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For real estate with a fair market value under $50,000, unless the property was originally purchased for utility purposes, no public hearing is required. Here is a link to MRSC’s topic page Sale of Surplus City or Town Property where you will find the recommended steps for selling the property. You have already determined the fair market value so next is to have the council pass a resolution declaring the property to be surplus and directing how it is to be sold.

This topic page also describes when a public hearing is required for sale of property exceeding $50,000 in value:

• RCW 39.33.020 – Requires that a public hearing be held if the value of the surplus property exceeds $50,000. AGO 1997 No. 5 concluded that the public hearing requirement only applies to intergovernmental transfers.
• RCW 35.94.040 – Requires that a public hearing be held if property (real estate or personal property) originally purchased for utility purposes is no longer needed for that use and the city desires to lease, sell or convey the property. A hearing is required regardless of the value of the property.

The city may want to adopt local policies about surplus property if there is not an existing policy.

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MRSC has a webpage relating to Required Employment Posters. There are a number of resources on that webpage including a helpful fact sheet entitled, Workplace Posters: Required and Recommended, prepared by the Washington State Department of Labor and Industries (L&I). The fact sheet provides a list of posters that Washington State and federal agencies require or recommend employers post in their places of business. The fact sheet also includes online resources and contact numbers for state agencies that issue posters. MRSC's Required Employment Posters page also has links to federally-required employment posters. Note that the list is not intended to be exhaustive and we recommend you also consult with your agency attorney.

L&I also has a webpage entitled “Answers to questions about required workplace posters” that we recommend you review because it includes additional information about signage requirements including whether you are required to post in languages other than English.

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State law requires that minutes be maintained and made available for public inspection. RCW 42.30.035 states:

The minutes of all regular and special meetings except executive sessions of such boards, commissions, agencies or authorities shall be promptly recorded and such records shall be open to public inspection.

State law does not require audio or video recordings of meetings. For some issues, such as quasi-judicial hearings, it is necessary to provide a court with a verbatim transcript of the hearing and audio recordings are helpful in this regard.

So, in the interest of complying with the requirement to make the minutes available, we recommend that local government agencies post the minutes along with the audio recordings of their meetings. While we think that you could comply with RCW 42.30.035 without posting the minutes to your website, it would be an easy and efficient way to make them available for public inspection.

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Contracts for legal services are “personal service contracts.” There are no RCWs that require local government agencies to follow a formal RFP/RFQ process for personal service contracts.

That said, many jurisdictions have adopted their own policies and procedures which should be followed. MRSC recommends a formal process be followed above a certain dollar amount. Here is a link to our topic page on Personal Service Contracts that you may find helpful.

So while there is no RCW requirement, we recommend that you follow your organization’s adopted contracting/purchasing policies. We also suggest that you consider an RFP/RFQ process even if you are not required to do so under your policies and procedures to the extent doing so will get you the best possible contract.

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In our opinion, a library amnesty program or fee waiver program for lost or damaged items is not a prohibited gift of public funds when it: (1) is established by the public agency’s governing body such as a city council or library board; (2) states the public purpose with clear guidelines for the program; and (3) is applied equally to all users.

In general, amnesty programs can be seen as revenue producing and compliance tools. Written guidelines for such programs typically use the term “have the effect of increasing revenues” to the local government. They are commonly used to collect delinquent taxes, unpaid business license fees, unpaid court fines, unpaid parking tickets, library fines, and address building permit compliance issues and animal licensing compliance.

The benefits derived are increased revenues where collection efforts have not been successful, clearing records of unpaid fines, and helping citizens gain compliance. Obtaining returns of materials belonging in the library collection is also a public purpose. So there is no donative intent with the establishment of an amnesty program – the goal is actually to generate revenues for the city that might not otherwise be realized. This is important when making an analysis for potential violation of the prohibition on gifting public funds in Article VIII, Sec. 7 set out in CLEAN v. Spokane, 133 Wn.2d 455 (1997).

Attorney General’s Opinion, 2005, No. 5 confirms the authority of public libraries to assess and collect fines for overdue books and library materials. We did not find AGO opinions or case law specifically regarding waiver or amnesty of late fees assessed by libraries.

