Official Bonds and Oaths of Office

Overview

All local government elected officials, as well as certain appointed officials and staff members, must be "sworn in" at the beginning of each term by taking an official oath of office.

In addition, many elected officials and certain staff members are required to obtain public official surety bonds to protect the local government against potential misconduct. Some agencies obtain blanket fidelity bonds to cover all of their employees rather than obtaining bonds for specific individuals.

Both of these steps—obtaining adequate bond coverage and taking the oath of office—should be completed before a new officer assumes their official duties.

Official Bonds

Public official surety bonds, or "official bonds," help protect local governments against financial losses in case of misconduct by their officials or employees—such as fraud, embezzlement, theft, or forgery.

These bonds are to protect public funds, not the individual officers. For personal liability protection, additional insurance such as "errors & omissions" or "directors & officers" may be available for officials and employees who act in good faith.

Official bonds are required for certain staff and elected positions by state law and/or local policy, conditioned upon the official faithfully performing the duties of their office and properly handling any public funds that may come into their possession. The failure of an official to give, renew, or deposit their official bond within the time required by law could prevent the official from taking office or, for elected officials, might create a vacancy under RCW 42.12.010(6).

The general requirements for official bonds are provided in chapter 42.08 RCW. The bond premiums must be paid by the local government (RCW 48.28.040).

Below are selected statutes for common local government types. In some instances, state law prescribes specific bond amounts or minimums, but in many cases the bond amounts are left to the discretion of the local governing body:

• All local governments that authorize payments to be issued before approval by their legislative body: RCW 42.24.180
• Code cities:
  • Mayor-council form of government: RCW 35A.12.080
  • Council-manager form of government: RCW 35A.13.070; RCW 35A.12.080 (referenced by RCW 35A.13.160)
• Second class cities: RCW 35.23.081
• Towns: RCW 35.27.120
• Counties:
  • County officials generally: RCW 36.16.050-.060
  • Deputy officials: RCW 36.16.070
  • County commissioners: RCW 36.32.060
  • County clerk: RCW 36.23.020
  • Sheriff: RCW 36.28.030
  • District court: RCW 3.34.090
• Port districts: RCW 53.36.010
• Public hospital districts: RCW 70.44.171
• Public utility districts (PUDs): RCW 54.24.010
• Public transportation benefit areas (PTBAs): RCW 36.57A.130
• Water-sewer districts with more than 2,500 customers: RCW 57.20.135
• Diking, drainage, sewerage improvement, and/or flood control "special districts": RCW 85.38.080. This statute only applies to "special districts" as defined in RCW 85.38.010 and does not apply to special purpose districts more broadly

Other offices or agency types may have additional requirements not listed here, so always consult your agency’s legal counsel, statutes, and local codes.

In addition to the requirements in state law, jurisdictions should have bond coverage for all staff members and officials who handle or are responsible for public funds, from cashiers, payroll, and accounts payable/receivable staff to managers and elected officials who are responsible for authorizing contracts or payments.

In fact, the State Auditor’s Office (SAO) recommends that bond coverage be provided for all employees and suggests that local governments consider employee blanket bonds. Many jurisdictions have taken this approach, often purchasing blanket fidelity bonds through their risk pool insurance rather than obtaining separate fidelity bonds for specific individuals. SAO also suggests that local governments consider "errors and omissions" insurance to supplement the bond coverage.

Any local government that wishes to obtain blanket fidelity coverage should work closely with its legal counsel and insurance carrier to determine whether additional bonds are needed for certain offices or whether the selected coverage is sufficient to protect the jurisdiction in the same manner as individual surety bonds and in amounts that meet or exceed the minimum financial coverage required by law.

SAO notes that the minimum bond amounts required by state law may not be enough and that the reasonable coverage will vary for each local government depending on its size and financial activities.

For more guidance on public official bonds, see the SAO BARS Manual, Section 3.10.3, Bond Coverage for Public Officials and Employees. (The link goes to the BARS Cash Manual, but there is an identical section in the BARS GAAP Manual.)

The Oath of Office and "Swearing In"

All local elected officials are required to take the oath of office at the beginning of every term, also known as "swearing in." This is the final step required for the elected official to assume office. See RCW 29A.04.133.

In addition, some staff members and appointed officials may be required to take an oath of office by state law and/or local policy. Staff and appointed positions that are frequently required to take an oath include, but are not necessarily limited to: city manager, city clerk, city treasurer, police chief, and fire chief. Some jurisdictions may also require oaths for advisory boards such as planning commissions, but this is not required by state law.

Many jurisdictions also require uniformed officers, such as law enforcement and firefighters, to take an oath of office by local policy or simply tradition, although we are not aware of any state law requiring rank-and-file officers or firefighters to be sworn in.

For local governments, the official oath of office is a signed document that must be administered and certified by an appropriate official and, in many cases, filed with the county auditor. Oaths of office are usually sworn verbally before being signed—often, but not necessarily, during a public meeting.

Below are selected statutes for common local government types; there may be additional statutes not listed here:

Other offices or agency types may have additional requirements, so always consult your agency’s legal counsel, statutes, and local policies.

