average person, including most elected or government officials, all they know is that bees have stingers and they've heard about "killer bees" and they've mistakenly lumped hornets, yellowjackets and all other stinging insects in with our beloved honey bees. You have to educate them about the honey bee and how they're helpful and rarely sting unless provoked or protecting their nest. Movies and reckless news accounts have done just as much harm to the honey bee as pesticides. So it is your job to help them learn just what we as beekeepers are doing to HELP the honey bee. I guarantee you that most of them have no clue what we do.
If that doesn't work then you can take it to court. But like I said before, you need to be prepared for a time-consuming battle that could cost a lot in so many ways. The little man (or woman) can win against the government but it won't necessarily come without a price tag. Never go into a situation blind.
Tip off the news media because they can be a big help in getting the word out. While they're supposed to be neutral, many television and radio stations and newspapers can bring your cause to the forefront and make people aware of what is happening -- thus helping you win more support. Always be sweet as honey when you present your cause in the media. If you appear radical, it will bite you on the backside.
I've written a novel here, but I hope you find it helpful. I know you're going through a rough time with this, and it is important to you. You have a hill to climb with this cause because many people have made up their minds that all things that fly and have a stinger are bad. You know that's not true and so do I. But are you willing to do what it takes to fight for what's right? Only you can make that decision -- I mean really make that decision -- and not let others who've never even seen a court room, except on television, tell you what to do.
I honestly wish you the best! Good luck on your endeavors! Let us know what you decide to do and how it works out for you.
