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Sunnyside council approves consent agenda after heated debate over payroll transparency and vendor contracts
Summary
Council approved the consent agenda including $412,774.69 in vouchers after Councilor Hancock pulled the claim vouchers and pressed staff for contract copies and payroll disclosure; council directed staff to provide additional documentation to all members.
Councilors approved the consent agenda on May 12, 2025, after an extended discussion and a roll-call vote that left one member opposed.
The debate focused on the claim vouchers and payroll disclosures included with the packet. Councilor Hancock moved to pull “all claim vouchers,” saying she wanted council and the public to be able to see “who’s working for the city of Sunnyside and what they’re making.” Hancock said she would not vote for vouchers until staff provided copies of contracts and explanations for specific charges, including a $3,000-per-month contract she said appears on a vendor’s public site as a multi‑year engagement.
Administrative Services Director Kelly Koski told the council that changes to the report format were proposed by the finance subcommittee and that the payroll register had been reviewed after the packet deadline; she said the city could include payroll registers in future packets if the full council so desired. Koski also said finance staff were short‑staffed and asked council to prioritize which records and invoices the department should research first.
Council members debated transparency versus staff workload. Deputy Mayor and other councilors said the packet is public and that the new report format was intended to increase clarity; the finance director told council the items Hancock sought had been sent to the council inbox and that additional documents would be provided by May 16. Council agreed that staff would supply contract copies and clarifications to all members.
A roll-call vote approved the consent agenda (motion by Deputy Mayor; second by Councilor Hart). Councilor Hancock voted no; all other members voted yes. The approved consent items included the minutes of the March 24, 2025 meeting and a check register for the period ending May 2, 2025, listing checks numbered 111602 through 11680 for a total of $412,774.69.
Council also asked staff to clarify several voucher descriptions (for example, vendor memos such as “statement 33848” and line items for Ameresco, Colton Consulting LLC, Arteaga Consulting, HD Fowler, and others) before future approvals. Koski said finance staff would improve descriptive memos, include payroll registers in future packets, and return the requested contract copies and invoice explanations to council.
