2020-02-04 Council MIN - Special Ak CITY OF
Fe d e ra I Way
SPECIAL MEETING MINUTES
Council Chambers - City Hall
February 4, 2020 — 5:00 p.m.
1. CALL MEETING TO ORDER
Mayor Ferrell called the meeting to order at 5:02 p.m.
City officials in attendance: Mayor Jim Ferrell, Deputy Mayor Honda, Councilmember Lydia Assefa-
Dawson, Councilmember Hoang Tran, Councilmember Mark Koppang, and Councilmember Linda
Kochmar.
City staff in attendance: City Attorney Ryan Call and Deputy City Clerk Jennifer Marshall.
2. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
Mayor Ferrell led the flag salute.
3. COUNCIL BUSINESS
a. Review Council Rules of Procedure
City Attorney Ryan Call reviewed the proposed amendments to the Council Rules of
Procedure as submitted to Deputy Mayor Honda by City Councilmembers. The following
proposed rule changes were discussed and Council determined next steps by consensus.
• Set Regular Meeting schedule to reflect current practice
Mr. Call reviewed the current practice of motions made by Council to reschedule and
cancel meetings in both August and December. For multiple years the first meeting of
August (first Tuesday) was moved to the following week (second Tuesday) for
elections and to allow participation in National Night Out. Additionally, the second
meeting in both August and December (third Tuesdays) has been canceled.
Deputy Mayor Honda requested to adjust the first meeting in November to the
following day/Wednesday due to elections. All councilmembers confirmed adjusting
the August meeting and November election meetings (even on non-council election
year).
Councilmember Martin Moore joined the meeting at 5:06 p.m.
Federal Way City Council Special Minutes Page I of 3
February 4, 2020
• Change Title of Deputy Mayor to Council President
Mr. Call reviewed RCW 35A.13.035 which referred to the need for a deputy mayor
or mayor pro tempore under the code city mayor-council form of government.
Councilmember Koppang referred to the optics of a deputy mayor being secondary
to the mayor; which is something council wishes to avoid. He believes this change
would establish a better understanding of the role of the City Council in a city with a
strong mayor.
Council reached a consensus to update the title and clarified the Deputy Mayor
would instead be referred to as Council President.
• Move Citizen Comments to occur prior to Proclamations and Presentations
Mr. Call introduced the proposal to move the Citizen Comment portion of City Council
Meeting to before Presentations and Proclamation. Deputy Mayor Honda explained
this proposal was in an effort to allow citizens to share their comments and leave in a
timely manner in case of family responsibilities.
Mr. Call reminded Council that if the change were to be enacted individuals and
groups invited to receive a proclamation or an award would then be required to wait
through citizen comments prior to receiving their honors.
COUNCILMEMBER MOORE MOVED TO TABLE THIS PROPOSAL AND BRING IT BACK IN
MARCH AFTER A COUPLE WEEKS; COUNCILMEMBER ASSEFA-DAWSON SECOND. The
motion failed 4:2 as follows:
Deputy Mayor Honda yes Councilmember Koppang no
CouncilmemberAssefa-Dawson no Councilmember Moore yes
Councilmember Tran no Councilmember Kochmar no
Council discussion continued with suggestions to limit the time allocated to the various
presentations to reinforce the idea of being mindful to citizens and their timeframe.
Mayor Ferrell directed the City Clerk to document the start and end times of Citizen
Comment for the next three to four meetings. At a later date Council can review the
information and reconsider this proposal. The Council concurred.
• Rule stating Council will not pass the budget after 10:00 p.m.
After introducing the proposed rule, Mr. Call indicated there is an existing rule (2.1)
that requires meetings adjourn by 10:00 p.m. and when a motion is made to suspend
the rule it is seldom, if ever, voted down.
Council discussion occurred regarding the need for the additional time-related rule
and whether continuing the meeting to another date would be preferable to waving the
rule. Concerns regarding schedules and if there is a need for live-viewing were
discussed.
While not unanimous, Council reached general consensus to not move forward.
Federal Way City Council Special Minutes Page 2 of 3
February 4, 2020
• Establish process for proposal and approval of Council Proclamations.
Mr. Call indicated the proposed rule is to memorialize the current process which is
to use Agenda Setting Meetings to vet proclamation requests to be placed on the
Council Meeting Agendas. Council was reminded proclamations are to be
supported by the full council and not considered controversial.
Through discussion, Council agreed to the verbiage of the proclamation should be to
the City Clerk by the Agenda Setting Meeting while the name of the individual to
accept the proclamation would be required before publication, the Thursday prior to
the Council Meeting. If these items are not received in a timely manner, the
proclamation will not be on the agenda.
b. Review Code of Ethics
City Attorney Ryan Call provided a brief review of the concern presented regarding
Code of Ethics Rule 2.4 regarding gifts. Currently gifts over $20 in value are not
allowed which disallows Councilmembers from accepting offers to sit at dinner tables
at charitable events.
Many councilmembers believe there is public benefit to having city officials accept
these invitations which include networking, interaction with voters, and showing of
public support for charitable causes.
Mr. Call suggested Council follow Washington State Policy from the Revised Code of
Washington (RCW)42.52.150(2)(j)which exempts the"admission to, and the cost of
food and beverages consumed at, events sponsored by or in conjunction with a civic,
charitable, governmental, or community organization."
Council agreed and directed Mr. Call to move forward with the proposed change.
4. ADJOURNMENT
There being nothing further on the agenda; the special meeting was adjourned at 6:01 p.m.
Attest:
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Approved by Council:
Federal Way City Council Special Minutes Page 3 of 3
February 4, 2020