PORT TOWNSEND — A five-member board of Jefferson County commissioners.
Electing county commissioners based on their districts.
Making partisan county positions nonpartisan.
The ability to take initiatives and referenda to the voters.
Those are examples of the empowerment a home-rule charter could bring to county residents, according to Quilcene retiree Davis Steelquist Jr., who is leading a petition drive to put the charter government question before voters Nov. 2.
“This is a chance to really bring the county processes into the 21st century,” said Steelquist, who is also circulating a petition to allow a vote on the shoreline master program now being considered by the state Department of Ecology.
“I’m not after any particular [county] commissioner. This is a way to allow them to do their jobs better.”
Steelquist has until the end of the month to get the needed 1,500 signatures to put the home rule charter question on the general election ballot.
Charter government — such as that of Clallam County where it led to making the director of community development an elected position — elects a Board of Freeholders to frame a county charter according to the state constitution.
“It really got started off when I got tired of people whining,” said Steelquist, who retired to Quilcene in 2006 after 35 years at Boeing, ending his career as the senior technical writer for the Boeing airplane division.
Steelquist said the county now falls under a “colonial” or “commissioner” form of government dating back to the late 1800s.
This government structure was designed for the horse-and-buggy days, he said, to collect taxes, maintain roads, provide law and order, provide courts and act as the state government’s administrative arm.
Over time more responsibilities were added.
“When we elect commissioners, we are only choosing the state’s administrators,” he states on his blog at homerulecharter.wordpress.com.
“In essence, we choose our overseers rather than have them imposed upon us (this is enlightened government).
“Even though the county has districts for selecting commissioner candidates, they are elected as ‘at large’ by the whole county. They administer/legislate as a single unit without district responsibilities.”
Steelquist said southeast county communities “feel totally disenfranchised.”
“Our shellfish industry sees their livelihood being threatened by people trying to be ‘green.’ Rural areas (our farms and timber) are dying from questionable bureaucratic decisions and Draconian regulations. Pacific coast communities are essentially unrepresented.”
The county is more than Port Townsend, he contends, and county government must reflect that.
The petition will force the county commissioners to call for the election of 15 to 25 freeholders.
A freeholder is anyone who meets the state constitution requirement of five years residency in the county and is a registered voter.
The county will advertise for freeholder candidates for each of the three commissioner districts and place the names on the ballot. If the county decides on 21 freeholders, each district will elect 7.
Freeholders are not elected at large and represent their districts.
The freeholders typically have 9 months to complete the new charter. The final charter would then be submitted to the voters for approval.
Steelquist can be reached at charterjefferson@gmail.com.
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Port Townsend-Jefferson County Editor Jeff Chew can be reached at 360-385-2335 or at jeff.chew@peninsuladailynews.com.
