[{"_1":2,"_111":-5,"_112":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75,87,99],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6313589,"mediaKeyId","2387380-e7774ec5b433aece0779dbec407461b0","parentId",2387380,"title","Commissioners reappoint and appoint volunteers to county advisory committees","audioSeconds",223,"startMs",6375000,"endMs",6598000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2387380-e7774ec5b433aece0779dbec407461b0&start=6375&end=6598","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2387380-e7774ec5b433aece0779dbec407461b0/thumbnail_6375000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6313589/Cowlitz-County/Washington/Commissioners-reappoint-and-appoint-volunteers-to-county-advisory-committees","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6313589-b9fc8a7b4d7e5996d67991703678d828/orig.mp4?Expires=1771174017&Signature=KKmHP9kAFm~eHQO-s8Babqm-qRHfEJZ1tQHSYzHa16ZnecTv9LviaHEOZbMfXgL8o5Jt3nIl~xpKn-QpXGRduw0ydlU25AakQzBpoBLOs-2i~CUd48walMJ4ihrNbXz-gvHrrx27pkgLre1KT1x9ys6~7D08sfd97AAK~dr-4E7aFuBQKBFp6IDizHpxMZG4VFh1r4oeK89lfjm9cat5H20CitWqC3FU-qOATjPsvUU2i7PT9cZxF~rlLRmXwSrbBJWSWJMDowALOg-T6Rg4CAqg0sbm682ittQZv3Yhlw5Xqv22Hf5Hjkgxhrmv7dcVqzTMaxeOmWSugovoREIl-Q__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Cowlitz County Commissioners, Washington","date","2025-02-24T19:19:06Z","article","The Cowlitz County commissioners approved routine volunteer-board actions and appointments following staff recommendations.

Staff recommended reappointment of a current member (Mr. Bruggeman) to the Solid Waste Advisory Committee; commissioners moved to reappoint him. For a rodeo-related advisory opening, staff recommended two applicants and noted one candidate (Nichols) had repeatedly volunteered at work parties; commissioners appointed Nichols to the open slot.

Staff said the appointed volunteers bring local knowledge and prior participation in committee activities. The appointments will be reflected in county records and committee rosters.

Ending: Staff will follow up to place appointment paperwork on record and to fill other committee vacancies as openings occur.

","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Monday Business Meeting - 02.24.2025","oneSentenceSummary","The board reappointed an incumbent to the Solid Waste Advisory Committee and appointed a new member to the Rodeo committee after staff recommended the candidate who volunteered at multiple work parties.","taxTitle","Cowlitz County, Washington","taxId",5122,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6313594,"County staff seek contract approvals and personnel actions; several items on consent agenda",1168,5204000,6372000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2387380-e7774ec5b433aece0779dbec407461b0&start=5204&end=6372","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2387380-e7774ec5b433aece0779dbec407461b0/thumbnail_5204000.jpg","/articles/6313594/Cowlitz-County/Washington/County-staff-seek-contract-approvals-and-personnel-actions-several-items-on-consent-agenda","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6313594-b513484a149bad7b526a4d8788928d88/orig.mp4?Expires=1771174017&Signature=XA3ZEQPNXxlR09eAloh8TijavSUYImFP8jDekLtlf1rQua7ELbVwsay~WV6pPejebEEp9KNapOs8Xk8aCFSwZlhTq0rpsG0sOUvrPVNGisoBSZPtKPUJ5MMuGkYXnHJYEUZLYjYLpR99Y-GIhNE9UekfGnIBcqiWOFme99-LPnhdPY3DbjRYVxaomTe3JVDlmwvJxrAz9SRX0c1v6JMv40MVgRApbrLsv2Ie5iBRLghfT3fixhIrfzCKzydomCYKxStHoM4BgpAhz7zBQTTFVI~3X-JyTgldNjU-TYEVt-UOK5MMnq14QTEhKOIPwR3UYSaBlws6KspsFH0qJDZypw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Public-works, facilities, information-technology and human-resources staff briefed the commissioners on several contract and personnel items that will appear on the county's consent agenda or be presented for action at the next meeting.

