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Home My WebLink AboutFIN 2021-11-22 Item 1D - Discussion - Return to In-Person / Hybrid City Council MeetingsW i City of Tukwila Allan Ekberg, Mayor INFORMATIONAL MEMORANDUM TO: Finance & Governance Committee FROM: Laurel Humphrey, Legislative Analyst DATE: November 12, 2021 SUBJECT: Return to In-Person/Hybrid Meetings ISSUE Staff is seeking Committee discussion and direction on Council meeting format. BACKGROUND Due to the COVID-19 emergency, the Tukwila City Council has been conducting its Committee and Council meetings virtually since March 30, 2020 in compliance with Governor's Proclamation 20-28. Virtual Council meetings using the MS Teams platform have been running well, including a public comment component. Committee meetings are now audio and video recorded due to the MS Teams interface, providing greater accessibility and transparency for the public. Public attendance at both Committee and Council meetings appears to be higher with the virtual meeting format. Proclamation 20-28.15, in effect until termination of the public health emergency, requires that all public meetings must be held remotely and agencies must provide an option for the public to attend through, at minimum, telephonic access. However, it also added an ability for agencies to hold an in-person component to a public meeting in addition to the remote/telephonic requirement with certain conditions. Due to this, the City Council held its annual retreat in person on June 11-12. As of June 30, 2021, agencies can hold in-person meetings with no restrictions on capacity, no physical distancing requirements, and if all attendees wear face masks in compliance with King County requirements. While the City Council recently directed ARPA funding to comprehensive modernization of meeting rooms, staff has already implemented interim solutions that currently allow for hybrid Committee and Council meetings. Currently the City is encouraging employee telework at least through January 3, 2022, which is in line with many other regional employers. In-person services are also limited as follows: • City Hall — Mondays & Wednesdays, 8:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. • Permit Center — Mondays & Wednesdays, 8:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. • Human Services — Mondays & Wednesdays, 8:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. • Tukwila Community Center — Mondays through Thursdays 6:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., Fridays 6:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and Saturdays 7:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. • Municipal Court — Mondays & Wednesdays from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. • Police Department — Monday — Friday 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM 17 INFORMATIONAL MEMO Page 2 Staff has not conducted a comprehensive survey of other agencies, but informal inquiries revealed that meetings of the governing bodies are still largely virtual until technology improvements allowing hybrid meetings can be implemented. RECOMMENDATION Staff is seeking Committee discussion on next steps and the various considerations involved in resuming an in-person component to meetings. What additional information would be useful for the City Council to make the determination? Considerations include: • Virus transmission rates and safety of Councilmembers, staff and public. • Face covering requirement for those in person- discussions could be more difficult to hear. • Correlation with employee telework status. ATTACHMENTS Governor's Proclamation 20-28.15 State of Washington "Miscellaneous Venues" COVID-19 Requirements 18 STATE OF WASHINGTON -� OFFICE OF GOVERNOR JAY INSLEE PROCLAMATION BY THE GOVERNOR AMENDING AND EXTENDING PROCLAMATIONS 20-05 and 20-28, et seq. 20-28.15 Open Public Meetings Act and Public Records Act Proclamations WHEREAS, on February 29, 2020, I issued Proclamation 20-05, proclaiming a State of Emergency for all counties throughout the state of Washington as a result of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak in the United States and confirmed person-to-person spread of COVID-19 in Washington State; and WHEREAS, as a result of the continued worldwide spread of COVID-19, its significant progression in Washington State, and the high risk it poses to our most vulnerable populations, I have subsequently issued several amendatory proclamations, exercising my emergency powers under RCW 43.06.220 by prohibiting certain activities and waiving and suspending specified laws and regulations; too WHEREAS, to enable public meetings to occur while maintaining the social distancing and limitations on in-person interactions necessary to curtail the spread of COVID-19, on March 24, 2020, I issued Proclamation 20-28, prohibiting in-person meetings and waiving and suspending laws and rules concerning RCW 42.56, the Public Records Act, and RCW 42.30, the Open Public Meetings Act that hindered conducting public meetings remotely; and WHEREAS, under the provisions of RCW 43.06.220(4), the statutory waivers and suspensions of Proclamation 20-28, et seq., have been periodically extended by the leadership of the Washington State Senate and House of Representatives, and which I have acknowledged and similarly extended the prohibitions therein in subsequent sequentially numbered proclamations, which proclamations also contained modifications and guidance regarding the waivers, suspensions, and prohibitions; and WHEREAS, on January 15, 2021, under the provisions of RCW 43.06.220(4), the statutory waivers and suspensions of Proclamation 20-21, et seq., were extended by Senate Concurrent Resolution 8402 until the termination of the state of emergency pursuant to RCW 43.06.210, or until rescinded, whichever occurs first; and WHEREAS, to fully extend Proclamations 20-28, et seq., it is also necessary for me to extend the prohibitions provided therein; and WHEREAS, the Washington State Military Department Emergency Management Division, through the State Emergency Operations Center, continues coordinating resources across state government to address the impacts and long-term effects of the emergencies on Washington State and its people. NOW, THEREFORE, I, Jay Inslee, Governor of the state of Washington, as a result of the above - noted situation, and under Chapters 38.08, 38.52, and 43.06 RCW, do hereby proclaim that a State of Emergency continues to exist in all counties of Washington State, that Proclamation 20-05 and all 19 amendments thereto remain in effect as otherwise amended, and that Proclamations 20-28, et seq., are amended to (1) recognize the extension of statutory waivers and suspensions therein by the Washington State Legislature until termination of the state of emergency pursuant to RCW 43.06.210, or until rescinded, and (2) similarly extend the prohibitions therein until termination of the state of emergency pursuant to RCW 43.06.210, or until rescinded, whichever occurs first. I again direct that the plans and procedures of the Washington State Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan be implemented throughout state government. State agencies and depai linents are directed to continue utilizing state resources and doing everything reasonably possible to support implementation of the Washington State Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan and to assist affected political subdivisions in an effort to respond to and recover from the COVID-19 pandemic and wildfires. I continue to order into active state service the organized militia of Washington State to include the National Guard and the State Guard, or such part thereof as may be necessary in the opinion of The Adjutant General to address the circumstances described above, to perform such duties as directed by competent authority of the Washington State Military Department in addressing the outbreak. Additionally, I continue to direct the Depatlnient of Health, the Washington State Military Department Emergency Management Division, and other agencies to identify and provide appropriate personnel for conducting necessary and ongoing incident related assessments. Violators of this order may be subject to criminal penalties pursuant to RCW 43.06.220(5). Signed and sealed with the official seal of the state of Washington on this 19th day of January, A.D., Two Thousand and Twenty -One at Olympia, Washington. BY THE GOVERNOR: /s/ Secretary of State 20 2 By: /s/ Jay Inslee, Governor Miscellaneous Venues COVID-19 Requirements As of June 30, 2021 the following apply to governing bodies of public agencies opting to host in-person public meetings under the Open Public Meetings Act, as permitted under Emergency Proclamation 20- 28, et seq.: • No restrictions on capacity. • No physical distancing requirements. • Follow current applicable face covering requirements as outlined in: Proclamation 20-25, et seq., Secretary of Health Order 20-03.4, and LNI Publication F414-164-000. Updated 08/31/2021 1 I P a g e 21