GOVERNMENT - NORTH PALOUSE WASHINGTON

Dear Friend,

I wanted to take some time to tell you about a bill I’ve worked on in past Congresses and that recently passed in the House and is close to my heart.

Two and a half years ago, when I had my daughter Grace, I became the first member of Congress to give birth twice while in serving in office. With two children — Cole, who just turned 6 and has special needs, and Grace, who is 2 — I am similar to the millions of other working moms in this country who understand firsthand how difficult it is to balance the demands of a job with the obligations of a family. The balance isn’t easy — it never is — but current law makes it way too hard.

It’s time for our laws to enter the 21st century.

That’s why I’m proud to have helped pass the Working Families Flexibility Act of 2013 in the House of Representatives last week — a bill that will finally give those in the private sector the same freedom and flexibility those in the public sector have had for years. It will amend the Fair Labor Standards Act so private sector employers can provide time off instead of overtime compensation if that’s what the employee prefers. It will allow single moms who may be hourly bookkeepers to be at her sons’ baseball games instead of getting paid time and a half. It will make sure working parents aren’t forced to miss their kids’ school plays, their doctors’ appointments and their classroom birthday celebrations. It gives working parents the flexibility to choose. And in today’s fast-paced world, nothing is more invaluable than the power of choice.

Click the image to see me speak on the House Floor on behalf of the bill

The Working Families Flexibility Act is a 21st-century law that serves a 21st-century workforce. Most of our laws and regulations are so outdated they don’t account for the changes we’ve seen in the labor market — and it’s time we modernize them.

I look forward to passing more legislation that can help American families.

Warm regards,

Cathy
P.S. For daily updates, subscribe to my Facebook and Twitter news feeds.

Palouse City Council

Regular Council Meeting

April 23, 2013

CALL TO ORDER: Mayor Echanove called the Council Meeting to order at 7:02 PM.

ROLL CALL: Council members present: Connie Newman, Bo Ossinger; Norm Schorzman; Rick Wekenman. Absent: Tim Jones & Alison Webb. Also present: Public Works Superintendent Dwayne Griffin; Attorney Bishop (7:24); Police Officer Joe Merry; Clerk-Treasurer Joyce Beeson; & Deputy Clerk Ann Thompson. Councilmember Ossinger MOVED to excuse both councilmembers’ absences. Councilmember Newman seconded. Motion carried unanimously. Public present: Brad Pearce; Alexis Maxwell; Scott Kent; Patti Green-Kent.

The City received a letter of interest from Brad Pearce for the vacated council position #4. He gave a brief introduction about himself. Council then asked him a few standard interview questions. Councilmember Newman MOVED, seconded by councilmember Wekenman, to go into executive session at 7:15 pm. Motion carried unanimously. All of council as well as Atty. Bishop and Officer Merry went into executive session. 7:31 pm came out of executive session. Council has decided to keep the position open but reminded Brad that he can file for candidacy in this year’s election.

APPROVAL OF MINUTES: Under Police Report, change “WSU cycling event” to “intercollegiate cycling event”. Councilmember Schorzman MOVED to adopt the amended minutes of the Regular Council Meeting of April 9, 2013. Councilmember Wekenman seconded the motion and the motion carried unanimously.

PUBLIC WORKS REPORT: Submitted a written report.

Supt. Griffin spoke with the Playtex Company and the Kleenex Company about their “flushable” products which cause problems at the sewer plant. Don called Wilson Engineers regarding this same problem (built our sewer plant 18 years ago). They said this is a common plight they’re seeing these days. One of the solutions may be a transducer type control instead of the ball floats. Transducers hang on the line and read the pressure in the container. That’s what we use in our water reservoir.

Supt. Griffin and the Mayor met with Avista and TIB about converting the street lights to LED. Avista is looking into joining up with TIB. TIB is ready to go, while Avista still has some issues to work out. TIB and the city could move ahead with the city owned lights on Main St. and Whitman St. Mill Street in Colfax has the new LED technology and they went from paying $4.00 a month per light to $.85. This is not a grant. Palouse is one of seven cities in the state selected for this pilot project. Talk of beginning the project in 2013 or 2014.

POLICE REPORT: No bids came in on the Harley. Officer Merry asked if we should lower the opening bid to $8,000. The bike can’t be purchased on the market for less than $13,000. Council wants to just be patient and maintain the price at $10,000.

Bike race was excellent. No injuries. Everything went well.

JFB REPORT:

6 fire calls in March, 7 ytd. Chief Bagott is putting specs together for equipment through the wildland equipment grant we were awarded. We could have gear by mid-June. On the city end of things, we need to start a discussion about new fire equipment. One vehicle is approaching the 30 year old mark which is the point we need to start replacing with newer equipment. Police, Fire, & Safety Committee will put a plan together.

