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Posts for Pat Mason

Confirmation of Mayoral Appointments (and Terminations) by City or Town Council – Is that OK?

Confirmation of Mayoral Appointments (and Terminations) by City or Town Council – Is that OK?

March 25, 2015  by  Pat Mason
Category:  Classification ,  Recruitment and Hiring

In mayor-council cities and towns, the mayor is generally in charge of the hiring and firing of all appointed officers and employees. But can the city or town council require that the council confirm mayoral appointments before they become effective?

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May a City Council Meet Outside the Corporate Limits of the City?

May a City Council Meet Outside the Corporate Limits of the City?

January 13, 2015  by  Pat Mason
Category:  Legislative Body

The statutes that apply to cities and towns do not limit where the city or town council can meet, although (except for first class cities) they do contain a limitation on what types of action may be taken at a meeting being held outside the corporate limits.

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May a County Legislative Body Meet Outside its County to Hold a Joint Meeting with the Legislative Body of Another County?

May a County Legislative Body Meet Outside its County to Hold a Joint Meeting with the Legislative Body of Another County?

December 10, 2014  by  Pat Mason
Category:  Open Public Meetings Act ,  Legislative Body

Sometimes situations and issues arise affecting more than one county, such that it would be helpful for the legislative bodies of those counties to meet jointly, which would require one of the bodies to meet outside its county. A 2014 Attorney General Opinion addresses this issue.

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What if Some of Your Elected or Appointed Officials Have Not Yet Completed Open Government Training Act Requirements?

November 5, 2014  by  Pat Mason
Category:  Open Public Meetings Act

The Open Government Trainings Act enacted by the 2014 Legislature (ESB 5964, Laws of 2014, ch. 66) requires training for some local government officials in the fundamentals of the Open Public Meetings Act (OPMA), Public Records Act (PRA), and records retention requirements. Many local government officials have already completed these training requirements, which are not burdensome. However, we are receiving calls from some local governments asking what to do about those officials who haven’t completed this training yet this year. Basically, is that a problem?

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Does the Open Public Meetings Act Apply to County Finance Committees?

September 24, 2014  by  Pat Mason
Category:  Open Public Meetings Act

MRSC legal staff has concluded that meetings of county finance committees are subject to the requirements of OPMA. Here's why.

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Volunteer Firefighters and the Affordable Care Act

January 29, 2014  by  Pat Mason
Category:  Legislation

Are the hours of volunteer firefighters and other volunteer emergency responders counted for purposes of determining whether the employing local government is subject to the health care...

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New Approach to Responding to Public Records Requests – the Kirkland Model

October 29, 2013  by  Pat Mason
Category:  Public Records Act

Many local governments are struggling to balance their obligations under the Public Records Act with their existing staff and financial resources, but Kirkland has adopted a new award-winning approach.

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How May the Revenues from the Sales Tax Authorized for Rural Counties in RCW 82.14.370 Be Used?

May 22, 2013  by  Pat Mason
Category:  Sales and Use Taxes

RCW 82.14.370 provides "rural" counties the authority to impose an up to 0.09 percent sales and use tax for the purpose of financing "public facilities serving economic development purposes in rural counties and finance personnel in economic development offices." (A "rural county" under this statute is one having a population density of less than 100 persons per square mile or one smaller than...

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How Are Abstentions Handled When Counting Votes?

April 4, 2013  by  Pat Mason
Category:  Legislative Body

Sometimes a member of a local governing body (such as a city council, board of county commissioners, planning commission, or special district board) does not, for whatever reason, want to cast a vote on a matter that is being considered by that body, and so that member abstains. Assuming that the governing body allows the member to abstain, how is that abstention treated for vote counting...

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When Is a Resignation by an Elected Official Effective?

September 25, 2012  by  Pat Mason
Category:  Administrative and Elected Officials ,  Administrative and Elected Officials-County

We often receive questions regarding when the resignation of an elective official is effective. The basic issue is whether a resignation has to be accepted by the governing body of the agency for the resignation to be effective. Until 2002, the common law rule was that a resignation had to be accepted to be effective.  In 2002, the state court of appeals in State ex rel. Munroe v. Poulsbo, 109...

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Local Governments May Assess "Reasonable" Service Charges for Stormwater Facilities Owned by the Federal Government

August 8, 2012  by  Pat Mason
Category:  Storm and Surface Water Management

A significant case decided last May resulted in a major victory for local governments in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington.  The case determined that federal agencies must pay local governments “reasonable service charges” for stormwater pollution control.  Some federal agencies had been paying such fees, but others had refused to pay based on the principle of...

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