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Whatcom County, WA

Recent Whatcom County public meeting topics include resolutions & ordinances, roads & infrastructure, budget & taxes, planning & zoning, contracts & procurement, housing.

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Recent Whatcom County meeting summaries, agendas, and minutes

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Official website pages

Whatcom CountyWA averageUS Census ACS
Population
228,432
Per-capita income
$43,463
Median home value
$536,100
Bachelor's or higher
38%
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👤 Members & officials (16)
Members seen in recent official meeting records — names and roles as published.
Who’s on the Council as the Health Board
Who’s on the Council Committee of the Whole
Who’s on the Council Committee of the Whole-Executive Session
Who’s on the Council Special Committee of the Whole

Municipal budget

US Census Annual Survey of Local Government Finances
Total revenue$223.1M (FY2023)
Total spending$221.5M (FY2023)
Taxes$131.5M (FY2023)
Debt outstanding$40.5M (FY2023)
Spending per resident$968 (FY2023)
🗳️ Election results (21 races)
Local election returns — winner marked ✓.
County Council District 3 Council District 3 2025-11-04
Jessica Rienstra ✓ 8,513 · Kyle Christensen 6,462 · WRITE-IN 27
County Council District 2 Council District 2 2025-11-04
Elizabeth Boyle ✓ 10,452 · Maya Morales 4,180 · WRITE-IN 68
County Council District 1 Council District 1 2025-11-04
Kaylee Galloway ✓ 11,114 · WRITE-IN 136
County Council At-Large Council At-Large Position A 2025-11-04
Barry Buchanan ✓ 45,223 · Misty Flowers 26,277 · WRITE-IN 173
County Council District 5 Charter Review Commission District 5 2024-11-05
Lindsey Graham Elenbaas ✓ 9,878 · Jon Mutchler 9,383 · Rod Stump 8,117 · Teresa N. Taylor 6,193 · Charlene Waters 5,996 · Andrew Hansen 5,722
County Council District 4 Charter Review Commission District 4 2024-11-05
Joe Elenbaas ✓ 14,748 · Hannah Ordos 14,492 · Brad Kelly 13,427 · Ryan Bowman 5,780 · Katherine Orlowski 4,822 · J. G. Sandy Phillips 4,150
County Council District 3 Charter Review Commission District 3 2024-11-05
Doug Chadwick ✓ 10,702 · Jennifer Wright 10,617 · Jessica Rienstra 9,695 · Kelly Krieger 8,656 · John (Westy) Westerfield 7,394 · David Ramirez 6,884
County Council District 2 Charter Review Commission District 2 2024-11-05
Maya Morales ✓ 13,112 · Eamonn Collins 12,616 · Colton Kaltenfeldt 10,034 · Russ Whidbee 7,199 · Mary Kay Robinson 6,005 · Ken Bell 5,655
County Council District 1 Charter Review Commission District 1 2024-11-05
Liz Darrow ✓ 15,081 · Andrew Reding 12,013 · Joel Pitts-Jordan 11,554 · Sarah Rothenbuhler 4,920 · Bill Geyer 4,337 · Dan Robbins 3,875
County Treasurer 2023-11-07
Steven N. Oliver ✓ 53,812 · WRITE-IN 625
County Sheriff 2023-11-07
Donnell "Tank" Tanksley ✓ 41,215 · Doug Chadwick 37,848 · WRITE-IN 137
County Executive 2023-11-07
Satpal Sidhu ✓ 46,045 · Dan Purdy 33,723 · WRITE-IN 134

Upcoming

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Thu Nov 12, 2026 · 4:30 PM

Special Event

Stemma Brewing, 2039 Moore St, Bellingham, WA 98229

Recent meetings

Tue Oct 27, 2026 · 1:00 PM

Council Committee of the Whole

Council reviews 2027 state legislative agenda and zoning amendments

The Council Committee of the Whole will discuss the county's preliminary 2027 state legislative agenda and a draft six-year capital improvement program for facilities. The committee will also consider recommendations for ordinances regarding zoning, land use, and performance audits.

zoningland-usebudgetlegislative-agendainfrastructure
Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers
📹 From the video · 3h 29m
Auto-transcribed from the official meeting video (speech-to-text — may contain errors).
Thank you. Here. John Scanlon. Here. Mark Stremler. Here. Let the record show all council members are present. We have a super packed agenda today, so please be patient with me as I keep us moving along. We have the first of three special presentation, AB 2026-7 65, a presentation and discussion of the county's preliminary legislative agenda for the 2027 state legislative session. I'll turn the mic over to Jed to kick us off. Good afternoon, Council Jed Holmes from the county executive's office. I'd like to invite up Josh Weiss and Joe McDermott to co-p resent with me today. As you will recall, we've been working with Josh for several years now and had some great successes, and I don't think he needs an introduction, but he's decided to bring some additional resources to our lobbying team. So I'm pleased to introduce Joe McDermott, who will join Josh in advocating on our behalf in Olympia. He brings extensive experience in public policy and local government. He served for a decade in the state legislature from 2001 to 2010, including some time in the House and in the Senate . He also served for 13 years on the King County Council. After leaving elected office, he served as state relations director for the office of the King County Executive. We are now pleased to welcome him to Whatcom County and look forward to working with both Joe and Josh to advocate for our needs on the state level. That's my intro. You have more to share about maybe kind of this new partnership and how …
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📄 From the agenda
Extracted text of the official agenda document (automated extraction — may contain OCR/formatting errors).
Whatcom County COUNTY COURTHOUSE 311 Grand Avenue, Ste #105 Bellingham, WA 98225-4038 (360) 778-5010 Meeting Agenda HYBRID MEETING - ADJOURNS BY 4:30 PM - (PARTICIPATE IN-PERSON, SEE REMOTE JOIN INSTRUCTIONS AT www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil, OR CALL 360.778.5010) COUNCILMEMBERS Elizabeth Boyle Barry Buchanan Ben Elenbaas Kaylee Galloway Jessica Rienstra Jon Scanlon Mark Stremler CLERK OF THE COUNCIL Kirsten Smith Council Committee of the Whole Tuesday, October 27, 2026 1 PM Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers October 27, 2026 Council Committee of the Whole Meeting Agenda Call To Order Roll Call Announcements If you require special assistance to participate, please contact the Council Office at 360-778-5010 at least 96 hours in advance. Assistive listening devices are available in Council Chambers, and live captions are available through Zoom for those participating remotely. This committee meeting is also noticed as a meeting of the Whatcom County Council, with the agenda limited to committee business. Special Presentation 1. AB2026-765 Presentation and discussion of the county’s preliminary legislative agenda for the 2027 state legislative session 2. AB2026-777 Presentation by Health and Community Services with an update on the Healthy Children’s Fund spending to date and projects moving forward 3. AB2026-789 Presentation from the Treasurer on the county’s updated debt policy Committee Discussion 1. AB2026-756 Discussion regarding progress on the affordable h …
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🗳️ How they voted (3 roll-call votes)
Named votes as recorded in the official record.
AB2026-748 — RECOMMENDED FOR ADOPTION
7 yea
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas yea · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-763 — RECOMMENDED FOR APPROVAL
7 yea
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas yea · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-755 — RECOMMENDED FOR APPROVAL
7 yea
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas yea · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
Tue Oct 27, 2026 · 6:00 PM

Council

Council to consider retail cannabis sales and water resource planning

The Whatcom County Council will hold public hearings on a six-year water resources program and zoning changes for retail cannabis sales. The body will also consider several traffic safety ordinances and updates to zoning and land use codes.

zoningcannabiswater-resourcestraffic-safetyland-usepublic-safety
Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers
📹 From the video · 2h 29m
Auto-transcribed from the official meeting video (speech-to-text — may contain errors).
Thank you. Now we can start. Recording in progress. Good evening. I'd like to call to order this Whatcom County Council meeting. Today is Tuesday, October 27th, 2026. It is now 6.05 p.m. and we are meeting in a hybrid format. Could the clerk please call the roll? Barry Buchanan. Here. Ben Ellenbos. Here. Kaylee Galloway. Here. Jessica Reenstra. Here. John Scanlon. Here. Mark St remler. Here. Okay. Let the record show all council members are present. Let us rise for the flag salute. Thank you. Mr. Executive. Did we have a report from you this evening? Oh, I thought he was getting excited. I know. We were getting excited. You were walking up to the mic. He's good for now. Okay. Moving along on our agenda. We've got two sets of minutes for approval. Can I entertain a motion to approve? Move approval. Second. Motion from Council Member Reenstra. Second from Council Member Buchanan. Enthusiastically. This. Okay. Well. Okay. I'm not seeing any discussion on those minutes. Can we do a roll call? Barry Buchanan. Yes. Kaylee Galloway. Yes. Jessica Reenstra. John Scanlon. Yes. Mark Stremler. Elizabeth Boyle. Okay. Let the record show that we approve that seven to zero. I'm noticing our mics are either really loud or really quiet, so just be patient with us. Not to mistake for enthusiasm or lack of enthusiasm. We are going to go ahead and transition into our public hearings. What I'm going to do is I'm going to go ahead and read kind of some guidelines that will be true for all of our p …
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📄 From the agenda
Extracted text of the official agenda document (automated extraction — may contain OCR/formatting errors).
Whatcom County COUNTY COURTHOUSE 311 Grand Avenue, Ste #105 Bellingham, WA 98225-4038 (360) 778-5010 Meeting Agenda HYBRID MEETING (PARTICIPATE IN-PERSON, SEE REMOTE JOIN INSTRUCTIONS AT www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil, OR CALL 360.778.5010) COUNCILMEMBERS Elizabeth Boyle Barry Buchanan Ben Elenbaas Kaylee Galloway Jessica Rienstra Jon Scanlon Mark Stremler CLERK OF THE COUNCIL Kirsten Smith Council Tuesday, October 27, 2026 6 PM Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers October 27, 2026 Council Meeting Agenda COUNTY COUNCIL CALL TO ORDER ROLL CALL FLAG SALUTE ANNOUNCEMENTS Council meetings are held in a hybrid format with in-person and remote participation available. For instructions on remote participation, visit www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil. If you require special assistance to participate, please contact the Council Office at 360-778-5010 at least 96 hours in advance. Assistive listening devices are available in Council Chambers, and live captions are available through Zoom for those participating remotely. Per RCW 42.17A.555, the use of public facilities to support or oppose candidates or ballot issues is prohibited. The County is accepting applications to fill vacancies on advisory groups for a range of local issues. For more information, visit www.whatcomcounty.us/1585 or contact the Council Office at 360-778-5010. COUNTY EXECUTIVE'S REPORT MINUTES CONSENT 1. MIN2026-082 Special Council for October 6, 2026 2. MIN2026-083 Health Board for October 6 …
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🗳️ How they voted — 1 divided vote
Named votes as recorded in the official record.
AB2026-739 — ADOPTED
6 yea · 1 nay
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas yea · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler nay
The other 18 items passed by unanimous or near-unanimous consent.
Tue Oct 27, 2026 · 9:00 AM

Council Finance and Administrative Services Committee

Council considers joint financing for new Justice Facility and Behavioral Care Center

The Council Finance and Administrative Services Committee will discuss the 2027-2028 Biennium Budget and consider several ordinances to amend the 2026 budget. The committee is also reviewing multiple contract amendments and interlocal agreements for public health, infrastructure, and security services.

budgetpublic-safetyhousinginfrastructurepublic-health
Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers
📹 From the video · 2h 58m
Auto-transcribed from the official meeting video (speech-to-text — may contain errors).
Recording in progress. Good morning, everyone. I'm calling to order today's Whatcom County Council of Finance and Administrative Services Committee meeting. Today is October 27, 2026. It is 9.01 a.m. Could the clerk please call the roll? Elizabeth Boyle. Here. Barry Buchanan. Here. Ben Ellenbos. Here. Kaylee Galloway. Jessica Reenstra. John Scanlon. Mark Stremler. All council members are present. So our first item for today is public comment. This is an opportunity for community members to address the council in any matter on today's finance and administrative services committee agenda. We have up to 30 minutes for this item. We'll start by calling those in chambers who sign up to speak and then we'll go to our online registrants. Each speaker will have two minutes. Please be respectful of other speakers by concluding remarks on time. We ask that count that comments be directed to the council as a whole, not to individual council members or staff. Personal attacks, vulgar or threatening language or behavior that disrupts the meeting will not be allowed. We ask that you keep your comments relevant to today's committee business. We request that you refrain from using our public facilities for any campaign purposes, such as supporting or opposing candidates or ballot measures. Please be respectful. You may hear opinions different than your own. And that is part of the process. We ask that you refrain from any cheering, booing or other disruptive behaviors that go against our rul …
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📄 From the agenda
Extracted text of the official agenda document (automated extraction — may contain OCR/formatting errors).
Whatcom County COUNTY COURTHOUSE 311 Grand Avenue, Ste #105 Bellingham, WA 98225-4038 (360) 778-5010 Meeting Agenda HYBRID MEETING - ADJOURNS BY 12:00 PM - (PARTICIPATE IN-PERSON, SEE REMOTE JOIN INSTRUCTIONS AT www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil, OR CALL 360.778.5010) COUNCILMEMBERS Elizabeth Boyle Barry Buchanan Ben Elenbaas Kaylee Galloway Jessica Rienstra Jon Scanlon Mark Stremler CLERK OF THE COUNCIL Kirsten Smith Council Finance and Administrative Services Committee Tuesday, October 27, 2026 9 AM Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers October 27, 2026 Council Finance and Administrative Services Committee Meeting Agenda Call To Order Roll Call Announcements If you require special assistance to participate, please contact the Council Office at 360-778-5010 at least 96 hours in advance. Assistive listening devices are available in Council Chambers, and live captions are available through Zoom for those participating remotely. This committee meeting is also noticed as a meeting of the Whatcom County Council, with the agenda limited to committee business. Public Comment Council offers thirty (30) minutes for in-person and remote participation in Public Comment. If you are attending the meeting in person, Public Comment sign-up sheets will be available in Council Chambers. To participate remotely, please visit www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil and register for a Zoom link by 8 a.m. the day of the meeting. Speakers are given two (2) minutes to address the Counc …
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🗳️ How they voted — 4 divided votes
Named votes as recorded in the official record.
AB2026-783 — AUTHORIZED
5 yea · 2 nay
Elizabeth Boyle nay · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas yea · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra nay · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-734 — ADOPTED
5 yea · 2 nay
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas nay · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler nay
AB2026-738 — APPROVED
5 yea · 2 nay
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas nay · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler nay
AB2026-760 — AUTHORIZED
5 yea · 2 nay
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas nay · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler nay
The other 19 items passed by unanimous or near-unanimous consent.
Thu Oct 22, 2026 · 8:30 AM

Special Event

ALL HANDS WHATCOM SUMMIT 2026 - Silver Reef Casino Resort - 4876 Haxton Way, Ferndale, WA 98248
Wed Oct 21, 2026 · 8:30 AM

Special Event

ALL HANDS WHATCOM SUMMIT 2026 - Silver Reef Casino Resort - 4876 Haxton Way, Ferndale, WA 98248
Tue Oct 20, 2026 · 9:00 AM

Council (Special)

Council to discuss recommended 2027-2028 Biennium Budget

The Whatcom County Council will hold a special meeting to discuss the County Executive’s recommended budget for the 2027-2028 biennium.

budgetfinancecounty-executive
✓ Decided: Council preliminarily approves funding for four new sheriff's deputies and other budget amendments

The Whatcom County Council held a special meeting to discuss the 2027-2028 Biennium Budget. The Council preliminarily approved several budget amendments, including funding for four new entry-level sheriff's deputies, restoring funds for senior centers, and supporting the Commission on Sexual and Domestic Violence. A motion to restore $5,000 for councilmember travel was denied, and discussions on food bank funding were tabled until the following week. These votes provide preliminary direction for staff to prepare additional service requests, with a final budget vote scheduled for a later meeting.

Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers
📹 From the video · 6h 1m
Auto-transcribed from the official meeting video (speech-to-text — may contain errors).
in progress. Good morning. I'd like to call to order this special Whatcom County Council meeting. Today is Tuesday, October 20th, 2026. It is now 9. 02 a.m. and we are meeting in a hybrid format. Could the clerk please call the roll? Elizabeth Boy le. Here. Barry Buchanan. Here. Ben Ellenbos. Here. Haley Galloway. Here. Jessica Reenstra. Here. John Scanlon. Here. Mark Stremler. Here. Okay, Lethebreger Show. All council members are present. We have one committee discussion, AB 2026-687, discussion of the county executives recommended 2027-28 by any in budget. This discussion item will take us until we're done with it today. With that, I do want to honor that we have Sheriff Tanksley here in the room. I know he's on a tight schedule and he wanted to do some remarks with regards to, I believe, a memo that's attached to the agenda bill file and some of the amendments that have been submitted before us for our consideration. Sheriff Tanksley, did you want to kick us off? Sure. And good morning, council. Thank you for having me. I 'm Sheriff Donnell Tank Tanksley. It's always a pleasure to be here. I know this budget season. I know this budget season, the council is under great stress. I know that there's a lot of things to consider and things are tight. So there is a lot of consideration with regard to the sheriff's office. And on the table, there is a proposal to cut six deputies, which I ask you to reject. However, there are some options. And one of the options the executive's o …
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📄 From the agenda
Extracted text of the official agenda document (automated extraction — may contain OCR/formatting errors).
Whatcom County COUNTY COURTHOUSE 311 Grand Avenue, Ste #105 Bellingham, WA 98225-4038 (360) 778-5010 Meeting Agenda HYBRID MEETING (PARTICIPATE IN-PERSON, SEE REMOTE JOIN INSTRUCTIONS AT www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil, OR CALL 360.778.5010) COUNCILMEMBERS Elizabeth Boyle Barry Buchanan Ben Elenbaas Kaylee Galloway Jessica Rienstra Jon Scanlon Mark Stremler CLERK OF THE COUNCIL Kirsten Smith Council (Special) Tuesday, October 20, 2026 9 AM Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers October 20, 2026 Council (Special) Meeting Agenda Call To Order Roll Call Announcements If you require special assistance to participate, please contact the Council Office at 360-778-5010 at least 96 hours in advance. Assistive listening devices are available in Council Chambers, and live captions are available through Zoom for those participating remotely. This committee meeting is also noticed as a meeting of the Whatcom County Council, with the agenda limited to committee business. Committee Discussion 1. AB2026-687 Discussion of the County Executive’s recommended 2027-2028 Biennium Budget Items Added by Revision Other Business Adjournment Page 2 Printed on 10/14/2026 Whatcom County
📄 From the minutes
Extracted text of the official minutes document (automated extraction — may contain OCR/formatting errors).
Whatcom County COUNTY COURTHOUSE 311 Grand Avenue, Ste #105 Bellingham, WA 98225-4038 (360) 778-5010 Minutes - Draft Minutes HYBRID MEETING (PARTICIPATE IN-PERSON, SEE REMOTE JOIN INSTRUCTIONS AT www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil, OR CALL 360.778.5010) COUNCILMEMBERS Elizabeth Boyle Barry Buchanan Ben Elenbaas Kaylee Galloway Jessica Rienstra Jon Scanlon Mark Stremler CLERK OF THE COUNCIL Kirsten Smith Council (Special) Tuesday, October 20, 2026 9 AM Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers October 20, 2026 Council (Special) Minutes - Draft Minutes Call To Order Council Chair Kaylee Galloway called the meeting to order at 9:02 a.m. in a hybrid meeting. Roll Call Elizabeth Boyle, Barry Buchanan, Ben Elenbaas, Kaylee Galloway, Jessica Rienstra, Jon Scanlon, and Mark Stremler Present: 7 - Announcements Committee Discussion 1. AB2026-687 Discussion of the County Executive’s recommended 2027-2028 Biennium Budget Donnell Tanksley, Whatcom County Sheriff, briefed the Council regarding the tight budget cycle and the Executive’s proposal to eliminate Sheriff’s deputy positions. Tanksley explained that out of the options proposed by the Executive (in Staff Memo - Criminal Justice Training Commission Grant attached to AB2026-687), option three was the most viable. Tanksley also recognized that the grant funding that would support maintaining sheriff’s deputy positions expires in 2028. Council discussed the different potential options for funding additional sheriff’s deputies …
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🗳️ How they voted (4 roll-call votes)
Named votes as recorded in the official record.
that the Sheriff’s Office is not excited about taking on additional tasks, including animal control, but they would Page 2 Whatcom County Printed on 10/23/2026 October 20, 2026 Council (Special)…
3 yea
Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea
[context] Page 3 Whatcom County Printed on 10/23/2026 October 20, 2026 Council (Special) Minutes - Draft Minutes The motion failed by the following vote:
2 yea
Galloway yea · Rienstra yea
to approve proposal number two (in list of Councilmember Budget Amendments). Boyle seconded the motion. The motion carried by the following vote:
5 yea
Buchanan yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea
[context] The motion carried by the following vote:
41 yea
Buchanan yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea · Buchanan yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Elenbaas yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Buchanan yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Buchanan yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Buchanan yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Buchanan yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Elenbaas yea · Buchanan yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Elenbaas yea · Stremler yea · Buchanan yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Elenbaas yea · Stremler yea
Thu Oct 15, 2026 · 5:00 PM

Special Event

Deming Library, 5044 Mt Baker Hwy, Deming, WA 98244
Wed Oct 14, 2026 · 5:00 PM

Special Event

Whatcom County Flood Preparedness Open House - Nooksack Valley Middle School, 404 W Columbia St., Nooksack, WA 98276
Tue Oct 13, 2026 · 1:00 PM

Council Committee of the Whole

Council discusses zoning for cannabis sales and road safety ordinances

The Council Committee of the Whole will review several proposed ordinances regarding road signs, speed limits, and parking. The meeting includes presentations on open space programs and the Justice Project, as well as discussions on zoning amendments.

zoningroadscannabisland-usewater-resourcespublic-safety
✓ Decided: Committee recommends adding affordable housing project to comprehensive plan docket

The Council Committee of the Whole recommended approval of a resolution to add an affordable housing project to the Comprehensive Plan and development regulation amendments docket. Most other agenda items, including jail design updates and zoning amendments, were presented or discussed without formal action.

Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers
📹 From the video · 3h 6m
Auto-transcribed from the official meeting video (speech-to-text — may contain errors).
how's that got everything we need recording in progress hey good afternoon i'd like to call to order this whatcom county council committee of the whole today is tuesday october 13th 2026 it is now 102 p.m and we are meeting in a hybrid format um will the clerk please take the role elizabeth boyle here mary buchanan here ben ellenbos here kaylee galloway here jessica reinstra here john scanlon here mark stremmler here okay let the record show all council members are present uh we have a super duper packed agenda today so i will cause uh ask for some grace as i move us through um what'll inevitably feel like a rushed uh experienced um but we can at least get started here with our first three special presentations um i've got a couple of questions that i'd like to ask you before we get started um i've got a couple of questions that i've got a couple of questions that i've got a couple of questions that i've got a couple of questions that i've got a couple of questions that i've got a couple of questions that i've got a couple of questions that i've got a couple of questions that i've got each of those scheduled for about 15 to 20 minutes total versus ab2026-745 a presentation regarding the public benefit rating system and open space land program i believe alex was doing this one okay welcome alex hey thanks hello good afternoon council my name is alex harris and i'm a planner at pds i'm going to be presenting an update on the public benefit rating system and the open space land …
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📄 From the agenda
Extracted text of the official agenda document (automated extraction — may contain OCR/formatting errors).
Whatcom County COUNTY COURTHOUSE 311 Grand Avenue, Ste #105 Bellingham, WA 98225-4038 (360) 778-5010 Meeting Agenda HYBRID MEETING - ADJOURNS BY 4:30 PM (PARTICIPATE IN-PERSON, SEE REMOTE JOIN INSTRUCTIONS AT www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil, OR CALL 360.778.5010); AGENDA REVISION 10.09.2026 COUNCILMEMBERS Elizabeth Boyle Barry Buchanan Ben Elenbaas Kaylee Galloway Jessica Rienstra Jon Scanlon Mark Stremler CLERK OF THE COUNCIL Kirsten Smith Council Committee of the Whole Tuesday, October 13, 2026 1 PM Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers October 13, 2026 Council Committee of the Whole Meeting Agenda Call To Order Roll Call Announcements If you require special assistance to participate, please contact the Council Office at 360-778-5010 at least 96 hours in advance. Assistive listening devices are available in Council Chambers, and live captions are available through Zoom for those participating remotely. This committee meeting is also noticed as a meeting of the Whatcom County Council, with the agenda limited to committee business. Special Presentation 1. AB2026-745 Presentation regarding the Public Benefit Rating System and Open Space Land Program 2. AB2026-728 Presentation from the Child and Family Well Being Task Force on its annual engagement report 3. AB2026-754 Presentation and discussion of the program scope summary for the Justice Project Behavioral Care Center and addendum to jail program scope summary Committee Discussion 1. AB2026-705 Discussion of an …
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📄 From the minutes
Extracted text of the official minutes document (automated extraction — may contain OCR/formatting errors).
Whatcom County COUNTY COURTHOUSE 311 Grand Avenue, Ste #105 Bellingham, WA 98225-4038 (360) 778-5010 Committee Minutes - Draft Minutes HYBRID MEETING - ADJOURNS BY 4:30 PM (PARTICIPATE IN-PERSON, SEE REMOTE JOIN INSTRUCTIONS AT www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil, OR CALL 360.778.5010); AGENDA REVISION 10.09.2026 COUNCILMEMBERS Elizabeth Boyle Barry Buchanan Ben Elenbaas Kaylee Galloway Jessica Rienstra Jon Scanlon Mark Stremler CLERK OF THE COUNCIL Kirsten Smith Council Committee of the Whole Tuesday, October 13, 2026 1 PM Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers October 13, 2026 Council Committee of the Whole Committee Minutes - Draft Minutes Call To Order Council Chair Kaylee Galloway called the meeting to order at 1:02 p.m. in a hybrid meeting. Roll Call Elizabeth Boyle, Barry Buchanan, Ben Elenbaas, Kaylee Galloway, Jessica Rienstra, Jon Scanlon, and Mark Stremler Present: 7 - Announcements Special Presentation 1. AB2026-745 Presentation regarding the Public Benefit Rating System and Open Space Land Program Alexander Harris, Planning and Development Services Department, read from a presentation (on file) on an update to the public benefit rating system and the Open Space Land Program (which has not been done for 40 years) and asked for feedback from the Council on that process. They discussed how far back-taxes are imposed if someone is removed from the program for shifting the use of the property to something that is not compatible with their open space taxati …
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🗳️ How they voted (2 roll-call votes)
Named votes as recorded in the official record.
that the Resolution be RECOMMENDED FOR APPROVAL carried by the following vote:
6 yea
Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Elenbaas yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea
AB2026-725 — RECOMMENDED FOR APPROVAL
7 yea
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas yea · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
Tue Oct 13, 2026 · 6:00 PM

Council

Council to consider budget amendments and zoning changes

The Whatcom County Council will hold a public hearing on a temporary easement for the State Department of Transportation. The body is also discussing zoning amendments for affordable housing and the Birch Bay Urban Growth Area Reserve, as well as various road and budget ordinances.

zoningbudgetroadshousingpublic-works
✓ Decided: Council approves animal control bidding exemption and affordable housing plan

The Whatcom County Council approved an ordinance to exempt animal control and sheltering contracts from competitive bidding requirements. Additionally, the Council passed a resolution to add affordable housing measures to the comprehensive plan docket. Members also requested that the County Executive provide regular reports on the animal control contract.

Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers
📹 From the video · 1h 41m
Auto-transcribed from the official meeting video (speech-to-text — may contain errors).
Recording in progress. Hey, good evening. I'd like to call to order this Whatcom County Council meeting. Today is Tuesday, October 13th, 2026. It is now 6.01 p.m. And we are meeting in a hybrid format. Could the clerk please take the roll? Elizabeth Boyle. Here. Barry Buchanan. Here. Ben Ellenbos. Here. Kaylee Galloway. Jessica Reinstra. John Scanlon. Mark Stremler. Hey, let the record show all council members are present. Let us rise for the flag salute. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Okay. With no report from the executive's office today, we'll go straight into our minutes consent. May I entertain a motion to approve? Move approval. Second. We've got a motion from Council Member Buchanan and a second from Boyle. I'm dealing with my pencils. I don't know. There it goes. Okay. Buchanan and Boyle. Any discussion on this? Okay. Seeing none, can we do a roll call? Very big. Oh. Sorry, I did it. Council Member Ellenbos. I'm going to abstain because I was absent. Oh, I just lost my... I'm going to need to borrow somebody's pen until I can go back. I'm good. I'll go in the back in just a second. Let's go ahead and do a roll call on this. Barry Buchanan. Yes. Kaylee Galloway. Yes. Ben Ellenbos. Bane. Jessica Reenstra. Yes. John Scanlon. Mark Stremler. Elizabeth Boyle. I'll let the broker show that carries six to zero with one abstention. Sorr …
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📄 From the agenda
Extracted text of the official agenda document (automated extraction — may contain OCR/formatting errors).
Whatcom County COUNTY COURTHOUSE 311 Grand Avenue, Ste #105 Bellingham, WA 98225-4038 (360) 778-5010 Meeting Agenda HYBRID MEETING (PARTICIPATE IN-PERSON, SEE REMOTE JOIN INSTRUCTIONS AT www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil, OR CALL 360.778.5010); AGENDA REVISION 10.09.2026 COUNCILMEMBERS Elizabeth Boyle Barry Buchanan Ben Elenbaas Kaylee Galloway Jessica Rienstra Jon Scanlon Mark Stremler CLERK OF THE COUNCIL Kirsten Smith Council Tuesday, October 13, 2026 6 PM Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers October 13, 2026 Council Meeting Agenda COUNTY COUNCIL CALL TO ORDER ROLL CALL FLAG SALUTE ANNOUNCEMENTS Council meetings are held in a hybrid format with in-person and remote participation available. For instructions on remote participation, visit www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil. If you require special assistance to participate, please contact the Council Office at 360-778-5010 at least 96 hours in advance. Assistive listening devices are available in Council Chambers, and live captions are available through Zoom for those participating remotely. Per RCW 42.17A.555, the use of public facilities to support or oppose candidates or ballot issues is prohibited. The County is accepting applications to fill vacancies on advisory groups for a range of local issues. For more information, visit www.whatcomcounty.us/1585 or contact the Council Office at 360-778-5010. COUNTY EXECUTIVE'S REPORT MINUTES CONSENT 1. MIN2026-079 Finance and Administrative Services Committee fo …
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📄 From the minutes
Extracted text of the official minutes document (automated extraction — may contain OCR/formatting errors).
Whatcom County COUNTY COURTHOUSE 311 Grand Avenue, Ste #105 Bellingham, WA 98225-4038 (360) 778-5010 Minutes - Draft Minutes HYBRID MEETING (PARTICIPATE IN-PERSON, SEE REMOTE JOIN INSTRUCTIONS AT www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil, OR CALL 360.778.5010); AGENDA REVISION 10.09.2026 COUNCILMEMBERS Elizabeth Boyle Barry Buchanan Ben Elenbaas Kaylee Galloway Jessica Rienstra Jon Scanlon Mark Stremler CLERK OF THE COUNCIL Kirsten Smith Council Tuesday, October 13, 2026 6 PM Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers October 13, 2026 Council Minutes - Draft Minutes COUNTY COUNCIL CALL TO ORDER Council Chair Kaylee Galloway called the meeting to order at 6:01 p.m. in a hybrid meeting. ROLL CALL Elizabeth Boyle, Barry Buchanan, Ben Elenbaas, Kaylee Galloway, Jessica Rienstra, Jon Scanlon, and Mark Stremler Present: 7 - FLAG SALUTE ANNOUNCEMENTS COUNTY EXECUTIVE'S REPORT There was no report. MINUTES CONSENT Buchanan moved to accept the minutes consent items. The motion was seconded by Boyle (see votes on individual items below). Elenbaas stated he would abstain because he was not present at the last meeting. 1. MIN2026-079 Finance and Administrative Services Committee for September 29, 2026 Buchanan moved and Boyle seconded that the Minutes Consent be APPROVED BY CONSENT. The motion carried by the following vote: Aye: Boyle, Buchanan, Galloway, Rienstra, Scanlon, and Stremler 6 - Nay: 0 Abstain: Elenbaas 1 - 2. MIN2026-080 Committee of the Whole for September 29, 2026 Buchanan …
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🗳️ How they voted — 23 divided votes
Named votes as recorded in the official record.
AB2026-630 — ADOPTED
4 yea · 3 nay
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan nay · Ben Elenbaas nay · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler nay
AB2026-676 — INTRODUCED
6 yea · 1 nay
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas nay · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-729 — INTRODUCED
6 yea · 1 nay
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas nay · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-730 — INTRODUCED
6 yea · 1 nay
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas nay · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-732 — INTRODUCED
6 yea · 1 nay
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas nay · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-734 — INTRODUCED
6 yea · 1 nay
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas nay · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-735 — INTRODUCED
6 yea · 1 nay
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas nay · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-741 — INTRODUCED
6 yea · 1 nay
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas nay · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-743 — INTRODUCED
6 yea · 1 nay
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas nay · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-747 — INTRODUCED
6 yea · 1 nay
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas nay · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-748 — INTRODUCED
6 yea · 1 nay
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas nay · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-706 — INTRODUCED FOR PUBLIC HEARING
6 yea · 1 nay
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas nay · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-708 — INTRODUCED FOR PUBLIC HEARING
6 yea · 1 nay
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas nay · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-710 — INTRODUCED FOR PUBLIC HEARING
6 yea · 1 nay
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas nay · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-712 — INTRODUCED FOR PUBLIC HEARING
6 yea · 1 nay
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas nay · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-714 — INTRODUCED FOR PUBLIC HEARING
6 yea · 1 nay
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas nay · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-716 — INTRODUCED FOR PUBLIC HEARING
6 yea · 1 nay
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas nay · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-718 — INTRODUCED FOR PUBLIC HEARING
6 yea · 1 nay
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas nay · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-661 — INTRODUCED
6 yea · 1 nay
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas nay · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-704 — INTRODUCED
6 yea · 1 nay
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas nay · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
The other 20 items passed by unanimous or near-unanimous consent.
Tue Oct 13, 2026 · 9:00 AM

Council Finance and Administrative Services Committee

Committee to discuss County Executive's recommended 2027-2028 Biennium Budget

The Council Finance and Administrative Services Committee will discuss the proposed 2027-2028 Biennium Budget and various budget amendments. The body is also deciding on several contracts for home elevations, homeless shelters, and law enforcement funding.

budgethousingpublic-safetyflood-controltourism
✓ Decided: Council approves contracts for home elevation, homeless shelter, and law grants

The committee authorized several major contracts, including $3.77 million for home elevation projects and $585,000 for a winter homeless shelter. Members also approved a $2.47 million interlocal agreement for law enforcement staffing and diversion programs. Additionally, the committee appointed Allison Ormsby to the Public Health Advisory Board and directed staff to accelerate home elevation efforts.

Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers
📹 From the video · 3h 3m
Auto-transcribed from the official meeting video (speech-to-text — may contain errors).
Recording in progress. Good morning, everyone. I would like to call to order this Whatcom County Council Finance and Administrative Services Committee meeting. Today is Tuesday, October 13th, 2026. It is now 9 a.m., and we are meeting in a hybrid format. Could the clerk please call the roll? Elizabeth Boyle. Barry Buchanan. Here. Ben Ellenbos. Here. Kaylee Galloway. Here. Jessica Reenstra. John Scanlon. Mark Stremler. Let the record show that all council members are present. The first item on our agenda is an executive session. So I know there's a number of folks here who probably are here to speak in our public comment session. Our executive session is probably going to take about 45 minutes, and then we come back in. If there's action after that, we'll take action. So feel free to hang out here or go get a coffee and come back. But it will probably be around 945 at the earliest. So we have one item for executive session. This is AB 2026.726, discussion regarding potential litigation related to the Growth Management Act. Discussion of this item may take place in executive session closed to the public pursuant to RCW 42.30.1101I. The attorneys present are Kimberly Tilleen. Council will meet in executive session until 950 a.m. if the meeting extends beyond the stated conclusion time. I will make a public announcement. I would entertain a motion to enter into executive session until 950 a.m. to discuss the item pursuant to the stated RCWs. So moved. Second. A motion from Counci …
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📄 From the agenda
Extracted text of the official agenda document (automated extraction — may contain OCR/formatting errors).
Whatcom County COUNTY COURTHOUSE 311 Grand Avenue, Ste #105 Bellingham, WA 98225-4038 (360) 778-5010 Meeting Agenda HYBRID MEETING - ADJOURNS BY 12:00 PM - (PARTICIPATE IN-PERSON, SEE REMOTE JOIN INSTRUCTIONS AT www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil, OR CALL 360.778.5010); AGENDA REVISION 10.09.2026 COUNCILMEMBERS Elizabeth Boyle Barry Buchanan Ben Elenbaas Kaylee Galloway Jessica Rienstra Jon Scanlon Mark Stremler CLERK OF THE COUNCIL Kirsten Smith Council Finance and Administrative Services Committee Tuesday, October 13, 2026 9 AM Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers October 13, 2026 Council Finance and Administrative Services Committee Meeting Agenda Call To Order Roll Call Announcements If you require special assistance to participate, please contact the Council Office at 360-778-5010 at least 96 hours in advance. Assistive listening devices are available in Council Chambers, and live captions are available through Zoom for those participating remotely. This committee meeting is also noticed as a meeting of the Whatcom County Council, with the agenda limited to committee business. Executive Session 1. AB2026-726 Discussion regarding potential litigation related to the Growth Management Act [Discussion of this item may take place in executive session (closed to the public) pursuant to RCW 42.30.110(1)(i)] Public Comment Council offers thirty (30) minutes for in-person and remote participation in Public Comment. If you are attending the meeting in person, Public Co …
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📄 From the minutes
Extracted text of the official minutes document (automated extraction — may contain OCR/formatting errors).
Whatcom County COUNTY COURTHOUSE 311 Grand Avenue, Ste #105 Bellingham, WA 98225-4038 (360) 778-5010 Minutes - Draft Minutes HYBRID MEETING - ADJOURNS BY 12:00 PM - (PARTICIPATE IN-PERSON, SEE REMOTE JOIN INSTRUCTIONS AT www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil, OR CALL 360.778.5010); AGENDA REVISION 10.09.2026 COUNCILMEMBERS Elizabeth Boyle Barry Buchanan Ben Elenbaas Kaylee Galloway Jessica Rienstra Jon Scanlon Mark Stremler CLERK OF THE COUNCIL Kirsten Smith Council Finance and Administrative Services Committee Tuesday, October 13, 2026 9 AM Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers October 13, 2026 Council Finance and Administrative Services Committee Minutes - Draft Minutes Call To Order Committee Chair Jon Scanlon called the meeting to order at 9 a.m. in a hybrid meeting. Roll Call Elizabeth Boyle, Barry Buchanan, Ben Elenbaas, Kaylee Galloway, Jessica Rienstra, Jon Scanlon, and Mark Stremler Present: 7 - Announcements Executive Session 1. AB2026-726 Discussion regarding potential litigation related to the Growth Management Act [Discussion of this item may take place in executive session (closed to the public) pursuant to RCW 42.30.110(1)(i)] Attorney Present: Kimberly Thulin. Scanlon stated that discussion of agenda item one may take place in executive session pursuant to RCW 42.30.110(1)(i). Executive session will conclude no later than 9:50 a.m. If the meeting extends beyond the stated conclusion time, the chair will make a public announcement. Boyle moved to go i …
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🗳️ How they voted — 1 divided vote
Named votes as recorded in the official record.
AB2026-693 — AUTHORIZED
6 yea · 1 nay
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas nay · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
The other 12 items passed by unanimous or near-unanimous consent.
Fri Oct 9, 2026 · 10:00 AM

Special Event

Whatcom Council on Aging's Meals on Wheels and More Goes Electric, Bellingham Senior Activity Center North, 140 E. Bellis Fair Parkway, Bellingham, WA 98226
Wed Oct 7, 2026 · 5:00 PM

Special Event

Bellingham Covenant Church, 1530 E Bakerview Rd, Bellingham, WA 98226
Tue Oct 6, 2026 · 9:30 AM

Council (Special)

Whatcom County Council to vote on Blaine boundary reduction agreement

The Whatcom County Council is holding a special meeting on October 6, 2026, with a single substantive agenda item. The Council will consider final action on AB2026-719, which requests authorization for the County Executive to enter into an interlocal agreement with the City of Blaine concerning a reduction of city limits and resolution of a dispute. The rest of the agenda is procedural, including call to order, roll call, announcements, and adjournment.

city-limitsinterlocal-agreementblainewhatcom-countyboundaries
✓ Decided: Council authorizes interlocal agreement with City of Blaine

The Council approved a request for the County Executive to enter into an interlocal agreement with the City of Blaine. The agreement concerns a reduction of city limits and the resolution of a dispute.

Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers
📄 From the agenda
Extracted text of the official agenda document (automated extraction — may contain OCR/formatting errors).
Whatcom County COUNTY COURTHOUSE 311 Grand Avenue, Ste #105 Bellingham, WA 98225-4038 (360) 778-5010 Meeting Agenda HYBRID MEETING - ADJOURNS BY 9:55 AM (PARTICIPATE IN-PERSON, SEE REMOTE JOIN INSTRUCTIONS AT www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil OR CALL 360.778.5010) COUNCILMEMBERS Elizabeth Boyle Barry Buchanan Ben Elenbaas Kaylee Galloway Jessica Rienstra Jon Scanlon Mark Stremler CLERK OF THE COUNCIL Kirsten Smith Council (Special) Tuesday, October 6, 2026 9:30 AM Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers October 6, 2026 Council (Special) Meeting Agenda Call To Order Roll Call Announcements If you require special assistance to participate, please contact the Council Office at 360-778-5010 at least 96 hours in advance. Assistive listening devices are available in Council Chambers, and live captions are available through Zoom for those participating remotely. This committee meeting is also noticed as a meeting of the Whatcom County Council, with the agenda limited to committee business. Committee Discussion and Final Action 1. AB2026-719 Request authorization for the County Executive to enter into an interlocal agreement between Whatcom County and the City of Blaine concerning a reduction of city limits and resolution of dispute Items Added by Revision Other Business Adjournment Page 2 Printed on 9/29/2026 Whatcom County
📄 From the minutes
Extracted text of the official minutes document (automated extraction — may contain OCR/formatting errors).
Whatcom County COUNTY COURTHOUSE 311 Grand Avenue, Ste #105 Bellingham, WA 98225-4038 (360) 778-5010 Minutes - Draft Minutes HYBRID MEETING - ADJOURNS BY 9:55 AM (PARTICIPATE IN-PERSON, SEE REMOTE JOIN INSTRUCTIONS AT www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil OR CALL 360.778.5010) COUNCILMEMBERS Elizabeth Boyle Barry Buchanan Ben Elenbaas Kaylee Galloway Jessica Rienstra Jon Scanlon Mark Stremler CLERK OF THE COUNCIL Kirsten Smith Council (Special) Tuesday, October 6, 2026 9:30 AM Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers October 6, 2026 Council (Special) Minutes - Draft Minutes Call To Order Council Chair Kaylee Galloway called the meeting to order at 9:35 a.m. in a hybrid meeting. Roll Call Elizabeth Boyle, Barry Buchanan, Ben Elenbaas, Kaylee Galloway, Jessica Rienstra, Jon Scanlon, and Mark Stremler Present: 7 - Announcements Committee Discussion and Final Action 1. AB2026-719 Request authorization for the County Executive to enter into an interlocal agreement between Whatcom County and the City of Blaine concerning a reduction of city limits and resolution of dispute Rienstra moved to go into executive session. Boyle seconded the motion. Galloway stated that the Council will meet in executive session to discuss AB2026-719 pursuant to RCW 42.30.110(1)(i). The council will be in executive session until 9:50 a.m. The attorneys present will be Tom Seguine and Kimberly Thulin. If executive session extends beyond the stated conclusion time, a public announcement will be ma …
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🗳️ How they voted (2 roll-call votes)
Named votes as recorded in the official record.
that the Council will meet in executive session to discuss AB2026-719 pursuant to RCW 42.30.110(1)(i). The council will be in executive session until 9:50 a.m. The attorneys present will be Tom…
3 yea
Buchanan yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea
resolution of dispute. Boyle seconded the motion. The motion carried by the following vote:
6 yea
Buchanan yea · Elenbaas yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea
Tue Oct 6, 2026 · 10:00 AM

Council as the Health Board

Health Board to discuss kratom regulation and public health budget recommendations

The Whatcom County Council, sitting as the Health Board, meets jointly with the Public Health Advisory Board on October 6, 2026. The agenda includes updates from the Public Health Advisory Board Chair, the Health Officer, and the Health Director. The board will discuss kratom use and potential regulation with the Health and Community Services Department, and will review Public Health Advisory Board recommendations on the Executive's 2027-2028 Biennial Budget proposal for that department. The meeting also includes public comment and is scheduled to adjourn by 12:00 PM.

public-healthbudgetkratomhealth-boardwhatcom-countypublic-comment
✓ Decided: Health Board discusses kratom regulation and healthcare access

The Health Board received updates on community health networks, federal Medicaid policy changes, and department operations. Members discussed the potential regulation of kratom and 7-OH, though no formal actions were taken on any agenda items.

Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers
📄 From the agenda
Extracted text of the official agenda document (automated extraction — may contain OCR/formatting errors).
Whatcom County COUNTY COURTHOUSE 311 Grand Avenue, Ste #105 Bellingham, WA 98225-4038 (360) 778-5010 Meeting Agenda JOINT HEALTH BOARD/PUBLIC HEALTH ADVISORY BOARD MEETING - HYBRID MEETING - ADJOURNS BY 12:00 PM (PARTICIPATE IN-PERSON, SEE REMOTE JOIN INSTRUCTIONS AT www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil, OR CALL 360.778.5010) COUNCILMEMBERS Elizabeth Boyle Barry Buchanan Ben Elenbaas Kaylee Galloway Jessica Rienstra Jon Scanlon Mark Stremler CLERK OF THE COUNCIL Kirsten Smith Council as the Health Board Tuesday, October 6, 2026 10 AM Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers October 6, 2026 Council as the Health Board Meeting Agenda Call To Order Roll Call - Health Board Roll Call - PHAB Announcements If you require special assistance to participate, please contact the Council Office at 360-778-5010 at least 96 hours in advance. Assistive listening devices are available in Council Chambers, and live captions are available through Zoom for those participating remotely. This committee meeting is also noticed as a meeting of the Whatcom County Council, with the agenda limited to committee business. Public Comment Health Board offers in-person and remote participation during Public Comment. If you are attending the meeting in person, Public Comment sign-up sheets will be available in Council Chambers. To participate remotely, please visit www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil and register for a Zoom link by 9:00 a.m. the day of the meeting. Speakers are given three minutes …
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📄 From the minutes
Extracted text of the official minutes document (automated extraction — may contain OCR/formatting errors).
Whatcom County COUNTY COURTHOUSE 311 Grand Avenue, Ste #105 Bellingham, WA 98225-4038 (360) 778-5010 Minutes - Draft Minutes JOINT HEALTH BOARD/PUBLIC HEALTH ADVISORY BOARD MEETING - HYBRID MEETING - ADJOURNS BY 12:00 PM (PARTICIPATE IN-PERSON, SEE REMOTE JOIN INSTRUCTIONS AT www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil, OR CALL 360.778.5010) COUNCILMEMBERS Elizabeth Boyle Barry Buchanan Ben Elenbaas Kaylee Galloway Jessica Rienstra Jon Scanlon Mark Stremler CLERK OF THE COUNCIL Kirsten Smith Council as the Health Board Tuesday, October 6, 2026 10 AM Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers October 6, 2026 Council as the Health Board Minutes - Draft Minutes Call To Order Health Board Chair Jon Scanlon called the meeting to order at 10:00 a.m. in a hybrid meeting. Roll Call - Health Board Elizabeth Boyle, Barry Buchanan, Ben Elenbaas, Kaylee Galloway, Jessica Rienstra, Jon Scanlon, and Mark Stremler Present: 7 - Roll Call - PHAB PHAB Members Present: Alan Lifson, Joni Hensley, Carl Isom-McDaniel, Michelle Gillig, Sterling Chick, Alison Fontaine, Robyn Phillips-Madson, Christine Espina, Markis Dee Stidham, Amelia Vader, Guy Occhiogrosso, Chris Kobdish, Jon Scanlon, Amy Harley Absent: Shu-Ling Zhao, Mike Cohen, Deb Shawver, Rachel McGarrity, Ashley Thomasson, Kendra Cristelli Announcements Public Comment Scanlon opened the public comment period. The following people spoke: · Lora Romney · Dana Avedisian · Misty Brown · Jennifer Gillis · Melody Woolf · Christopher Deany · Mich …
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Tue Oct 6, 2026 · 1:00 PM

Council Special Committee of the Whole

Whatcom County Council hears department presentations on the 2027-2028 biennium budget

The Whatcom County Council's Special Committee of the Whole meets Tuesday, October 6, 2026 at 1 PM in a hybrid format to hear presentations from county departments regarding the 2027-2028 Biennium Budget. Scheduled presenters are Administrative Services at 1:00 PM, EMS at 2:30 PM, WSU Extension at 3:00 PM, the Treasurer's Office at 3:30 PM, and the Council Office at 4:00 PM. The meeting is also noticed as a meeting of the Whatcom County Council, with the agenda limited to committee business, and is scheduled to adjourn by 4:30 PM. No budget figures, votes, or decisions appear in the agenda text.

budgetwhatcom-countycounty-councilbiennium-budgetpublic-meeting
✓ Decided: Council reviews proposed 2027-2028 biennium budget presentations

The Council Special Committee of the Whole received budget presentations from several county departments, including Administrative Services, EMS, and the Treasurer's Office. No formal votes were taken; the item was presented and discussed.

Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers
📹 From the video · 2h 22m
Auto-transcribed from the official meeting video (speech-to-text — may contain errors).
recording in progress hey good afternoon i'd like to call to order this whatcom county council special committee of the whole today is tuesday october 6th 2026 it is now 1 0 3 p.m and we are meeting in a hybrid format could the clerk please take the role elizabeth loyal here barry buchanan here van ellenboss kaylee galloway here jess ica reenstra here john scanlan here mark strumler here let the record show all council members are present we have one item for special presentation today that's ab2026-641 presentations from county departments regarding the 2027-28 biennium budget we've got a approximated department presentation schedule starting now with administrative services then we'll go into the ems wazoo extension the tre asurer's office and then we'll conclude with the council office budget and then time remaining we can have some council discussion with that i'll go ahead and pass the mic over to deputy executive kayla shot brassler for kicking us off on the administrative services budget thank you chair galloway and can you remind me how much time we have for administrative services i think it looks like you said an hour and a half does that sound right yes i hope we won't need that much time so we'll try to get you ahead of schedule thank you council members uh i think today we'll conclude the budget presentations i'm sure you're excited to move into deliberations um so kayla shot brassler deputy executive also currently serving as administrative services director of …
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📄 From the agenda
Extracted text of the official agenda document (automated extraction — may contain OCR/formatting errors).
Whatcom County COUNTY COURTHOUSE 311 Grand Avenue, Ste #105 Bellingham, WA 98225-4038 (360) 778-5010 Meeting Agenda HYBRID MEETING - ADJOURNS BY 4:30 PM (PARTICIPATE IN-PERSON, SEE REMOTE JOIN INSTRUCTIONS AT www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil, OR CALL 360.778.5010) COUNCILMEMBERS Elizabeth Boyle Barry Buchanan Ben Elenbaas Kaylee Galloway Jessica Rienstra Jon Scanlon Mark Stremler CLERK OF THE COUNCIL Kirsten Smith Council Special Committee of the Whole Tuesday, October 6, 2026 1 PM Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers October 6, 2026 Council Special Committee of the Whole Meeting Agenda Call To Order Roll Call Announcements If you require special assistance to participate, please contact the Council Office at 360-778-5010 at least 96 hours in advance. Assistive listening devices are available in Council Chambers, and live captions are available through Zoom for those participating remotely. This committee meeting is also noticed as a meeting of the Whatcom County Council, with the agenda limited to committee business. Special Presentation 1. AB2026-641 Presentations from County Departments regarding the 2027-2028 Biennium Budget DEPARTMENT PRESENTATION SCHEDULE: 1:00 PM - Administrative Services 2:30 PM - EMS 3:00 PM - WSU Extension 3:30 PM - Treasurer's Office 4:00 PM - Council Office Items Added by Revision Councilmember Updates Other Business Adjournment Page 2 Printed on 9/29/2026 Whatcom County
📄 From the minutes
Extracted text of the official minutes document (automated extraction — may contain OCR/formatting errors).
Whatcom County COUNTY COURTHOUSE 311 Grand Avenue, Ste #105 Bellingham, WA 98225-4038 (360) 778-5010 Committee Minutes - Draft Minutes HYBRID MEETING - ADJOURNS BY 4:30 PM (PARTICIPATE IN-PERSON, SEE REMOTE JOIN INSTRUCTIONS AT www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil, OR CALL 360.778.5010) COUNCILMEMBERS Elizabeth Boyle Barry Buchanan Ben Elenbaas Kaylee Galloway Jessica Rienstra Jon Scanlon Mark Stremler CLERK OF THE COUNCIL Kirsten Smith Council Special Committee of the Whole Tuesday, October 6, 2026 1 PM Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers October 6, 2026 Council Special Committee of the Whole Committee Minutes - Draft Minutes Call To Order Council Chair Kaylee Galloway called the meeting to order at 1:03 p.m. in a hybrid meeting. Roll Call Elizabeth Boyle, Barry Buchanan, Ben Elenbaas, Kaylee Galloway, Jessica Rienstra, Jon Scanlon, and Mark Stremler Present: 7 - Announcements Special Presentation 1. AB2026-641 Presentations from County Departments regarding the 2027-2028 Biennium Budget Kayla Schott-Bresler, Executive’s Office, introduced each department presentation on the Executive’s proposed 2027-2028 budget. The additional listed individuals shared presentations (on file) and answered questions about department budgets. Administrative Services (AS) Approximate Video Timestamp: 01:08 Schott-Bresler stated that she currently serves as director of the four Administrative Services divisions, which include Finance, Facilities, Human Resources, and Information T …
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Thu Oct 1, 2026 · 6:00 PM

Special Event

Round Table Pizza, 1145 E Sunset Dr, Bellingham, WA 98226
Wed Sep 30, 2026 · 6:00 PM

Special Event

COUNTY GOVERNMENT OPEN HOUSE - 6:00 pm to 7:30 pm - County Courthouse, 311 Grand Avenue, Bellingham, WA 98225
Tue Sep 29, 2026 · 6:00 PM

Council

Council to hold public hearings on 2027-2032 transportation plan and 2027 road program

The Whatcom County Council is meeting to consider several items, including public hearings on the Public Works Six-Year Transportation Improvement Program for 2027-2032 and the 2027 Annual Road Program. The council will also vote on resolutions to appoint the Clerk of the Council as agent for tort liability claims and to authorize acquisition of two agricultural conservation easements. Additionally, there are introduction items, including a temporary easement for the state Department of Transportation and a Public Health Advisory Board vacancy application.

transportationroadsconservationeasementspublic-hearingappointments
✓ Decided: Council approves six-year transportation plan and 2027 road program

The Council approved the Public Works Six-Year Transportation Improvement Program (2027-2032) and the 2027 Annual Road Program. It also authorized the acquisition of two agricultural conservation easements and designated the Clerk of the Council as the agent for tort liability claims.

Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers
📹 From the video · 1h 39m
Auto-transcribed from the official meeting video (speech-to-text — may contain errors).
Recording in progress. Hey, good evening. I'd like to call to order this Whatcom County Council meeting. Today is Tuesday, September 29th, 2026. It is now 6.02 p.m. and we are meeting in a hybrid format. Could the clerk please take the role? Elizabeth Boyle. Here. Barry Buchanan. Ben Ellenbos. Haley Galloway. Here. Jessica Reenstra. Here. John Scanlon. Mark Stremler. Okay, let the record show six council members are present and council member Ellenbos is excused. Let us rise for the flag salute. To the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Sir Executive, did we have a report from you this evening? Thank you. Okay, moving along. We've got three items. We've got three items of minutes. Do I have a motion to approve? Move approval. Second. A motion from Council Member Buchanan. I heard Council Member Boyle first for the second. Further discussion on this? Seeing none, can we do a roll call? Barry Buchanan. Yes. Haley Galloway. Jessica Reenstra. Yes. John Scanlon. Yes. Mark Stremler. Elizabeth Boyle. Okay, let the record show that carries six to zero with one away. Okay, with that, we'll move on. On to our public hearings, we have two items. I'm just going to go ahead and read here a few rules until we can go into those. If you wish to speak on matters that are within the council's general authority, but not an item pertaining to these public hearings, we'll have an open …
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📄 From the agenda
Extracted text of the official agenda document (automated extraction — may contain OCR/formatting errors).
Whatcom County COUNTY COURTHOUSE 311 Grand Avenue, Ste #105 Bellingham, WA 98225-4038 (360) 778-5010 Meeting Agenda HYBRID MEETING (PARTICIPATE IN-PERSON, SEE REMOTE JOIN INSTRUCTIONS AT www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil, OR CALL 360.778.5010) COUNCILMEMBERS Elizabeth Boyle Barry Buchanan Ben Elenbaas Kaylee Galloway Jessica Rienstra Jon Scanlon Mark Stremler CLERK OF THE COUNCIL Kirsten Smith Council Tuesday, September 29, 2026 6 PM Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers September 29, 2026 Council Meeting Agenda COUNTY COUNCIL CALL TO ORDER ROLL CALL FLAG SALUTE ANNOUNCEMENTS Council meetings are held in a hybrid format with in-person and remote participation available. For instructions on remote participation, visit www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil. If you require special assistance to participate, please contact the Council Office at 360-778-5010 at least 96 hours in advance. Assistive listening devices are available in Council Chambers, and live captions are available through Zoom for those participating remotely. Per RCW 42.17A.555, the use of public facilities to support or oppose candidates or ballot issues is prohibited. The County is accepting applications to fill vacancies on advisory groups for a range of local issues. For more information, visit www.whatcomcounty.us/1585 or contact the Council Office at 360-778-5010. COUNTY EXECUTIVE'S REPORT MINUTES CONSENT 1. MIN2026-076 Finance and Administrative Services Committee for September 15, 2026 2. M …
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📄 From the minutes
Extracted text of the official minutes document (automated extraction — may contain OCR/formatting errors).
Whatcom County COUNTY COURTHOUSE 311 Grand Avenue, Ste #105 Bellingham, WA 98225-4038 (360) 778-5010 Minutes - Draft Minutes HYBRID MEETING (PARTICIPATE IN-PERSON, SEE REMOTE JOIN INSTRUCTIONS AT www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil, OR CALL 360.778.5010) COUNCILMEMBERS Elizabeth Boyle Barry Buchanan Ben Elenbaas Kaylee Galloway Jessica Rienstra Jon Scanlon Mark Stremler CLERK OF THE COUNCIL Kirsten Smith Council Tuesday, September 29, 2026 6 PM Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers September 29, 2026 Council Minutes - Draft Minutes COUNTY COUNCIL CALL TO ORDER Council Chair Kaylee Galloway called the meeting to order at 6:02 p.m. in a hybrid meeting. ROLL CALL Elizabeth Boyle, Barry Buchanan, Kaylee Galloway, Jessica Rienstra, Jon Scanlon, and Mark Stremler Present: 6 - Ben Elenbaas Absent: 1 - FLAG SALUTE ANNOUNCEMENTS COUNTY EXECUTIVE'S REPORT There was no report. MINUTES CONSENT Buchanan moved to accept the minutes consent items. The motion was seconded by Boyle (see votes on individual items below). 1. MIN2026-076 Finance and Administrative Services Committee for September 15, 2026 Buchanan moved and Boyle seconded that the Minutes Consent be APPROVED BY CONSENT. The motion carried by the following vote: Aye: Boyle, Buchanan, Galloway, Rienstra, Scanlon, and Stremler 6 - Nay: 0 Absent: Elenbaas 1 - 2. MIN2026-077 Committee of the Whole for September 15, 2026 Buchanan moved and Boyle seconded that the Minutes Consent be APPROVED BY CONSENT. The motion carried …
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🗳️ How they voted (16 roll-call votes)
Named votes as recorded in the official record.
that the Minutes Consent be APPROVED BY CONSENT. The motion carried by the following vote:
12 yea
Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea · Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea
that the Minutes Consent be APPROVED BY CONSENT. The motion carried by the following vote: Page 1 Whatcom County Printed on 10/5/2026 September 29, 2026 Council Minutes - Draft Minutes
6 yea
Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea
that the Resolution Requiring a Public Hearing be APPROVED carried by the following vote:
12 yea
Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea · Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea
that the Resolution be APPROVED carried by the following vote:
6 yea
Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea
that the Resolution be APPROVED. The motion carried by the following vote:
6 yea
Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea
that the Resolution (FCZDBS) Requiring a Public Hearing be INTRODUCED FOR PUBLIC HEARING. The motion carried by the following vote:
6 yea
Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea
that the Council Appointment Requiring Introduction be INTRODUCED. The motion carried by the following vote:
6 yea
Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea
MIN2026-076 — APPROVED BY CONSENT
6 yea · 1 absent
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas absent · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
MIN2026-077 — APPROVED BY CONSENT
6 yea · 1 absent
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas absent · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
MIN2026-078 — APPROVED BY CONSENT
6 yea · 1 absent
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas absent · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-649 — APPROVED
6 yea · 1 absent
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas absent · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-651 — APPROVED
6 yea · 1 absent
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas absent · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-683 — APPROVED
6 yea · 1 absent
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas absent · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-689 — APPROVED
6 yea · 1 absent
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas absent · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-694 — INTRODUCED
6 yea · 1 absent
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas absent · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-681 — INTRODUCED FOR PUBLIC HEARING
6 yea · 1 absent
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas absent · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
Tue Sep 29, 2026 · 9:00 AM

