| HeraldNet - Snohomish County's online news source |
 THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 2, 2010 1:17 pm |
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Local News 
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Snohomish County Executive Aaron Reardon oversteps, lawyer says EVERETT -- Snohomish County Executive Aaron Reardon is claiming powers that he does not have, and if the County Council doesn't rein him in, there could be legal fallout, the county's top lawyer says.In an Aug. 8 letter to County Council chairman Dave Somers, Snohomish County Prosecutor Janice Ellis urged them to take immediate action. On Wednesday, they did. The council voted unanimously to freeze hiring in all the county's departments, citing the poor economy. The hiring freeze came nearly three weeks after Reardon announced a similar freeze, and more than a month after the county's finance director warned county department heads that he would deny requests for funding to fill most vacant posts. "I would call this a bit of a constitutional crisis," Councilman Brian Sullivan said. Reardon's staff said Wednesday that the council's emergency ordinance is redundant following his own hiring freeze. But councilmen said their action -- recommended by Ellis -- is an important reminder that only they have the power to halt county hiring. Reardon can only freeze hiring in his own departments, not those overseen by other elected officials, Somers said. "(Reardon) would like to think his authority to be much bigger than it is," Somers said. "When he pushes, it creates a conflict situation." Reardon had no standing to enact a hiring freeze over departments where he has no authority, Ellis wrote in her letter. Those include the offices of the prosecutor, sheriff, clerk, treasurer, auditor and assessor, as well as judges. Reardon was only acting in accordance with a change to county protocol the council made late last year, said Christopher Schwarzen, Reardon's spokesman. "He feels that this was what the council wanted him to be able to do," Schwarzen said. Reardon recently met with Ellis to discuss her letter, Schwarzen said, but they left the meeting with "a difference of opinion." Reardon's hiring freeze is just the latest in a series of recent efforts to exert control over other elected officials and their employees, Ellis wrote. "It appears likely that unless the council intervenes to provide necessary clarification, the positions of elected county officials will continue to polarize, county resources will be diverted from important county business, and county costs and legal risks will escalate," she wrote. The council enacted the freeze to offset a budget shortfall that is expected to hit $9 million this year. The move freezes about 165 county positions that are currently open. Reardon, in a statement released Wednesday, said the council's decision "comes a little late." "I'm glad they now see the need for a hiring freeze, but they could have come alongside this office in June when we asked for their support," he said. Ellis wrote that she would respect a hiring freeze enacted by the council, but she added that four deputy prosecutors had recently accepted job offers with her department. She asked that those offers be honored but expressed concern that administrative offices under Reardon's control could cause problems for those prosecutors once they are hired. The council's emergency ordinance adopted Wednesday allows elected department heads to make formal requests to the council to fill open posts if the positions are critical. The council in November stripped Reardon of authority to approve new hires. Reardon vetoed the change, stating that it would hamper his ability to respond to emergency financial situations. The council unanimously overrode Reardon's veto. Since then, department heads have had only to get written certification from the county's finance director that funds are available before hiring. In June, county Finance Director Roger Neumaier warned department heads in an e-mail and through a memo that he would not certify funds to fill positions, with the exception of sheriff's deputies and other public safety personnel. On July 25, Reardon signed an executive order formalizing a hiring freeze, Schwarzen said. Reardon also ordered that any overnight and out-of-state travel receive prior approval from his office. In addition, he directed that county employees should carpool or use public transportation when traveling in-state. Ellis, in her letter to Somers, said that major elements of Reardon's executive order and Neumaier's memo and e-mail "appear to be legally unenforceable." It's not the first time Ellis has examined the breadth of Reardon's power. She offered the council a formal legal opinion in 2004 that the county executive has no authority to control other branches of county government. The clash over the hiring freeze is only the latest in a series of incidents that the council claims have revealed Reardon's reluctance to strike a workable balance of power between branches of government. Past battles have revolved around issues as diverse as party planning and contract negotiations. Despite troubles, the council this year applauded Reardon's efforts to meet privately more often with the council. Now, that goodwill seems to have been spent. Somers and other councilmen defended their hiring freeze despite having recently added three analysts to their own staff. Just one councilman -- John Koster -- opposed the hires. Somers said the money for those positions was taken from other departments, so there was no net increase in the county's salary expenses. A fourth analyst position will remain vacant, he said. "I find that a very interesting way to spin the addition of staff up here," Koster said. Reporter Krista J. Kapralos: 425-339-3422 or kkapralos@heraldnet.com. |
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