Charter Review Commission Needs Your Input!

Paul J. Pickett, Charter Review Commission, District 2

Clallam County has a unique form of government. We are one of only seven counties that have a Home Rule Charter (https://clallam.county.codes/Charter). It’s the constitution of our County, and governs our county government, instead of relying only on state laws https://mrsc.org/explore-topics/government-organization/counties/county-forms-of-government#charter). Yes, it’s pretty darn important!
 
A Charter Review Commission (CRC) meets every five years to consider amendments needed to improve the Charter. The CRC can put Charter amendments on the November ballot for citizens to approve or disapprove. Any amendments approved by voters become part of this governing document. This is our one chance to change anything for quite a while.
 
CRC Commissioners were elected last November, including many who were endorsed by Clallam Democrats (including myself). The current CRC, who began meeting in January, meet twice a month on the 2nd and 4th Mondays at 5:30 pm. As part of the CRC process, the public can present their input. Citizens can provide comments at the CRC meetings, in writing, and at Town Hall meetings.
 
Unfortunately, most of the public comments so far appear to represent a small segment of our community. One of the current CRC Commissioners writes a blog called Clallam County Watchdog, and almost all of the comments to date echo the commentary in that blog, closely following Republican talking points. Very few people with liberal or progressive leanings have commented.
 
The CRC will vote on which amendments appear on the ballot this November. We need your comments to help CRC Commissioners set priorities for which changes are needed in our Charter!
 
Please take a little bit of your precious time to look at the issues the CRC is considering, and provide us with comments:​

• Attend a meeting and comment in person (Charter Review Commission website here)
• Provide written comments by email ([email protected])
• Post comments on the CRC website (contact form here).

 
We need you all to comment so we have input that represents all voters in our County. 

Which issues do you care about and want to comment on? Check out the list below that shows most of the issues that the public has proposed to date. They are arranged roughly in order of priorities that have been set by the Commission. But they may not be in order of YOUR priorities. Please look them over and let the CRC know which ones you like, and which ones you think are bad ideas, using the comment methods discussed above.

• Establishment of a Water Steward. Would create a county position focused on long-term water management.
• Recusal requirement for County Commissioners. Would mandate that County Commissioners recuse themselves from votes where they have a conflict of interest.
• Code of Ethics with civil penalties. Currently, there is a Code of Ethics for elected officials, but the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) removed penalties for violations. This amendment could establish enforceable penalties.
• Ranked Choice Voting (RCV). Voters would rank candidates in order of preference.
• Increase the number of County Commissioners. Currently we have 3 Commissioners, but there are proposals for 5 Commissioners.
• Return to district voting. This amendment would ensure that only voters within a district vote for their county commissioner in both the primary and general elections, rather than countywide.
• Charter Review Commission frequency. This would change the review cycle from every five years to ten.
• Coroner position. Due to a change in state law, the elected prosecuting attorney can no longer serve as coroner. An amendment is needed to specify whether the new coroner should be elected or appointed.
• Appointed Director of Community Development (DCD), instead of elected. Clallam County is the only county in the U.S. with an elected DCD director, rather than appointed, which presents unique benefits and challenges.
• Trust land transfer program. Affects the county’s collaboration with the Department of Natural Resources in managing forestland.
• Duties of the County Clerk. Better define the duties of the County Clerk, which are currently unclear.
• Charter ambiguities. Housekeeping to fix issues such as using the term "shall", adding definitions, specifying duties of officials, clarifying procedures for vacancies, etc.
• Government-to-Government Relations and Training. This amendment would require county officials to undergo government-to-government training to better understand and respect local tribes as sovereign governments, improving collaboration and mutual respect.
• Public access to meetings. Would mandate greater transparency in decision-making processes involving public funds and require that meetings be held on land governed by county policy and state law.
• Public Defender’s Office. Clallam Public Defender’s Office is currently a private nonprofit that receives funding from the county, and this amendment would incorporate it into county government.
• Restrictions on board membership for commissioners. This amendment would restrict County Commissioners from sitting on boards of organizations that receive county funding or influence county policies, addressing potential conflicts of interest.
• Budget town halls. Would ensure that budget presentations are free, public, and interactive.
• Fair bidding process. Could level the playing field for local businesses bidding against foreign corporations who may avoid fees and taxes.
• Lower permit costs for property and business owners. Would reduce financial barriers for development.
• Revise procedures for amending the charter.
• General fund reserve minimum. This amendment would establish a fiscal reserve threshold to ensure long-term financial stability.
• Tax increases by voter approval. Currently, the BOCC can raise property taxes and increase the sales tax without voter approval. This amendment would require voter approval for any future tax increases.
• Budget allocated in the charter for conducting outreach and town halls.
• Elected/Appointed Positions Oversight. Appointed positions allow the BOCC to recruit, hire, evaluate, and fire personnel. For an elected position, the voters can recall personnel.
• Independent Hearing Officer. Currently, hearing officers rotate between jurisdictions when necessary.
• Financial transparency for contracts with nongovernmental organizations (NGOs). This amendment would require financial transparency from any NGO the county contracts with, ensuring that public funds are allocated to organizations with clear and accessible financial records.
• Define Auditor, Treasurer, and CFO responsibilities.
• Restrictions on elected officials' advocacy. Would limit County Commissioners' ability to endorse policies that directly benefit organizations they are involved with.
• Board of County Commissioners spending transparency. The Lower Dungeness Floodplain Restoration project was completed without a budget. This amendment would require detailed financial reporting.
• Transparency in public funds to NGOs.
• Reforming Board of Commissioner committee appointments. This amendment could change how members are appointed to various county boards, such as the Trails Advisory Board, Animal Solutions Advisory Committee, and Board of Equalization.
• Add “American” to Charter. This amendment would ensure that any Clallam County partnerships with foreign nations are subject to Federal oversight to prevent conflicts of interest or foreign influence.
• Increased public engagement. Could require monthly or quarterly town halls with the BOCC.
• Independent hearing examiner. Would ensure that land use and zoning decisions are made impartially, free from political influence.
• Requirement to notify Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) on adverse effects of new Tribal Trust Lands. Would mandate the county notify the BIA when land use changes affect county interests.