Legislative Bulletin Bill Room (360) 786-7573 Legislative Hot Line 1-800-562-6000 March 31, 2000 http://www.wacounties.org Bulletin #12 BOARD SELECTS VOGLER AS NEW EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR After receiving 24 applications nationwide and interviewing six finalists the Recruitment Committee recommended two candidates to the Board of Directors for their consideration. The Board interviewed both candidates last Friday and Bill Vogler, the Interim Executive Director and the former Assistant Director for nine years, was selected to be the next Executive Director of the Washington State Association of Counties. The selection process has been going on for the last seven months since the resignation of former Executive Director, Gary Lowe, in August 1999. In addition to his nine years as Assistant Executive Director Vogler served six years as Grays Harbor County Auditor and ten years as County Commissioner. Vogler's selection by the Board must be confirmed by the membership and a notice was sent to all members by fax last Friday, March 24th. The Board has called a meeting of the membership on April 6-7 in Bellingham and April 20-21 in Clarkston. These two dates will coincide with the Western and Eastern District meetings. The meeting in Bellingham will he held at the Best Western Lakeway Inn, located at 714 Lakeway Drive. The meeting in Clarkston will be at the Quality Inn on the Snake River, located at 700 Port Drive. The Board decided to designate the two district meetings as a membership meeting to eliminate any unnecessary travel and to assure the maximum number of members the opportunity to vote. The process of voting will be by secret ballot with the Recruitment Committee in charge of the election. Ballots will be issued beginning from the opening of registration at each meeting to the close of business. The ballots will be placed in a locked ballot box and kept by the Recruitment Committee until the conclusion of the election in Clarkston. At that meeting they will count the votes and report the results. ************************************** LEGISLATURE SLOWLY MOVING TOWARD AGREEMENT On Wednesday of this week the Governor finally stepped into the middle of budget negotiations between the House and Senate and met with legislative leaders. It was reported that it helped in that there was agreement on what the major issues were. The House has insisted upon using future sales tax revenues for bonding to help pay for transportation projects and the Senate has opposed any future earmarking of revenues. There is also a major difference between the two transportation budgets regarding the amount that would go to Sound Transit. Most everyone agrees the stumbling block is using any future revenue stream that might limit the state's ability to fund other priorities such as education. Since the meeting with the Governor there has been more negotiations between the budget writers and leadership. There is hope that a budget may be approved by next week. The final day of the Special session is Saturday, April 8th. In the meantime, most members of the legislature have gone home ************************************** PROPERTY TAX REFORM Nearly every recent newspaper article about the legislative impasse states that one of the three areas of major difference between the two Houses remains property tax reform. As reported previously, the Senate has passed their version of reform (SJR 8212) which is a $200 tax credit for every individual residential property owner. The House would grant a credit of $500 for senior citizens who are below the $30,000 income level (HB 3166) and a $200 credit for senior citizens above the $30,000 income level (HB 3167). The Senate version would cost the state budget approximately $300 million dollars per year and the scaled down House version would cost $60 million per year. The news articles report there is strong opposition to SJR 8212 in the House because it is viewed as a "split-roll" by business interests and, therefore, the likelihood of a two-thirds vote of the House is nearly impossible. The likelihood of the Senate passing the House bill seems about as likely. One of the dilemmas facing the Senate is justifying a vote that would grant a property tax credit to some senators because they are over the age of 65, when it wouldn't go to younger taxpayers. Some view this as politically foolish to vote themselves a property tax credit and not vote something for the other taxpayers within their districts. The most likely outcome is nothing substantial on property taxes for this year. ************************************** GOVERNOR SIGNS PROPERTY TAX EXEMPTION FOR MOTOR VEHICLES This week, Governor Locke signed SB 6115 which puts back into law a new section that makes it clear that motor vehicles, campers, (excluding park model mobile homes) and travel trailers, are exempt from property taxes. The bill is retroactive to January 1, 2000, so there is no question as to whether these vehicles should have ever been listed in the first place. This settles that issue once and for all, no matter