Council Finance and Administrative Services Committee

County committee reviews 2027-2028 budget, approves contracts and appointments

The Whatcom County Council Finance and Administrative Services Committee is holding a hybrid meeting to review department presentations for the 2027-2028 biennium budget, including Health & Community Services, Auditor, Assessor, and Prosecutor. The committee will also take final action on several consent agenda items, including contracts for surplus sales, courthouse security, flood response, and other services, plus a budget amendment and council appointments.

budgetcontractspublic-safetyfloodappointments
✓ Decided: Whatcom County Council approves $701,921 budget amendment and seven contracts

The committee approved a $701,921 amendment to the 2026 budget, which includes funding for a tiny homes project in partnership with the City of Bellingham. Members also authorized seven contracts for services ranging from courthouse security to emergency medical direction and flood response. Additionally, the committee confirmed three appointments to county advisory committees and reviewed department budget presentations for the 2027-2028 biennium.

Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers
📹 From the video · 2h 29m
Auto-transcribed from the official meeting video (speech-to-text — may contain errors).
is walk-in county council finance and administrative services committee meeting today is tuesday september 29th 2026 it is 9 a.m we're meeting a hybrid format here in council chambers and online and i'm calling this meeting to order may the clerk please call the roll elizabeth boyle barry buchanan here ben ellenbos i think is excused today kaylee galloway i think she's in the back jessica reinstra here john scanlon here mark stremmler here uh five present out here and i think we're about to have a sixth in a minute um so today we're starting out with our public comment um this is an opportunity for community members to address the council on any matter on today's finance and administrative services committee agenda we have up to 30 minutes for this item before i begin i want to share a few guidelines for public comment we will start by calling those in chambers who sign up to speak and then we will go to our online registrants each speaker will have two minutes please be respectful of other speakers by concluding your remarks on time comments must be directed to the council as a whole not to individual council members or staff personal attacks vulgar or threatening language or behavior that disrupts the meeting will not be allowed we ask that you keep comments relevant to today's committee business we request that you refrain from using our public facilities for any campaign purposes such as supporting or opposing candidates or ballot measures please be respectful you may hea …
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📄 From the agenda
Extracted text of the official agenda document (automated extraction — may contain OCR/formatting errors).
Whatcom County COUNTY COURTHOUSE 311 Grand Avenue, Ste #105 Bellingham, WA 98225-4038 (360) 778-5010 Meeting Agenda HYBRID MEETING - ADJOURNS BY 12:30 PM (PARTICIPATE IN-PERSON, SEE REMOTE JOIN INSTRUCTIONS AT www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil, OR CALL 360.778.5010) COUNCILMEMBERS Elizabeth Boyle Barry Buchanan Ben Elenbaas Kaylee Galloway Jessica Rienstra Jon Scanlon Mark Stremler CLERK OF THE COUNCIL Kirsten Smith Council Finance and Administrative Services Committee Tuesday, September 29, 2026 9 AM Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers September 29, 2026 Council Finance and Administrative Services Committee Meeting Agenda Call To Order Roll Call Announcements If you require special assistance to participate, please contact the Council Office at 360-778-5010 at least 96 hours in advance. Assistive listening devices are available in Council Chambers, and live captions are available through Zoom for those participating remotely. This committee meeting is also noticed as a meeting of the Whatcom County Council, with the agenda limited to committee business. Public Comment Council offers thirty (30) minutes for in-person and remote participation in Public Comment. If you are attending the meeting in person, Public Comment sign-up sheets will be available in Council Chambers. To participate remotely, please visit www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil and register for a Zoom link by 8 a.m. the day of the meeting. Speakers are given two (2) minutes to address the Cou …
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📄 From the minutes
Extracted text of the official minutes document (automated extraction — may contain OCR/formatting errors).
Whatcom County COUNTY COURTHOUSE 311 Grand Avenue, Ste #105 Bellingham, WA 98225-4038 (360) 778-5010 Minutes - Draft Minutes HYBRID MEETING - ADJOURNS BY 12:30 PM (PARTICIPATE IN-PERSON, SEE REMOTE JOIN INSTRUCTIONS AT www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil, OR CALL 360.778.5010) COUNCILMEMBERS Elizabeth Boyle Barry Buchanan Ben Elenbaas Kaylee Galloway Jessica Rienstra Jon Scanlon Mark Stremler CLERK OF THE COUNCIL Kirsten Smith Council Finance and Administrative Services Committee Tuesday, September 29, 2026 9 AM Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers September 29, 2026 Council Finance and Administrative Services Committee Minutes - Draft Minutes Call To Order Committee Chair Jon Scanlon called the meeting to order at 9 a.m. in a hybrid meeting. Roll Call Elizabeth Boyle, Barry Buchanan, Kaylee Galloway, Jessica Rienstra, Jon Scanlon, and Mark Stremler Present: 6 - Ben Elenbaas Absent: 1 - Announcements Public Comment Scanlon opened the public comment period and hearing no one, closed the public comment period. Special Presentation 1. AB2026-641 Presentations from County Departments regarding the 2027-2028 Biennium Budget For each department presentation Kayla Schott-Bresler, Executive's Office, gave a few short remarks and shared the executive's proposal for the 2027-2028 budget. She also answered questions. The following people read from presentations (on file) on their respective department budgets and answered questions: Health and Community Services; Behavioral …
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🗳️ How they voted (18 roll-call votes)
Named votes as recorded in the official record.
that the Contract be AUTHORIZED BY CONSENT. The motion carried by the following vote:
18 yea
Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea · Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea · Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea
that the Contract (FCZDBS) be AUTHORIZED BY CONSENT. The motion carried by the following vote:
12 yea
Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea · Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea
that the Contract be AUTHORIZED Page 4 Whatcom County Printed on 10/1/2026 September 29, 2026 Council Finance and Administrative Services Committee Minutes - Draft Minutes BY CONSENT. The motion…
6 yea
Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea
that the Interlocal be AUTHORIZED BY CONSENT. The motion carried by the following vote:
6 yea
Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea
that the Ordinance be ADOPTED carried by the following vote:
6 yea
Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea
that the Council Appointment Requiring Introduction be APPOINTED. The motion carried by the following vote:
12 yea
Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea · Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea
that the Council Appointment be APPOINTED. The motion carried by the following vote:
6 yea
Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea
AB2026-679 — AUTHORIZED BY CONSENT
6 yea · 1 absent
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas absent · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-685 — AUTHORIZED BY CONSENT
6 yea · 1 absent
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas absent · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-688 — AUTHORIZED BY CONSENT
6 yea · 1 absent
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas absent · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-692 — AUTHORIZED BY CONSENT
6 yea · 1 absent
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas absent · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-684 — AUTHORIZED BY CONSENT
6 yea · 1 absent
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas absent · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-686 — AUTHORIZED BY CONSENT
6 yea · 1 absent
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas absent · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-691 — AUTHORIZED BY CONSENT
6 yea · 1 absent
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas absent · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-631 — APPOINTED
6 yea · 1 absent
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas absent · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-632 — APPOINTED
6 yea · 1 absent
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas absent · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-663 — ADOPTED
6 yea · 1 absent
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas absent · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-697 — APPOINTED
6 yea · 1 absent
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas absent · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
Tue Sep 29, 2026 · 1:30 PM

Council Committee of the Whole

Council hears updates on jail, housing, climate, and Critical Areas Ordinance

The Whatcom County Council Committee of the Whole is receiving presentations and progress reports on several county programs, including jail incarceration reduction, affordable housing funding, homeless housing, the Critical Areas Ordinance update, climate action, and racial equity. The committee will also discuss two items: an ordinance to exempt animal control and shelter contracts from bidding requirements, and a proposed temporary easement to the state Department of Transportation for flood control. No final votes are scheduled; items are for discussion only.

jailhousinghomelessnessclimatezoningordinanceflood-controlracial-equity
✓ Decided: Council approves plan to advance affordable housing recommendations

The Council voted to work with the Executive to implement four affordable housing recommendations from the Housing Advisory Committee. Additionally, the Council appointed a three-member workgroup to oversee these efforts.

Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers
📹 From the video · 3h 2m
Auto-transcribed from the official meeting video (speech-to-text — may contain errors).
recording in progress hey good afternoon i'd like to call to order this wacom county council committee of the whole today is tuesday september 29th 2026 it is now 1 33 p.m and we are meeting in a hybrid format could the clerk please take the role elizabeth boyle here barry buchanan here ben ellenbos still excused kaylee galloway here jessica reinstra here john scanlon here mark strimler here okay look the record show we've got six council members present and council member ellen boss is excused um we have a series of special presentations today the first being ab 2026-695 a presentation and progress report by the incarceration prevention and reduction task force justice project average length of stay work group and funding split work group i would we you got council member buchanan who's going to kick us off thank you chair galloway um welcome council as you remember back in uh one of these months this summer the resolution that the council passed that established a budget cap for the new jail had some provisions in there for two work groups to take a look at uh the 50-50 funding split as well as the average length of stay and average daily population um which is a very important metric uh that we'll dive into we probably don't have enough time to do this that's kind of my bad because i forgot to carry the two when heather told me how long we needed so anyway we're going to get started um and i will introduce without further ado co-chair of the incarceration prevention reduct …
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📄 From the agenda
Extracted text of the official agenda document (automated extraction — may contain OCR/formatting errors).
Whatcom County COUNTY COURTHOUSE 311 Grand Avenue, Ste #105 Bellingham, WA 98225-4038 (360) 778-5010 Meeting Agenda HYBRID MEETING - ADJOURNS BY 4:30 PM (PARTICIPATE IN-PERSON, SEE REMOTE JOIN INSTRUCTIONS AT www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil, OR CALL 360.778.5010) COUNCILMEMBERS Elizabeth Boyle Barry Buchanan Ben Elenbaas Kaylee Galloway Jessica Rienstra Jon Scanlon Mark Stremler CLERK OF THE COUNCIL Kirsten Smith Council Committee of the Whole Tuesday, September 29, 2026 1:30 PM Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers September 29, 2026 Council Committee of the Whole Meeting Agenda Call To Order Roll Call Announcements If you require special assistance to participate, please contact the Council Office at 360-778-5010 at least 96 hours in advance. Assistive listening devices are available in Council Chambers, and live captions are available through Zoom for those participating remotely. This committee meeting is also noticed as a meeting of the Whatcom County Council, with the agenda limited to committee business. Special Presentation 1. AB2026-695 Presentation and progress report by the Incarceration Prevention and Reduction Task Force Justice Project Average Length of Stay Workgroup and Funding Split Workgroup 2. AB2026-678 Presentation from Whatcom County Housing Advisory Committee on affordable housing funding sources 3. AB2026-677 Biannual update from Whatcom County Health and Community Services Homeless Housing Programs Team 4. AB2026-669 Presentation from Pl …
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📄 From the minutes
Extracted text of the official minutes document (automated extraction — may contain OCR/formatting errors).
Whatcom County COUNTY COURTHOUSE 311 Grand Avenue, Ste #105 Bellingham, WA 98225-4038 (360) 778-5010 Committee Minutes - Draft Minutes HYBRID MEETING - ADJOURNS BY 4:30 PM (PARTICIPATE IN-PERSON, SEE REMOTE JOIN INSTRUCTIONS AT www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil, OR CALL 360.778.5010) COUNCILMEMBERS Elizabeth Boyle Barry Buchanan Ben Elenbaas Kaylee Galloway Jessica Rienstra Jon Scanlon Mark Stremler CLERK OF THE COUNCIL Kirsten Smith Council Committee of the Whole Tuesday, September 29, 2026 1:30 PM Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers September 29, 2026 Council Committee of the Whole Committee Minutes - Draft Minutes Call To Order Council Chair Kaylee Galloway called the meeting to order at 1:33 p.m. in a hybrid meeting. Roll Call Elizabeth Boyle, Barry Buchanan, Kaylee Galloway, Jessica Rienstra, Jon Scanlon, and Mark Stremler Present: 6 - Ben Elenbaas Absent: 1 - Announcements Special Presentation 1. AB2026-695 Presentation and progress report by the Incarceration Prevention and Reduction Task Force Justice Project Average Length of Stay Workgroup and Funding Split Workgroup Buchanan introduced the presentation. Heather Flaherty, Incarceration Prevention and Reduction Task Force (IPRTF) Co-Chair, read from a presentation (on file) on the work of the Funding Split Workgroup. Buchanan stated this is just a progress report today and the final will come at the end of November. Boyle and Rienstra thanked the group members for their work. Councilmembers and Flaher …
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🗳️ How they voted (1 roll-call vote)
Named votes as recorded in the official record.
[context] The motion carried by the following vote:
9 yea
Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Boyle yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea · Boyle yea · Buchanan yea
Tue Sep 22, 2026 · 9:00 AM

