STATEMENT FROM CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD:
"On Monday, the Board of County Commissioners heard from residents concerned about the layoff of federal workers and the freezing of federal funding for some existing and future projects.
"During board discussion later that day, commissioners decided it would not be appropriate for a locally elected body to counsel the federal government on its personnel practices.
"Commissioners instead will look at the impacts the federal workforce reduction and reductions to contract and grant funding will have on county operations and services. The county and its departments will identify areas that may be impacted negatively and fall into the categories of economic viability, health, safety and the welfare of our community. Examples include: economic- and tourism-related impacts, current or future county transportation projects, county-related natural resource projects, food security, wildfire mitigation and response, criminal justice, and housing/homeless projects and programs, to name a few.
"It will take us some time to identify and respond to those areas that may be impacted by federal budget decisions. Once identified, the board intends to communicate with federal partners and representatives to work toward identifying a pathway forward to minimize the overall impacts on our community and our budget.
"While we understand the impacts some recent decisions at the federal level have had on members of our community, it is not the Board of Chelan County Commissioners' place as a locally elected body to counsel the federal government on its personnel practices. We can only share the real impacts the federal policy decisions have on our community as a whole and then work with our federal and state partners to mitigate them."
- Commissioner Shon Smith, chairman of the Board of County Commissioners
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