how the State Supreme Court rules on the constitutionality of I-695 or whether the Governor signs the $30 license fee bill which passed the legislature last week. ************************************** TRANSPORTATION ************************************** BLUE RIBBON REVENUE COMMITTEE DISCUSSES OPTIONS The Blue Ribbon Commission on Transportation's (BRCT) Revenue Committee met March 21, and discussed principles and options for restructuring the current transportation revenue system and generating revenues for specific purposes. The committee, chaired by Skip Rowley, will identify its preferred options by the end of the April meeting, scheduled for April 18 at the SeaTac Holiday Inn. An abbreviated version of the Committee's options discussion paper is attached for your review. The full options discussion paper and meeting minutes are available on the BRCT Web site at www.brct.wa.gov. Counties are encouraged to communicate their comments and concerns about these options to the Committee before the April meeting. ************************************** HEALTH & HUMAN SERVICES ************************************** ATYPICAL ANTI-PSYCHOTIC MEDICATION BILL SIGNED BY GOVERNOR Governor Locke signed HB 2663 March 30 which authorizes the expenditure of $1 million for atypical antipsychotic medications for persons with mental illness. Advocates of this legislation have been working for several years to get funding and thanks go to Brad Boswell and Tom Richardson, NAMI, for all their efforts. While WSAC supports the additional funds to purchase these medications which are the standard of care in the field, they had concerns about the process enumerated in the bill by the Senate which potentially could set up DSHS to contract for public mental health services outside of the RSNs. A letter expressing these concerns was sent to the Governor and his staff but no response was received to date. Rep Gary Alexander and Rep. Shay Schual-Berke are to be congratulated on their work on this issue and their continued interest in mental health. Reps. Tom Huff and Helen Sommers and Sen. Valoria Loveland are also to be thanked for agreeing to fund these important pilot projects in the supplemental budget. This $1 million will allow the system to evaluate the use of these newer drugs in a couple of controlled pilot projects and hopefully convince future legislatures of the advantages of paying for these cost- effective medications as well as better serve our citizens with mental illness. ************************************** BILL TO RESTORE INDIVIDUAL HEALTH INSURANCE MARKET SIGNED Governor Locke signed SB 6067, the individual health insurance market bill, on March 24 at Providence Hospital in Seattle. After two difficult years of negotiations, these rollbacks of the remnants of health care reform have become law. It is hoped by all that taking these drastic steps will see the revival of the individual insurance market throughout Washington State. The three major insurers, Regence, Premera, and Group Health have indicated they will return to the market within a few months as the bill's provisions take effect. The bill is effective immediately, but state officials say it will take two months to set up the infrastructure for it including a standard screening questionnaire and the board to oversee the high-risk pool. Once that is done, the three big insurers say it will take them less than 60 days to sell new policies. There remains a concern that coverage may still be too expensive for many. There are approximately 250,000 uninsured persons who would potentially need individual policies. The new legislation allows insurers to screen out the sickest 8% of them and refer them to the high-risk pool where premiums will be 25 - 50% higher than in the private market. There remains some concern about the agreed upon funding in the budget to open additional Basic Health Plan (BHP) slots not being in the House version of the supplemental operating budget which was to alleviate the need for an additional 2600 more people to pay private market premiums. The Senate budget only funds an additional 1000 slots. In addition to allowing for health screening, the new legislation increases the waiting period from three months to 9 months and 6 months for the high-risk pool. These changes are not without their share of critics. However, many feel this was the only possible compromise at the present time and necessary to get the big insurance companies back in the market. ************************************** CHANGE IN DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES FUNDING ADDED IN THIRD SENATE VERSION OF THE SUPPLEMENTAL OPERATING BUDGET Most human services funding has remained static in the multiple versions of the supplemental budget, however at the last moment, several senators decided to add $2 million to the developmental disabilities budget. The money was added in a floor amendment to SB 6088, the most recent Senate budget forwarded to the House this week. Co-sponsored by Sens. Thibaudeau and Deccio, the funds are to add additional services for those on the DD