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HomeMy WebLinkAboutM0424170 C 1S'� District No. 1 Commissioner: Kate Dean District No. 2 Commissioner: David W. Sullivan 4 District No. 3 Commissioner: Kathleen Kler 'C4r County Administrator: Philip Morley Clerk of the Board: Erin Lundgren `f .S' _IINU SOS MINUTES Week of April 24, 2017 Commissioner Kate Dean called the meeting to order at the appointed time in the presence of Commissioner David Sullivan. Madam Chair Kathleen Kler was absent. PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD: The following is a summary of comments made by individuals in attendance at the meeting and reflect their personal opinions: Two individuals voiced their concern regarding geoduck harvesting in Squamish Harbor; An individual encouraged the County to enforce regulations to avoid expensive litigation; and An individual commented on Jefferson County's Settlement Agreement with an individual regarding a public records request and gave background on the issue. APPROVAL AND ADOPTION OF THE CONSENT AGENDA: Commissioner Sullivan moved to approve all the items on the Consent Agenda as presented. Commissioner Dean seconded the motion. The motion carried. 1. RESOLUTION NO. 20-17 re: Amending the Gardiner Community Center Guidelines for Operation (Repeals & Replaces Resolution No. 04-12) 2. CALL FOR BIDS re: Rick Tollefson Memorial Trail, Phase 1 Project, CRI 815, Co. Rd. No. 850100, Federal Aid Project No. STPR-2016(018); Bids Accepted Until 9:30 a.m. and Opened and Read Publicly at 9:45 a.m., or Shortly Thereafter on Monday, May 22, 2017 in the Commissioners' Chambers; Jefferson County Courthouse 3. AGREEMENT NO. EOC17-026, Revised re: WebEOC Software for Managing Public Records Disclosure Specific to Emergency Management Records; No Dollar Amount; Jefferson County Emergency Management; Washington State Military Department, Emergency Management Division 4. Payment of Jefferson County Vouchers/Warrants Dated April 17, 2017 Totaling $710,986.15 5. Payment of Jefferson County Payroll Warrants Dated April 20, 2017 Totaling $82,132.96 and A/P Warrants Done by Payroll Dated April 20, 2017 Totaling $19,322.62 COMMISSIONERS BRIEFING SESSION. The Commissioners reported on their meeting schedules and calendar coordination. Calendar Coordination: Below is a list of the upcoming meetings and events the Commissioners will be attending in the near future: Puget Sound Day on the Hill in Washington D.C. Page 1 Commissioners Meeting Minutes of April 24, 2017 • Chimacum Crossroads Project meeting • Strait Ecosystem Recovery Network meeting County Administrator Philip Morley will be attending an annual Washington Counties Administrator's Association conference and will be out of the office April 26-28, 2017. The meeting was recessed at 9:32 a.m. and reconvened at 9:47 a.m. with Commissioner Dean and Commissioner Sullivan present. DISCUSSION re: Settlement Agreement, Case No. 12-2-01065-2; Michael Belenski: County Administrator Philip Morley stated that a Settlement Agreement has been prepared between Michael Belenski and Jefferson County regarding a 2012 lawsuit regarding Mr. Belenski's Public Records Request (PRR) for Internet Access Logs (IAL). On September 27, 2010 and November 2, 2011, Mr. Belenski made requests under Washington's State's Public Records Act for copies of all of the County's internet access logs for the dates of February 1, 2010 — September 27, 2010 and January 1, 2011 — November 2, 2011, totaling approximately 300 Million IAL entries. The IALs were computer-generated information about each contact between the County computer system and the internet, including the addresses and dates of visits to and information sent from, internal and external sites contacted by each County computer's browser. The information in the IALs was automatically recorded by the County's computer system firewall program to allow analysis in the event of an electronic security threat, but otherwise was not used by the County. Approximately 120,000 IALs coming and going are recorded by the firewall per work day. The County believed the IALs which were passively collected by the County's firewall, did not constitute public records under the definition of the State's Public Records Act (PRA), and informed Mr. Belenski that the County had "no responsive records." Mr. Belenski filed a lawsuit in Clallam County Superior Court. The case was heard by Judge George L. Wood, and on May 15, 2013, Judge Wood ruled in the County's favor that the IALs were not public records under the State's PRA. Mr. Belenski appealed Judge Wood's ruling to Division One of the Washington Court of Appeals. On May 19, 2015, a panel of three appellate judges reversed Judge Wood's ruling and found that the IALs were public records under the PRA, and therefore the County had an obligation to disclose them. In its ruling, the appeals court also found that Mr. Belenski's lawsuit on his first request should be dismissed because it was filed after the one-year statute of limitations for filing a case in court. Upon the Court of Appeals decision, the County promptly provided Mr. Belenski copies of all requested IALs it had that were responsive to Mr. Belenski's two requests, but with