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Pasco PFD amends interlocal agreement with City of Pasco to allow district option to hire outside counsel; city attorney signals he may not pursue RFQ
Summary
The Pasco Public Facilities District board on Oct. 21 approved an amended interlocal agreement with the City of Pasco that clarifies the city attorney may serve and explicitly gives the district the option to retain separate legal counsel; the resolution extends the ILA through Sept. 30, 2026.
The Pasco Public Facilities District board on Oct. 21 approved Resolution 2025-05, which adopts an amended interlocal agreement (ILA) with the City of Pasco clarifying legal services language and extending the term to Sept. 30, 2026. The amendment gives the district explicit flexibility to contract for separate legal counsel if it chooses.
Under the amended language the document now states the city attorney "may" serve as attorney for the district and the district has the option to contract for its own counsel. The change was presented to the board as a measure to preserve continuity of legal representation after the city—s current arrangements change at year-end. The full amended ILA was attached as the exhibit to the resolution and the board approved the resolution by voice vote.
Eric Ferguson, currently serving as the city attorney for related matters, joined the meeting remotely and told the board that, because of staffing and health issues at his firm, it appears he will not be able to participate in the city—s competitive process to provide ongoing services to the district. Ferguson said there were internal developments that limit his ability to continue as a candidate and that, as the city's contract concludes at year-end, he expects his current services to conclude as well.
Executive director Matt Gardner said the district will issue or finish an RFQ/RFP process to find capable municipal counsel. Gardner cautioned that talented municipal attorneys can be difficult to recruit locally and said the district may need to cast a wider geographic net, including firms in the Puget Sound area, to secure experienced municipal counsel. He said staff will prioritize producing a draft ILA and work with board members and the city to meet the city's requested timeline (a draft by Nov. 2 was discussed).
Board members approved the resolution enabling the amended interlocal agreement and asked staff to coordinate next steps with city staff, run an RFQ/RFP for district counsel as needed, and present draft language to the board and committee subsets for review prior to final action.
What—s next: the city requested a draft by Nov. 2 to support its schedule; staff will return to the board with a proposed RFQ and draft ILA language for review ahead of the December council and board actions.
Key facts - Resolution approved: Resolution 2025-05 (amending the interlocal agreement with the City of Pasco) - Material change: language changed to allow the city attorney to "may" serve and gives district option to contract for separate counsel - ILA term extended through Sept. 30, 2026 - City staff requested a draft ILA by Nov. 2; district staff will work to meet that timeline
Sources and attribution: reporting is based on statements at the Oct. 21 Pasco Public Facilities District board meeting, including comments from Eric Ferguson (attorney) and Matt Gardner (executive director).
