Kittitas County Public Works updated commissioners about the Conference of Governments’ (COG) effort to solicit proposals for a single federal advocacy firm to represent regional priorities and help members pursue federal funding.

Public Works staff said the county currently works with the Ferguson Group as its federal liaison; COG members believe a single contracted advocate could better align regional priorities and improve competitiveness for federal programs. The draft request for proposals would ask member agencies and possible partners, including Central Washington University, to contribute funding toward a shared federal-advocacy contract.

Staff said the mechanics of cost-sharing have not been finalized; COG has discussed dividing costs equally among the six municipal members and CWU (seven participants total) or prorating by population. Commissioners raised concerns about duplication if the county retains a separate contract with the Ferguson Group and asked that quarterly reporting from the regional advocate be provided to the full Board of Commissioners as well as to COG’s committee.

Staff recommended returning with details for how a regional contract would coordinate with existing county arrangements and how reporting and priority-setting would work. No county commitment to fund a regional contract was made at the meeting; direction was to continue refining the proposal and to provide regular COG updates in public works study sessions so information reaches the full board.

The proposed advocacy service described in the draft RFP would focus on federal-level advocacy only, staff said; state-level lobbying was not included in the current COG discussion.