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HOUSE BILL 2187
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Passed Legislature - 1994 Regular Session
State of Washington 53rd Legislature 1994
Regular Session
By
Prefiled 01/07/94. Read first time 01/10/94.
Referred to Committee on Local Government.
Concerning the merger of fire
protection districts.
AN ACT Relating to fire
protection districts mergers; and amending RCW 52.06.085.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF
WASHINGTON:
Sec. 1. RCW 52.06.085 and 1992 c
74 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:
(1) Whenever two or
more fire protection districts merge, the board of fire commissioners of the
merged fire protection district shall consist of all of the ((original))
fire commissioners of the districts that are merging, including a person who
is elected as a fire commissioner of one of the merging districts at that same
election that the ballot proposition was approved authorizing the merger, who
shall retain the same terms of office they would possess as if the merger had
not been approved. The number of members on the board of the merged district
shall be reduced to either three or five members as provided in subsections (2)
and (3) of this section, depending on whether the district has chosen to
eventually have either a three-member or a five-member board under RCW
52.14.020.
(2) The number of
members on the board of the merged district shall be reduced by one whenever a
fire commissioner resigns from office or a vacancy otherwise occurs on the
board, until the number of remaining members is reduced to the number of
members that is chosen for the board eventually to have. The reduction of
membership on the board shall not be considered to be a vacancy that is to be
filled until the number of remaining members is less than the number of members
on the board that is chosen for the board eventually to have.
(3) At the next
three district general elections ((for fire commissioners)) after
the merger is approved, the number of fire commissioners for the merged
district ((shall be reduced)) that are elected shall be as
follows, notwithstanding the number of fire commissioners whose terms expire:
(a) In the first
election after the merger, only one position shall be filled, whether the new
fire protection district be a three-member district or a five-member
district ((pursuant to RCW 52.14.020)).
(b) In each of
the two subsequent elections, one position shall be filled if the new fire
protection district is a three-member district and two positions shall
be filled if the new fire protection district is a five-member district
((pursuant to RCW 52.14.020)).
Thereafter, the fire
commissioners shall be elected in the same manner as prescribed for such fire
protection districts of the state.
(((2)))
(4) A ballot proposition to create commissioner districts may be
submitted to the voters of the fire protection districts proposed to be merged
at the same election the ballot proposition is submitted authorizing the
merging of the fire protection districts. The procedure to create commissioner
districts shall conform with RCW 52.14.013, except that: (a) Resolutions
proposing the creation of commissioner districts must be adopted by unanimous
vote of the boards of fire commissioners of each of the fire protection
districts that are proposed to be merged; and (b) commissioner districts will
be authorized only if the ballot propositions to authorize the merger and to
create commissioner districts are both approved. A ballot proposition
authorizing the creation of commissioner districts is approved if it is
approved by a simple majority vote of the combined voters of all the fire
protection districts proposed to be merged. The commissioner districts shall
not be drawn until the number of commissioners in the fire protection district
has been reduced under subsections (1) through (3) of this
section to either three or five commissioners. After this reduction of fire
commissioners has occurred the commissioner districts shall be drawn and used
for the election of the successor fire commissioners.
