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WHATCOM COUNTY COUNCIL
Special Committee of the Whole
November 10, 2015
CALL TO ORDER
Council Chair Carl Weimer called the meeting to order at 2:12 in the Council
Chambers, 311 Grand Avenue, Bellingham, Washington.
ROLL CALL
Present: Barbara Brenner, Ken Mann, Satpal Sidhu, Carl Weimer, Pete Kremen,
Rud Browne and Barry Buchanan.
Absent: None.
1. DISCUSSION REGARDING POSSIBLE CHANGES TO THE GENERAL AREAS OF
RESPONSIBILITY ASSIGNED TO COUNTY COUNCIL COMMITTEES AND A
PROPOSAL TO RENAME THE COUNCIL'S PUBLIC WORKS, HEALTH, AND
SAFETY COMMITTEE (AB2015 -340)
Brenner stated more issues should be going to her committee, but many are only
going to Finance Committee.
Mann stated criminal justice is a huge issue. The question is how the County Council
will demonstrate some leadership on this issue. His goal is to send the message that Public
Works, Health, and Safety Committee is the place to have discussion about the jail, the
triage center, and the Incarceration Prevention and Reduction Task Force. However, those
issues are only going to the Finance Committee. They need more discussion and interaction
with the administration and Sheriff through that committee. The Council needs a bigger
role.
Weimer stated he agrees with Councilmember Mann. It makes sense to hear about
programs in the correct committee, while the actual contracts can go to the Finance
Committee.
Buchanan stated he also agrees. Programs should be discussed in the appropriate
committee, and then finances should be discussed in the Finance Committee.
Sidhu stated 60 percent of the County budget is spent on public safety. However, it
seems public safety issues are presented to the Council less often than other issues. The
Council has a responsibility to the residents to engage in issues and be subject to public
scrutiny.
Brenner stated public works issues also go straight to Finance Committee, not the
Public Works Committee. Anything regarding a program should go to a related committee
fi rst.
Special Committee of the Whole, 11/10/2015, Page 1
1 Dana Brown - Davis, Clerk of the Council, asked the Committee of the Whole to give
2 her direction on how to change the code.
3
4 Weimer stated they are fine with keeping the current committee name, and don't
5 want to change the name of the committee or the code. Policy and program discussions
6 should go to the committee for discussion before the contracts show up in the Finance
7 Committee.
8
9 The Committee of the Whole concurred.
10
11 Kremen stated things need to be routed differently.
12
13 Weimer stated the councilmembers don't see the agenda until they get the packet.
14 A draft agenda could go to the Council Chair for review before it's finalized.
15
16 Kremen stated the draft agenda could go to all councilmembers. Brown -Davis stated
17 the timelines make it difficult for her to wait for feedback from all councilmembers.
18
19 Mann stated he trusts Ms. Brown -Davis to respond to the Council's concerns
20 accordingly after this discussion.
21
22 Weimer stated they need to let the administration know about having programmatic
23 discussions before approving contracts.
24
25 Tyler Schroeder, Executive's Office, stated he will consult with the Clerk about the
26 best way to schedule programs versus contracts.
27
28 Mann stated the councilmembers can also request more programmatic information
29 from the administration.
30
31 2. DISCUSSION REGARDING WORK ASSIGNMENT PROPOSALS FOR THE
32 COUNCIL'S LEGISLATIVE ANALYST (AB2015 -341)
33
34 Weimer stated they need to make clear how the Council decides to give direction to
35 the policy analyst. In the past, the Council required a two - thirds majority vote to give
36 direction.
37
38 Brenner stated individual councilmembers shouldn't monopolize his time in any way.
39 Assignments should go through the Council. She would be fine with assignments approved
40 by either majority or supermajority.
41
42 Buchanan moved to authorize work assignments to the Council legislative analyst
43 by a majority vote of the Council. The motion was seconded.
44
45 Kremen stated the Whatcom County Council is the only council in the State that is
46 part -time. In other counties, each councilmember has full -time staff assistants in addition
47 to the administrative staff. If they are going to require a majority, any councilmember with
48 different views would never get assistance from the legislative analyst.
49
50 Weimer stated they don't want to put the policy analyst in the position of being
51 between two sides of an issue.
52
Special Committee of the Whole, 11/10/2015, Page 2
1 Brenner stated his work must be focused on the issues that are important to the
2 majority or supermajority. It wasn't a problem before.
3
4 Buchanan stated that he will have a full workload with items assigned by the full
5 Council, and there wouldn't be time to work on other issues anyway.
6
7 Mann stated he would like the legislative analyst to distill information for the
8 councilmembers, not come up with answers for the councilmembers.