waiting list. The language is quite clear that the choice of either community or institutional services be given to the client. The amendment arises from the perception that DSHS is not implementing the provisions of SB 6751, Sen. Deccio's bill establishing the stakeholder process and requiring choice, as directed by the legislature and purposefully not making institutional options available. The amendment follows on the heels of SB 6655 which would have separated the institutions from DSHS and established an independent governing board. This legislation received a rather lively hearing in the Senate Health and Long-Term Care Committee during session but did not pass out of Committee. It did however, make quite clear the extent of the dissatisfaction by Committee members with the Division of Developmental Disabilities, DSHS and their perceived tilt toward the community. ************************************** ENVIRONMENT, LAND USE & RESOURCES ************************************** JACK WARD THOMAS, FORMER CHIEF OF US FOREST SERVICE, SAYS IT IS TIME TO GIVE UP ON SOME SALMON RUNS Jack Ward Thomas, who headed the US Forest Service from 1993 to 1996, said at a recent salmon conference that it may be time to let some salmon species go extinct and "direct resources to those runs that can realistically be saved." Thomas said that it is too expensive and probably too late to save all struggling salmon runs on the Columbia River. Other proposals offered at the conference included elimination of salmon fishing, except for a small tribal ceremonial fishery, less reliance on fish hatcheries, and designation of salmon preserves. See the clippings after this Legislative Bulletin for the full account of this conference, which appeared in The Columbian. ************************************** STATE SALMON SCORECARD IN DEVELOPMENT The state is developing a "scorecard" to measure whether Good idea to measure whether the goals and objectives of salmon recovery are being met; part of the idea of measurement is to design a recovery strategy that includes measurable and reachable goals. At this week's meeting of the Government Council on Natural Resources, three regional salmon recovery groups made comments on the draft scorecard. Snohomish County Councilman Dave Somers - a county representative on the Government Council - responded for the Snohomish basin WRIA; Chelan County Commissioner Esther Stefaniw responded for the Upper Columbia Salmon Recovery Board; and Jeff Breckel, Executive Director of the Lower Columbia Salmon Recovery Board provided comments from that group. Paul Parker, WSAC staff and staff from the Association of Washington Cities also provided comments. All of the local commenters congratulated the state for embarking on this exercise, but most raised questions about how the scorecard will be used and who is its intended audience. Commissioner Stefaniw indicated that the document is too long and jargon-filled to be used as a public document. In response, Curt Smitch, the Governor's salmon advisor said the scorecard is intended to have three uses: -to improve state agency coordination -to provide useful indicators of recovery -to be a tool for NMFS and USFWS to use to measure recovery Comments also emphasized that the scorecard must be "a living, breathing document" that evolves continuously as salmon recovery evolves. Councilman Somers and Jeff Breckel both noted that the draft scorecard uses language with which the public is not familiar. They emphasized that work must be done to connect the state efforts with work done regionally and in WRIAs. Counties and cities also expressed great concern if it is to be used to evaluate county/city performance. On the other hand, all acknowledged that if it is just for state agencies, there will be big gaps in measurement of habitat protection and restoration ability. The scorecard will be revised further over the next month. A release for public review and comment is expected later this spring. ************************************** STORMWATER MANUAL AND STORMWATER POLICY PROCESS IN TRANSITION At this week's meeting of the Stormwater Policy Advisory Committee (SWPAC) the Department of Ecology announced that final adoption of a new stormwater manual for Western Washington will be delayed until December 2000. A final draft, reflecting public comment already made, will be released in July, with further public comment taken during the summer and fall. As a result of initial public comment , a final stormwater technical manual for Eastern Washington will likely be delayed until December 2002 or later to coincide with development of the phase II municipal stormwater permits for Eastern Washington. The SWPAC also decided to appoint a chair for its meetings and to continue to meet beyond the December 2000 date requested by the Legislature. A report to the Legislature still will be made in December 2000, but will probably not include a state stormwater plan. For more information on the SWPAC and the status of permit updates, stormwater manual updates and other activities, click on