In a past inquiry we looked at whether the state auditor’s office (SAO) would consider waivers of library fines for overdue books to be an impermissible gift of public funds. Although SAO is the ultimate authority on the financial programs they consider acceptable in this area, it looks like a library could have an amnesty or overdue fees waiver program if there is a clear and legitimate reason to do so, and those reasons are spelled out in an adopted policy applied equally to everyone.

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You really can’t file an extension. However, if the council is unable to pass a new budget by year’s end, it could adopt the current year’s budget on an interim basis, adjusting the revenue expected for the new year. I wrote a blog article a few years ago, Do We Really Need To Pass a Budget by Year’s End? It discusses the need to do something, and it suggests that the council could adopt the current budget for next year on an interim basis. Then, when council is able to reach agreement, it can amend the interim budget to reflect the new agreement.

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The town has fairly broad authority to lease real property as long as such authority is exercised “for the common benefit” under RCW 35.27.010 and “for the benefit of the town” under RCW 35.27.370(2). Except for property originally acquired for public utility purposes under chapter 35.94 RCW, the state statutes merely indicate in general terms that the town council has the authority to control, dispose of, and convey real and personal property of the town. State law does not otherwise establish specific procedures which must be followed when leasing municipally-owned property; the ultimate authority with regard to determining whether property should be leased rests with the town council under RCW 35.27.370.

From a fiscal standpoint, the town should determine what will constitute fair market value for such a lease. The town should also give thought to whether a competitive process of some type will result in a better deal. But from a legal standpoint, there is not a required bidding process with respect to leasing real property.

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Once the mayor resigns, the city council can fill the vacancy by majority vote of the council. If it is known in advance that the mayor will be resigning, the council could develop a process to use to fill the position in advance of the resignation, but the council may not actually vote on a replacement until the position has become vacant due to the resignation.

There is no particular process to follow. The council could merely appoint someone once the mayor resigns. Or it could develop a process to fill the vacancy, such as by advertising the vacancy, accepting applications or letters of interest, interviewing candidates, etc. If the council chooses to interview candidates, it must do so in an open meeting, although it could discuss the qualifications of the candidates in an executive session. State law does not dictate a process except that the position will be filled by majority vote of the council.

There are no specific qualifications to be appointed mayor other than the person appointed must be a U.S. citizen, a registered voter and a resident of the city for one or more years prior to the appointment. Oftentimes the person appointed will be someone from the city council. That is not required, however; the person appointed could be anyone who meets the minimum qualifications, as discussed above.

The council has 90 days to fill the vacancy. If it fails to do so within 90 days, the county commissioners take over the task. Until an appointment is made, the mayor pro tem will chair meetings and otherwise fill in for the then-departed mayor. If there is no mayor pro tem, the council would appoint someone to be the mayor pro tem.

In the event that the council appoints someone from the council, that will create a vacancy on the council, and that vacancy would be filled by majority vote of the council.

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In a code city with a council-manager form of government, the city manager is responsible for all day to day operations of the city including, under RCW 35A.13.080(2), “[t]o appoint and remove at any time all department heads, officers, and employees of the code city, except members of the council, and subject to the provisions of any applicable law, rule, or regulation relating to civil service.” RCW 35A.13.120 essentially prohibits city council interference with the administration of the city except for the purpose of inquiry through the manager. Even when one councilmember has been selected as chair or mayor, this person remains a councilmember and part of the legislative branch of the city government.

The role of a mayor in a city with a council-manager form of government is essentially ceremonial. RCW 35A.13.030 sets forth the duties of a mayor in your city:

Biennially at the first meeting of the new council the members thereof shall choose a chair from among their number unless the chair is elected pursuant to RCW 35A.13.033. The chair of the council shall have the title of mayor and shall preside at meetings of the council. In addition to the powers conferred upon him or her as mayor, he or she shall continue to have all the rights, privileges, and immunities of a member of the council. The mayor shall be recognized as the head of the city for ceremonial purposes and by the governor for purposes of military law. He or she shall have no regular administrative duties, but in time of public danger or emergency, if so authorized by ordinance, shall take command of the police, maintain law, and enforce order. (Emphasis added).