9
10 Kremen stated he envisioned having someone who would assist councilmembers with
11 their jobs, not research issues, as long as they don't abuse the privilege. He envisions the
12 staff person looking into things that a constituent brings up, for example.
13
14 Browne stated he cautions the Council from asking certain questions that would
15 suggest a bias one way or another. A hybrid approach could be to divide the legislative
16 analyst's time between official Council assignments and by time allotted to each
17 councilmember.
18
19 Weimer stated major work assignments should be assigned by the Council, but that
20 doesn't prevent the councilmembers from asking small questions as necessary.
21
22 Buchanan stated that's how it worked at the City. It was left up to the analyst's
23 discretion. Anything outside the scope of a short conversation had to be approved by the
24 Council. The City allowed the analyst to use his own discretion on those matters.
25
26 Browne stated it's not hard for him to keep track of his hours, like lawyers do. If
27 constituents have questions that require research, he doesn't want to have to bring up the
28 issue before the public and breach that constituent's privacy by putting something on the
29 public record at the beginning stage of a question. He would rather ask the analyst.
30
31 Brenner stated councilmembers were elected to do just that for constituents.
32 Funnel those questions through the Clerk of the Council. The analyst should do what he
33 needs to without pressure from individual councilmembers.
34
35 Mann stated this position should not be doing the administration's work or the
36 councilmembers' work. He's envisioned a person who would provide information
37 independent from the administration on complex issues. They don't need to keep track of
38 his time or assign an allotment of time to each councilmember.
39
40 Sidhu stated Councilmember Kremen stated any councilmember can have important
41 information and should be able to ask questions, as long as it isn't abused. However, it's
42 not a good idea to require a majority for everything.
43
44 Forrest Longman, Council Office, stated he is comfortable being able to draw the line
45 between Council assignments and individual requests.
46
47 Browne stated that if the entire work schedule requires approval of the full Council,
48 then everything becomes public. Some of the questions the councilmembers have asked
49 about have resulted in answers that councilmembers didn't need to bring up publicly,
50 because it would have created the wrong impression or cast aspersions on someone. It's
51 not appropriate to force every assignment through public debate.
52
Special Committee of the Whole, 11/10/2015, Page 3
1 Brenner stated she's not sure that he is supposed to look up confidential information
2 about people. She asked if Mr. Longman is comfortable telling any councilmember that
3 they've talked enough. Longman stated he is. He works for the entire Council, regardless
4 of how friendly he is with one person or another. He's a professional and can keep that
5 context.
6
7 Kremen stated they have selected the right person for the job. The process will
8 evolve over time. Things will work out. Use common sense, courtesy, and respect.
9
10 Brown -Davis stated she encourages the Council to require a majority vote for major
11 assignments. Many times she's worked on something for a councilmember for hours, and
12 yet no other councilmember has been interested.
13
14 Browne stated allocate a certain amount of Mr. Longman's time, such as an hour, per
15 councilmember each week that doesn't require a Council vote.
16
17 The motion to require a majority vote for major assignments carried by the following
18 vote:
19 Ayes: Brenner, Mann, Sidhu, Browne, Buchanan, Weimer and Kremen (7)
20 Nays: None (0)
21
22 Brenner stated she's opposed to assigning more than an hour of Mr. Longman's time
23 per week to each councilmember.
24
25 Kremen stated that if a problem develops, they can take action. For now, just
26 proceed with respect and common sense, and see how things go. If necessary, they can
27 define it further in the future.
28
29 Sidhu stated allocating some time for each councilmember is a good thing. An
30 individual member may have different ideas and need to learn information. One hour per
31 week doesn't overload anyone. If there is an abuse of that time, Mr. Longman would speak
32 up. Enable councilmembers to take questions to him.
33
34 Brenner stated it's the job of the councilmembers to look into things.
35 Councilmembers are smart enough to look into things themselves.
36
37 Sidhu stated councilmembers have limited time and knowledge about issues.
38 Councilmember Brenner has many years on the Council. New people need help once in a
39 while.
40
41 Browne stated he treats the analyst's position as a specialist to either use their skill
42 and experience to help him solve a problem or use their knowledge to tell him where to get
43 the information to solve the problem on his own. He expects to be able to go to an analyst
44 and ask where to get the information he needs. That isn't an abdication of his responsibility
45 to the public. It leverages his time to the public's benefit.
46
47 Buchanan stated it's premature to start assigning time per councilmember. They
48 need feedback first, before making that kind of a decision.
