AN ORDINANCE proposing an amendment to the King County Charter to create the elective office of county director of elections; amending Section 350.20 of the King County Charter, adding a new Section 350.20.50 to the King County Charter, adding a new section 647 to the King County Charter and amending Section 680.10 of the King County Charter, and submitting the same to the voters of the county for their ratification or rejection.
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF KING COUNTY:
SECTION 1. There shall be submitted to the qualified voters of King County for their approval and ratification or rejection, at the next general election to be held in this county occurring more than forty-five days after the enactment of this ordinance, an amendment to the King County Charter by amending section 350.20 of the King County Charter, adding a new Section 350.20.50 to the King County Charter, adding a new Section 647 to the King County Charter and amending Section 680.10 of the King County Charter and to read as follows:
Section 350.20. Executive Departments.
The executive departments shall consist of the department of assessments, the department of judicial administration, the department of elections and those agencies of the executive branch which are primarily engaged in the execution and enforcement of ordinances and statutes concerning the public peace, health and safety and which furnish or provide governmental services directly to or for the residents of the county.
Section 350.20.50. Department of Elections.
The department of elections shall be administered by the county director of elections who shall perform the duties specified by general law. The county director of elections shall be elected by the voters of King County, and his or her term of office shall be four years. The department of elections: shall be an executive department subject to the career service personnel system and shall utilize the services of the administrative offices and the executive departments, but it shall not be abolished or combined with any other executive department or administrative office and shall not have its duties decreased by the county council or executive. The department of elections shall be responsible for the registration of voters in the county; shall conduct all special and general elections held in the county; shall be responsible for creating and printing the King County voter’s pamphlet; shall maintain and be the official repository of political boundary maps, geographic information systems data and of the King County copies of campaign financial disclosure forms; and shall administer other public and nonpublic elections, as required by state law and county code and administrative rules.
Section 647. County Director of Elections, Term of Office and Compensation.
The county director of elections shall be elected as a nonpartisan office by the voters of the county. The term of office of the initial county director of elections shall end on December 31, 2011. Subsequent elections for the county director of elections shall occur at the general election in 2011 and every four years thereafter. The county director of elections shall receive compensation as provided by ordinance.
Section 680.10. Designation, Appointment and Election to Fill Vacancy.
Immediately upon commencing their terms of office, the county executive, county assessor, county director of elections and county sheriff shall each designate one or more employees who serve as a deputy or assistant in such office to serve as an interim official in the event of a vacancy in the elective office of county executive, county assessor, county director of elections or county sheriff, respectively.
Except for a designation made by the metropolitan county council, a designation of an interim official shall only be effective if the county executive, county assessor, county director of elections and county sheriff, each for his or her elective office, complies with the following procedure; commits the designation to writing; identifies the order of precedence if more than one county officer or employee is designated; signs the written designation; has the written designation notarized; files the written designation with the county office responsible for records and elections; and((,)) provides a copy of the written designation to the chair of the metropolitan county council. The county executive, county assessor, county director of elections and county sheriff may, at any time, amend such designation by complying with the same procedure established for making the designation.
In the event the county executive, county assessor, county director of elections or county sheriff neglects or fails to make such a designation within seven calendar days of commencing his or her term of office, the metropolitan county council may by ordinance designate one or more employees who serve as a deputy or assistant in such office to serve as an interim official in the event of a vacancy in the elective office of the county executive, county assessor, county director of elections or county sheriff, respectively. A designation made by the metropolitan county council shall be effective upon adoption of the ordinance therefor and may be amended by ordinance; provided that a designation by the county executive, county assessor, county director of elections or county sheriff which occurs subsequent to the adoption of an ordinance shall take precedence over the designation by ordinance.
The designated county officer or employee shall immediately upon the occurrence of a vacancy serve as the interim official and shall exercise all the powers and duties of the office granted by this charter and general law until an acting official is appointed as provided in this section.
The metropolitan county council shall, after being appraised of a vacancy in the elective office of county executive, county assessor, county director of elections or county sheriff, fill the vacancy by appointment of an employee who served as a deputy or assistant in such office at the time the vacancy occurred as an acting official to perform all necessary duties to continue normal office operations. The acting official shall serve until the vacancy is filled by appointment pursuant to Article II, section 15, of the Washington State Constitution for partisan county elective offices or pursuant to general law for nonpartisan county elective offices, as applicable.
A vacancy in the elective office shall be filled at the next primary and general election which occur in the county; provided that an election to fill the vacancy shall not be held if the successor to the vacated office will be elected at the next general election as provided in Sections 640 and 645. The term of office of an officer who has been elected to fill a vacancy shall only be for the unexpired portion of the term of the officer whose office has become vacant and shall commence as soon as he or she is elected and qualified.
A majority of the county council may temporarily fill a vacancy by appointment until the vacancy has been filled by election or the successor to the office has been elected and qualified.
SECTION 2. The clerk of the council shall certify the proposition to the manager of the records, elections and licensing services division, in substantially the following form, with such additions, deletions or modifications as may be required for the proposition listed below by the prosecuting attorney:
Shall the King County Charter be amended to require that the county director of elections be a nonpartisan elected office?
SECTION 3. Following approval by the voters at a general election of the amendment to Articles 3 and 6 of the King County Charter as provided in this ordinance, the initial election for county director of elections shall occur on the February special election date of the following year, as provided in RCW 29A.04.330. The amendment to Articles 3 and 6 of the King County Charter takes effect upon certification of the results of the election of the initial county director of elections.