News and Insights
The Mask Mandate is Back and Vaccinations Will be Required for Education and Childcare Providers – Will this Impact your Government Agency or Business?
Masks: On Wednesday, August 18, 2021, Governor Inslee announced a new statewide indoor mask mandate in response to the rising COVID19 hospitalization rates across the state. The mandate applies to everyone regardless of their vaccination status. The mandate will take effect Monday, August 23, 2021. The mask mandate will [...]
Gov. Inslee Mandates Vaccinations for Employees and Volunteer Health Care Providers by October 18, 2021
By: Richard A. Davis III and Matt T. Paxton On August 9, 2021, Governor Jay Inslee issued Proclamation 21-14 requiring state employees and health care and long-term care providers to be fully vaccinated by October 18, 2021. Proclamation 21-14 applies to all workers for state agencies and most health care [...]
Knowing the Waters – Elections and Public Facilities
By Frank Chmelik, Peter Ruffatto and Allison Beard Well, it’s that time of year – you are thinking summertime, boating and barbeques – we lawyers are thinking election season. As the election season is upon us, local government officials and employees are regularly faced with making decisions about election-related [...]
COVID19 OPMA Updates – Restrictions on Capacity and Physical Distancing Lifted
As of June 30, 2021 Governor Inslee has “opened up” Washington State from COVID19 restrictions, however the state of emergency is still in effect. What does this mean for municipal agencies and their compliance with the OPMA? Here are the current requirements regarding open public meetings: Proclamation 20-28.15 is [...]
Is reposting agency social media an improper use of public facilities? – Election Season Reminders for Municipal Agencies, Officials and Employees
As election season is upon us, local government officials and employees are regularly faced with making decisions about election-related questions and activities. Officials and employees must remain vigilant about staying on the right side of the line that distinguishes acceptable activities from those prohibited by law. Below are examples of [...]
Knowing the Waters – Loss of Port Funds
By Frank Chmelik This month, we look at what happens when a port discovers a “known or suspected loss of public funds.” Honestly, this does not happen very often, but when it does occur it can be very stressful on port staff and the commissioners, particularly when it [...]
COVID19 OPMA Updates – Restrictions on Capacity and Physical Distancing Lifted
As of June 30, 2021 Governor Inslee has “opened up” Washington State from COVID19 restrictions, however the state of emergency is still in effect. What does this mean for municipal agencies and their compliance with the OPMA? Here are the current requirements regarding open public meetings: Proclamation 20-28.15 is [...]
Is reposting agency social media an improper use of public facilities? – Election Season Reminders for Municipal Agencies, Officials and Employees
As election season is upon us, local government officials and employees are regularly faced with making decisions about election-related questions and activities. Officials and employees must remain vigilant about staying on the right side of the line that distinguishes acceptable activities from those prohibited by law. Below are examples of [...]
Knowing the Waters – Loss of Port Funds
By Frank Chmelik This month, we look at what happens when a port discovers a “known or suspected loss of public funds.” Honestly, this does not happen very often, but when it does occur it can be very stressful on port staff and the commissioners, particularly when it [...]
Knowing the Waters – Public Works, Ordinary Maintenance and Maintenance
By Frank Chmelik, Seth Woolson and Peter Ruffatto Seth Woolson is a principal in our firm and works on public work construction issues for port districts. Peter Ruffatto was the Bellingham city attorney before joining our firm this month. This month’s topic is the rules surrounding public works, ordinary maintenance [...]
Knowing the Waters
By Frank Chmelik of Chmelik Sitkin & Davis P.S. – March 2021 Port districts, like all Washington local and municipal governments, are required to redistrict their commission districts once every ten years using the decennial census data provided by the federal government. For most port districts (county-wide port [...]
Knowing the Waters – Public Records Requests
By Frank Chmelik and Allison Beard - February 2021 We have recently seen an increase in public record requests. One aspect of public record requests that need particular attention occurs when a list of individuals, companies or employees is requested. The Public Records Act, at RCW 42.56.070(8), prohibits governments from [...]