Council Special Committee of the Whole

County departments present 2027-2028 budget proposals to council

The Whatcom County Council Special Committee of the Whole is holding a full-day session to receive presentations from county departments on their proposed budgets for the 2027-2028 biennium. The agenda is limited to committee business, with no other substantive items listed. The meeting includes a lunch recess and is scheduled to adjourn by 4:30 PM.

budgetcounty-departmentspublic-worksparksplanningsheriff
Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers
📹 From the video · 7h 22m
Auto-transcribed from the official meeting video (speech-to-text — may contain errors).
What are we doing, John? Don't say anything silly. Good morning. Don't say anything. Don't do a fairy. Is that a verb now? Yeah, don't fairy. It's a fairy. Oh, I forgot my charger. Good job. Thanks for that. I owe you one. Thank you. recording in progress it's a call to all the spawckham county council's special committee of the whole today is tuesday september 22nd 2026 it is now 9.03 a.m and we are meeting in a hybrid format could the clerk please take the roll elizabeth boyle here barry buchanan here ben ellenboss paylee galloway here jessica reinstra here john scanlan here mark stramler one more time ben ellenboss okay let the record show we've got six council members present with um council member ellenboss excused uh we've got one um special presentation ab2026-641 presentations from county departments regarding the 2027-2028 biennial budget um the department presentation schedule is as follows we'll start with public works then parks and recreation planning and development services medical examiner's office and district court we'll break for lunch around noon for an hour we'll come back and hear from superior court superior court's clerk's office the public defender's office sheriff's office executive's office and non-departmental and then hopefully we'll have a little time at the end of all that for council member discussion um we'll ask that council members uh wait till the end of each presentation to ask their questions and hopefully we'll have a little bit of time …
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📄 From the agenda
Extracted text of the official agenda document (automated extraction — may contain OCR/formatting errors).
Whatcom County COUNTY COURTHOUSE 311 Grand Avenue, Ste #105 Bellingham, WA 98225-4038 (360) 778-5010 Meeting Agenda HYBRID MEETING - RECESS FOR LUNCH FROM 12:00 PM TO 1:00 PM - ADJOURNS BY 4:30 PM (PARTICIPATE IN-PERSON, SEE REMOTE JOIN INSTRUCTIONS AT www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil, OR CALL 360.778.5010) COUNCILMEMBERS Elizabeth Boyle Barry Buchanan Ben Elenbaas Kaylee Galloway Jessica Rienstra Jon Scanlon Mark Stremler CLERK OF THE COUNCIL Kirsten Smith Council Special Committee of the Whole Tuesday, September 22, 2026 9 AM Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers September 22, 2026 Council Special Committee of the Whole Meeting Agenda Call To Order Roll Call Announcements If you require special assistance to participate, please contact the Council Office at 360-778-5010 at least 96 hours in advance. Assistive listening devices are available in Council Chambers, and live captions are available through Zoom for those participating remotely. This committee meeting is also noticed as a meeting of the Whatcom County Council, with the agenda limited to committee business. Special Presentation 1. AB2026-641 Presentations from County Departments regarding the 2027-2028 Biennium Budget DEPARTMENT PRESENTATION SCHEDULE: 9:00 AM - Public Works 10:00 AM - Parks and Recreation 10:30 AM - Planning and Development Services 11:00 AM - Medical Examiner's Office 11:30 AM - District Court 12:00-1:00 PM - Lunch Break 1:00 PM - Superior Court 1:30 PM - Superior Court Clerk's O …
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Mon Sep 21, 2026 · 5:00 PM

Special Event

Point Roberts Community Center, 1437 Gulf Rd, Point Roberts, WA, 98281
Tue Sep 15, 2026 · 6:00 PM

Council

Council to consider $2.09M budget amendment and road program changes

The Whatcom County Council is meeting to consider several items, including a $2,094,013 budget amendment, modifications to the Six-Year Transportation Improvement Program and the 2026 Annual Road Program, and a resolution to sell tax title property at public auction. The council will also hear public testimony on these items and consider ordinances related to the Crisis Relief Center Fund and the New Public Health, Safety and Justice Facility. Several items are introduced without action, including a code change to exempt animal control contracts from bidding requirements.

budgetroadstransportationpublic-hearingproperty-saleordinancecrisis-relief
✓ Decided: Council approves Lake Whatcom Forest Management Plan 5-2 after hold motion fails

Whatcom County Council approved a joint resolution with Bellingham adopting the Lake Whatcom Forest Management Plan on a 5-2 vote, after a motion to hold the item failed 2-5. Council also adopted three ordinances, including a $2,094,013 amendment to the 2026 county budget, and approved two road-program resolutions. A resolution docketing a comprehensive plan amendment for 4610 Lincoln Road was held until October 13, and an ordinance exempting animal control contracts from bidding was introduced 5-2.

Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers
📹 From the video · 2h 3m
Auto-transcribed from the official meeting video (speech-to-text — may contain errors).
recording in progress hey good evening i'd like to call to order this whatcom county council meeting today is tuesday september 15th 2026 it is now 602 p.m and we are meeting in a hybrid format will the clerk please take the role well barry buch anan here ben ellenboss here kaylee galloway here jessica reenstra here john scanlan here mark stramler here hey let the record show all council members are present let us rise to the flag salute okay next on our agenda is the county executive report mr executive good evening council members and the members of public two weeks ago i delivered my proposed budget for the 2027 2028 biennium excuse me and earlier today deputy executive kayla short bressler and finance director randy rydell presented to the council the highlights of the proposal i'm proud of the efforts made by all the departments and other elected offices to bring this forward and do so in much tighter timeline than previous years i also want to share with you that this budget my fourth biennial budget will be my final budget proposal as i will not be seeking the office of the county executive again with that in mind i would like to take a moment to reflect my administration 's efforts in collaboration with the council to ensure the county remains in strong financial health in face of unprecedented disruptions disruptions of recent years since 2020 we have been challenged by the first global pandemic in a century which claimed the lives of approximately 400 residents of o …
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📄 From the agenda
Extracted text of the official agenda document (automated extraction — may contain OCR/formatting errors).
Whatcom County COUNTY COURTHOUSE 311 Grand Avenue, Ste #105 Bellingham, WA 98225-4038 (360) 778-5010 Meeting Agenda HYBRID MEETING (PARTICIPATE IN-PERSON, SEE REMOTE JOIN INSTRUCTIONS AT www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil, OR CALL 360.778.5010) COUNCILMEMBERS Elizabeth Boyle Barry Buchanan Ben Elenbaas Kaylee Galloway Jessica Rienstra Jon Scanlon Mark Stremler CLERK OF THE COUNCIL Kirsten Smith Council Tuesday, September 15, 2026 6 PM Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers September 15, 2026 Council Meeting Agenda COUNTY COUNCIL CALL TO ORDER ROLL CALL FLAG SALUTE ANNOUNCEMENTS Council meetings are held in a hybrid format with in-person and remote participation available. For instructions on remote participation, visit www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil. If you require special assistance to participate, please contact the Council Office at 360-778-5010 at least 96 hours in advance. Assistive listening devices are available in Council Chambers, and live captions are available through Zoom for those participating remotely. Per RCW 42.17A.555, the use of public facilities to support or oppose candidates or ballot issues is prohibited. The County is accepting applications to fill vacancies on advisory groups for a range of local issues. For more information, visit www.whatcomcounty.us/1585 or contact the Council Office at 360-778-5010. COUNTY EXECUTIVE'S REPORT MINUTES CONSENT 1. MIN2026-069 Committee of the Whole Executive Session for August 11, 2026 2. MIN2026-0 …
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📄 From the minutes
Extracted text of the official minutes document (automated extraction — may contain OCR/formatting errors).
Whatcom County COUNTY COURTHOUSE 311 Grand Avenue, Ste #105 Bellingham, WA 98225-4038 (360) 778-5010 Minutes - Draft Minutes HYBRID MEETING (PARTICIPATE IN-PERSON, SEE REMOTE JOIN INSTRUCTIONS AT www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil, OR CALL 360.778.5010) COUNCILMEMBERS Elizabeth Boyle Barry Buchanan Ben Elenbaas Kaylee Galloway Jessica Rienstra Jon Scanlon Mark Stremler CLERK OF THE COUNCIL Kirsten Smith Council Tuesday, September 15, 2026 6 PM Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers September 15, 2026 Council Minutes - Draft Minutes COUNTY COUNCIL CALL TO ORDER Council Chair Kaylee Galloway called the meeting to order at 6:02 p.m. in a hybrid meeting. ROLL CALL Elizabeth Boyle, Barry Buchanan, Ben Elenbaas, Kaylee Galloway, Jessica Rienstra, Jon Scanlon, and Mark Stremler Present: 7 - FLAG SALUTE ANNOUNCEMENTS COUNTY EXECUTIVE'S REPORT Satpal Sidhu, County Executive, read from his report (document attached to the meeting details) on his proposed budget for the 2027-2028 biennium. Galloway spoke about Council’s upcoming budget process and opportunities for public involvement. MINUTES CONSENT Boyle moved to accept the minutes consent items. The motion was seconded by Buchanan (see votes on individual items below). 1. MIN2026-069 Committee of the Whole Executive Session for August 11, 2026 Boyle moved and Buchanan seconded that the Minutes Consent be APPROVED BY CONSENT. The motion carried by the following vote: Aye: Boyle, Buchanan, Elenbaas, Galloway, Rienstra, Scanlo …
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🗳️ How they voted — 2 divided votes
Named votes as recorded in the official record.
AB2026-556 — APPROVED
5 yea · 2 nay
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas nay · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler nay
AB2026-630 — INTRODUCED
5 yea · 2 nay
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas nay · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler nay
The other 35 items passed by unanimous or near-unanimous consent.
Tue Sep 15, 2026 · 9:00 AM

Council Finance and Administrative Services Committee

Council to review 2027-2028 budget, approve $2M+ in contracts

The Whatcom County Council Finance and Administrative Services Committee will review the County Executive's recommended 2027-2028 biennium budget and discuss a $701,921 budget amendment. The committee will also consider 18 consent agenda items authorizing contracts and interlocal agreements totaling over $2.5 million, covering services like victim advocacy, mental health court, and flood monitoring. Additionally, the committee will discuss an ordinance closing the 23-Hour Crisis Relief Center Fund and amendments to the 2026 budget.

budgetcontractspublic-safetyhealthhousingflood-controlappointments
✓ Decided: County to defend retired sheriff, jail officials in federal lawsuit; 2027-28 budget previewed

The committee voted 7-0 to approve defense and indemnification of retired Sheriff Bill Elfo, retired Chief of Corrections Wendy Jones, and former jail nursing supervisor Sally Andrews in a federal lawsuit (Barness et al. v. Whatcom County, Cause No. 2:26-cv-02987). It also approved a consent agenda of 17 contracts and interlocal agreements totaling roughly $2.9 million, and recommended three budget ordinances to the full Council. The Executive's recommended 2027-2028 biennium budget was presented and discussed, including a proposed four percent staffing reduction and a budget stabilization reserve; no budget adoption vote was taken.

Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers
📹 From the video · 3h 0m
Auto-transcribed from the official meeting video (speech-to-text — may contain errors).
morning everyone i would like to call to order today's walking county council finance and administrative services committee meeting today is tuesday september 15th 2026 it is now 9 a.m and we are meeting in a hybrid format could the clerk please call the roll oh yeah barry buchanan here ben ellen boss here kaylee galloway the way jessica reinstra here john scanlon here mark stremler here i'll let the record show that six council members are present exception of council member galloway who we expect to be here shortly uh the first item on our agenda is executive session we have one item for executive session uh that item is ab 2026 671 discussion of pending litigation with civil deputy prosecutor jesse corcoran regarding elaine marie barness at all verse walkham county at all u.s district court western district of washington cause number 226 cv 02987 tl defense and indemnification of bill elfo wendy jones sally andrews and heidi zosel named as defendants discussion of this item may take place in executive session close you the public pursuant to rcw 42 30 110 1i the attorney present the attorneys present are jesse corcoran and kimberly to lean council meet executive session until 9 20 a.m if the meeting extends beyond the stated conclusion time i will make a public announcement council i would like to entertain a motion in turn to executive session until 9 20 a.m to discuss the items pursuant to the stated rcws i moved second scandin yes mark stremmler yes elizabeth boyle yes …
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📄 From the agenda
Extracted text of the official agenda document (automated extraction — may contain OCR/formatting errors).
Whatcom County COUNTY COURTHOUSE 311 Grand Avenue, Ste #105 Bellingham, WA 98225-4038 (360) 778-5010 Meeting Agenda HYBRID MEETING - ADJOURNS BY 12:30 PM (PARTICIPATE IN-PERSON, SEE REMOTE JOIN INSTRUCTIONS AT www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil, OR CALL 360.778.5010) COUNCILMEMBERS Elizabeth Boyle Barry Buchanan Ben Elenbaas Kaylee Galloway Jessica Rienstra Jon Scanlon Mark Stremler CLERK OF THE COUNCIL Kirsten Smith Council Finance and Administrative Services Committee Tuesday, September 15, 2026 9 AM Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers September 15, 2026 Council Finance and Administrative Services Committee Meeting Agenda Call To Order Roll Call Announcements If you require special assistance to participate, please contact the Council Office at 360-778-5010 at least 96 hours in advance. Assistive listening devices are available in Council Chambers, and live captions are available through Zoom for those participating remotely. This committee meeting is also noticed as a meeting of the Whatcom County Council, with the agenda limited to committee business. Executive Session 1. AB2026-671 Discussion of pending litigation with Civil Deputy Prosecutor, Jesse Corkern, regarding Elaine Marie Barness et al., vs. Whatcom County et al., U.S. District Court Western District of Washington, Cause No. 2:26−cv−02987−TL. Defense and indemnification of Bill Elfo, Wendy Jones, Sally Andrews, and Heidi Zosel named as defendants. [Discussion of this item may take place in executiv …
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📄 From the minutes
Extracted text of the official minutes document (automated extraction — may contain OCR/formatting errors).
Whatcom County COUNTY COURTHOUSE 311 Grand Avenue, Ste #105 Bellingham, WA 98225-4038 (360) 778-5010 Minutes - Draft Minutes HYBRID MEETING - ADJOURNS BY 12:30 PM (PARTICIPATE IN-PERSON, SEE REMOTE JOIN INSTRUCTIONS AT www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil, OR CALL 360.778.5010) AGENDA REVISED 9.14.2026 COUNCILMEMBERS Elizabeth Boyle Barry Buchanan Ben Elenbaas Kaylee Galloway Jessica Rienstra Jon Scanlon Mark Stremler CLERK OF THE COUNCIL Kirsten Smith Council Finance and Administrative Services Committee Tuesday, September 15, 2026 9 AM Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers September 15, 2026 Council Finance and Administrative Services Committee Minutes - Draft Minutes Call To Order Committee Chair Jon Scanlon called the meeting to order at 9 a.m. in a hybrid meeting. Roll Call Elizabeth Boyle, Barry Buchanan, Ben Elenbaas, Kaylee Galloway, Jessica Rienstra, Jon Scanlon, and Mark Stremler Present: 7 - Announcements Executive Session 1. AB2026-671 Discussion of pending litigation with Civil Deputy Prosecutor, Jesse Corkern, regarding Elaine Marie Barness et al., vs. Whatcom County et al., U.S. District Court Western District of Washington, Cause No. 2:26−cv−02987−TL. Defense and indemnification of Bill Elfo, Wendy Jones, Sally Andrews, and Heidi Zosel named as defendants. [Discussion of this item may take place in executive session (closed to the public) pursuant to RCW42.30.110 (1) (i)] Attorneys Present: Jesse Corkern and Kimberly Thulin. Galloway stated that dis …
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🗳️ How they voted (38 roll-call votes)
Named votes as recorded in the official record.
[context] The motion carried by the following vote:
12 yea
Elenbaas yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea · Boyle yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea · Boyle yea · Buchanan yea
that the Interlocal be AUTHORIZED BY CONSENT. The motion carried by the following vote: Page 3 Whatcom County Printed on 9/17/2026 September 15, 2026 Council Finance and Administrative Services…
7 yea
Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Elenbaas yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea
that the Interlocal be AUTHORIZED BY CONSENT. The motion carried by the following vote:
70 yea
Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Elenbaas yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea · Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Elenbaas yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea · Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Elenbaas yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea · Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Elenbaas yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea · Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Elenbaas yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea · Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Elenbaas yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea · Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Elenbaas yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea · Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Elenbaas yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea · Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Elenbaas yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea · Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Elenbaas yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea
that the Contract be AUTHORIZED BY CONSENT. The motion carried by the following vote:
20 yea
Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Elenbaas yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea · Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Elenbaas yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea · Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Elenbaas yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea
that the Contract (FCZDBS) be AUTHORIZED BY CONSENT. The motion carried by the following vote:
14 yea
Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Elenbaas yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea · Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Elenbaas yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea
that the Contract be AUTHORIZED BY CONSENT. The motion carried by the following vote: Page 6 Whatcom County Printed on 9/17/2026 September 15, 2026 Council Finance and Administrative Services…
7 yea
Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Elenbaas yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea
that the Special Executive Only Item be APPROVED BY THE COUNCILMEMBERS carried by the following vote:
6 yea
Boyle yea · Elenbaas yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea
that the Resolution be APPROVED carried by the following vote:
7 yea
Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Elenbaas yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea
that the Ordinance be RECOMMENDED FOR ADOPTION. The motion carried by the following vote:
21 yea
Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Elenbaas yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea · Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Elenbaas yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea · Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Elenbaas yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea
that the Council Appointment Requiring Introduction be APPOINTED carried by the following vote:
7 yea
Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Elenbaas yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea
that the Executive Appointment be CONFIRMED. The motion carried by the following vote:
28 yea
Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Elenbaas yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea · Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Elenbaas yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea · Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Elenbaas yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea · Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Elenbaas yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler yea
AB2026-627 — AUTHORIZED BY CONSENT
7 yea
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas yea · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-639 — AUTHORIZED BY CONSENT
7 yea
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas yea · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-653 — AUTHORIZED BY CONSENT
7 yea
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas yea · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-667 — AUTHORIZED BY CONSENT
7 yea
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas yea · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-675 — AUTHORIZED BY CONSENT
7 yea
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas yea · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-643 — AUTHORIZED BY CONSENT
7 yea
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas yea · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-658 — AUTHORIZED BY CONSENT
7 yea
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas yea · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-628 — AUTHORIZED BY CONSENT
7 yea
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas yea · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-629 — AUTHORIZED BY CONSENT
7 yea
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas yea · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
Tue Sep 15, 2026 · 1:30 PM