49
50 Weimer stated he agrees with Councilmembers Kremen and Buchanan. Leave the
51 process loose now, and see how things go.
52
Special Committee of the Whole, 11/10/2015, Page 4
1 Browne moved to see how things go and revisit this in 90 days. The motion was
2 seconded.
3
4 Mann suggested a friendly amendment to revisit in six months, not 90 days.
5
6 Browne accepted the friendly amendment to revisit the process in six months.
7
8 Weimer stated he will not vote for the motion. There is already a feedback loop
9 through the Council Chair and Council Clerk.
10
11 The motion carried by the following vote:
12 Ayes: Mann, Sidhu, Browne, and Kremen (4)
13 Nays: Weimer, Brenner and Buchanan (3)
14
15 Kremen stated it's common practice to do a general overall evaluation and review
16 after a certain amount of time.
17
18 Brenner moved that the six month review should be a full employee evaluation, not
19 just a review of whether councilmembers need an hour of his time per week. They can talk
20 about what is working well and what can be done better. The motion was not seconded.
21
22 Weimer asked what work assignments should be given to Mr. Longman.
23
24 Browne stated a potential assignment is to do a review of all the committees in the
25 County, including doing a survey of where they are, determining when the next deliverables
26 are due, talking to the committee chairs and members to see if they're functional and what
27 they need, determining their strengths and weaknesses, and determining if the Council can
28 do anything to make them more effective.
29
30 Mann stated such a review would help Mr. Longman learn everything the County is
31 doing and develop relationships around the County.
32
33 Brenner stated also look into finding out which committees have money assigned to
34 them for facilitation and other work.
35
36 Sidhu stated he supports the motion. Some committees may no longer exist, and
37 haven't been formally closed. Whenever the Council makes a new committee, most should
38 include a sunset date, so there is an automatic review. He started to work on such a
39 review, and would like to help with that project.
40
41 Weimer stated he would like to look also at the committees that the Executive
42 appoints.
43
44 Browne moved to assign to the legislative analyst an in -depth review of Council
45 advisory committees. The motion was seconded.
46
47 Kremen suggested a friendly amendment to do a review, but delete the words
48 "in-depth."
49
50 Browne accepted the friendly amendment.
51
52
Special Committee of the Whole, 11/10/2015, Page 5
1 The motion carried by the following vote:
2 Ayes: Brenner, Mann, Sidhu, Browne, Buchanan, Weimer and Kremen (7)
3 Nays: None (0)
4
5 Brenner stated assign Mr. Longman to research issues regarding the jail. Provide a
6 general overview.
7
8 Weimer stated they need to be more specific.
9
10 Mann stated it is a big topic. The first step would be for Mr. Longman to get up -to-
11 speed on what the recent proposal was and what the current population is. He could attend
12 the Task Force meetings, work with the jail planner, and attend meetings with staff and the
13 jail.
14
15 Browne stated he agrees, but don't duplicate the efforts of the Task Force facilitator.
16
17 Mann stated attending the Task Force meetings and listening to the discussion is the
18 assignment.
19
20 Brenner stated he could also listen to the recordings after the meetings.
21
22 Browne asked what is the deliverable the Council will get from Mr. Longman at the
23 end. The Council is asking him to leverage the councilmembers' time and do things that the
24 councilmembers don't have the time, resources, or experience to do. He wants to make
25 sure they will get something of value at the end of it that they wouldn't get from some other
26 source.
27
28 Kremen stated it makes sense for Mr. Longman to become more familiar with the jail
29 issue. Right now, the Council doesn't know what it will do and when. It isn't prudent for
30 Mr. Longman to immerse himself educating himself about a jail when the County doesn't
31 know if or when it will ever be built. The Council, Sheriff, and Executive should work in
32 tandem as they move forward. The Council should be more emphatic about working with
33 the Executive branch and the other elected and administrative officials. He doesn't need to
34 spend a significant amount of time on the jail at this point.
35
36 Brenner stated she would like to hear from Mr. Longman about the pros and cons of
37 different things, such as jail size and services. The Task Force has an agenda. It would be
38 nice if the Council could hear the pros and cons of their agenda.
39
40 Weimer stated at some time soon, the Task Force will start identifying key issues.
41 Once those issues are identified, the Council can assign Mr. Longman to look at those
42 issues. Until he gets caught up on the issue, there isn't a deliverable other than becoming
43 knowledgeable.
44
45 Browne stated the Council passed a resolution to build three models to help the
46 community work out the right size of the jail and correct cost allocation. The Executive
47 doesn't have enthusiasm for that at this point, because the sales tax initiative didn't pass.