The powers and duties of the city manager are set forth in RCW 35A.13.080 and are executive/administrative in nature. His or her role is fundamentally different than the role of a councilmember (including the chair of the council designated as mayor), which is legislative.

Here is a link to an MRSC blog post you may find useful: Balance of Power Struggles in City Government. In addition, here is a link to MRSC’s & AWC’s Publication Mayor and Councilmember Handbook (See particularly Chapter 9, “Resolving and Preventing Mayor-Council conflict,” beginning at page 31.

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Yes, the third party involved in a PRA third party notification under RCW 42.56.540 does need the opportunity to review the records in question in order to decide whether to seek a court order preventing disclosure. When third party notification is provided, the reason is because the agency has determined the records will otherwise be disclosed to the PRA requester. Third party notice may be advisable because the PRA is to be construed in favor of disclosure, and the agency could otherwise be subject to penalties if a court finds that it improperly denied public disclosure of non-exempt information.

To provide third party notice, the agency would inform the PRA requester in writing that it will provide the requested records, subject to appropriate redactions, if any, but will delay release of the records (and so inform the requester) to give the affected parties the opportunity to seek court protection of possibly exempt information under RCW 42.56.540. See also, WAC 44-14-040(4), part of the PRA model rules, which states:

In the event that the requested records contain information that may affect rights of others and may be exempt from disclosure, the public records officer may, prior to providing the records, give notice to such others whose rights may be affected by the disclosure. Such notice should be given so as to make it possible for those other persons to contact the requestor and ask him or her to revise the request, or, if necessary, seek an order from a court to prevent or limit the disclosure. The notice to the affected persons will include a copy of the request.

This notice gives the third party an opportunity to obtain a court order to block release. For more information, see MRSC’s Public Records Act (PRA) webpage.>

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We think it’s two years. The Open Public Meetings Act (OPMA) does not specify a limitations period for bringing an action under the Act. So, we look to chapter 4.16 RCW, which deals with "limitations of actions.” However, no statute in chapter 4.16 RCW applies specifically to alleged OPMA violations. But, there is a catch-all two-year period in RCW 4.16.130 ("Action for relief not otherwise provided for") that seems to apply. That statute provides as follows: "An action for relief not herein before provided for, shall be commenced within two years after the cause of action shall have accrued."

We are not aware of other legal authority (case law or attorney general opinion) on this issue.

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Under the OPMA, RCW 42.30.020(3) whenever a body takes “final action” it must do so “by a majority of the members of a governing body when sitting as a body or entity, upon a motion, proposal, resolution, order, or ordinance.”

MRSC has consistently interpreted “quorum” for OPMA purposes to mean a majority of the full membership of the council, not taking into account any vacancies that might exist. For example, a council of seven with two vacancies, the number needed for a quorum does not change – in this example quorum is four members despite the fact that only 5 seats are currently filled. We do not have any Washington appellate court decision directly on this issue, so we rely upon the general rule, as expressed in the McQuillin Law of Municipal Corporations treatise.

The general rule is that a quorum is a majority of all the members of a governing body and that, if a statute or charter prescribes the number that shall constitute a quorum, it cannot be changed by the body. The statute for code cities specifically prescribes the number that constitutes a quorum: “[a]t all meetings of the council a majority of the councilmembers shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business.” RCW 35A.12.120.

If your advisory bodies are created pursuant to an RCW, you should look there for any special quorum rules. If there is no RCW or the RCW is silent, it is up to the government entity or the individual boards to establish and define any quorum requirement that differs from the general rule.

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No, “at-will” employees (not covered by civil service or a collective bargaining agreement) do not have administrative appeal hearing rights. We have a very comprehensive page on Employee Termination. Here is an excerpt from that page on at-will employees and termination:

In Washington, many governmental employment relationships are "at will," that is, a person's employment continues at the will or pleasure of the employer. Absent the requirements of civil service or collective bargaining agreements, discussed later, a public employee does not have a property interest in his or her employment, and that employment can be terminated without due process, "at will," without notice, statement of cause, or hearing (Yantsin v. Aberdeen (1959); Nostrand v. Little (1961); Halliburton v. Huntington (1978); Gaar v. King County (1972)).

