City Administrator Parks introduced Ordinance O2025-012 at the July 25 Budget and Finance Committee meeting, proposing to create a communications department, add a communications director position in Tumwater Municipal Code (chapter 2.06 and chapter 2.1), and assign the department to the city administrator for oversight.
Parks said the change formalizes a communications function that has evolved in recent years, standardizes the city's approach to public engagement and media relations, and clarifies the official spokesperson role. Under the proposed ordinance, the communications manager (Jason) would move into a communications director role and sign the city's standard employment agreement template applicable to other directors.
Parks said the only fiscal impact this biennium would be the salary-and-benefit difference for the promotion. Finance staff estimated the maximum potential increase from a proposed Sept. 1 start through Dec. 31, 2026, at less than $50,000; Parks said that amount is expected to be within existing general-fund capacity and should not require a budget amendment in the current biennium.
Committee members discussed timing. Several members suggested placing the ordinance on the Sept. 2 city council meeting rather than the Aug. 19 meeting to allow fuller council review and to avoid an overly crowded Aug. 19 agenda; the committee voted to move the ordinance to the Sept. 2 council meeting for consideration with a recommendation to adopt.
Parks said the proposed director position would increase the visibility and professionalism of the city's communications work and would make the city's official spokesperson role clearer to the media and community. The committee did not take final action on the ordinance; formal adoption will occur only if the full city council votes to adopt the ordinance at a future meeting.