LWVSJ Observer Corps*: County Council December 4-5, 2023
On December 4, the Council continued discussions on their legislative priorities for the upcoming short session of the Washington State Legislature. For education, specific asks would be for the other three school districts to get the same regionalization of 18% that Shaw has vs. 12%, for school buses to use ferries for free, and to support School Districts requests. For transportation, they may request funds to study the impact of ferry disruption, and to research local transport options such as a passenger-only service between islands and local public transport. For housing, they will support existing bills and possibly ask forArgyle project funding. In marine resources they may seek state help to remove a boat recently sunk off Orcas and support for an Emergency Response Boat in the Salish Sea..
The Bureau of Land Management briefed the Council on the SJI National Monument which consists of 1021 acres of BLM-managed lands throughout the County including several tiny islands, now protected for historical, cultural,scientific and natural resource purposes. Monument lands had 301,858 visits in 2022. The mandate expired for the advisory committee that helped draft the Resource Management Plan. BLM is creating a new advisory committee to continue local public input for plan implementation. Current activities include an invasive species inventory and tribal consultations.
On December 5, during public comment a citizen from SJI spoke of longstanding issues with the Land Bank leadership. A citizen from Orcas requested the Council to pass a resolution in support of Palestinians.
The County continued public hearings on the 2024-2025 budget and 2024, 2025, and Six-year Capital Improvement Plans. The preliminary budget meets the requirement for ending cash to be at least 10% of budgeted expenditures. The Council approved one request to be added to the preliminary budget, to increase the Court Facilitator Hours from 8 to 16 per week at a total cost of $11 k. A motion to approve legal counsel for civil actions was not seconded. The hearings were continued to December 12 when the Council expects to adopt the budget and capital plans.
A public hearing for the cancellation of unclaimed warrants was set for December 12. The Council approved the extension of the Lopez Solid Waste Contract for one year while a new contract is negotiated. The new San Juan Island Contract will need to be negotiated in 2024 as well. Council Member Wolfe requested an update to council on the derelict vessel that recently sank off Orcas. Council member Fuller expects the Governor's Office to send a response to the joint County-Town of Friday Harbor letter on the ferry disruptions.
The Council had a ceremony to recognize milestone years of County service and then attended a celebratory lunch
The League of Women Voters, a nonpartisan organization encourages informed participation in government. The Observer Corps attends and takes notes at government meetings to expand public understanding of public policy and decisions. The notes do not necessarily reflect the views of the League or its members.