PORT ANGELES — The names of two applicants for the acting Clallam County treasurer post have been forwarded to county commissioners for their decision on who will succeed Selinda Barkhuis.
Human Resources Director Rich Sill said he forwarded the application materials of interim Treasurer Teresa Marchi and former Port of Port Angeles commissioner candidate Michael Cobb to the commissioners last week.
The applicants have already publicly said they want the job.
A screening committee composed of Sill, county Auditor Shoona Riggs and county Assessor Pam Rushton reviewed the applications of Marchi, Cobb and Amanda Christianson, who recently moved to Port Angeles, last week at a 90-minute closed meeting, Sill said.
Teresa Marchi
Christianson’s name was not forwarded for the commissioners’ consideration.
“We felt that she wasn’t qualified to compete,” Sill said Monday.
The applicants were reviewed based on categories including their knowledge and experience with state and local laws, the county charter, the functions of the treasurer’s office and government accounting systems, according to Sill’s memo to the board forwarding Marchi’s and Cobb’s names.
They also were reviewed for “leadership and management capacities required for local government operations,” according to the memo.
The acting treasurer position will pay $81,492 in salary and an additional $28,813 in benefits for total yearly compensation of $110,305, county Administrator Jim Jones said Monday.
An executive session has been scheduled for noon Jan. 30 for commissioners to discuss the applications.
Commissioners’ Chairman Mark Ozias said Monday that Sill, Jones and possibly Rushton and Riggs will be present.
The screening committee did not express a preference for Marchi or Cobb, Ozias said.
Ozias said he did not know Monday if the commissioners will talk in executive session with Marchi and Cobb, whether they will be interviewed at a public meeting or if the commissioners will exit the executive session Jan. 30 and take a vote.
“Our intention is to make a decision as soon as we reasonably can,” Ozias said.
Barkhuis served seven years as treasurer before leaving office Dec. 15 with a year left on her second term, citing “health issues resulting from work-related stress” in her Dec. 14 resignation letter.
Marchi is the chief deputy treasurer and a longtime employee of the treasurer’s office.
Cobb is a sailing instructor and a former Navy finance officer.
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Senior Staff Writer Paul Gottlieb can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 55650, or at pgottlieb@peninsuladailynews.com..
