Reuben Shukman, a resident who said he previously worked 15 years for the city as tourism marketing director for the Hays Convention & Visitors Bureau, told the City Commission on July 10 that fireworks debris left after July 4 littered his yard and roof.

“I was surprised to see we picked up buckets and buckets of fireworks debris from our front yard, our backyard,” Shukman said. He told commissioners that cardboard fireworks cartridges were collected from gutters and rooflines and that his family worried about downspouts clogging. Shukman said he contacted the police and wrote to a city contact to ask about enforcement of littering rules and whether it is permissible for debris from one property to end up in a neighbor’s yard.

Shukman said he believed many residents who dislike fireworks do not speak up at meetings and suggested a majority of Hays residents may prefer restrictions. He asked whether he could distribute handouts to commissioners and provided materials to the clerk.

Mayor Sandy Jacobs thanked Shukman for the comments and said the commission would consider the issue. Later in the meeting Commissioner Musil returned to the topic and said the city should “maybe reassess” fireworks rules and enforcement, noting she hears both strong support and strong opposition among residents and that the community is roughly “50‑50.”

No ordinance change or formal direction to staff was made at the meeting; the remarks were recorded as citizen comment and discussed briefly by commissioners.