PORT ANGELES — Former Clallam County Commissioner Mike Doherty blasted the current board for its spending policies and a “possible violation” of the Open Public Meetings Act.
“You can come here anytime you want and rip us to shreds, and I’m going to rip you back because you’re out of bounds,” current Commissioner Mike Chapman told his former colleague Tuesday.
Doherty has questioned the transparency of the current board, calling particular attention to Chapman and Chairman Jim McEntire’s signing of a letter of support for a state Department of Natural Resources timberland transfer in 2013.
Chapman has since “reported himself” to the state Auditor’s Office for an investigation.
Doherty, who was attending a West Coast climate summit at Stanford University when Chapman and McEntire agreed to sign individual letters to DNR on Aug. 27, 2013, complained that the discussion was not posted on an agenda, nor was the action recorded in board minutes.
“There was a definite lack of notice to me as one board member,” Doherty said Tuesday.
“There was also a lack of notice to the public and to the press about the item that came up.”
Chapman and McEntire discussed their letters supporting the land transfer to Port Angeles-based Green Crow in the correspondence portion of the work session in August 2013.
Chapman on Tuesday agreed to honor Doherty’s request to participate in the investigation.
Chapman said it was he who violated the Open Public Meetings Act, if there was a violation, because he sent the second letter.
“You can come and level an Open Public Meetings Act violation every week until I leave office,” Chapman told Doherty.
“You yourself sent dozens of letters and never once alerted me, dozens and dozens of times.
“Your hypocrisy knows no bounds.”
Chapman was seemingly set off by Doherty’s remarks in a public hearing on the midyear budget review.
Doherty described a “dramatic change” in the county’s budget process since he retired last December.
“I’m hoping that the board would re-evaluate some of the last six months, some of the trends that are still continuing about this spending frenzy, and take the longer view,” Doherty said, referring to the commissioners’ decision to spend down excess reserves.
“The big spending items, the big revenue items, have changed a lot in just six months after decades of a very statutory process, in this county a very traditional process,” Doherty added.
“There’s a great benefit in keeping strong reserves, contingency funds and revenues flowing.”
Clallam County is on pace to spend $212,043 in general fund reserves this year, down from the $758,395 that was budgeted going into 2015, commissioners were told.
Better than expected
County Administrator Jim Jones said the economy is performing better than expected with spikes in sales taxes, construction permits, camping fees and other revenue.
These gains came despite the commissioners’ recent decision to lower the sales tax rate by 0.2 percent and to spend general fund reserves in ways that help the economy grow, including the restoration of a 40-hour workweek for employees who were on 37.5-hour schedules, Jones said.
“You might want to get a little more educated before you rip the board as a former commissioner,” Chapman told Doherty.
“I don’t think, in six months, to go from an $11 million projected reserve to $11.5 million is anything but the most responsible action. And your comments today, commissioner, disgust me, quite frankly.”
Public hearings
Doherty had prodded the board to hold more public hearings to regain the public trust.
“To criticize us in a public hearing for reducing public hearings on a day when we called for two public hearings that we probably don’t even have to hold — unbelievable,” Chapman said.
In the first of two hearings, commissioners approved a $300,000 budget emergency for the transfer of general funds to shelter providers and other nonprofit agencies that help the homeless.
The county’s Homelessness Task Force recommended grants to 10 such organizations from more than $641,00 in grant requests.
Fifteen speakers testified at that hearing, most of whom described the valuable safety net the agencies provide and the need for ongoing funds.
Earlier in the day, commissioners voted 3-0 to call for an Aug. 4 public hearing on budget emergencies to release $1 million in Opportunity Funds to the Port of Port Angeles and nearly $300,000 to the city of Port Angeles for infrastructure projects.
Commissioners OK’d the grants in May but voided the warrants after County Treasurer Selinda Barkhuis rejected them on the grounds that they were approved without sufficient public process.
Chapman is a former Republican-turned-independent who has announced he will not run for a fifth term next year.
Doherty is a Democrat who worked side-by-side with Chapman for well over a decade.
Commissioners McEntire and Bill Peach are both Republicans whose predecessors were Democrats.
“I get you don’t like us,” Chapman said.
“I get none of us have the special D after our name. And somehow now that you’ve left, county government is going from hell in a handbasket.
“But you know what? Today, we put $300,000 back into the community to help those that are in need,” Chapman added.
“We also helped the average taxpayer reduce the [sales tax] burden. If you look around, this community is taxed to death.”
Doherty said he had more remarks but ran out of time at the podium.
The longtime commissioner from Port Angeles is now serving on the county Charter Review Commission.
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Reporter Rob Ollikainen can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5072, or at rollikainen@peninsuladailynews.com.