Note, however, that a name clearing hearing should be provided to even at-will employees if the agency has publicly announced a false, stigmatizing charge during the termination process. Here is the relevant excerpt from that same webpage:

Name-Clearing Hearings

If the employer has publicly announced the grounds for the employee's discharge, it may be necessary to provide a "name clearing hearing" (Owen v. City of Independence). A name-clearing hearing can be required when there has been a false, stigmatizing charge publicly made against the employee during the disciplinary or termination process. If a stigmatizing charge has been made, the employee should be given an opportunity to "clear" his or her name at a public hearing. This hearing may occur either before or after the termination. Obviously, the need for such a hearing can be avoided altogether by the employer not making any public statements about the termination. (Of course, if the announced reason for the termination is true, the terminated employee may choose from a privacy standpoint to avoid any further public airing of the reasons for his or her discharge.)

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Please see the following sample code provisions from four council-manager cities:

• Bainbridge Island Municipal Code, Ch. 2.44, Emergency Management
• Burien Municipal Code, Ch. 2.75, Emergency Management
• Normandy Park Municipal Code, Ch. 2.36, Emergency Management
• Toppenish Municipal Code, Ch. 2.95, Emergency Powers of Mayor, City Council and City Manager

A custom code search of “’city manager’ emergency declare” turns up many more sample code provisions that include procedures for declaring emergencies in council-manager cities for your review. While many of these code provisions have the city manager, acting as the “executive head” of the city, initiating the declaration of an emergency, there are a variety of other approaches that include potential action by the mayor or the city council (if they are in session or to ratify action by the city manager). I am not aware of any attempts to determine what might be considered “best practices” for declaring an emergency in council-manager cities.

You may also be interested in the following related resources:

• Elected Officials Guide to Emergency Management, Washington State Emergency Management Association, 2003
• Emergency Management and Disaster Planning, MRSC
• Emergency Planning at the Local Government Level, MRSC

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We think the bingo event as proposed is fine. First, we don’t think this falls within “gambling” as contemplated in state law. The definition of “gambling” at RCW 9.46.0237 states, in relevant part (emphasis added):

"Gambling," as used in this chapter, means staking or risking something of value upon the outcome of a contest of chance or a future contingent event not under the person's control or influence, upon an agreement or understanding that the person or someone else will receive something of value in the event of a certain outcome.

Here, you do not intend to ask the employees to pay money or some other type of consideration to participate in the bingo game. Even if the city were collecting money for the opportunity to play bingo for prizes, cities are allowed to conduct bingo, raffles, and amusement games within the limitations set forth at RCW 9.46.0321. Note that although that section says it applies to “bona fide charitable or bona fide nonprofit organizations,” cities are considered to be bona fide nonprofit organizations under the state gambling laws. Per RCW 9.46.0209(3), the definition of a “bona fide charitable or nonprofit organization” includes:

[A] county, city, or town, provided that all revenue less prizes and expenses from raffles conducted by the county, city, or town must be used for community activities or tourism promotion activities

One additional thing to keep in mind is gifting of public funds. While this employee appreciation event is likely fine, any time you are providing gifts, prizes, food, or other items to employees outside the normal scope of employment, there is risk of running afoul of the constitutional prohibition on the gift of public funds. If the city has a policy that includes employee appreciation events, this could be considered compensation or a benefit of employment, which is permissible. Here is an old but still useful memo regarding Eating and Drinking at Public Expense that outlines some things to think about with regard to employee events/gifting of public funds.

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One of the only references to minutes in state law is in the Open Public Meetings Act (OPMA) RCW 42.30.035:

The minutes of all regular and special meetings except executive sessions of such boards, commissions, agencies or authorities shall be promptly recorded and such records shall be open to public inspection.

Some agencies include the approval of minutes on the consent agenda. In that regard, state law says relatively little. RCW 42.30.035 and RCW 85.06.250 clearly require that minutes be taken, but there is no specific requirement under state law about how they must be approved.

RCW 36.32.110 “Clerk of the board” provides:

The county auditor shall be the clerk of the board of county commissioners unless the board of county commissioners designates one of its employees to serve as clerk who shall attend its meetings and keep a record of its proceedings.