Sean Roey, public-works facilities manager, said the county plans an on-call roof repair and maintenance contract with Weather Guard with a not-to-exceed value of $100,000 to provide rapid response without repeated emergency procurements. Savannah Clement, public services, said the on-call approach avoids emergency contracting procedures and associated audit scrutiny.

Roey and staff also said the county will present a revised capital and tenant-improvement policy that consolidates a separate space-allocation policy, streamlines the process, clarifies timelines and establishes intake forms. Commitments include an item identified on the consent agenda (contract/consent agenda item 1) and routine facilities work.

Travis Schimy, IT director, requested authorization for WWT professional services to implement softphones and SIP services to modernize the county phone system. He described the request as a one-time professional-services expense capped at $12,560 and said licensing had already been purchased in an earlier phase of the phone-system project.

Sheriff's office counsel reported two amendments to the humane-society contract were on the consent agenda and that the sheriff expects a revised contract shortly.

Human-resources director Justin Warren requested authorization to fill a permit-specialist vacancy in Building and Planning and to allow a three-week overlap for training. Warren also requested seasonal-summer-hire authority: public works requested 20 summer positions and other departments requested a total of four; proposed hourly starting rates were $18.50 for new hires and $20.50 for returning hires.

Facilities staff noted the planned retirement of a long-tenured construction manager (Gary Gonzer), and public-works staff reminded commissioners about related retiree recognition.

Commissioners acknowledged these items would proceed through the consent agenda or return for formal action where required; several items were scheduled for the board meeting or the following day.

Ending: Most of the items discussed were routine consent matters or one-time professional-services requests; commissioners were briefed and staff will present formal contract documents and personnel requests for approval on the consent agenda or at a follow-up meeting.

","Public works requested a new on-call roof repair contract and capital/tenant-improvement policy revisions; IT sought funds for phone-system professional services; human resources requested permission to fill positions and summer-hire allocations. Several contract items were placed on the consent agenda for the next meeting.",{"_33":88,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":89,"_41":90,"_43":91,"_45":92,"_47":93,"_49":94,"_51":95,"_53":96,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":97,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":98,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6313599,"Cowlitz County finance director outlines January cash flow, plans for budget amendment",1634,3543000,5177000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2387380-e7774ec5b433aece0779dbec407461b0&start=3543&end=5177","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2387380-e7774ec5b433aece0779dbec407461b0/thumbnail_3543000.jpg","/articles/6313599/Cowlitz-County/Washington/Cowlitz-County-finance-director-outlines-January-cash-flow-plans-for-budget-amendment","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6313599-3f3e02d64e3f1f562068dab9bc890e2b/orig.mp4?Expires=1771174017&Signature=H5HSOmApSXTI2m-I27RwxW2Ur8WBTlM4ds7hSvy3FiXSVK0nPdxh0zfAE1oNNk~nk9dYC8NA~rR~GdS9sR1sZbTE92SqwM~Mjt6NloCsrgvcBrvpIntIyUnDKalsAkH5lZDbzcjfqFBvy4VfsZmSHl5yK-Dtn5rfdrwGIZno~zJyQIeLWC8WkTOu5NjHC~efeMQ3R-jHBx0~QElWPV5aiTKlEuOsyBVoqBDLkVte326SEbs0gWBIjM3OkRT-v-KIi8kj4ENmJVjRdlAp431XJYO7qv1AqRHQ1sNqZ7QwtCedCNlRH19leIFvKPVTGGK6TJ-GkcBnQjrLVANGYHcpJA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Kathy Funk Baxter, Cowlitz County finance director, delivered the monthly financial update and previewed a budget-amendment public hearing scheduled for the next day, citing timing effects from accrual reversals and the county's internal-services billing cycle.