http://www.wa.gov/ecology/wq/stormwater/swpac.html. ************************************** SALMON RECOVERY FUNDING BOARD AWARDS OVER $13 MILLION IN GRANTS The Salmon Recovery Funding Board approved funding for over $13 million in salmon recovery grants around the state at its March 16 and 17 Board meeting in Wenatchee. Salmon Recovery Funding Board Chair William Ruckelshaus said, "This first funding cycle will provide money to projects that will provide positive benefits to help restore salmon in the state. The watershed groups - or Lead Entities as they are called - did an excellent job of providing the Board with a good list of projects from which to choose." Funds were distributed to 84 individual projects in 45 of the 62 watershed areas in the state. Of the 84 projects: 19 involve acquisition of key salmon habitat, 47 focus on in-stream work such as fish screens, 14 support riparian habitat improvements (including vegetation plantings for stream shading), and 4 focus on upland habitat changes. A list of funding approved, listed by lead entity, can be found at: http://www.wa.gov/iac/srfbdocuments.html. The grants are the result of a call for proposals by the Salmon Recovery Funding Board (SRFB) earlier this year. The Board received 245 grant applications requesting a total of $42 million. The Board established expert Review Panels to review the local methods used in identifying and bringing forward projects for funding. Projects were proposed by a wide range of interest groups including local governments, nonprofit organizations, and tribes. In each watershed, the projects were reviewed by a technical committee of scientists and ranked by a citizen committee. These groups were established under the authority granted by the legislature to help focus local efforts in salmon recovery, including prioritizing local watershed improvement projects. For this round of the SRFB's work, 20 different watersheds participated in the application process. The SRFB is planning another grant round toward the end of 2000 following a comprehensive evaluation of this first process. The SRFB was established in July 1999 by the state legislature, to help oversee the investment of state and federal funds for salmon recovery. William Ruckelshaus, Madrona Investment Group of Seattle chairs the Board. Spokane County Commissioner John Roskelley is one of the five citizen members. Five state agency directors also serve as ex-officio members. ************************************** LEGISLATIVE NEWS ************************************** MORE NEW LAWS Benton County Sheriff Larry Taylor was on hand Wednesday as Governor Gary Locke signed SHB 2903 into law. Sheriff Taylor's diligence and determination are largely responsible for the measure which allows law enforcement to make audio recordings when video recording during stops made by uniformed officers. The Governor also signed HB 2330 which directs $300,000 from liquor license monies to the Death Investigations Account for support of the State Toxicology Laboratory. Last year's legislation merging the laboratory with the Washington State Patrol Crime Laboratory inadvertently directed the monies. It is not new funding. This is the last week for Governor Gary Locke to take action on bills passed in the Regular Legislative Session. The law requires that must occur within 20 days of sine die or the bill automatically become law. All bills are effective on June 8 unless the bill specifically provides for another effective date. A complete list of bills and measures affecting counties and county offices will be mailed following the legislature's adjournment. ************************************** COUNTY CLERKS MAY ACCEPT CREDIT CARDS SSB 6154 became law on Wednesday and beginning June 8, the effective date, county clerks may accept credit cards or other forms of electronic payment for filing fees and payment of criminal legal financial obligations. SSB 6154 was amended in the House to reference other statutes dealing with monies and forms of payment accepted by counties. ************************************** LAW & JUSTICE ************************************** SENTENCING COMMISSION BEGINS REVIEW PROJECT The state Sentencing Guidelines Commission kicks off a comprehensive review and evaluation of state criminal sentencing policy at a meeting 9 a.m. to noon Friday, April 14 at the SeaTac Marriott hotel. All persons with an interest in sentencing policy and its impacts are invited to attend and speak out at this informal roundtable meeting. While the Legislature has not agreed on a supplemental budget, both the Senate and House proposals include funding and a proviso directing the Commission to conduct the review and report findings to the Legislature by December 2001. The budget provisos require the review to include analysis of whether current sentencing standards are consistent with the purposes of the Sentencing Reform Act, RCW 9.94A.010. Of particular interest to county government are additional requirements that the Commission examine whether current sentencing standards are consistent with existing prison and jail capacity, and