RCW 36.32.140 “Record of proceedings” provides:

The board of county commissioners shall cause to be recorded, in a book kept for that purpose, all their proceedings and determinations touching all matters properly cognizable before it; and all books, accounts, vouchers, and papers, touching the business or property of the county shall be carefully kept by the clerk, and be open to public inspection.

State law does not dictate how a county keeps the record of its proceedings. So, your board has discretion to adopt a procedure that works for your county. There is no preferred method, so what method is used is a question of either policy or procedure for your board to decide. If there are local BOCC procedures or meeting rules that have been adopted with procedures or practices related to minutes then they should, of course, be followed. Some boards follow Roberts Rules of Order, others do not. If the practice is to announce “minutes approved as presented” and the other commissioners are in agreement, then we think this is fine.

Here is a link to MRSC’s web page on Council/Board of Commissioners Rules of Procedure where you will find examples of other local rules.

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There is not a state law requirement that a public records disclaimer be included on all city or other public agency emails. So, this is a policy decision for your city.

If you decide to add a disclaimer then it is, of course, important that the information be accurate. In our opinion, it is accurate to say all city emails are public records and may be subject to disclosure. This leaves open the possibility that exemptions or prohibitions in the PRA may apply to particular emails or portions of emails and/or their attachments. City employees’ emails likely all fit the broad definition of “public records” in RCW 42.56.010(3).

We found two examples of public records disclaimers in our database:

1. Disclaimer: Public documents and records are available to the public as provided under the Washington State Public Records Act (RCW 42.56). This e-mail may be considered subject to the Public Records Act and may be disclosed to a third-party requestor.
2. NOTE: This email is considered a public record and may be subject to public disclosure.

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Yes, the mayor pro tem for your town continues to serve as a councilmember while filling in when the mayor is absent from a council meeting. So, your town council will have a quorum at the council meeting so long as at least three of the five councilmembers are present.

RCW 35.27.160 provides, in relevant part: “A mayor pro tempore may be chosen by the council for a specified period of time, not to exceed six months, to act as the mayor in the absence of the mayor.”

RCW 35.27.280 provides that “a majority of the councilmembers shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business”. T his statute also references the authority for the council to appoint a “president pro tempore” (mayor pro tem) to run a council meeting in the absence of the mayor. A councilmember does not cease being a councilmember by virtue of undertaking the additional duties of pro tem to conduct a meeting in the absence of the mayor.

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There is not a state law requirement to advertise the city’s vacant space in the library building for lease. The city could advertise or use an RFP but is not required to do so. So long as the space is not needed for a public purpose, either related to the library or the city, then it should be permissible to use a rental agreement or short term lease to a local church (or other organization) if you are charging a fair market value for the space. If you have a local policy to advertise when the space is vacant then, of course, follow the local policy.

Pursuant to RCW 35A.11.010, a code city’s authority includes the authority to lease or convey real and personal property. Although a city does not want to be in the business of leasing property, when in the short term there is vacant space that is not needed by the city, then the city may lease it to others. Presumably the term of the lease would not be so long as to deny the city the future use of the space when additional space is needed. You could consider adding a term to the lease to accommodate future public need for the space.

Here is a link to MRSC”s webpage Public Facility Rental and Use. Here is a link to MRSC’s webpage Sale of Surplus City or Town Property.

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RCW 35A.12.020 provides in part:

• The appointive officers shall be those provided for by charter or ordinance and shall include a city clerk and a chief law enforcement officer.

So, someone must fulfill that requirement, although the statute does not indicate whether the position must be full time, how many hours must be spent in that endeavor or that it could not be assigned to someone such as an officer in the county sheriff’s department.

As to the role of the sheriff, see the following attorney general opinion, AGO 1990 No. 4; here is a summary of that opinion:

1. The county sheriff's duty to enforce state law applies equally in incorporated and unincorporated areas of the county.
2. If a city is unable to provide for adequate police protection, the county sheriff must take this factor into account in allocating the resources of the sheriff's office. However, the statutes do not obligate the sheriff to provide a city with a specific number of police officers or a specific level of police services.
3. If a city wants to obtain a specific number of county police officers or level of police services, the Interlocal Cooperation Act empowers the city to contract with the county to provide those services.

While the city could contract with the county to assure a certain level of service, if it did not, the sheriff would still be responsible for providing service within the city. However, without a contract, there is no particular assurance of the level of service that would be provided.

