— from Acting Chief Scott Williams and representatives of San Juan County Fire District #2 —

We are responding to comments from community members to recent news (see orcasissues.com/coffin-resigns-fire-commission-dicaprio-appointed/) regarding the Fire District. We appreciate that several people took the time to offer their viewpoints.

1. Facilities Maintenance Contract: The district is exploring options for maintaining the buildings and properties associated with the fire department. We have identified ongoing maintenance needs and specific repair issues. Greg Sawyer, a representative from the San Juan County Facilities Department, was at the board meeting and was able to explain the opportunities that a partnership with the county would offer regarding facilities management. Mr. Sawyer is a county employee and not a contractor. He did explain that he maintains a roster of ‘Contractors’ for the county related to specific maintenance services. An inter-local agreement is under consideration between Fire District #2 (Orcas Island Fire and Rescue) and the San Juan County Facilities Department. The possible agreement is currently being vetted to ensure that it would produce meaningful operational and cost efficiencies. No decision has been taken on the agreement at this time.

2. Appointment of a commissioner: The statutory process for replacing a commissioner is clear. According to the Washington State Fire Commissioner’s Handbook, … “a Commissioners may resign for any reason. Resignations are effective when accepted by the board and cannot be revoked after having been accepted”. … A resignation creates a vacancy, … ”If two or more board members remain, the board members have 90 days to fill the vacancy. If not filled within 90 days or only a single board member remains, the County legislative authority fills the vacancy. Individuals appointed to fill a vacancy serve until a new commissioner is elected at the next commissioner election (odd years). The person elected then serves the remainder of the term of that commissioner position.” We realize that many in the community feel that the process in this case lacked transparency and an opportunity to provide input on selection of a replacement commissioner. While the authority to appoint a new commissioner remains firmly with the Commission, the Board of Fire Commissioners is open to suggestions from the community regarding individuals interested in filling future vacancies.

3. About special meetings: RCW 42.30.080 states in subsection (3) …”The call and notices required under subsections (1) and (2) of this section shall specify the time and place of the special meeting and the business to be transacted. Final disposition shall not be taken on any other matter at such meetings by the governing body”. This relates to the Handbook regarding its’ description of special meetings, …”The notice must state the subject matter to be discussed at the meeting. The board may not take final action on any item not specified in the notice”. We would like to clarify that the official resignation of Commissioner Coffin will occur in September prior to the Regular Scheduled Meeting. He will still be acting in the capacity of a Commissioner until his official resignation date. Therefore, the official appointment of another individual to this position cannot occur till September. So, the question is, with the Commission having the ability to appoint a replacement to a vacancy due to a resignation, when should this intent be discussed with the community. The Agenda for the Special Meeting on 22 August included the topic of Commissioner Coffin’s resignation because it is will occur before the Regular Scheduled Meeting. This was an effort by the Commission to take proactive steps to inform the community about the resignation and a highly qualified candidate to replace Commissioner Coffin.

4. TJ DiCaprio: Ms. DiCaprio has withdrawn her name for consideration as a replacement for Commissioner Coffin. We regret that Ms. DiCaprio has withdrawn her name and we wish her well in her future endeavors.

5. In reference to RCW 52.14.015. This RCW refers to “Increase in the number of commissioners—Election”. This section does not discuss ‘equal representation’. The section within RCW 52.14, which touches on the topic of equal representation, is RCW 52.14.013 and it discusses the “Creation” of “Commissioner districts” which can be created within a fire protection district. San Juan County Fire Protection District #2 does not have sub-commissioner districts that we are currently aware of. So, the board may benefit in the future from additional board members and representation from different communities on Orcas Island, but the current board is not in violation of RCW 52.14. Location on the Island should not be a deterrent for qualified individuals to support and lead the fire department.

The Commissioners, officers, staff and volunteers of Orcas Island Fire and Rescue are honored to serve our community. We operate the department under the guidelines and rules established by the Washington County fire Commissioners Handbook, relevant RCWs and the best interests of the community. We’d like to thank everyone for his or her recent comments.

**If you are reading theOrcasonian for free, thank your fellow islanders. If you would like to support theOrcasonian CLICK HERE to set your modestly-priced, voluntary subscription. Otherwise, no worries; we’re happy to share with you.**