that the Commission consider the fiscal impacts of sentencing policies on state and local government. King County Councilmember Greg Nickels serves on the Commission representing counties; however, all county commissioners, councilmembers and other county officials are encouraged to attend the April 14 meeting to share their experiences and concerns about the local government impacts of state sentencing policies and standards. The SeaTac Marriott is located at 3201 S. 176th Street, just one block east of Highway 99. Ample parking is available on-site. For more information about this meeting or the Sentencing Guidelines Commission contact the Commission's Executive Director, Roger Goodman, at 360-956- 2132. ************************************** TRAINING PROVIDED FOR NEW SEX ABUSE INVESTIGATION PROTOCOLS County prosecutors, law enforcement officers and Child Protective Services (CPS) workers attended a two-day conference in Yakima March 27 and 28 as each county prepares to develop written protocols for handling criminal child sexual abuse investigations. The protocols are required by a 1999 statute (Chapter 389, Laws of Washington, 1999), and must be submitted to the Legislature by July 1, 2000. The conference, sponsored by the Washington Association of Prosecuting Attorneys (WAPA) and the Washington Coalition of Sexual Assault Programs (WCSAP), walked attendees through the statutory requirements and the accompanying state guidelines. Briefly, the guidelines require each county protocol to address: a mission statement; identification of agencies participating in investigations; suspect and witness interviews; child interviews, medical evaluations; procedures for complex cases; information sharing; how to protect children during investigations; and training and qualifications of interviewers. The statute requires counties to follow these guidelines in developing their local investigation protocols. The statute further directs each prosecuting attorney to convene a multidisciplinary group to write the local protocols. The group should include representation from each law enforcement agency responsible for investigating child sex abuse cases within the county, CPS, assistant attorneys general who represent the state in child dependency actions, and the county's victims' advocacy program. After the protocols are completed, the group must reconvene every two years to review and, if necessary, modify the protocol. Even counties that have previously completed written investigation protocols must review and update their work consistent with the new guidelines. ************************************** WORKSHOPS/CONFERENCES ************************************** DCTED HOSTING SMART GROWTH ROUNDTABLES Building on the principles of the Growth Management Act and the need to address infrastructure needs across the state, the Department of Community, Trade and Economic Development is convening four regional "Smart Growth" roundtables during April. DCTED defines "Smart Growth" as a term describing a vision of strong communities, a vibrant economy, a healthy environment, and respect among people - all being achieved together. A number of county commissioners, councilmembers, executives and staff have been invited to these day-long roundtables. The regional roundtables are scheduled for April 24 in Yakima, April 26 in Spokane, May 1 in Everett, and May 2 in Olympia. Some roundtable participants will join with others in a statewide Smart Growth meeting on May 22. Questions about the Smart Growth strategy or the events should be directed to Shane Hope, Managing Director for the Growth Management Program at 360-753-2222. ************************************** ECOLOGY HOLDING SCOPING WORKSHOPS ON CPG GRANTS The Coordinated Prevention Grants (CPG Program) was created under the Model Toxics Control Act to facilitate the implementation of local governments' solid and hazardous waste management plans and programs. It combines separate funding mechanisms under a single regulatory and administrative umbrella. Ecology is now seeking to collaborate with local governments in evaluating the CPG Program. This effort will begin with a series of regional workshops during April, then proceed with meetings with local government officials to further evaluate the CPG Program and jointly develop new guidelines for it with Ecology. The workshops are scheduled from 1:30 to 4:00 p.m. at the following dates and locations: Tuesday, April 11 Mount Vernon Days Inn - San Juan Room 2009 Riverside Drive Wednesday, April 12 Lacey Southwest Regional Office, DOE 300 Desmond Drive Tuesday, April 18 Spokane Public Library - Eastside Branch South 524 Stone Street Wednesday, April 19 Ellensburg Inn 1700 Canyon Road For more information call Randy Martin at Ecology, 360-407-6136. ************************************** ECOLOGY PROPOSING CHANGES TO WATER QUALITY GRANT AND LOAN PROGRAMS The Department of Ecology is considering making changes to the Centennial Clean Water Fund and the Water Pollution Control Revolving Fund to make the two programs as much alike as possible. Significant changes