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Bellingham City Council elects Hannah Stone as council president, confirms committee chairs and appointments
Summary
At its first meeting of 2026 the Bellingham City Council elected Council Member Hannah Stone as council president, approved a full slate of committee chairs and memberships, and allocated council assignments to local advisory boards; votes on the reorganizational slate were unanimous.
The Bellingham City Council on its first 2026 meeting elected Council Member Hannah Stone as council president and approved a full slate of committee chairs and committee memberships.
Council members debated whether to give then-president Council Member Huffman a consecutive second year before nominating Stone. After discussion and a failed motion to reappoint Huffman, Council Member Liiloquist moved to nominate Hannah Stone, the motion was seconded and the council voted “Aye” to elect Stone as council president. Stone then presided for the remainder of the reorganization agenda.
The council filled the president pro tem and mayor pro tem roles by nomination and then proceeded to nominate chairs for six standing committees. The chair slate read by the presiding officer named Council Member Anderson as chair of Budget & Finance; Council Member Cotton as chair of Community & Economic Development; Council Member Williams as chair of Parks & Recreation; Council Member Huffman as chair of Planning; Council Member Hamill as chair of Public Health, Safety, Justice & Equity; and Council Member Liiloquist as chair of Public Works & Natural Resources. The council voted to approve the chair slate unanimously.
The council then completed committee memberships so that each council member serves on two committees and read a consolidated membership slate aloud before approving the full slate by unanimous vote. Council members also self-nominated and were appointed to a series of external boards and advisory bodies including the Lake Watcom Policy Group, Watcom Transportation Authority (WTA) seats, library and museum boards, and other joint city–county or intergovernmental committees.
Several council members used the reorganization discussion to stress continuity and smoother transitions between outgoing and incoming leadership. Council members proposed formalizing a short work group of the outgoing and incoming presidents to carry communications and handoff duties; the council agreed to carry the idea forward and discuss details at an upcoming retreat.
The reorganization votes were recorded as passing without opposition. The council adjourned the public portion of the meeting to an executive session on pending litigation and a possible property acquisition as listed on the agenda.
