December 2021 Knowing the Waters - a column by WPPA Counsel Frank Chmelik

As another year of Knowing the Waters comes to an end, it’s time to look forward and plan for your first meeting of 2022. Here’s a brief checklist for your first (and maybe second or third) meetings of next year.

ü    Set the time and place of the commission meetings for next year.  RCW 42.30.070 requires that the commission set the time and place of the regularly scheduled meetings for the year.  Some commissions set the time and place until further change, while other commissions set the schedule annually.  In any event, make sure the port’s regular meeting schedule and meeting place is set.

ü    Appoint the officers of the commission.  RCW 53.12.245 requires that the commission elect a president and a secretary.  Along with these appointments, consider appointing commissioners to represent the port in the various state and local organizations such as the Washington Public Ports Association, local economic development organizations, and so on.

ü    Consider affirming the appointment of the port auditor and the port attorney.  Other than the manager or executive director, the port auditor and the port attorney are the commission’s only direct appointments.  RCW 53.36.010 requires the appointment of a port auditor.  Some commissions make these appointments until further change and some commissions make these appointments annually.  It is a good practice to confirm that these appointments are in place.

ü    Consider any revisions to the commission’s resolution governing the transaction of its business.  RCW 53.12.245 requires such a resolution.  The compliance with this requirement varies widely amongst port commissions.  Some port commissions adopt a simple resolution to “move, second, discuss and adopt” motions or resolutions.  Others adopt some form of Robert’s Rules of Order.[1]  Still others adopt some form of “policy-governance” resolutions available from a variety of sources.  My non-legal advice from years of attending various open public meetings is to keep it simple.  The idea is simple – introduce the motion or resolution, hear from the staff, let (and encourage) all commissioners to weigh in and then vote.  If the issue needs further thought or discussion, table it until the next meeting.  It seems the less that elected bodies get bogged down in procedural issues the more time there is discuss the merits of the issue.

ü    Consider any revisions to the port’s “Delegation of Powers Resolution.”  RCW 53.12.270 provides the port commissions may “delegate to the managing official of a port district such administerial powers and duties of the commission as it may deem proper for the efficient and proper management of port district operations.”  Talk to the port’s manager or executive director to see if there are efficiencies that can be introduced to operations to ensure more bandwidth for the commission.  Commission meetings are a limited resource, and a proper delegation of powers resolution can save time for issues that need commission attention and direction.

ü    Consider a resolution authorizing the executive director or manager to sell port district property of ten thousand or less in value.  RCW 53.08.090 allows such a resolution, but it is not mandatory.  However, any such resolution is only good for one calendar year so a new resolution must be passed every year.

ü    Consider setting commission goals for the year.  This isn’t legal advice, but I have seen elected bodies have very productive years when they set goals.  Some local governments approve an outline of an entire year’s agenda, which requires identification of significant issues and the meetings throughout the year where each of these issues will be presented. The commission can then identify the important issues that must or should be addressed in the coming year, and allows the port commission and the senior staff to move from reactive to proactive--from immediate to strategic.  Staff can organize their year’s work so they can meet the commission’s expectations.  Sure, things do and always will come up, but it might be helpful to know what the commission sees as big issues and when during the year those big issues will be considered.  Another advantage of this approach is it allows the commission to evaluate its performance at the end of the year and really see how it did on identifying and addressing the big issues. 

Happy New Year! As always, please contact your port counsel with any legal questions regarding this topic.   And, if you have a particular topic for a Knowing the Waters please email me at fchmelik@chmelik.com.

[1] US Army Colonel Henry Martyn Robert (May 2, 1837 – May 11, 1923) was the author of Robert's Rules of Order, which is the most widely used manual of parliamentary procedure in the United States.  Robert graduated fourth in his class at West Point in 1857. He became a military engineer.  As a lieutenant, during the 1859 Pig War, he built fortifications on San Juan Island – now the dominion of the Port of Friday Harbor.