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MRSC Insight Blog


Posts for February 2018

Is Your Organization Prepared for the #MeToo Movement?

February 26, 2018  by  Sebris Busto James
Category:  Guest Author ,  Personnel Policies

The consequences of failing to prevent or ignoring sexual harassment are significant for an organization, including millions of dollars in litigation and settlements, low employee morale, high turnover, and low productivity. This post looks at recent EEOC activity in this area and offers basic advice to organizations seeking to create a workplace free of any type of harassment. 

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Supreme Court: Fire District Email Policy Violated First Amendment

February 22, 2018  by  Ramsey Ramerman
Category:  Guest Author ,  Court Decisions and AGO Opinions

A recent Washington Supreme Court ruling found that the Spokane Valley Fire District's policy prohibiting employees from using department email accounts to send religious messages violated the First Amendment. This post looks at the implications for public agencies statewide. 

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Landslide Hazards: Regulating Them Can Be Hazardous

February 20, 2018  by  Greg Wessel
Category:  Guest Author ,  Environmental Laws and Regulations ,  Emergency Management

Landslides are common throughout the Pacific Northwest. Regulatory agencies and local governments must do their best to understand and document the potential hazard. Guest author Greg Wessel looks at the issue and the role of local government in hazard awareness and mitigation. 

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Recapping the February Election Results

February 16, 2018  by  Steve Hawley
Category:  Ballot Measures

Olympia passed the state’s second affordable housing sales tax, the Naches fire district will replace its outdated fire station, and Pullman is passing two bond measures, following uncertainty about whether the measures reached their validation requirements in November.

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ADR? What’s That?

February 15, 2018  by  Linda Gallagher
Category:  Leadership and Management

Alternative Dispute Resolution offers methods that are considered “alternatives” to litigation, the traditional — and often expensive — form of dispute resolution. In this post Legal Consultant Linda Gallagher discusses two ADR methods: arbitration and mediation.

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Prayer & Pledges—Should You or Shouldn’t You?

February 5, 2018  by  Jim Doherty
Category:  Legislative Body

Whether to have an invocation (prayer) or a recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance at the start of a local government meeting is a matter of discretion to be decided by the local government legislative body. Legal Consultant Jim Doherty looks at these issues and provide some background on each. 

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