Charter Review Commission Candidate John Jay proposes a series of papers to discuss the interesting particulars of our county charter
Editor’s note: Opinions expressed in this letter to the editor are those of the author alone and may not reflect the editorial position of ClarkCountyToday.com
To the People of Clark County:
After a decade of experience with the new Home Rule County Charter, residents of Clark County are once again called upon to elect a new 15-member Charter Review Commission during this year’s election cycle. This subject should speak to its own importance, as the County Charter is the foundational legal document that defines the structures, powers, and functions of our county government. The election of Charter Review Commissioners is an opportunity for the citizens of Clark County to be directly involved in the shaping of this document, as the Charter Review Commission has the authority to place amendments directly on the ballot for the citizens of Clark County to approve or reject.
In 1948, Washington state amended its constitution to enable counties the option to opt into a “home rule” government, which enables the county government a higher degree of local autonomy and self-governance than what was covered under the then Washington State Constitution. Home rule empowers counties the ability to create their own structures, laws, and processes to suit the needs of their citizens, so long as it does not conflict with the State or Federal Constitution. Following the adoption of this amendment, Clark County made numerous attempts at adopting a Home Rule Charter, including 1982 when voters rejected a city-county consolidation effort, in 1997 when voters refused to approve the election of Freeholders for a county charter, and in 2002, when 21 freeholders were elected and proposed a new home rule charter, which was soundly rejected at the ballot box.
While The Columbian Newspaper dismissed Clark County’s home rule efforts as being a “Zombie” in local politics- repeatedly being defeated only to show up again on the ballot- in 2013, the Clark County Board of Commissioners acquiesced to community demands and created 15 freeholder positions to be voted on by electorate to establish a new home rule charter in hope that the updates to the charter would be limited to only citizens referendum. Subsequent events would upend this expectation. Voters in Clark County then elected a notable board of freeholders from across the political spectrum, including Jim Mains, Liz Pike, Mark Boldt, Garry Lucas, Pat Jollata, Peter Silliman, Temple Lentz, and Ann Rivers.
Over the course of seven months, these freeholders assembled a new charter, which included an initiative and referendum process, converted the three-member Board of Commissioners to a five-member County Council elected only from the district they represent with only the chair elected in an at-large district (this was subsequently changed), and an increased separation of powers in the legislative and executive branches of county government by creating a “firewall” between the appointed county manager and county council to prevent the council from involving itself in administrative matters. Following the supermajority approval by the Freeholders of the new proposed charter and a contentious election, Clark County voters approved of the new charter with 53% in favor.
In addition to the above changes, the new charter included a provision in Article 9.1 that established that the charter would be reviewed periodically by a charter review commission, which first convened following the 2020 election of a new board of County Charter Review Commissioners.
In conclusion, I propose a series of papers to discuss the interesting particulars of our county charter. In the progress of this discussion, a series of essays under the title of “The Charterist” shall be published and endeavor to examine our charter’s history, various branches, and analyze proposed amendments.
John Jay, candidate
Charter Review Commission
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