Whatcom County Councilor, at-large

Description

The Whatcom County Council is the legislative branch of Whatcom County government. The County Council is comprised of 7 members. Two members are elected from each of the 3 County Council districts, and 1 member is elected as the countywide at-large representative. All County Council positions are non-partisan. The term of office for each position is 4 years. The County Council exercises its legislative power by adoption and enactment of ordinances and resolutions. The Council is elected to: Adopt plans for the present and future development of the county Conduct public hearings on matters of public concern Create county government policy Create land use rules Enact public safety laws Establish the compensation for all county officers and employees and to provide for the reimbursement of expenses Councilmembers may not receive a salary increase for the term of office during which the salary ordinance is adopted or receive a salary in excess of 15 percent of that of the County Executive Establish, combine, and abolish non-elective administrative offices and executive departments and to establish their powers and responsibilities, except as otherwise provided for in the Whatcom County Home Rule Charter Levy taxes, appropriate revenue, and adopt the county budget Set speed limits, no-shooting zones, and animal control regulations

Application Guidelines

The filing window for this position begins the Monday two weeks prior to Memorial Day and ends on the Friday of that week (5 days). Candidacy filing papers can be acquired at and are submitted to either the county elections office or the Secretary of State’s Office in Olympia. For non-partisan offices, if there is only two candidates filed for a position they will run against each other in the November election. If more than two candidates file for a non-partisan office, than the non-partisan office will go through the August primary and the top two vote getters will advance to the November election for the seat. For a partisan office, the candidates will run in the August primary even if only two people are participating. This may create scenarios where the same candidates participate for the same seat in the August primary and November election. For any further questions, the Whatcom County Auditor's office can be reached at 360-778-5102 or [email protected], and the Secretary of State’s Office can be reached at (360) 902-4151 or [email protected]. ***Washington is one of the only states with online filing for candidacy. For more information regarding filing online, please see here: http://www.whatcomcounty.us/1891/File-for-Office

Submit application to:
Whatcom County Elections, 311 Grand Avenue, Suit 103, Bellingham, WA, 98225, US