Richie and Fonzie Happy Days 1977. Photo courtesy ABC Television, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Clark County Today Editor Ken Vance offers his reaction to the County Council’s new Rules of Procedure
Ken Vance, editor
Clark County Today
Ken Vance
I know I’m dating myself with this pop culture reference from childhood, but it might land with a few of you folks. As a youngster, one of my favorite TV shows was “Happy Days,’’ which featured actor Henry Winkler playing the character Arthur Fonzarelli, known more affectionately as “The Fonz’’ of “Fonzie.’’
“The Fonz’’ had an inability to admit when he was wrong. He would try to utter the words “I was wrong,’’ but he just couldn’t get them out of his mouth. As he tried, he would stumble on the word “wrong.’’
“I was wwwwwrrrrrooo …,’’ he would say repeatedly, never physically able to actually utter the entire word. Winkler delivered it with comedic brilliance.
There was nothing comedic about the actions of the three members of the Clark County Council who provided us with a clear admission of guilt Tuesday when they approved changes in the council’s Rules of Procedure. Several of the changes were the councilors’ attempt to cover their tracks from their disgusting decision to remove fellow Councilor Michelle Belkot from the C-TRAN Board of Directors last year. (Note: Belkot voted against the changes Tuesday and Councilor Matt Little was absent from the meeting.)
Clark County Today reporter Paul Valencia informed us of the councilors’ actions Tuesday, pointing out that the members of the council can now direct an individual councilor on a board and/or commission exactly how to vote on specific policy items. And the council may remove a councilor from an appointed board and/or commission with a simple majority vote.
“This is so wrong,” Belkot said at Tuesday morning’s Clark County Council meeting. “To me, it admits there was something wrong with the removal of me from C-TRAN.”
In early 2025, Belkot, while on the C-TRAN board, announced her intention to vote to protect Clark County taxpayers from footing the operations and maintenance costs associated with light rail. She would have been the deciding vote on returning to older language in the Modified Locally Preferred Alternative (MLPA) for the Interstate Bridge Replacement Program. That older language clearly stated C-TRAN would not pay for O&M costs.
Under the council’s Rules of Procedure at the time, Belkot was under no constraint to vote as her fellow councilors demanded. She was free to vote her conscience and to represent the constituents of her district, as well as the broader Clark County area. Belkot, like many of us, are opposed to the extension of TriMet’s light rail into Vancouver and most of us clearly don’t want to pay for the O&M costs. But the other four members of the council have a pro-light rail agenda and they want to further that agenda no matter how much money it takes out of our pockets.
The entire embarrassment was orchestrated by Vancouver Mayor Anne McEnerny-Ogle. Current County Chair Sue Marshall takes her marching orders from the Vancouver mayor on issues such as C-TRAN and the I-5 bridge replacement project and councilors Wil Fuentes and Glen Yung are all too willing to fall into line and vote as a majority block on virtually every issue. Councilor Matt Little has shown brief glimpses of sanity and commonsense, but often falls in line with the crazies on the council.
The Vancouver City Council has long had the requirement for its members to represent the wishes of the majority of the council when voting while representing the city on an outside board such as the C-TRAN Board of Directors. So, after Belkot unsuccessfully attempted to have her fellow councilors’ decision to remove her from the C-TRAN Board reversed via a lawsuit, those councilors put into motion the plan to cover their tracks. That process was completed Tuesday. I just don’t see how anyone can interpret that as anything other than an admission of guilt.
Belkot has appealed the judge’s ruling on her lawsuit. I’m not a legal expert, but after following the court’s initial handling of her lawsuit, I have very little expectation that she will suddenly be successful even with this new development of the councilors’ actions. But, the judge should certainly consider this latest news.
This current makeup of the Clark County Council continues to be the least representative of our county’s residents as I have seen in my career as a journalist. Oh sure, residents of the city of Vancouver are well represented by this council. However, if you reside more than a stone’s throw from downtown you are likely feeling as underrepresented as I do.
I try very hard not to tell anyone how to vote. And, I will attempt to refrain from doing so here. But, I will point out that three positions on the County Council are to be decided in the November election. I strongly encourage you to get involved in the selection of the candidates to fill those three positions because I don’t know how much more of this Clark County can take.
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