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A council generally may not take final action at an executive session. It may convene an executive session to discuss/consider/evaluate certain specified issues, however it should not be making any final decisions on behalf of the city in the executive session. See discussion starting on p. 16 of MRSC’s Open Public Meetings Act publication.

In terms of what should be listed on the agenda, if you know that an executive session is scheduled to discuss potential litigation or to consider the acquisition of real estate, you could include that on the agenda with reference to the specific statutory provision allowing an executive session for that purpose. Many public agencies do state the purpose of an executive session in their meeting agendas, but this is not a legal requirement. Here is a link to a 2012 blog article describing the proper procedures for calling an executive session.

Even if the purpose of the executive session is not included on the agenda, RCW 42.30.110(2) requires that the presiding officer of the governing body state the purpose of the meeting prior to convening the executive session:

Before convening in executive session, the presiding officer of a governing body shall publicly announce the purpose for excluding the public from the meeting place, and the time when the executive session will be concluded. The executive session may be extended to a stated later time by announcement of the presiding officer.

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The city council has 90 days to fill the vacancy before the authority to fill the vacancy transfers to the county. By law, RCW 42.12.070(4), after 90 days if the position has not been filled, then “the authority of the governing body [the city] to fill the vacancy shall cease and the county legislative authority . . . shall appoint a qualified person to fill the vacancy.”

Filling non-partisan positions is governed by RCW 42.12.070, which provides that vacancies are filled through appointment by the “governing body,” (the city council). Subsection (6) provides:

• As provided in chapter 29A.24 RCW, each person who is appointed shall serve until a qualified person is elected at the next election at which a member of the governing body normally would be elected. The person elected shall take office immediately and serve the remainder of the unexpired term. [Emphasis added]

Regarding posting the vacancy, there is no specific requirement for number of days to post the opening to the public or to seek public interest. Posting is not required but may be a good idea.

There is no process required by state law for filling a vacancy. The city council decides what process to use and how to find a qualified person. Many councils advertise that there is a vacancy and then ask interested persons to write letters of interest or to complete an application form. Typically a council will interview candidates in open session (as required by the Open Public Meetings Act) before making an appointment. The vote to make the appointment must also be in open session. If there is a tie then the mayor breaks the tie.

For more information on the process that a city must follow to fill a vacancy on a city council please see our MRSC blog post Filling a Vacancy in a City or Town Council.

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RCW 41.04.180 authorizes cities to provide health insurance to its employees. RCW 41.04.190 gives cities the option to provide health coverage to its elected officials. One important feature of that statute is that the cost of providing the coverage to a city’s elected officials is not “additional compensation.” This language means that the coverage may be provided to elected officials during an existing term of office instead of waiting until the commencement of a new term, because providing the coverage is not a salary increase.

Although RCW 41.04.180 states that the coverage may be authorized by a city’s “principal supervising official or governing body,” MRSC recommends that the coverage be authorized by the city council instead of the mayor, especially in cases where the action will result in the mayor receiving coverage.

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Yes, for code cities, the applicable state law requires the office hours be codified by ordinance. The key provision of state law is RCW 35A.21.070, which states:

All code city offices shall be kept open for the transaction of business during such days and hours as the legislative body of such city shall by ordinance prescribe.

You also mention surrounding cities you have checked with that do not seem to have a similar ordinance for business hours. However, for non-code cities and towns, RCW 35.21.175 is almost identical to the code city provision:

All city and town offices shall be kept open for the transaction of business of during such days and hours as the municipal legislative authority shall by ordinance prescribe.

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The change from an annual budget process to a biennial budget process does NOT require a public hearing. Chapter 35A.34 RCW is the statutory reference and RCW 35A.34.040 only requires that the city adopt an ordinance to establish a biennial process. The statute reads in part:

All code cities are authorized to establish by ordinance a two-year fiscal biennium budget. The ordinance shall be enacted at least six months prior to commencement of the fiscal biennium and this chapter applies to all code cities which utilize a fiscal biennium budget.

Which simply means that the city must adopt an ordinance to establish a biennial budget process and that the ordinance must be adopted at least 6 months prior to first biennial budget period.

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