What is three, could soon be five

One of the challenges facing Spokane County is one voters likely thought they put to rest about three years ago.

District 3 Commissioner Al French told West Plains Chamber of Commerce audience members assembled last Wednesday, Feb. 21, at Cheney’s Holiday Inn Express for the organization’s monthly breakfast that House Bill 2887 would force the county to increase the size of its governing body from three members to five. Voters rejected that idea by 55.25 percent in 2015.

“Apparently the Legislature was out of town that week because they want to move forward with it,” French said of the state measure that passed the House 83-14 and currently is in the Senate Rules Committee.

HB 2887 would require noncharter counties with populations at or above 400,000 to conduct district-based elections for commissioner positions beginning in 2022 after a redistricting process. The current election process allows districts to select their top-two candidates in the primary, with those candidates being voted on countywide in the general election.

French said commissioners are opposed to the bill, which he said is an unfunded mandate to the county. Information he presented indicated redistricting the county from three to five would cost approximately $200,000, around $100,000 for remodeling four new offices and $500,000 annually for two new commissioners and support staff.

The impact to the county would equate to the loss of an additional six Sheriff’s Office deputies, French said. He noted that the bill is specifically targeted at Spokane County, and was sponsored by six local representatives: Marcus Riccelli and Tim Ormsby from the 3rd in the city of Spokane, Matt Shea and Bob McCaslin from the 4th in Spokane Valley along with Jeff Holy and Mike Volz from the 6th, which includes much of French’s district.

“Four of those six want to be county commissioner,” French added.

“I am? Oh geez,” Holy said when contacted Tuesday, Feb. 27.

Holy said he and Ricelli began discussing the issue several years ago while serving on the state government committee. There was some reticence to go statewide with such a redistricting plan until this year due to Engrossed Senate Substitute Bill 6002 — a state voter’s rights act.

The bill — which passed the Senate and House — protects “the equal opportunity for minority groups to participate in local elections.” It also creates causes for action should violations occur as well as authorizes courts to order appropriate remedies.

Holy said his support for HB2887 had nothing to do with the rejection of 2015’s Proposition 1, but rather in the details of the upcoming Voter’s Rights Act. Not only does the act require district-based elections, but it also allows any voter who resides within a particular political subdivision to file legal action if they feel their voting rights have been violated.

The act prohibits local election systems that “impairs the ability of members of a protected class to have an equal opportunity to elect their preferred candidates that dilutes or abridges the rights of those voters.”

Holy said he and Ricelli began seeing possibilities for legal action throughout Spokane County, not just with the commissioner’s races. He said he decided to get involved in order to “get out front” on the issue before courts became involved, such as what happened in the McCleary decision regarding K-12 education funding.

“We started doing the math on this and it made sense to go to five districts,” Holy said. “You take a deep breath and say, ‘oh man, this (litigation) is going to cost.’”

French said the county is considering its options in opposition, noting because HB2887 specifically targets Spokane County it likely runs afoul of state laws requiring counties by treated equally.

“We might end up suing the state because it violates the constitution,” French said.

John McCallum can be reached at [email protected].