3 EMS calls in March, 15 ytd. They need funding to try and obtain a new heart monitor device called an AED. AEDs are in the $25,000-$30,000 range for a good used one. The one they have currently is an antique. The newer version is standard equipment in all the regular ambulances. No major financial concerns at this point. Need to meet with Pullman this spring to hash out the new ambulance contract for 2014.

The retirement party for Gloria Hodges was a big success. She voluntarily served for 28 years. Her position as EMS Coordinator is going to be filled by three of the existing long-term volunteers: Lisa Fisher, Annie Pillers, & Terrie Teare. They’re looking for more local EMS volunteer

OLD BUSINESS:

Regarding having a high school student on council, students can’t be an official councilperson unless they’re 18 and a legal, registered voter. Councilmember Newman is proposing a volunteer, six-month, student advisory council position (non-voting), from mid-June to mid-December. She thinks they could be a valuable asset with a unique perspective. The student could do this for a senior project. Connie will work with Attorney Bishop to write a resolution to get this program started.

NEW BUSINESS:

1^st Q 2013 Treasurer’s Report: No surprises at this point and no budget amendments needed. The 2013 beginning balance in Fund 401 water is $25,000 higher than 2012’s beginning balance. Councilmember Newman MOVED, seconded by Councilmember Schorzman, to adopt the 1^st Q 2013 Treasurer’s Report as written. Motion carried unanimously.

COMMITTEE REPORTS/REQUESTS:

Finance, Property, & Equipment-Tim Jones, Chair:

Streets & Sidewalks-vacant chair:

Water & Sewer-Connie Newman, Chair: Will be touring the sewer plant later this month.

Policy & Administration-Bo Ossinger, Chair:

Personnel & Pool-Norm Schorzman, Chair: 2013 season was set. Lifeguards will begin work on the June 20^th for a June 21^st opening. Closing August 18^th. Swim lesson dates were set. The third session will be based on guard availability. May 17^th is deadline for lifeguard applications. Rachel Witthuhn will be returning again as manager this year. Based on pay cuts taken by city staff, no pay increases for pool staff.

The L & I rules and regulations to switch the chlorine tanks have become so restrictive that it just isn’t worth it so we switched from gas to pellets.

Parks, Cemetery, & Buildings-Alison Webb, Chair: Skatepark update: There is no record of ownership, transfer of title, or deed of the vacated street between the tennis court and the school playground. City owns from the center of the vacated street to the east and the school owns from the center of the vacated street to the west. So both the school and the city could deed that for the construction of the skatepark. Aaron Flansburg is going to talk to the adjacent homeowners to see if they have concerns. The school board needs to realize that Aaron is building this and it’s independent of the city. There are city and Avista utilities in there so both will need access.

Police, Fire, & Safety-Rick Wekenman, Chair: Committee met with Chief Neumann, Mayor Echanove, and the Mayor of Garfield, to discuss the Garfield police contract. We currently receive $70,000 annually from Garfield for policing services. Contract is being considered for four more years, with an 8% gradual increase: 2%, 4%, 2%, 0%. This raise basically covers the cost of living increase. This will go to the Garfield board before coming back to the Palouse council for final approval.

MAYOR’S REPORT: Liquor Board request for a wine tasting tour June 22, 2013, at three different homes. Event is a fundraiser for the Palouse Community Center and runs from 11 am – 8 pm. By default this passes unless council objects. There were no objections.

Street closure agreement with WSDOT for annual Rat Rod show June 1, 2013. Councilmember Newman MOVED, seconded by Councilmember Wekenman, to sign the agreement with WSDOT. Motion carried unanimously.

Mayor is meeting tomorrow with DOE, Public Works, and Water/Sewer Chair to discuss water temperatures above and below the wastewater treatment plant. Mayor read aloud the abstract of what the meeting is about.

ALLOW PAYMENT OF BILLS: Councilmember Schorzman MOVED that the bills against the city be allowed. Councilmember Wekenman seconded the motion and the motion carried unanimously.

ADJOURN: Councilmember Ossinger MOVED to adjourn. Councilmember Newman seconded the motion and the motion carried unanimously. The council meeting adjourned at 9:00 PM.

The following checks are approved for payment:

Claims Paid Ck. #4811-4829 & EFT $10,245.69

APPROVED: ________________________________ ATTEST: ________________________________

GOVERNMENT - NORTH PALOUSE WASHINGTON

Monday, June 3, 2013

June 4, 2013 Fairfield Town Council Meeting Agenda

Friday, May 24, 2013

May 27, 2013 Palouse City Hall Closed + May 28, 2013 Regular Meeting Agenda

Thursday, May 23, 2013

Fairfield Washington May 21, 2013 Town Council Minutes

Monday, May 20, 2013

Fairfield Town Council May 21, 3013 Agenda

Thursday, May 16, 2013

Working Families Flexibility Act of 2013 Passed By Washington House of Representatives

Wednesday, May 15, 2013

Fairfield Washington Town Council May 7, 2013 Meeting Minutes

Palouse City Council Regular Meeting Minutes April 23, 2013