City Council - Committee Of The Whole

City of Bellingham Committee of the Whole Minutes July 26, 2021, 1:45 PM Mayor Seth Fleetwood Contact: (360) 778-8200, ccmail@cob.org Council Members Hannah Stone, Gene Knutson, Daniel Hammill, www.cob.org/council Pinky Vargas, Lisa Anderson, Michael Lilliquist and All meetings are held in the City Hall Council Chambers at Hollie Huthman 210 Lottie Street, Bellingham, WA, unless otherwise noted. Call to Order Roll Call Present: Council President Hannah Stone, First Ward Council Member Gene Knutson, Second Ward Council Member Daniel Hammill, Third Ward Council Member Pinky Vargas, Fourth Ward Council Member Lisa Anderson, Fifth Ward Council Member Michael Lilliquist, Sixth Ward Council Member Hollie Huthman, At-Large Council Standing Committee Meetings: Open to the public to attend. Note: there is generally no public comment period for Committee sessions. Standing Committee Members receive reports and information, ask questions and, when appropriate, vote on a recommended action for consideration by the full Council at the Regular Meeting. The notice of Committee Meetings identified below also serves as notice of Special Meetings of the City Council at the times identified as Council Members who are not members of the committee routinely attend and participate in the Committee Meetings. Committee Chairs give a report of the Committee Meeting at the Regular Meeting in the evening prior to deliberation and formal vote in the order shown below: Committee of the Whole Hannah Stone, Chair Gene Knutson, Daniel Hammill, Pinky Vargas, Lisa Anderson, Michael Lilliquist, Hollie Huthman Please be advised that if the City Council is ahead of schedule, they may start with old/new business before the official Committee of the Whole meeting time. 23063 1. City Council Appointment of an Alternate Mayor Pro Tempore for p. 3 August 18-25, 2021 Committee of the Whole Minutes Page 1 July 26, 2021  An alternate Mayor Pro Tempore must be appointed during the week of August 18 - August 25, 2021. Pinky Vargas / Michael Lilliquist moved to recommend approval for Gene Knutson to serve as Mayor Pro Tempore. MOTION CARRIED 7-0. 23064 2. Discussion of Council Feedback on Proposed Opiate Treatment p. 4 Facility The Department of Health has received an application for certification of a new opiate substitution treatment program. The applicant is Bellingham Treatment Solutions. The Department of Health has requested support from Council as a legislative body before approval. Pinky Vargas / Daniel Hammill moved to support the recommended treatment facility. MOTION CARRIED 7-0. 23051 3. Update From the City Attorney's Office Regarding Potential p. 10 Modifications to the Timeline for Initiative Petitions An amendment to Article X, Section 2, of the City Charter was adopted by Council to be placed on the ballot for a vote by the residents of Bellingham. The change was explained by James Erb, Senior Assistant Attorney. It requires an amending ordinance that would amend the Municipal Code. The City Attorney's office can draft an amending ordinance for Council's consideration and bring back to Council if directed. Michael Lilliquist / Gene Knutson moved to direct staff to bring forth an ordinance for consideration that would amend the timeline at which the date the initiative is due and provide Council time to review. MOTION CARRIED 7-0. Dan Hammill / Lisa Anderson moved to direct staff to coordinate with staff to advertise the need for members to serve as writers on the "CON" statement committee for the voters' pamphlet. MOTION CARRIED 7-0. 22013 4. Incarceration Prevention and Reduction Task Force Annual Report p. 11 Jack Hovenier, with the Task Force on Incarceration Prevention and Reduction, provided a summary on the annual report. Steve Gockley, also gave a presentation on the Task Force. Committee of the Whole Minutes Page 2 July 26, 2021  Council Members asked questions. Information only. 5. Approval of City Council Committee and/or Special Meeting Minutes Michael Lilliquist / Gene Knutson moved to approve the Committee meeting minutes of July 12, 2021. MOTION CARRIED 7-0. 6. Old/New Business Dan Hammill explained that while he was at the Incarceration and Prevention Task Force Emergency meeting earlier this morning, members of the meeting began drafting a letter to our state legislators regarding the new law related to HS 1310. The new laws went into effect yesterday (July 25, 2021). He asked if the Council could direct the legislative assistant, Nalini Margaitis, to draft a letter to our state legislators to delay the implementation of HS 1310 until the Attorney General's guidelines are out. Dan Hammill / Lisa Anderson moved to direct to draft a letter for Council's review by next week's meeting. Mayor Fleetwood added that he is in full support of the letter and has been in contact with the Governor's office to ask for a delay in implementation and clarification of the new legislation. MOTION CARRIED 7-0. Council President Stone announced that the City's YouTube Channel took down the last Council meeting video due to a summary of violation of their standards. She decided to suspend live Public Comment for this evening's meeting since there could be a chance of additional strikes by YouTube which could result in deletion of the City’s content viewing library. In Washington State City Councils are not required to host a public comment period. It is a courtesy rather than a requirement. At this time, she will institute a pause on Public Comment to preserve uninterrupted access to our meetings. Community members can still contact the Council by accessing www.engagebellingham.org, phone, or email the Council. Two items were presented for Executive Session. Committee of the Whole moved into Executive Session at 4:20 PM for approximately 35 minutes for the following items: 1. Potential Litigation Committee of the Whole Minutes Page 3 July 26, 2021  2. Litigation: Lev. v. City of Bellingham Adjournment Council President Stone reconvened the Committee of the Whole to adjourn at 6:24 PM. Committee of the Whole Minutes Page 4 July 26, 2021