48 Those questions still need to be answered. They could direct Mr. Longman to build those
49 models.
50
51 Weimer stated he could get caught up on the issues, and then talk to the Council
52 about what will go into the models.
53
Special Committee of the Whole, 11/10/2015, Page 6
Browne stated he could draft the model as part of the deliverable. He should be able
to understand the issues enough so he can put together a model that is accessible to the
entire public.
Brenner stated she likes the idea of Mr. Longman reporting to the Council to begin
with. He should not provide deliverables without the Council giving him direction on what
should be in the deliverable.
Browne stated that when they define a deliverable, they give him instructions about
what they want to receive.
Brenner stated the Task Force would be a better way to come up with those kinds of
deliverables. Mr. Longman should be aware of what the Task Force wants in general terms,
not in deliverables.
Sidhu stated the information the Council received on the jail from April through
August 2015 seemed one - sided. It needs to be reviewed. There is existing data that
should be validated. He was frustrated with the standard answers to the questions that the
councilmembers asked. Mr. Longman can research the data and determine whether the
councilmembers' questions were adequately answered.
Weimer stated he's not sure they're ready to make a list of what the Council wants in
the model or what those deliverables are. Let Mr. Longman get caught up and come up
with a report on where the disagreements seemed to occur.
Browne stated the first model was to determine the true jail use among the
jurisdictions. That model uses data that already exists. The second model was to
determine the correct size of the jail and how the efforts of the Task Force, if implemented,
will affect the demand. That question can't be answered now because the Task Force hasn't
finished its work. That model will show changes if the County adopts certain recommended
programs. The third model is the impact between the jurisdictions on the different financial
methods, which is a later issue.
Mann moved to assign to the legislative analyst tasks to get caught up on the jail
issue, learning what the conversation has been, listening to past meetings, and attending or
listening to future meetings. He should come back to the Council in 90 days with a report
and asking for the next level of assignment. The motion was seconded.
Brenner suggested a friendly amendment that Mr. Longman present ideas on
what needs to be figured out.
Mann accepted the friendly amendment.
Browne suggested a friendly amendment that he identify things that should go
into the models from the resolution.
Mann accepted the friendly amendment to identify things quantifiable that could be
in the model, but he shouldn't begin creating a new model. The administration should be
working on the model. Don't assign things the administration should be working on. The
analyst should ground -truth any report or data the Council receives.
Browne stated the administration hasn't refused to do the model. Now that the
funding source is not available, there is less urgency.
Special Committee of the Whole, 11/10/2015, Page 7
1
2 Buchanan asked if this request is clear to Mr. Longman. Longman stated he's
3 hearing that they want him to learn about the jail, figure out what the big issues are, and
4 report on what he's identified as the big issues and questions, in a quantifiable way.
5
6 Weimer stated Mr. Longman should talk with each councilmember about their
7 thoughts on the jail.
8
9 Browne stated the DLR report, which was attached to the resolution, identified 20
10 variables that could affect the jail population. The report didn't include any kind of formula.
11 Keep track of and quantify the issues that could affect jail population.
12
13 The motion carried by the following vote:
14 Ayes: Brenner, Mann, Sidhu, Browne, Buchanan, Weimer and Kremen (7)
15 Nays: None (0)
16
17 Weimer stated the Council is the supervisor for the Hearing Examiner. The Hearing
18 Examiner contract is running out at the end of this year. Another huge project is coming up
19 in the future. Think about doing a separate contract for another hearing examiner, or
20 letting this Hearing Examiner do the project and find someone else to do his general work.
21 The Hearing Examiner contract as written now gives him the authority, not the Council, to
22 make that decision. He moved to assign Mr. Longman the task of seeing how other
23 counties deal with their hearing examiners, whether there are hearing examiners that
24 specialize in port facilities, and to give the Council some options. The motion was seconded.
25
26 Brenner stated she thought it was clarified that it would be a completely separate
27 contract.
28
29 Weimer stated he checked, and it has never been clarified. The current Hearing
30 Examiner is interested in taking on the work himself, so the Council needs to make it clear
31 about what work he is bidding on.
32
33 Brenner stated she would like it to be a completely separate hearing examiner. The
34 project applicant is paying those costs, so it may be a conflict of interest to have him do
35 both.
36
37 Weimer stated that's the direction he's leaning, but Tyler Schroeder made a good
38 point that the current Hearing Examiner knows the County's laws and rules, so they
39 shouldn't hire someone from Seattle who doesn't know them and who is more apt to make
40 a mistake.