Unless a particular oath is specified for the office, a general oath can be used or the person assuming office may take an oath or affirmation that they will faithfully and impartially discharge the duties of the office to the best of their ability, in accordance with RCW 29A.04.133(3).

Below are selected examples:

• Gig Harbor Municipal Code Sec. 2.47.070 – Oath of office for commissioned police officers; identical oath for police chief at Sec. 2.47.030
• Liberty Lake Municipal Code Sec. 1-6-1 – Oath of office for city administrator, police chief, and department directors
• Mercer Island City Manager Oath of Office (2017)
• Milton City Council Oath of Office (2024) – Includes attestation that councilmember is a citizen of the U.S., State of Washington, and City (which is required to hold elective office)
• Snohomish County Oath of Office Template (2022) – General oath of office template for elected and appointed officials of any jurisdiction or district
• West Valley Fire-Rescue Policy 1117 Oath of Office – Includes separate oaths for fire commissioners, fire chief, fire officers, and firefighters

Who Can Administer the Oath of Office?

For elected officials, the oath of office must be administered and certified (without charge) by any officer or notary public authorized to administer oaths. See RCW 29A.04.133(3). Any other oaths required by state law or local policy should also be administered by an official who is authorized to administer oaths.

The positions specifically authorized by state law to administer oaths include:

• Notary publics: RCW 5.28.010
• Court commissioners: RCW 2.24.040(10)
• Every "judicial officer" as defined in RCW 2.28.030: see RCW 2.28.060(4)
• Every court, judge, court clerk, deputy court clerk, and state-certified court reporter: RCW 5.28.010, 42.45.080
• County auditors and deputy auditors: RCW 36.22.030
• County commissioners or councilmembers: RCW 36.32.120(9)
• Mayor of a town: RCW 35.27.160
• Mayor or mayor pro tem of a second class city: RCW 35.23.191
• Town clerk or deputy clerk: RCW 35.27.220
• Mayor or clerk of a code city: RCW 35A.21.030. This authority applies to all code cities regardless of structure, so the ceremonial mayor of a council-manager code city can administer official oaths just like the separately elected mayor of a mayor-council city.
• School officials, but only for oaths pertaining to their office: RCW 28A.343.360

The official administering the oath does not necessarily have to serve in the same jurisdiction as the official(s) taking the oath. Most special purpose district officials—such as the commissioners and administrators for fire protection districts, port districts, public hospital districts, public utility districts, water-sewer districts, etc.—are generally not authorized to administer oaths (unless one of them happens to be a notary public, etc.), so they will need to contact a notary public or a nearby city, county, or court official to conduct the swearing-in.

When and Where Should the Oath be Administered?

The oath of office should be administered before the officer assumes any official duties.

For elected officials, the oath is the last step of qualification and may be taken anytime after the election results have been certified in late November under RCW 29A.60.280(3).

Beyond that, there are no specific state requirements for where or when the oath must be administered. Many local elected officials take their oath at the first regularly scheduled meeting of the governing body's new term, but remember that the official technically does not hold office until they have taken the oath. 

Oaths of office are typically administered in-person; any agency considering the use of remote oath-taking, such as using electronic signatures and videoconferencing, should consult its legal counsel.

Filing the Oath of Office

Neither RCW 29A.04.133 nor RCW 29A.60.280 require the oath of office to be filed in any particular location. However, the statutes for cities, counties, and some special purpose districts require the oath to be filed with the county auditor’s office, so consult your agency’s statutes and local codes for filing requirements. (See the table earlier on this page.)

Although RCW 29A.04.133 requires the oath of office to be administered without charge, recording fees may still apply if the document is filed with the county auditor’s office, as there is no exemption for oaths of office under chapter 36.22 RCW.

Even if the written oath is not required to be filed with the county auditor, it should still be retained in the agency’s public records for the relevant retention period.

State law does not require the oath to be notarized, although notaries are authorized to administer the oath and some jurisdictions may wish to notarize the document.

What if an Official Has Not Yet Taken the Oath of Office?

An elected official’s term does not technically begin until the scheduled start date of the term has arrived and they have taken the oath of office.

If a newly elected official has not taken the oath of office and the scheduled term has started, the outgoing (incumbent) officeholder "holds over" and remains in the position until their newly elected replacement has "qualified" under RCW 29A.04.133, which includes taking the oath of office.

An incumbent who has been re-elected to the same office they previously held must still take a new oath of office to begin the new term. However, if the official has not renewed their oath of office, they will "hold over" from their original term until a new oath is administered, at which point the new term will begin.

In rare cases, the willful or intentional refusal of an elected official to take the oath of office could create a vacancy under RCW 42.12.010(6).

If an official or staff member has performed official actions without taking the required oath, the oath should be administered as soon as possible. However, any official actions taken before the oath was administered may still be valid under the "de facto officer" doctrine. Check with your agency’s legal counsel about how to proceed should this occur. A court could find that an individual who has the reputation and appearance of being an officer serves as a "de facto officer" and their actions could be deemed valid.

Out of an abundance of caution, jurisdictions may wish to consider re-doing any final actions of significance that were taken during that timeframe, after the proper oath has been administered.