legal redactions allowed under State law so as not to reveal the internal security structure of the County's computer network. Shortly Page 2 NICS1131-71, Commissioners Meeting Minutes of April 24, 2017 after, the County turned off the firewall feature that records the IALs, since they were not being used by the County. Mr. Belenski appealed the statute of limitations ruling to the Washington State Supreme Court. On September 1, 2016, the State Supreme Court ruled that the one-year statute of limitations applies to the PRA under all circumstances. The Supreme Court remanded the case back to Clallam County Superior Court, for the court to decide if any penalties should apply to either records request, and also to determine when the clock for the one-year statute of limitations should have started on the first request. County Administrator Morley noted that Clallam County Superior Court Judge Wood has since retired and that under the PRA, a judge may assess a penalty for requested records that are not timely produced by a public agency. The penalty can be from $0-$100 per record, per day. Given the risks of litigation and the costs of proceeding to trial in this case, and because the court had clarified important legal principles governing the definition of a "public record" and the statute of limitations, the parties began negotiating to establish a basis for moving forward in an open and transparent way. County Administrator Morley explained that after Mr. Belenski and Jefferson County entered into negotiations, Prosecutor Michael Haas, Chief Civil Deputy Prosecutor Phil Hunsucker and outside legal counsel Attorney Jeff Meyers joined in negotiations. Mr. Thiersch assisted Mr. Belenski during negotiations. County Administrator Morley noted that after three rounds of negotiations, both parties have reached a proposal for a tentative settlement agreement with the following components: 1) Collection of IALs. Within 21 days of the execution of the agreement by all the parties, the County agrees to reinstate settings on its computers to retain collection of Internet Access Logs (IALs). The parties agree that such IALs are subject to redaction under the Public Records Act, including but not limited to the security exemption under RCW 42.56.420 and that the County may redact the IALs in order to protect such information, the release of which may increase risk to the confidentiality, integrity, or availability of agency security, information technology infrastructure, or assets. The County shall promptly make the redacted IALs available to the public via the County website at the end of each month, or more frequently, or other period as may be agreed by the parties. The County shall retain the IALs and the redacted IALs for a period of not less than one year. 2) Public Records Administrator. The County agrees to create a position within County government for a full time Public Records Aadministrator, whose duties shall include oversight of the public records management and disclosure. This position shall be supervised by the County's designated Public Records Officer and County Administrator. This position shall be promptly filled by the County not later than August 31, 2017. 3) Consideration. The Parties agree as follows: 3.1. Within 10 days of execution of this agreement, the County shall pay One Hundred and Fifty Thousand Dollars ($150,000.00) to Mr. Belenski in full settlement of all claims in this matter, which amount includes Five Thousand Dollars ($5,000.00) as costs for expert witness services of Thomas Thiersch. Page 3 Commissioners Meeting Minutes of April 24, 2017 3.2 Upon Mr. Belenski's receipt of full and final payment of the full settlement amounts set forth in paragraph 3.1 above and fully executed copies of the agreement are exchanged between the parties, the parties shall promptly sign and cause to be entered a Stipulated Order of Dismissal of all claims in this lawsuit with prejudice and without costs or fees. County Administrator Morley stated he is sobered by the cost to the public, but it can be seen as an opportunity to make improvements. He added that no one likes lawsuits, but at the end of the day, both parties came to an agreement and the County is well served by that. Commissioner Sullivan and Commissioner Dean thanked everyone for their time spent on the Settlement Agreement. Commissioner Sullivan moved to approve the Settlement Agreement between Michael. Belenski and Jefferson County, Clallam Case No. 12-2-01065-2. Commissioner Dean seconded the motion. The motion carried. The meeting was recessed at 10:10 a.m. and reconvened at 10:15 a.m. with Commissioner Sullivan and Commissioner Dean present. BID OPENING re: Teal Lake Overlay MP 0.01 to MP 0. 