San Juan County explores interlocal and in‑house options after AG opinion ends prosecutor‑coroner role

San Juan County officials told the County Council on Feb. 25 that the county is pursuing two parallel paths to replace prosecutorial coroner services after an attorney general opinion found prosecutors should not serve as coroner.

County Manager Sally Hudson said staff are pursuing (1) an interlocal agreement with another county to provide professional coroner services and (2) an internal staffing model that would train existing county employees to meet the statutory medical‑legal training requirement. Hudson asked the council to continue to direct staff to evaluate both options because the training timeline and contract negotiations are time sensitive.

Hudson said the AG opinion issued in 2024 requires a change and that the county appointed an interim coroner in December 2024. She said the forensic‑investigative training required to function as a coroner must be completed within 12 months of appointment and is being offered March 17–20 and again in mid‑September. The registration cost quoted to council was $550 per person (not including ferry or lodging). Hudson said she has offered to pay training and travel for county staff who volunteer to be trained so the county will have internal options if an interlocal cannot be negotiated in time.

Council members reported strong internal interest. Hudson said several department units and individual employees have expressed willingness either to provide interim support or to pursue long‑term coroner duties; some departments offered multi‑person coverage. Hudson said standing up a fully staffed, 24‑hour coroner department would have substantially higher personnel costs (staff estimated previously in the low‑to‑mid hundreds of thousands of dollars for a staffed position with deputies), though final figures will require formal budgeting and job‑description work.

The county has reached out to neighboring counties. Hudson said Snohomish County recently reintegrated coroner services in‑house and was not available to assist; Skagit County has expressed interest in exploring an interlocal arrangement and has agreed to a site visit. Hudson said interlocal contracts will need explicit terms for set rates and variable transportation costs because any remote provider would cross water to reach San Juan County.

Hudson asked the council for direction to continue both tracks; council members voiced support for pursuing both the interlocal option and internal training so the county could rely on one if the other failed to materialize. Council members also thanked the interim coroner, Tamara Green, and noted that the current interim arrangement imposes heavy workload on a single contractor and is not a sustainable long‑term model.

Staff said they will return with an update after the March training cycle and after a site visit with the Skagit coroner. Hudson said a budget amendment is likely once the county identifies preferred options and cost estimates.

What happens next: staff will continue talks with Skagit County about an interlocal agreement, solicit and support internal staff to attend the March forensic training, and return to council with more detailed cost estimates and recommended next steps.