PORT ANGELES — Clallam County commissioners Jim McEntire and Mike Chapman have been exonerated of an alleged violation of the Open Public Meetings Act.
Former Commissioner Mike Doherty had accused his prior colleagues of a “possible violation” of law dealing with transparency when they discussed and signed letters of support to the state Department of Natural Resources for a 4,000-acre land exchange with Green Crow on Aug. 27, 2013.
In a Monday letter to Doherty, state Audit Manager Carol Ehlinger concluded that the concern was “not substantiated” during an annual audit of the county.
“We did not identify any correspondence between commissioners that took place outside of a meeting open to the public,” Ehlinger wrote.
“Further, we determined the commissioners took official action in a regularly scheduled meeting, which was open to the public with a quorum of commissioners present.”
Doherty said he was never interviewed by the state auditor’s office.
“I would have liked to give my side of the story,” Doherty said Wednesday.
“I didn’t have the chance to participate and give my side of the issues, and I don’t know what the county in their self-reporting ever submitted to them,” Doherty said.
Chapman directed County Administrator Jim Jones to self-report a possible violation of the Open Public Meetings Act after Doherty said in a June 23 hearing that commissioners issued nearly identical letters of support to DNR without noting the item on a public agenda or recording the action in official board minutes.
The letters were discussed in the correspondence portion of the Aug. 27, 2013, work session, which Doherty missed because he was serving as a panelist at a conference at Stanford University.
Doherty joined his fellow commissioners for the regular business meeting later that morning, but the letters of support were not discussed in the regular meeting.
“They talked about it and took action to write individual letters,” Doherty said of the work session.
“It’s a pretty significant action when a majority of board takes a position on a land exchange.”
He added: “It was kind of shock to me.”
Questions about exchange
Although he was not categorically opposed to the land transfer, Doherty said he had questions about the exchange and concerns about potential fire hazards.
He said he should have been informed about the letters.
An audio recording of the Aug. 27, 2013, work session revealed that Chapman and McEntire decided to send individual letters rather than one letter from the board because Doherty was absent.
Ehlinger wrote that the auditor’s office reviewed correspondence between each commissioner, DNR and Green Crow.
“I just wish the auditor would have interviewed the person who brought up the alleged violation,” Doherty said.
As a result of the inquiry, Chapman said he would make public all letters of support that he signs at the next available work session.
Understand the point
“I understand the point that was raised,” Chapman said Wednesday.
“It may not have been illegal, but I understand the issue.”
Sharing letters of support with the full board and the public, he said, “would be a good standard” for future commissioners.
“Open government means [being] completely open and transparent,” Chapman added.
McEntire said he was not surprised by the findings of the state auditor’s office.
“It is the result that I knew was going to happen,” he said Wednesday.
“In one sense, it’s kind of an anticlimax. But in the other sense, it’s always good to have an objective third party tell you you did nothing wrong.”
McEntire said DNR specifically asked commissioners for comments on the land exchange.
He said the county board has conducted business the same way for decades, and “it seems to have worked.”
“In my view, in my personal opinion, we have struck a pretty good balance of formality vs. informality,” said McEntire, the current board chairman.
“You get bogged down in process if everything turns into a formal affair.”
Doherty retired at the end of 2014 after serving for 20 years on the county board.
He served this year on the Clallam County Charter Review Commission and will serve next year on the newly formed Trust Lands Advisory Committee.
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Reporter Rob Ollikainen can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5072, or at rollikainen@peninsuladailynews.com.
