Spokane County commissioners interview Mike Volz as a finalist for county treasurer

Spokane County commissioners interviewed Mike Volz on Monday, Feb. 3, as one of three nominees submitted by the county party to fill a vacancy in the county treasurer’s office.

The session in the commissioners’ chambers (with Commissioner Jordan participating by Zoom) was a timed, 30-minute interview meant to be followed by an executive session in which commissioners said they hoped to make a selection. The county party provided three names for the vacancy, the chair said at the start of the meeting.

Volz, who described himself as the office’s chief deputy treasurer and a sitting state representative in Olympia, told commissioners he has worked in the treasurer’s office for much of the last 25 years and has been chief deputy for about 14 years. He said he is juggling legislative duties but intends to run for the treasurer’s office in 2025 and not seek re-election to the state House in 2026.

“I won’t be, I won’t be running for my house seat. I will be running for treasurer,” Volz said.

Commissioners asked about workforce management, regional collaboration, investments, information systems and public records. Volz described experience working with two unions in the treasurer’s office, said he practices lean management and credited employee-led working groups for producing operational improvements during a 2012–2015 reorganization. He told commissioners his management style is inclusive but “sometimes I can be a bit intense.”

On investments, Volz said the office manages a pooled fixed-income portfolio and described his role in developing policy and monitoring that pool. He said, “we manage about a $1,600,000,000 fixed income portfolio for the 80 different governmental agencies that we serve.”

Volz identified the county’s ongoing Workday implementation and legacy tax and debt systems as near-term priorities if appointed. He said the office has rolled out a product called Teller for cash-handling and expects Workday to redefine internal roles and processes. He emphasized continuity concerns, noting that many members of the management team are approaching retirement and that institutional knowledge will need to be preserved.

On public records, Volz said he has experience with requests both at the county level and in the legislature and advised caution in written communications when litigation is pending. He recalled placing a sign that read, “I cannot comment on that,” during past litigation and said the county worked with legal counsel when matters were in court.

Volz also addressed questions about handling negative community feedback, describing a town-hall exchange where he allowed a dissenting attendee to speak and then answered the complaint directly.

The commissioners asked additional questions about staffing levels, succession planning and how Volz would balance the treasurer’s operational duties with his legislative role. Volz reiterated his commitment to the treasurer’s office and to running in the next election cycle.

After Volz’s interview, commissioners recessed for about 10 minutes before proceeding to the next finalist. No formal appointment was announced during the public portion of the meeting; commissioners said they would move to executive session to discuss the candidates and hoped to return with a decision.

Votes at a glance: none reported. No formal motions or votes were recorded on the public transcript segment for this interview.