Council Committee of the Whole

Council to discuss kratom regulation and 2027-2032 transportation plan

The Whatcom County Council Committee of the Whole will hear reports from the Sheriff's Office and Conservation Easement Program, and discuss potential kratom regulation with the Health and Community Services Department. The committee will also discuss the Six-Year Transportation Improvement Program for 2027-2032 and the 2027 Annual Road Program, and consider recommendations on the Lake Whatcom Forest Management Plan and Urban Growth Area reserve amendments.

kratomtransportationroadsforest-managementurban-growth-areazoningconservation
✓ Decided: Council recommends Lake Whatcom Forest Management Plan approval

The Council Committee of the Whole recommended approval of the Lake Whatcom Forest Management Plan (6-1), with Stremler dissenting. They also recommended approval of the UGA Reserve Review docket amendment (7-0) and voted to hold the Lincoln Road UGA amendment until September 29. No final decisions were made; all items are recommendations to the full Council.

Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers
📹 From the video · 2h 57m
Auto-transcribed from the official meeting video (speech-to-text — may contain errors).
Recording in progress. Hey, good afternoon. I'd like to call to order this Whatcom County Council Committee of the Whole. Today is Tuesday, September 15, 2026. It is now 1.30 p.m. And we are meeting in a hybrid format. Could the clerk please take the roll? Elizabeth Boyle? Here. Barry Buchanan? Here. Ben Ellenbos? Here. Kaylee Galloway? Here. Jessica Reenstra? Here. John Scanlon? Here. Mark Stremler? Here. Okay, I'll let the record show. All council members are present. We've got a packed agenda today, so I will be doing our best to keep us moving along here. I appreciate everybody's patience here. Our first item is a special presentation, AB 2026-655, a report from the Sheriff's Office. Sheriff Tanksley, thank you for being here today. I'll let you take it away. Yes, and thank you, Council. I'm Sheriff Donnell Tanksley. Sheriff of Whatcom County. Sheriff's Office. So, throughout 2026, the Sheriff's Office has remained actively engaged with residents, schools, and community organizations and partner agencies across Whatcom County, dedicating, I'm sorry, significant time and personal resources to public outreach, education, and community building initiatives. The Sheriff's deputies visited schools throughout Whatcom County, including Linden School District, Bellingham High School, Options High School, and Whatcom Community College. We also participated in career fairs, classroom presentations, leadership discussions, and career programs, providing students with first-hand insi …
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📄 From the agenda
Extracted text of the official agenda document (automated extraction — may contain OCR/formatting errors).
Whatcom County COUNTY COURTHOUSE 311 Grand Avenue, Ste #105 Bellingham, WA 98225-4038 (360) 778-5010 Meeting Agenda HYBRID MEETING - ADJOURNS BY 4:30 PM (PARTICIPATE IN-PERSON, SEE REMOTE JOIN INSTRUCTIONS AT www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil, OR CALL 360.778.5010) COUNCILMEMBERS Elizabeth Boyle Barry Buchanan Ben Elenbaas Kaylee Galloway Jessica Rienstra Jon Scanlon Mark Stremler CLERK OF THE COUNCIL Kirsten Smith Council Committee of the Whole Tuesday, September 15, 2026 1:30 PM Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers September 15, 2026 Council Committee of the Whole Meeting Agenda Call To Order Roll Call Announcements If you require special assistance to participate, please contact the Council Office at 360-778-5010 at least 96 hours in advance. Assistive listening devices are available in Council Chambers, and live captions are available through Zoom for those participating remotely. This committee meeting is also noticed as a meeting of the Whatcom County Council, with the agenda limited to committee business. Special Presentation 1. AB2026-655 Report from the Sheriff’s Office 2. AB2026-674 Presentation from Conservation Easement Program staff and Oversight Committee regarding conservation funding challenges and opportunities Committee Discussion 1. AB2026-647 Discussion with the Health and Community Services Department regarding kratom use and potential regulation 2. AB2026-648 Discussion of a resolution approving the Public Works Six-Year Transportation Improv …
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📄 From the minutes
Extracted text of the official minutes document (automated extraction — may contain OCR/formatting errors).
Whatcom County COUNTY COURTHOUSE 311 Grand Avenue, Ste #105 Bellingham, WA 98225-4038 (360) 778-5010 Committee Minutes - Draft Minutes HYBRID MEETING - ADJOURNS BY 4:30 PM (PARTICIPATE IN-PERSON, SEE REMOTE JOIN INSTRUCTIONS AT www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil, OR CALL 360.778.5010) COUNCILMEMBERS Elizabeth Boyle Barry Buchanan Ben Elenbaas Kaylee Galloway Jessica Rienstra Jon Scanlon Mark Stremler CLERK OF THE COUNCIL Kirsten Smith Council Committee of the Whole Tuesday, September 15, 2026 1:30 PM Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers September 15, 2026 Council Committee of the Whole Committee Minutes - Draft Minutes Call To Order Council Chair Kaylee Galloway called the meeting to order at 1:30 p.m. in a hybrid meeting. Roll Call Elizabeth Boyle, Barry Buchanan, Ben Elenbaas, Kaylee Galloway, Jessica Rienstra, Jon Scanlon, and Mark Stremler Present: 7 - Announcements Special Presentation 1. AB2026-655 Report from the Sheriff’s Office Donnell Tanksley, Sheriff, reported on the Sheriff's Office, their active engagement with the community, updates on the various divisions of the department, issues with the new Sheriff's Office location and building with not enough money for needed renovations (even with House Bill 2015 funds), and Additional Service Request (ASR) 2027-8091 in the executive’s recommended budget for the reduction of six patrol deputies for the Sheriff, even though the Council approved 10 patrol deputies in 2022, with five to be hired in each of t …
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🗳️ How they voted — 1 divided vote
Named votes as recorded in the official record.
AB2026-556 — RECOMMENDED FOR APPROVAL
6 yea · 1 nay
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas yea · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler nay
The other 5 items passed by unanimous or near-unanimous consent.
Thu Aug 13, 2026 · 10:30 AM

Special Event

Northwest Washington Fair Opening Day Celebration, Lawn of the Mt. Baker Rotary Building, 1751 Front St., Lynden, WA 98264
Tue Aug 11, 2026 · 2:30 PM

Council Committee of the Whole

Council to discuss priorities, hearing examiner contract, and new planning director

The Whatcom County Council Committee of the Whole will discuss several items, including priorities from the 2026 strategic planning exercise, a proposal for hearing examiner services for 2027-2028, and Council Office procedures. The committee will also discuss the confirmation of James Marks as Director of Planning & Development Services, effective September 14, 2026, which is scheduled for council action. A resolution to temporarily change the format of council committee meetings on council meeting days will be discussed and recommended to the council.

council-prioritieshearing-examinerplanning-directorappointmentmeeting-formatprocedures
✓ Decided: Council recommends pilot to change committee meeting format

The Council Committee of the Whole recommended approval of a resolution to temporarily change the format of Council committee meetings on Council meeting days, with a 5-1 vote (one abstention). They also approved appointing three councilmembers to negotiate hearing examiner services for 2027-2028. The appointment of James Marks as Planning & Development Services Director was discussed but not voted on.

Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers
📹 From the video · 1h 19m
Auto-transcribed from the official meeting video (speech-to-text — may contain errors).
Thank you. Here. Van Neldenbos? Here. Kaylee Galloway? Here. Jessica Reenstra? John Scanlon? Mark Stremler? Okay. Let the record show. All council members are present. We have four items for committee discussion and one for committee discussion and recommendation to council. I know three of our committee discussion items have guests for these items. I did get a request from the executive's office if we could move AB 2026-625 up to the first item, which I think could be discussed pretty quickly. And I want to honor our guest, James Marks. Unless there's any objections, I'd like to just honor that request. And Eric, I'm sorry. We'll be another 10 or so minutes. Okay. I'm not seeing any objections. So let's go ahead and do first. AB 2026-625, a request confirmation of the county executive 's appointment of James Marks as director of the Whatcom County Planning and Development Services, effective September 14th, 2026. This is for discussion only, and it is scheduled on this evening's council agenda for final action. Executive or deputy executive, would either of you like to very briefly introduce the item? I have very brief remarks. Yeah, thank you. Thank you very much for listening to my request. I'm pleased to present James Marks. I think he's there, right there, for confirmation as the next director of Whatcom County Planning and Development Services. James is a planning and transportation executive with more than 20 years' experience managing teams across public planning and …
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📄 From the agenda
Extracted text of the official agenda document (automated extraction — may contain OCR/formatting errors).
Whatcom County COUNTY COURTHOUSE 311 Grand Avenue, Ste #105 Bellingham, WA 98225-4038 (360) 778-5010 Meeting Agenda HYBRID MEETING - MAY BEGIN EARLY/LATE - ADJOURNS BY 4:30 P.M. (PARTICIPATE IN-PERSON, SEE REMOTE JOIN INSTRUCTIONS AT www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil, OR CALL 360.778.5010) COUNCILMEMBERS Elizabeth Boyle Barry Buchanan Ben Elenbaas Kaylee Galloway Jessica Rienstra Jon Scanlon Mark Stremler CLERK OF THE COUNCIL Cathy Halka, AICP, CMC Council Committee of the Whole Tuesday, August 11, 2026 2:30 PM Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers August 11, 2026 Council Committee of the Whole Meeting Agenda Call To Order Roll Call Announcements If you require special assistance to participate, please contact the Council Office at 360-778-5010 at least 96 hours in advance. Assistive listening devices are available in Council Chambers, and live captions are available through Zoom for those participating remotely. This committee meeting is also noticed as a meeting of the Whatcom County Council, with the agenda limited to committee business. Committee Discussion 1. AB2026-589 Discussion of Council priorities from Council’s 2026 strategic planning exercise 2. AB2026-604 Discussion of a proposal for hearing examiner services for 2027-2028 3. AB2026-587 Discussion of Council Office procedures, meeting logistics, and efficiency measures 4. AB2026-625 Request confirmation of the County Executive’s appointment of James Marks as Director of Whatcom County Planning & Developm …
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📄 From the minutes
Extracted text of the official minutes document (automated extraction — may contain OCR/formatting errors).
Whatcom County COUNTY COURTHOUSE 311 Grand Avenue, Ste #105 Bellingham, WA 98225-4038 (360) 778-5010 Committee Minutes - Draft Minutes HYBRID MEETING - MAY BEGIN EARLY/LATE - ADJOURNS BY 4:30 P.M. (PARTICIPATE IN-PERSON, SEE REMOTE JOIN INSTRUCTIONS AT www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil, OR CALL 360.778.5010) COUNCILMEMBERS Elizabeth Boyle Barry Buchanan Ben Elenbaas Kaylee Galloway Jessica Rienstra Jon Scanlon Mark Stremler CLERK OF THE COUNCIL Cathy Halka, AICP, CMC Council Committee of the Whole Tuesday, August 11, 2026 2:30 PM Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers August 11, 2026 Council Committee of the Whole Committee Minutes - Draft Minutes Call To Order Council Chair Kaylee Galloway called the meeting to order at 2:48 p.m. in a hybrid meeting. Roll Call Elizabeth Boyle, Barry Buchanan, Ben Elenbaas, Kaylee Galloway, Jessica Rienstra, Jon Scanlon, and Mark Stremler Present: 7 - Announcements Committee Discussion 4. AB2026-625 Request confirmation of the County Executive’s appointment of James Marks as Director of Whatcom County Planning & Development Services, effective September 14, 2026 Galloway stated she got a request from the Executive’s Office to move this file up so that it is first on the agenda and that the item is also scheduled on this evening’s Council agenda for final action. Satpal Sidhu, County Executive, introduced James Marks for confirmation as the next Director of Whatcom County Planning & Development Services and spoke about his work ex …
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🗳️ How they voted — 2 divided votes
Named votes as recorded in the official record.
that the Resolution be RECOMMENDED FOR APPROVAL carried by the following vote:
5 yea · 1 nay
Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Galloway yea · Rienstra yea · Scanlon yea · Stremler nay
AB2026-623 — RECOMMENDED FOR APPROVAL
5 yea · 1 abstain · 1 nay
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas abstain · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler nay
The other 1 item passed by unanimous or near-unanimous consent.
Tue Aug 11, 2026 · 10:00 AM

Council Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee

Council committee to discuss accepting jail program, moving to design and construction

The Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee will discuss a request to accept the jail program and proceed with design and construction of a new jail. This item is for discussion only and is scheduled for council action at a later meeting. The agenda is otherwise procedural, with no other substantive items listed.

jailpublic-safetycriminal-justiceconstruction
✓ Decided: Council committee discusses jail program, delays vote on design motion

The committee discussed a motion to accept the jail program and proceed with design and construction, but did not vote, leaving the item as 'discussed' only. Members debated wording, including adding 'without sacrificing bed space' and 'preliminary construction activities,' but no formal action was taken. The item will likely return for a future decision.

Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers
📹 From the video · 24m
Auto-transcribed from the official meeting video (speech-to-text — may contain errors).
Recording in progress. Good morning, everyone, and welcome to the Whatcom County Council's Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee meeting for Tuesday, August 11th, 2026. We are meeting in a hybrid format here in chambers and online as well. We have one item on our agenda. Let's start, though, with roll call. Clerk, please call the roll. Elizabeth Boyle. Here. Barry Buchanan. Here. Ben Ellenbos. Here. Kaylee Galloway. Jessica Reenstra. John Scanlon. Mark Stremler. Let the record show all council members are present. We have one item, AB 2026-613, request for motion to accept the jail program and move forward with design and construction of the new jail. This item is for discussion only. Action is scheduled tonight on tonight's agenda. So with that. Uh, turn it over to the deputy executive. Thank you, uh, committee chair Buchanan and council for considering, uh, the proposed jail program on behalf of the project team and the executive. I'm really excited to be able to reach this moment and and put this before the council. This is a huge milestone to complete our validation phase and proceed into design. Um, we don't have a formal presentation, though. We have the project team here and online. Um, available to answer any council member questions. We also have prepared a timeline that shows all of the council discussions, deliberations and information that's been presented throughout this process up here on your screen and also has been included in your packet. Um, You know …
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📄 From the agenda
Extracted text of the official agenda document (automated extraction — may contain OCR/formatting errors).
Whatcom County COUNTY COURTHOUSE 311 Grand Avenue, Ste #105 Bellingham, WA 98225-4038 (360) 778-5010 Meeting Agenda HYBRID MEETING - MAY BEGIN EARLY/LATE - ADJOURNS BY 10:55 A.M. (PARTICIPATE IN-PERSON, SEE REMOTE JOIN INSTRUCTIONS AT www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil, OR CALL 360.778.5010) COUNCILMEMBERS Elizabeth Boyle Barry Buchanan Ben Elenbaas Kaylee Galloway Jessica Rienstra Jon Scanlon Mark Stremler CLERK OF THE COUNCIL Cathy Halka, AICP, CMC Council Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee Tuesday, August 11, 2026 10 AM Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers August 11, 2026 Council Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee Meeting Agenda Call To Order Roll Call Announcements If you require special assistance to participate, please contact the Council Office at 360-778-5010 at least 96 hours in advance. Assistive listening devices are available in Council Chambers, and live captions are available through Zoom for those participating remotely. This committee meeting is also noticed as a meeting of the Whatcom County Council, with the agenda limited to committee business. Committee Discussion 1. AB2026-613 Request for motion to accept the jail program and move forward with design and construction of the new jail DISCUSSION ONLY; SCHEDULED ON COUNCIL AGENDA FOR COUNCIL ACTION Items Added by Revision Other Business Adjournment Page 2 Printed on 8/5/2026 Whatcom County
📄 From the minutes
Extracted text of the official minutes document (automated extraction — may contain OCR/formatting errors).
Whatcom County COUNTY COURTHOUSE 311 Grand Avenue, Ste #105 Bellingham, WA 98225-4038 (360) 778-5010 Committee Minutes - Draft Minutes HYBRID MEETING - MAY BEGIN EARLY/LATE - ADJOURNS BY 10:55 A.M. (PARTICIPATE IN-PERSON, SEE REMOTE JOIN INSTRUCTIONS AT www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil, OR CALL 360.778.5010) COUNCILMEMBERS Elizabeth Boyle Barry Buchanan Ben Elenbaas Kaylee Galloway Jessica Rienstra Jon Scanlon Mark Stremler CLERK OF THE COUNCIL Cathy Halka, AICP, CMC Council Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee Tuesday, August 11, 2026 10 AM Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers August 11, 2026 Council Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee Committee Minutes - Draft Minutes Call To Order Committee Chair Barry Buchanan called the meeting to order at 10:08 a.m. in a hybrid meeting. Roll Call Elizabeth Boyle, Barry Buchanan, Ben Elenbaas, Kaylee Galloway, Jessica Rienstra, Jon Scanlon, and Mark Stremler Present: 7 - Announcements Committee Discussion 1. AB2026-613 Request for motion to accept the jail program and move forward with design and construction of the new jail Kayla Schott-Bresler, Executive's Office, spoke about the validation timeline of all the Council discussions, deliberations, and information that has been presented throughout this process (on file). She stated the executive is asking them to accept the jail program as presented and allow the team to proceed into design. She spoke about the budget supplemental ordinance for the desig …
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Tue Aug 11, 2026 · 6:00 PM

Council

Council to consider jail design, $7M child care contract, eminent domain

The Whatcom County Council will hold public hearings on the 2026-2027 CDBG Public Services grant and an ordinance to acquire property by eminent domain for the Birch Bay Lynden Road and Blaine Road intersection project. The council will also consider consent agenda items including several interlocal agreements and contracts, and other items such as a resolution to rename Canyon Lake Trail, an ordinance establishing a Criminal Justice Sales Tax Fund, a $7,052,947 contract with AidKit for child care subsidies, and a motion to accept the jail program and proceed with design and construction of a new jail. The agenda includes routine items like minutes approval and meeting date confirmations.

budgetchild-careeminent-domainjailpublic-hearingroadszoning
✓ Decided: Council approves new jail program, moves to design phase

The Whatcom County Council approved the jail program and directed the Executive to proceed with design and preliminary construction, prioritizing the Rapid Resource Center, second courtroom, and family visitation without sacrificing housing capacity (5-2). The Council also adopted ordinances creating the Criminal Justice Sales Tax Fund and amending the 2026 budget by $3,658,280 to fund jail health and food services. A $7,052,947 contract with AidKit to subsidize child care was authorized (5-2). An ordinance to acquire property by eminent domain for the Birch Bay Lynden Road project failed unanimously after a settlement was reached.

Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers
📹 From the video · 3h 12m
Auto-transcribed from the official meeting video (speech-to-text — may contain errors).
Thank you. Recording in progress. Hey, good evening. I'd like to call to order this Whatcom County Council meeting. Today is Tuesday, August 11th, 2026 . It is now 6.02pm and we are meeting in a hybrid format. Could the clerk please take the role? Elizabeth Boyle? Here. Barry Buchanan? Here. Vanellenbos? Kaylee Galloway? Here. Jessica Reinstra? Here. John Scanlon? Here. Mark Stremler? Here. Okay. Well, at the record show, we've got six council members present and hopefully Councilmember Ellen Boss will be joining us here shortly. With that, let's rise to the flag salute. Mr. Executive, did we have a report from you this evening? Okay. Next, we have our minutes consent agenda. Five sets of minutes here. Can I entertain a motion to approve? Move to approve. Second. Got a motion from Councilmember Scanlon and a second from Councilmember Boyle. Any discussion on this? Not seeing any. Can we go ahead and do a roll call? Barry Buchanan? Yes. Vanellenbos? Kaylee Galloway? Yes. Jessica Reinstra? Yes. John Scanlon? Mark Stremler? Elizabeth Boyle? Okay. Let the record show that carries six to zero with one away. Okay. Next on our agenda is our public hearings. This is an opportunity for members of the public to address the council on the specific topics listed on the agenda. If you wish to speak on other matters pertaining to council's general authority or responsibilities, we will have open session right after. I will start with folks here in chambers who signed up to speak. Then we w …
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📄 From the agenda
Extracted text of the official agenda document (automated extraction — may contain OCR/formatting errors).
Whatcom County COUNTY COURTHOUSE 311 Grand Avenue, Ste #105 Bellingham, WA 98225-4038 (360) 778-5010 Meeting Agenda HYBRID MEETING (PARTICIPATE IN-PERSON, SEE REMOTE JOIN INSTRUCTIONS AT www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil, OR CALL 360.778.5010); AGENDA REVISION 8.11.2026 COUNCILMEMBERS Elizabeth Boyle Barry Buchanan Ben Elenbaas Kaylee Galloway Jessica Rienstra Jon Scanlon Mark Stremler CLERK OF THE COUNCIL Cathy Halka, AICP, CMC Council Tuesday, August 11, 2026 6 PM Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers August 11, 2026 Council Meeting Agenda COUNTY COUNCIL ITEM TITLE REVISED 8.11.2026 CALL TO ORDER ROLL CALL FLAG SALUTE ANNOUNCEMENTS Council meetings are held in a hybrid format with in-person and remote participation available. For instructions on remote participation, visit www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil. If you require special assistance to participate, please contact the Council Office at 360-778-5010 at least 96 hours in advance. Assistive listening devices are available in Council Chambers, and live captions are available through Zoom for those participating remotely. Per RCW 42.17A.555, the use of public facilities to support or oppose candidates or ballot issues is prohibited. The County is accepting applications to fill vacancies on advisory groups for a range of local issues. For more information, visit www.whatcomcounty.us/1585 or contact the Council Office at 360-778-5010. COUNTY EXECUTIVE'S REPORT MINUTES CONSENT 1. MIN2026-064 Committee of t …
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📄 From the minutes
Extracted text of the official minutes document (automated extraction — may contain OCR/formatting errors).
Whatcom County COUNTY COURTHOUSE 311 Grand Avenue, Ste #105 Bellingham, WA 98225-4038 (360) 778-5010 Minutes - Draft Minutes HYBRID MEETING (PARTICIPATE IN-PERSON, SEE REMOTE JOIN INSTRUCTIONS AT www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil, OR CALL 360.778.5010); AGENDA REVISION 8.11.2026 COUNCILMEMBERS Elizabeth Boyle Barry Buchanan Ben Elenbaas Kaylee Galloway Jessica Rienstra Jon Scanlon Mark Stremler CLERK OF THE COUNCIL Cathy Halka, AICP, CMC Council Tuesday, August 11, 2026 6 PM Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers August 11, 2026 Council Minutes - Draft Minutes COUNTY COUNCIL CALL TO ORDER Council Chair Kaylee Galloway called the meeting to order at 6:02 p.m. in a hybrid meeting. ROLL CALL Elizabeth Boyle, Barry Buchanan, Ben Elenbaas, Kaylee Galloway, Jessica Rienstra, Jon Scanlon, and Mark Stremler Present: 7 - FLAG SALUTE ANNOUNCEMENTS COUNTY EXECUTIVE'S REPORT There was no report. MINUTES CONSENT Scanlon moved to accept the minutes consent items. The motion was seconded by Boyle (see votes on individual items below). 1. MIN2026-064 Committee of the Whole Executive Session for July 14, 2026 Scanlon moved and Boyle seconded that the Minutes Consent be APPROVED BY CONSENT. The motion carried by the following vote: Aye: Boyle, Buchanan, Galloway, Rienstra, Scanlon, and Stremler 6 - Nay: 0 Temp Absent: Elenbaas 1 - 2. MIN2026-065 Committee of the Whole for July 14, 2026 Scanlon moved and Boyle seconded that the Minutes Consent be APPROVED BY CONSENT. The motion car …
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🗳️ How they voted — 4 divided votes
Named votes as recorded in the official record.
that the Resolution be APPROVED carried by the following vote:
4 yea · 2 nay
Boyle yea · Buchanan yea · Galloway yea · Scanlon yea · Elenbaas nay · Stremler nay
AB2026-590 — AUTHORIZED
5 yea · 2 nay
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas nay · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler nay
AB2026-621 — HELD IN COMMITTEE
6 yea · 1 nay
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas nay · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra yea · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler yea
AB2026-623 — APPROVED
4 yea · 2 nay · 1 abstain
Elizabeth Boyle yea · Barry Buchanan yea · Ben Elenbaas nay · Kaylee Galloway yea · Jessica Rienstra abstain · Jon Scanlon yea · Mark Stremler nay
The other 45 items passed by unanimous or near-unanimous consent.

Showing the 30 most recent meetings of 154 on record. See the yearly meeting archives below for the full history.

🌐 County-level context (Whatcom County)
County-level context — from BLS, IRS, FEMA, HUD, Census. These figures cover the whole county this city sits in, not just the city itself.
Net migration+806 people (+$60.1M net AGI · 2023)
Federal disasters (10 yr)8 ({"Flood": 13, "Severe Storm": 6, "Fire": 2, "Biological": 2, · last Tue Apr 7, 2026)
Traffic fatalities12 (4 pedestrian · 2024)
Business establishments7,146 (80,648 employees · 2023)
Fair Market Rent (2BR)$1,642/mo (2,623 assisted households · 2025)
Adults with low literacy14.9% (low numeracy 23% · 2017)

Sources: BLS LAUS, IRS SOI, FEMA, NHTSA FARS, Census CBP, HUD, NCES PIAAC

City profile

Everything below is drawn from this city’s own public record and primary-source government data. AI-written summaries are a finding aid, not a citable quote.

18,615
Recorded votes
$223.1M
Annual budget
$40.5M
Debt outstanding
1,214
Permitted housing units

The money — in

source: Census gov-finance & state comptroller

Budget

Revenue$223.1M
Spending$221.5M
Revenue ran ahead of operating spending this year.

Debt load LOW

Outstanding debt$40.5M
Debt-to-revenue0.18×
Debt-load index44 / 100
A debt-load indicator (national percentile of debt, deficit & aid-reliance) — not a solvency verdict. Cross-checked against official state fiscal-stress scores where they exist.

Outcomes — economic mobility

source: Opportunity Atlas (Harvard) · research use

For kids who grew up here in low-income households, their adult household-income rank (0–1). The average hides a gap by race:

White kids
0.478
All kids
0.443
Black kids
0.329

Research-only layer, shown here for context — not included in the CC BY 4.0 bulk download.

Where it’s happening

geocoded land-use decisions
🗺 Interactive map
Every rezoning, development approval, and permit — explore the geocoded records in the research explorer.

Meeting archives

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