Group ‘passing the baton’ to other government watchers
By Marcy Stamper
Represent Okanogan County, which started in 2015 to bring attention to county issues and increase public involvement by encouraging people to run for office and vote, has ended formal operations.
While it’s not clear how much Represent Okanogan County (ROC) was a factor in inspiring people to seek elective office, the 2016 commissioners’ campaign was notably more competitive than recent races. Both incumbents, Ray Campbell and Sheilah Kennedy, faced three opponents in the primary.
“ROC is passing the baton to others,” said Sharon Sumpter, the group’s president, in an email sent last week to a wide group of supporters. “Now everyone’s awareness is more focused on how important representative, responsive and accountable good government is at all levels,” she wrote.
As ROC leaves the stage, Sumpter said she sees greater accountability and transparency on the county level. She pointed to a weekly public-comment period at commissioners’ meetings and frequent commissioners’ talks on local radio.
Key activities that led to the formation of ROC are still underway, such as a group of volunteers who take detailed notes at commissioners’ meetings and post them online. Now calling themselves Okanogan County Watch, the note-takers have their own website and Facebook page where people can read the notes and see other information about county government.
ROC evolved after individuals from around the county who were working on different, but related, issues met a few times in 2015 to share ideas.
Isabelle Spohn had been taking notes at commissioners’ meetings since early 2015, which she sent to interested individuals around the county. Meanwhile, Gay Northrup was tracking local issues and testifying at commissioners’ meetings but became frustrated that the commissioners didn’t seem interested in what their constituents had to say.
“I saw this as democracy in action, a chance to get people to run for office and to encourage more people to vote,” said Charlene Burns, who came together with Spohn and Northrup to form ROC’s steering committee three years ago. With the upcoming commissioners’ election, it seemed like a time when they could make a difference, said Burns.
ROC’s primary concerns were that the commissioners weren’t responsive to their constituents and weren’t transparent or accountable in their actions and decisions, said Spohn. We were “trying to educate people, and to encourage people to educate themselves,” said Northrup.
Taking notes at commissioners’ meetings was started because it could take two to three months before official minutes were available and people needed to know about current issues and upcoming hearings, said Sumpter. Official minutes are now available just a week or two after the meetings, she said.
Several volunteers joined Spohn to take notes, and ROC’s website became a repository for the notes, which include detailed accounts of discussions and who said what. ROC’s members also wrote position papers on issues such as agriculture and public health and helped with voter-registration drives.
ROC was chartered as a non-partisan organization. “ROC does not represent any political party and remains committed to the election of strong leaders who will truly represent the people,” the group said.
Northrup was ROC’s first president and served through the 2016 elections; Sumpter succeeded her.
New commissioners
During the 2016 commissioners’ race, when both Campbell and Kennedy were up for reelection, ROC posted signs and ran ads saying, “Wanted: New County Commissioners.” While the group said their focus was to educate people about issues and encourage more candidates to run for office, some thought their actions crossed the line.
As the 2016 campaign heated up, the president of the Okanogan County Farm Bureau filed a complaint with the state Public Disclosure Commission, claiming that ROC was required to register as a political committee because it had been raising and spending money to influence the election.
ROC said its fundraising was in support of public participation and voter registration and that it wasn’t backing or opposing individual candidates. But ROC ultimately registered as a political committee to be able to speak out openly and directly about the need to elect new commissioners, the group said at the time.
Campbell was defeated in the primary and Kennedy won the primary by just one vote, but lost the general election to Chris Branch. Andy Hover won Campbell’s seat in the general election.
Commissioner Jim DeTro was unopposed when he ran for a second term in 2014. Last week he announced his intention to seek a third term this fall for District 3.
Recent work
Last year ROC sponsored a nonpartisan candidate-development workshop in Tonasket, which is in District 3. The group organized a talk in Branch’s district, where Branch talked to constituents about current issues in county government, she said. ROC also made presentations to high school seniors about voting and how to register, said Sumpter.
But early in 2018, when it was time to elect new officers, ROC found that many supporters were focusing on state and national issues, said Sumpter.
Sumpter said she and other former ROC supporters are still working on county issues, such as the comprehensive plan, water availability, wildfire prevention and protection of public lands.
County Watch
Although ROC said it’s passing the baton, other organizations are not formally taking over their activities; rather, they share a commitment to providing information about county affairs and government.
About 10 volunteer note-takers attend commissioners meetings every Monday and Tuesday and endeavor to provide a detailed, factual account of the discussions and proceedings, and to post them in a timely fashion.
The notes include the following disclaimer: “Notes are impressions and interpretations of the note taker. Every attempt is made to assure accuracy.” They make clear that they are not the official minutes and direct people to the county website.
In addition to the notes, County Watch posts information about county boards and committees. The group is also videotaping some commissioners’ hearings and discussions, such as a recent session with representatives from the state Department of Ecology about the implications of a new state water law.
“Our goal is to work toward a high level of transparent, responsive, and accountable government for the citizens of Okanogan County. OCW [Okanogan County Watch] does not support, nor is it affiliated with, any political party,” the group says.
Current and archived notes of commissioners’ meetings and videos are available at www.countywatch.org.
