Medical Lake mayor, council outline process and timeline to fill council vacancy

Medical Lake — City leaders on Sept. 2 briefed the council and public on the formal process and timeline for filling a current council vacancy, citing state law and the city's policies adopted earlier this year. The mayor and staff told the council that the city's Council Policies and Procedures (adopted via Resolution 24 6 45 and updated Jan. 7, 2025) and the Revised Code of Washington (RCW) govern vacancies. Under the RCWs cited by staff, the remaining members of the governing body must appoint a qualified person to fill the vacancy; the appointment must occur within 90 days. Staff calculated that the city must make an appointment no later than Nov. 18 to meet the statutory deadline. Staff reviewed qualifications for applicants: U.S. citizenship, Washington state citizenship, at least 18 years old, and residency in the City of Medical Lake for at least one year preceding appointment, per the RCWs. Interviews and selection must be held in an open public meeting; executive sessions may be used only to discuss candidate qualifications but not to conduct interviews or make nominations or votes. Staff outlined the proposed interview format used previously: candidates provide a two‑minute opening statement, council members each ask one predetermined question (two minutes per question, up to 12 minutes), the candidate may give a two‑minute closing statement, and all interviews occur in a random order determined by drawing names. Candidates would be sequestered at City Hall during other interviews, electronic devices would be prohibited while sequestered, and interviews and voting would be in open session. Staff proposed a timeline: publish the vacancy and accept applications for approximately 30 days, compile application materials and provide them to council in advance, then hold candidate interviews and vote at a scheduled council meeting (staff suggested Oct. 21 as a possible interview and selection date), leaving buffer time before the Nov. 18 statutory deadline. The appointed candidate would serve until the next scheduled election certification in November 2027, at which point that seat would be up for the elected winner to fill the remainder of the term. Councilors asked procedural questions about whether the council could screen and limit interviews and whether executive session review of materials could precede the interviews. Staff said the city's policy requires interviewing all qualified applicants in open session, though an executive session to discuss qualifications is permitted after interviews to deliberate; interviews, nominations and the vote must occur in open session. Staff asked council members to submit primary and backup interview questions in advance so staff can create a consistent set of questions; the mayor would resolve duplicate primary questions where necessary. The mayor said the new council member would be sworn in at the next regularly scheduled council meeting after appointment. Staff did not open a nomination or take a vote during the Sept. 2 meeting; the council received the schedule and instructions to prepare questions and application materials.