Camas council confirms ad hoc committees after vote to postpone is reversed

The Camas City Council approved appointments to two ad hoc committees on Feb. 18, 2025, after a motion to postpone the item failed and the council then voted to confirm members.

Councilmembers debated whether to delay appointments so members could review a draft policies-and-procedures document and avoid possible Open Public Meetings Act problems. Councilmember Senesky moved to table the item; other council members, including Burke and Hine, argued the committees needed to begin work assembling and coordinating comments in advance of an open workshop. The motion to postpone was put to a roll-call vote and did not carry; the council then returned to the item and voted to approve the appointments.

Supporters said the ad hoc committees are intended only to collect and compile council input rather than to rewrite policy outside an open meeting. Councilmember Hine described the role as coordinating comments for a future workshop and said the committee would not exercise independent authority. Opponents cited unanswered emails and asked for more time to review the policies and procedures and the code of conduct before confirming appointees.

The mayor asked councilmembers to send any interview questions or recommendations for candidates for the council vacancy to the city clerk for compilation. The council also clarified that the vacancy ad hoc committee follows requirements in an earlier resolution and need not wait for further documents to be adopted.

The vote to approve the appointments carried; council minutes record the motion as adopted and the council moved on to subsequent agenda items.

The action establishes the two ad hoc committees and directs them to coordinate comments and prepare for a public workshop to refine the policies and procedures document prior to the expected arrival of a new council member.