to the Centennial Fund are proposed. Ecology is conducting four regional workshops to solicit input before formally proposing WAC changes. The workshops are at the following times and locations: April 18 Bellevue 9:00 a.m. April 27 Spokane 9:00 a.m. Ecology NW Regional Office West Central Community Ctr 3190 160th Avenue SE 1603 North Belt April 19 Tacoma 1:00 p.m. April 27 Moxee City 9:00 a.m. Pierce County Library Admin. Ctr. Moxee City Hall 3005 112th Street E. 255 West Seattle Ave. ************************************** BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS ************************************** VACANCIES ON CRAB AND E911 ADVISORY BOARD Three vacancies will occur on the County Road Administration Board effective June 30, 2000. The terms of Asotin County Commissioner Don Scheibe, Pierce County Councilmember Harold Moss and Kitsap County Engineer Randy Casteel expire. Commissioner Scheibe has served on the CRABoard since July 1997, Councilmember Moss since July 1997 and Randy Casteel since July 1999. The three positions must be filled under the following populations: A county legislative authority member with a county population between 12,000 and 125,000 A county legislative authority member with a county population above 125,000 A county engineer with a county population above 125,000 If you are interested in serving on the CRABoard please submit a letter to the Association and your name will be submitted to the Board of Directors for consideration. There is also a vacancy on the State E-911 Advisory Committee. Grays Harbor County Commissioner Dick Dixon, who will be retiring at the end of this year, has submitted his resignation effective June 1, 2000. This position is for a county commissioner, council member or executive from a western Washington county. If you are interested please submit a letter to the Association and your name will be submitted to the Board of Directors for consideration. ************************************** F.Y.I. ************************************** BASIC DEATH INVESTIGATIONS WRAPPING UP Over 30 death investigators from around Washington are completing a week-long session at the Criminal Justice Training Center in Des Moines. The Basic Death Investigations Course is an annual event sponsored by the Washington Association of Coroners' and Medical Examiners' Association (WACME) and funded through the Death Investigations Account. The course is designed for death investigators and law enforcement and presents an overview of basic death investigations. Manners of death and major modes of death are examined. Terminology for injuries, as well as underlying anatomy and physiology, are discussed. The focus is on death scene investigation, illustrated from actual cases. Additional topics include forensic autopsy, estimation of time of death, and methods of identification of human remains. William D. Haglund, Ph.D., former chief investigator for the King County Medical Examiner's Office, instructed the group. Dr. Haglund has served as consultant forensic anthropologist for the Physicians for Human Rights groups, as well as a consulting anthropologist for Honduras and Guatemala and has written several publications and books on forensics. ************************************** FULL FAITH AND CREDIT: A PASSPORT TO SAFETY The Washington Association of Prosecuting Attorneys (WAPA) and the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs (WASPC) are sponsoring a four-hour training regarding the new 1999 Foreign Protection Order Full Faith and Credit Act. If you are a prosecutor, police officer, victims' advocate or a court employee who has ever been called upon to assist a domestic violence victim, this class is for you (4 C.L.E. credits requested). Nine locations with two sessions at each location have been chosen for the workshop around the state: Spokane Training Center Yakima County Courthouse April 7 April 12 Wenatchee Fire Svc. Training Ctr Hanford Training Facility April 20 April 21 Criminal Justice Training Ctr Jefferson County Courthouse May 3 May 30 Whatcom Crisis Services Clark Regional Comm. Ctr June 1 June 29 Thurston County Courthouse June 30 Please contact Pam Loginsky, at WAPA for further information: (360) 753- 2175. ************************************** WSAC WESTERN DISTRICT MEETING ************************************** WESTERN DISTRICT MEETS IN BELLINGHAM The Western District will hold their spring meeting next week, April 6- 7, at the Best Western Lakeway Inn, in Bellingham. Whatcom County has planned on several events to make your stay pleasurable. For those arriving early there will be a golf tournament on Wednesday afternoon with Council member Bob Imhof serving as the tournament director. On Thursday evening arrangements have been made to tour the Bellingham Bay for dinner and a narrative presentation by Representative Kelli Linville on the efforts to clean up the bay. A final program is attached to the back of the Bulletin outlining the topics and speakers. We hope to see everyone in Bellingham. ************************************** NACO NEWS ************************************** NACO COUNTY GOVERNMENT WEEK National County Government Week (NCGW) is an annual celebration of county government. First established by the National Association of Counties in 1991, the goal of county government week is to raise public awareness and understanding about the roles and responsibilities of the nation's counties. This year's celebration will be held April 9-15 with the theme "Honoring Volunteers." Many counties throughout the country will hold volunteer recognition ceremonies as part of the week. NCGW should be a public information effort to let the citizens of your county know what services are provided, how the government is organized, and how tax dollars are spent. Some of the activities that counties will be participating in are: open house at the courthouse, informational displays, students "shadowing" county employees, presentations to schools, civic and business groups, and tours of county facilities. Publicity could be generated in local newspapers or by using Public Service Announcements on radio and television stations. If you are interested in further information, please visit the NACo web site at ************************************** COMING EVENTS ************************************** April 9-15 National County Government week. 17-19 County Auditors' Elections Conference, Campbell's Resort, Chelan. 19-21 WSAC Eastern District Meeting, Clarkston, Quality Inn. 26-28 County Clerks' Spring Conference, Icicle Inn, Leavenworth. 26-28 County Prosecuting Attorneys' Annual Spring Training Program, Cavanaugh's Gateway, Yakima. May 17-20 National Association of Counties' (NACo) Annual Western Interstate Region (WIR) Conference, Ada County, Boise, Idaho. 22-25 Washington State Association of Sheriffs' and Police Chiefs' Annual Spring Meeting (WASPC), West Coast Hotel, Wenatchee. ************************************** COUNTY CALENDAR ************************************** April 15 Financial affairs statements (Public Disclosure Form F-1) are due for the preceding calendar year. Many county officials have qualified to file an F-1A form, which is a single amendment added to a previous F-1 statement. An F-1A form can be used only three consecutive times, at which point a new F-1 form must again be filed. RCW 42.17.240 NOTE: County treasurers are to file with their F-1 forms a statement that no public funds under the treasurer's control are invested in any institution in which the treasurer has an interest. (This also applies to any member of a county finance committee.) RCW 42.17.245 30 First half property taxes are due and payable to the county treasurer. RCW 84.56.020 If the due date falls upon a Saturday or Sunday, the remittance shall be considered timely if paid on the next business day. RCW 1.12.070 30 By this date, the county assessor shall require each person liable to assessment of personal property to make a correct list and statement of such personal property and file it with the county assessor. RCW 84.40.040 ************************************** RAMBLINGS ************************************** Allan Martin, who has been an acting deputy treasurer in the State Treasurer's office, since August 1999, was named to a permanent deputy position by Washington State Treasurer Michael Murphy. As deputy state treasurer for debt management, Allan manages the state's bond indebtedness. He is a former Chelan County Treasurer. * * * * * Kittitas County Auditor Bev Allenbaugh recently underwent arthroscopic surgery on her shoulder to eliminate trouble with bone spurs. She is back at work and is refusing doctor's orders to take it easy and rest. She has someone on tap to teach her fly fishing (that'll be easy on the shoulder), and just tore down 50 feet of hog wire fence on Sunday. Despite that, get well or stay well wishes are in order. * * * * * Barry K. Logan, Ph.D., Director of the Bureau of Forensic Laboratory Services of the Washington State Patrol (WSP) was recently elected to the Executive Board of the American Academy of Forensic Toxicology and named chair of the American Association of Forensic Sciences toxicology section. The WSP Bureau includes both the State Toxicology Laboratory and the Crime Laboratory. Congratulations to Dr. Logan from the many county officials the laboratories serve! * * * * * A reception will be held in celebration of former Pacific County Clerk Irene Hellner's 100th birthday, on Saturday, April 15, in Long Beach. Irene served as clerk from 1950 to 1970. If you would like to attend this very special birthday, it will be held from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m., at 2015 195th Street, Long Beach. Questions? Call Sandy Leake at (360) 241-2282. ************************************** JOBS ************************************** Executive Director, For the Sake of the Salmon to lead three state (WA, OR and CA) organization whose mission is to restore salmon to levels that ensure healthy, sustainable natural populations and support productive fisheries. FSOS's members include the three states, federal agencies, Indian tribes, local governments, the