The meeting was called to order at approximately 7:00 pm by acting chairman, Ben Elenbaas.
Commission members were sworn in by Whatcom County Auditor, Debbie Adelstein.
Ben Elenbaas was elected as the permanent chair, Joe Elenbaas was elected as vice chair, and Chet Dow was elected as secretary. No other officers were deemed necessary at this time.
The commission elected to operate under Roberts Rules of Order. Other housekeeping discussion included compliance and training requirements for commission members.
The budget for this session is approximately $16,000, which covers meeting space, county staff, and other necessities such as mailing and other communication, and "reasonable" compensation for commissioner expenses. Most commissioners seemed content with the idea that they would probably not submit expense reports.
Meeting schedule and locations were discussed at length. The commission decided to meet two times a month on the second and fourth Mondays of each month, with the understanding that the workload might require more frequent meetings.
Though no final decision was reached regarding the exact location, the commission did agree to meet in Bellingham (probably at the Civic Center Garden Room, 322 N. Commercial St. until such time as the space is unavailable due to remodeling), at least once per month.
The commission discussed how to address the invitation for other elected officials and staff who must operate under the Whatcom County charter, to provide input and written suggestions for charter amendments, to the commission.
Here is the audio from the full meeting:
There was a bit of strategic posturing, when an attempt was made to increase the number of commissioners present required for a quorum from the default eight (a simple majority) to ten.
Here is the audio of that discussion:
The meeting adjourned at approximately 9:40 pm.
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