Baxter told commissioners the general fund showed limited revenues in January (about $2.0 million) and higher expenses (just over $10.0 million) because internal service department charges are routinely billed in January. \"January is the month where we pay our internal service department bills,\" she said, and added that accrual reversals from 2024 complicate year-over-year comparisons.

Baxter said the county received $451,000 in special assessments for the Noxious Weed program in 2024 and that overall cash and investment balances started the year at roughly $318,000 on hand plus investments. She also briefed the board on sales-tax trends: 12 months of sales-tax collections totaled about $11.5 million for the past year, roughly $1.1 million lower than 2023. The finance director said the 2025 budget was set flat with 2024 to avoid assuming growth.

On property taxes, Baxter said no 2025 property-tax collections had been received as of January but the county recorded collections of past-due amounts for prior tax years. She explained the county records reversals and accruals in January for revenues that are received later in the year (for example, sales taxes that arrive with a lag).

Baxter reviewed program- and department-specific items behind the upcoming budget amendment. Among adjustments she listed: transfers and carryovers for projects not completed in 2024 (for example, jail RFID outfitting and work at the Hall of Justice), newly received grants and a planned new construction fund for a public facilities district (PFD) project pending bond refinancing and finalized plans. She said risk management will repay a one-time subsidy it received in 2024 tied to a timing change in assessments.

For other county funds, Baxter said the county had about $77,000 in unspent budget authority from 2024 that rolled forward, and that most program expenses are personnel and interfund services, not supplies. She also told the board that recording fees and transactions in January showed an increase compared with January 2024, and cited stable retail sales tax collections despite declines in construction-related sales-tax receipts.

Baxter asked commissioners to approve the public hearing for a budget amendment (scheduled for the next day) and said she would bring a revised resolution to establish the new PFD construction fund requested by the district.

Ending: Baxter said financial statements will become easier to interpret as the year progresses and accrual reversals settle into the usual February/March cycle. She offered to provide further detail on specific line items and will track the budget amendment through the public hearing process.

","Finance Director Kathy Funk Baxter told commissioners that January spending reflects routine internal-service billing and that a public hearing on a budget amendment (including a new construction fund request from the Port/Facility Development entity) is set for tomorrow.",{"_33":100,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":101,"_41":102,"_43":103,"_45":104,"_47":105,"_49":106,"_51":107,"_53":108,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":109,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":110,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6313604,"Cowlitz County reports 2024 gains, continued challenges in noxious weed control",2266,1262000,3528000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2387380-e7774ec5b433aece0779dbec407461b0&start=1262&end=3528","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2387380-e7774ec5b433aece0779dbec407461b0/thumbnail_1262000.jpg","/articles/6313604/Cowlitz-County/Washington/Cowlitz-County-reports-2024-gains-continued-challenges-in-noxious-weed-control","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6313604-b7c12961aea85067719cd87bbc0d6573/orig.mp4?Expires=1771174017&Signature=eI7aG2T8x8sdp7eEmoZ8ZqfyBXgxY3EAtatQWOWCRKg2m6q0UrJb5yhY-KBAaWY9SWbNNB-cSCj1IRWW-XLrJdGxoAejTkJzIDhjgixXCYT7xuC8jP8R40DyWRTR7gqTkO0h1Jgcf~znbD06We4llvmq5t~ZYldNrysiyxQIEydscLcPJCQQCnPQD0AvZr9Ly2NO7WfMFtNe81jP3-153dl8NBzE6cKtTfiXAbMJTDnTT1M~kQKTKmSbcbZXuGOuPfnYAiu7yMa4IiYYVPcx7Snvp1qbwq-rbylB-AXFEHXcBEuHmDulr8zc7DsSpZze7lHXLMkAJeE-JMYihMr0Bw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Jennifer Mendoza, coordinator of the Cowlitz County Noxious Weed Control Program, reported final 2024 program statistics to the Cowlitz County Board of Commissioners, highlighting expanded outreach, grant projects and continuing infestation trends.

The report comes as the county marks the 50th year of the local Weed Control Board. Mendoza said the board's volunteers and staff focused on education and targeted grant projects in 2024 while the program collected more field data than in prior years.

