Thurston County commissioners move executive session to start of agenda; session held on potential litigation

The Thurston County Board of County Commissioners voted unanimously June 3 to move an executive session on potential litigation to the start of its agenda and then went into the closed session.

Chair Ty Menzer called for the motion to move agenda item 3.1 — an executive session “to discuss with legal counsel representing the agency matters relating to agency enforcement actions or ... litigation or potential litigation” under the state statute cited on the agenda. The motion carried without objection. “All in favor, say aye,” Menzer said; commissioners responded and the motion was recorded as passing unanimously.

The board convened the executive session at about 9:06 a.m. and resumed public meeting at about 9:42 a.m., a span the chair described as roughly 30 minutes on the agenda and about 36 minutes in elapsed time. Menzer said legal counsel and staff attended and that “board action may follow.” The agenda description cited state open-meetings law as the authority for the closed session.

Under state law referenced on the agenda, the board may meet in executive session to discuss litigation or potential litigation when public disclosure is likely to cause the county harm; the board did not disclose the content of the private discussion at the public reconvening. No formal action tied explicitly to the executive session was recorded in the agenda-setting work session transcript.

The board meeting scheduled for 2 p.m. June 3 will include the regular business agenda; Menzer indicated the executive session had been moved to set context for a later item on that business agenda.

Minutes or subsequent board agenda materials may show any follow-up actions the board takes as a result of the closed-session discussion.