sport and commercial fishing industries, agricultural producers, industry (utilities and forest products companies), and environmental groups. The FSOS office is located in Portland, Oregon. Qualifications required: Minimum of five years experience managing policy development, program planning and implementation, funding, and staff, professional knowledge and understanding of salmon and watershed protection and restoration issues and policies; key salmon stakeholders in the three state region and Washington, D.C.; approaches and sources to seek program funding. Experience working with and communicating effectively, in both written and oral form, with individuals and groups with diverse backgrounds. For further information or if interested and qualified: Submit a cover letter and application form. Application is available via the internet at www.psmfc.org/personnel or call FSOS's fiscal agent, the Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission at (503) 650-5400 to receive an application packet by mail. Send cover letter and completed application to: 45 SE 82nd Drive, Suite 100, Gladstone, OR 97027. Closing Date: Must be received by 5:00 p.m. April 21, 2000. PSMFC is an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer. ***** CITY MANAGER - BELLEVUE, WASHINGTON - Starting salary range in the low to mid $100's DOE + car. The City Manager promotes the City of Bellevue's core values which stress exceptional public service; the stewardship of resources; commitment to employees; integrity; and innovation. The City Manager leads and directs a leadership team known for its creativity and innovation. Major issues affecting the community include growth management, regional cooperative ventures, dealing with the impacts of restricted tax legislation, transportation and infrastructure management and human services. Extensive knowledge regarding municipal finance, systems development, capital program funding mechanisms, employee relations and human services programs must be demonstrated in background. For requirements and further information please contact The Oldani Group, Inc., 188 106th Avenue NE, Suite 420, Bellevue, WA 98004, phone 425-451-3938, fax 425 453-6786, email: searches@theoldanigroup.com or http://www.theoldanigroup.com. The City of Bellevue is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Closing Date: April 14, 2000. ***** CITY OF MERCER ISLAND - DIRECTOR OF PARKS AND RECREATION - Starting salary range in the low to mid $70's to the mid $90's DOE. The Director of Parks and Recreation reports to the City Manager and has oversight for day to day operations and a permanent staff of 10.5 and 150 part-time/summer personnel. In addition, the Director is responsible for the Department's $1.4mm annual budget in each of the two years of the biennial budget (FY 2000-2001). For requirements and additional information please contact The Oldani Group, Inc., 188 106th Avenue NE, Suite 420, Bellevue, WA 98004, phone 425-451-3938, fax 425 453-6786, email: searches@theoldanigroup.com or http://www.theoldanigroup.com. The City of Bellevue is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Closing Date: April 24, 2000. ***** SR. MANAGER, FINANCING, TREASURY & RISK MANAGEMENT, SNOHOMISH COUNTY PUBLIC UTILITY DISTRICT is looking for a well rounded financial professional who has significant experience developing and implementing financial strategies for governmental or municipal organizations. The successful candidate will manage the PUD's outstanding bonds and related agreements, plan and carry out financing efforts for new capital projects and refunding existing bonds, manage investment strategy and service as Deputy Treasurer, and provide strategy and direction to the Risk Manager. Requires a Bachelor's Degree with major courses in finance, accounting, business administration, or related field and five years progressively related experience including 3 years supervisory experience. Prefer utility or municipal finance experience, CPA and ARM. If you meet or exceed these qualifications and are interested, send cover letter and resume to Snohomish County PUD, Attention: Employee Resources, PO Box 1107, Everett, WA 98206 or fax to (425) 783-8675; email resumes@snopud.com. Excellent flexible benefits plan and Washington State Retirement program. We are an EEO employer, committed to a diverse workforce. ***** ENGINEERING, SENIOR DESIGN/CONSTRUCTION TECHNICIAN - PEND OREILLE COUNTY. Designing, contract coordinating and project guidance for the County's Road Division design and construction projects and maintaining and computer network for the Public Works Department. AA Degree from Civil Engineering College or Technical School with 10 years civil design, surveying, and construction inspection experience. Equivalent work experience can be substituted for college. Salary: $2,801 - $3,618/month DOQ. Obtain application and job description through the Pend Oreille County Personnel Office, West 625 4th Street, (PO Box 5025), Newport, WA 99156-5025, Phone (509) 447-4119. Application deadline: 4:30 p.m. April 28, 2000. **** END ****