41
42 Browne stated he supports the motion. He's prone to allow the current Hearing
43 Examiner an opportunity to work on the large project. He has served the community for a
44 long time. If he wants that opportunity to pursue it, the Council should consider it.
45
46 Weimer stated they have to go through a competitive bid process at the end of the
47 year, so there should be no assumption that the current Hearing Examiner is part of this at
48 all. At this time, the Council shouldn't talk about it as if he was going to be appointed.
49
50 Mann stated he would like to know what other counties do in similar situations and
51 whether there are port specialists.
52
Special Committee of the Whole, 11/10/2015, Page 8
Browne stated that if one hearing examiner works only on that project, the County
won't need that person at the end of that project.
Buchanan stated that would be the contract.
Weimer stated change the clause in the current contract that allows the current
Hearing Examiner to hire another hearing examiner when the caseload becomes too much.
The motion carried by the following vote:
Ayes: Brenner, Mann, Sidhu, Browne, Buchanan, Weimer and Kremen (7)
Nays: None (0)
Sidhu stated assign to Mr. Longman a study of the economic development
opportunities in Whatcom County. Learn what other counties have done. Consider what it
would take to bring in Canadian businesses and other businesses from the south. See how
other counties are presenting themselves as a good place to locate. Identify those factors.
Analyze what they are doing well and what they are not doing well.
Brenner stated work with the University and local chambers of commerce, who would
come up with ideas. Mr. Longman could analyze those ideas.
Sidhu moved to assign a comparative study of economic development factors that
could benefit Whatcom County to bring jobs here. The motion was not seconded.
Browne stated that is the job of the associate development organization (ADO).
Whatcom County is one of four counties in the state that has chosen the Port to be their
ADO. There are organizations that specialize in exactly that. It may be more appropriate to
find one of those organizations that does this work around the country. Skagit County has
been very successful. It has a very different structure. Their ADO is run by a board of 18
people, 14 of whom are from the private sector. Four are from the government sector.
Also, Skagit County spends $5 per capita on economic development. Whatcom County
spends $1 per capita. He would work with Councilmember Sidhu on this issue. The
County's economic development investment (EDI) money isn't being well -used. It doesn't
create a lot of long -term jobs.
Weimer stated take a very targeted look at what other counties do and how other
counties use their EDI money and what County money is used to do those things. Compare
Whatcom County to what the Economic Development Association of Skagit County (EDASC)
does.
Mann stated water is a big issue for the County, including the water action plan,
Planning Unit, water resources inventory area (WRIA) 1, and the Tribes' allocation. The
legislative analyst should have a good grasp on water issues in Whatcom County. Read the
water action plan and Planning Unit minutes. He should learn about water rights and water
allocation, flooding, drinking, and irrigation.
Brenner stated that suggestion is too broad and should be more specific.
Longman stated he has much to learn about the County in general, in addition to
these topics. He will be reading about many of these issues to familiarize himself with
everything going on in this organization so he can be a strong resource for the Council.
Special Committee of the Whole, 11/10/2015, Page 9
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Browne stated Mr. Longman should also study the transfer of development rights
(TDR) and purchase of development rights (PDR) programs. He was disturbed that the
County would not be eligible for federal funding for the reverse auction program.
Weimer stated that this summer, he would like Mr. Longman to help the Council
interpret the budget when it comes forward.
Browne stated have Mr. Longman research what other jurisdictions do for their
purchasing policies, about which there is some tension between the Council and
administration.
Kremen stated the County is bound by the Charter on what it can and can't do about
its purchasing policy. The Council has a pretty good idea of what they do and don't want to
do.
Browne stated there have been several instances in which the County only receives
one or two bids on the contracts it lets. Other jurisdictions may have found a way to
encourage more bidders, which would automatically give the County better pricing.
Consider how the County could get more bids and what are the policies of other jurisdictions
when contract costs expand due to a contract scope that incrementally expands.
Kremen stated that is an administrative issue, not a legislative issue. He agrees the
process needs to be improved. The Council's new analyst is learning about the job. Don't
prioritize the purchasing policies.
Brenner stated the Council can change the policy. Bid procedures and contract
management are issues separate from the purchasing code changes that the Council wanted
to approve.
OTHER BUSINESS
There was no other business.
ADJOURN
The meeting adjourned at 3:44 p.m.
The Council approved these minutes on February 23, 2016.
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Jill Nixon, Minutes Transcription
Special Committee of the Whole, 11/10/2015, Page 10