Mendoza told the board the county's program reached about 1,500 people through presentations and events and estimated contacts with roughly 9% of county households through inspections, mailings and assistance programs. \"When you control something early or you have a smaller infestation and you can get on top of it early, it overall reduce[s] your control costs,\" Mendoza said.

The county tracks species in three legal classes. Mendoza said 163 species are listed statewide: 41 Class A species (eradication required), 70 Class B (control to prevent spread) and 52 Class C (widespread; control requested only in special situations). She reported that 80 species (class A, B and C combined) were present in the county in 2024, with about 90 species monitored overall across inspections and grant work.

Program activity in 2024 included: a grant-funded false brome eradication project; knotweed projects on waterways (about 50 acres treated) including work on Abernathy Creek, Mill Creek, Delameter Creek, the Toutle River and sections of the Cowlitz and Columbia tributaries; and treatment across about 100 acres at the Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument through a partnership with monument managers. Mendoza said the program was reimbursed about $65,000 for grant work in 2024 (approximately $46,000 for Mount St. Helens work, $11,000 for knotweed activity, about $4,500 for Class A projects and just under $3,000 for a Columbia Land Trust collaboration).

Mendoza described the program's approach as education-first: inspectors typically send an informational packet and a \"request to control\" letter (14-day window) before escalating to a certified notice of violation. She noted that the program closed about 75% of inspection reports as controlled or partially controlled and that unresolved or noncompliant cases still constitute about 25%. \"We still have about 25% who, well, 10% who did no control at all,\" Mendoza said.

The coordinator addressed how a plant becomes listed as a noxious weed in Washington: anyone can propose a species to the state listing committee, which evaluates distribution and control data and then recommends classification to the state weed board, followed by a public hearing. Mendoza said stakeholders are monitoring House Bill 1707, which would change the listing process; she said the county weed board does not support the proposed change. \"There's kind of a battle of agriculture and natural resources in the listing process here,\" she said, citing recent controversy over holly (a proposed Class C listing) and growers who consider holly an agricultural commodity.

Mendoza described options the program uses to help landowners: cost-share reimbursements for herbicides (expanded in 2024 to a $400 maximum), an exempt program to treat qualifying seniors or disabled landowners at no charge, disposal vouchers and a Tansy collection day (roughly 4 tons collected in 2024). She said the program hired a nine-month seasonal noxious-weed specialist in 2024 to lead grant crews and keep inspectors focused on inspections.

Commissioners and other officials asked operational questions during the presentation, including whether the county can force control of nonlisted species (it cannot), how inspectors perform road-side inspections, and permit and access limitations within the Mount St. Helens Monument (no powered equipment or animals for some treatments).

Mendoza encouraged landowners to help prevent spread by removing seed or harvested material responsibly and said educational outreach (postcards, pocket identification guides and an integrated pest management guide) has been useful to reduce violations. She said the program distributed more than 600 pocket ID guides in 2024 and sent roughly 2,300 communications to landowners during the year.

The program said it received $451,000 in special-assessment revenue in 2024, and Mendoza explained the special assessment funding model (parcel and per-acre charges), noting the board administers the program with a small staff: coordinator, administrative assistant, two inspectors, seasonal specialist and temporary summer crews. Mendoza said the program strives to keep enforcement a last resort and to prioritize education and assistance.

Ending note: Mendoza said more project reports (Mount St. Helens, Class A false brome and knotweed) were in progress and would be forwarded to the board when ready. She provided contact information for further questions.

","The county's Noxious Weed Control Program reported outreach gains, grant-funded projects and ongoing infestations in 2024, while urging landowner cooperation and noting legal limits on enforcement for nonlisted species.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Commissioners reappoint and appoint volunteers to county advisory committees

County staff seek contract approvals and personnel actions; several items on consent agenda

Cowlitz County finance director outlines January cash flow, plans for budget amendment

Cowlitz County reports 2024 gains, continued challenges in noxious weed control