Kittitas County approves joining regional advocacy consortium with The Ferguson Group

Kittitas County Commissioners on July 20 voted to join a Regional Advocacy and Federal-Funding Strategy Consortium with The Ferguson Group, the county Conference of Governments and Central Washington University to provide federal advocacy and grant-planning support.

Bryan Elliott, Kittitas County auditor and chair of the county's Conference of Governments, presented the proposal, saying the consortium would provide "federal advocacy, legislative monitoring, strategic funding planning, and grant consulting services" to members. Elliott said Kittitas County's base contribution would remain $12,000 annually and that the county could provide limited contingency funding to assist smaller member jurisdictions, with the total annual County contribution not to exceed $100,000.

Commissioner Laura Osiadacz moved to approve Kittitas County's participation in the consortium under the funding structure presented in the staff report; Chairman Cory Wright seconded. The motion carried 2-0. The record shows the Board approved the membership and the funding framework as presented; no dollar amount for any immediate contingency payment was identified in the meeting record.

Supporters of regional collaboration say pooled advocacy can help smaller jurisdictions access federal programs and grants that require coordinated strategy. County officials recorded the vote but did not discuss any immediate projects or targets for consortium work during the meeting.

Next steps noted in the staff materials include completing contractual documents and incorporating the contribution into the county's fiscal planning; the staff report and contract year referenced in the record were identified as the 2021 contract year for base funding, which the Board approved to maintain at its current level.