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Committee directs attorney to draft one-year residency language for council eligibility
Summary
The committee voted to have city staff and counsel draft charter language requiring one-year residency in-district (full-time, non-snowbird) and to clarify voter-registration requirements and enforcement procedures; the motion passed by voice vote.
The Everett Charter Review Committee voted to direct staff and the city attorney to prepare charter language tightening candidate eligibility in Article 2.2, including a one-year district residency requirement, a full-time residency standard (to address so-called “snowbird” situations), and a requirement that candidates be registered voters.
Committee members argued the longer residency standard would prevent opportunistic candidacies and ensure representatives have sufficient ties to their district. Alan Rubio urged that six months is insufficient and recommended at least one year in-district to ensure meaningful representation. "If you don't live in the community for one year, how can you represent it?" he said.
Members also discussed who should determine residency (city clerk, city attorney, or the courts) and whether exceptions (for military service or short-term forced moves) should be included. The committee directed staff to draft language that includes a definition of part-time versus full-time ("snowbird") residency and consider an exception for overseas military service.
The motion to standardize residency to one year, require full-time residency (no snowbird status), and require candidates to be registered voters passed by voice vote; the committee asked legal staff to return with proposed charter language for review.
