Thurston County SWAC elects Commissioner Emily Klouse as chair, affirms vice chair

The Thurston County Solid Waste Advisory Committee elected County Commissioner Emily Klouse as its new chair and retained Chad Sutter as vice chair during its Feb. 5, 2026 meeting.

The vote followed nominations from the floor. Chair (presiding) opened nominations and members cast raised‑hand votes: Commissioner Emily Klouse received six raised‑hand votes of the 14 seated members visible; Chad Sutter received three. The presiding officer declared Klouse the new chair; Sutter remained vice chair after a separate majority vote.

The result brings an elected county commissioner into the chair role after a discussion among members about the balance between representing an individual commissioner district and representing SWAC as a whole. The presiding officer said the office of chair requires “you have to represent the views of this commission rather than the views of the district you politically represent.” Commissioner Emily Klouse responded that she “totally understand[s] the representation of the committee as a whole” and committed to representing the committee rather than a single district.

Members then reviewed the SWAC onboarding packet and bylaws in a presentation by Laura Glover, Thurston County solid waste planner. Glover summarized the committee’s stated purpose, membership composition and appointment process, and key procedural rules: SWAC provides advice on solid‑waste handling, reviews proposed rules and ordinances, and assists with the county’s solid‑waste management plan. The committee is constituted with 15 seats (including a non‑voting Department of Ecology representative); currently 14 voting seats are filled, so a quorum requires eight seated voting members.

Glover outlined officer terms and limits, the staff role as secretary for meeting documentation, attendance rules (three consecutive unexcused absences may lead to removal by vote), and conflict‑of‑interest guidance (members should abstain from votes when matters would directly or indirectly benefit them but may provide expertise on topics). She also noted SWAC follows Robert’s Rules of Order for motions and debate and explained public‑meeting obligations under the Open Public Meetings Act.

Members asked whether the county code published on the Municode library reflected the current membership structure after the county shifted from three to five commissioners. Glover said ordinances must be posted to Municode but that the online library can lag; she said SWAC initiates ordinance changes and staff drafts them for BOCC consideration.

The meeting closed with routine announcements and scheduling; the committee adjourned without further formal action.