54, Project No. 18020270, County Road No. 505309: The project will correct a chip seal surface which showed extensive raveling during the winter of 2016-2017. The project includes Hot Mix Asphalt overlay of Teal Lake Road. It also includes planning bituminous pavement, raising catch basin and utility covers, paving road approaches, and installing an asphalt wedge curb and traffic lane markings. Public Works Engineer Mark Thurston read the following two bids aloud: BIDDER BID AMOUNT Northern Asphalt $193,900.10 Lakeside Industries, Inc. $163,321.62 The Engineer's estimate for the project is $196,900.00. Staff will review bids for accuracy and submit a recommendation for bid award to the Board at a future date. EXECUTIVE SESSION. An Executive Session was scheduled from 10:25 a.m. to 10:55 a.m. with the County Administrator, Community Development Director, Planning Manager, Prosecuting Attorney, and Chief Civil Deputy Prosecuting Attorney regarding Attorney -Client Privilege, Potential Litigation under exemption RCW 42.30.110(1)(i) as outlined in the Open Public Meetings Act. The actual period of time the Board met in Executive Session on this topic was from 10:26 a.m. to 10:57 a.m. At the conclusion of the Executive Session the Board resumed the regular meeting. UPDATE re: Shoreline Master Program (SMP) and Geoduck Farming in Squamish Harbor: Community Development Director Patty Charnas, Planning Manager David Greetham and Chief Civil Deputy Prosecuting Attorney (DPA) Phil Hunsucker briefed the Board on the Shoreline Master Program (SMP) and how it pertains to the geoduck farming issue in Squamish Harbor. Page 4 Commissioners Meeting Minutes of April 24, 2017 Chief Civil DPA Hunsucker gave a presentation on the permitting process that geoduck farner BDN, LLC has gone through since its initial application to the County and Army Corps in 2013. He explained that in 2014, the County initially told BDN, LLC that a SMP permit was required for new geoduck aquaculture. That same year, the County reversed its position to require a permit after BDN claimed that Washington's "vested rights doctrine" applied, which he explained. Chief Civil DPA Hunsucker briefed the Board on recent court cases and legislation which led the County to inform BDN, LLC on April 21, 2017 that a SMP Conditional Use Permit (CUP) is required for new geoduck operations or impermissibly increased geoduck operations, even though BDN, LLC submitted applications to the County in 2013. County staff answered questions from the Commissioners, the public and representatives of BDN, LLC. The meeting was recessed at 11:17 a.m. and reconvened at 12:00 p.m. for the Quarterly Elected Officials/Department Directors lunch meeting with Commissioner Sullivan and Commissioner Dean present. The meeting was recessed at 1:10 p.m. and reconvened at 1:31 p.m. Commissioner Sullivan and Commissioner Dean were present for the afternoon session. UPDATE re: Critical Areas Ordinance: Jefferson County Department of Community Development (DCD) is in the process of updating the County Critical Areas Ordinance (CAO), as required by the Growth Management Act (GMA). The CAO was last updated in 2008, with minor revisions made by the department in 2009 to address the Western Washington Growth Management Hearings Board Final Decision and Order. The CAO update must be completed by June 2018 and shall include the Best Available Science (BAS), as required under RCW 36.70A.172. Also, RCW 36.70A.710 requires the County to review and, if necessary, revise development regulations to protect critical areas as they apply to agricultural activities. DCD has conducted some outreach activities to get input from County residents. BAS documents have been prepared for the County in support of the update and DCD has collected additional BAS documents. The department has begun drafting revisions to the CAO and is in the process of providing an overview to the Planning Commission. DCD Director Patty Charnas, Planning Manager David Greetham and Lead Associate Planner Donna Frostholm briefed the Board on their progress updating the CAO. LETTER re: National Estuary Program: Commissioner Dean stated she received a draft letter from Puget Sound Partnership that highlights the importance of sustained federal support for Puget Sound programs. The letter aims to make Congress aware of the economic, cultural, social and ecological damage that could occur if the President's proposed federal budget cuts are implemented. Commissioner Sullivan moved to send a letter drafted by Puget Sound Partnership to members of Congress, urging the continuation of Federal funding to the National Estuary. Commissioner Dean seconded the motion. The motion carried. Page 5 Commissioners Meeting Minutes of April 24, 2017 COUNTYADMINISTRATOR BRIEFING SESSION: County Administrator Philip Morley reviewed the following with the Board. Miscellaneous Items: • Bathroom Summit; The County and other agencies and individuals are addressing the issue of public restrooms and showers in Jefferson County. • Strategic Plan; County Administrator Morley and Commissioner Dean gave an update on their research for a Strategic Plan Facilitator. • Commissioner Dean will not be attending the Board of County Commissioners meetings on May 1 and 8, 2017 due to previous commitments. NOTICE OFADJOURNMENT. Commissioner Sullivan moved to adjourn the meeting at 3:00 p.m. until the next regular meeting or special meeting as properly noticed. Commissioner Dean seconded the motion. The motion carried. SEAL: ATTEST: / �V v Carolyn ery, CMC( Deputy Clerk of the Board JEFFERSON COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS (Excused Absence) Kathleen er, Chair Davi Sullivan, Member Y r Kate Dean, Member Page 6