Freeland Water and Sewer District residents got a fine new commissioner this week with the appointment of John Brunke, a stalwart volunteer who has contributed countless hours and expertise to the betterment of the district and the community.
It’s too bad his ascent to office was marred by a poor decision making process, one endorsed by commissioners Lou Malzone and Eric Hansen. They appointed Brunke Monday during a public meeting, but the decision was made without first notifying the public that an elected position was vacant and without seeking resumes from other interested candidates. While there’s no requirement to do so, Brunke’s selection and the circumstances that preceded them are contrary to the principles of democracy and an open and transparent government.
Brunke replaces Marilynn Abrahamson, who resigned this past week Thursday, June 4 with an email to district staff. Rumors that she was leaving have swirled for more than a month. When questioned by a Record reporter, however, she said her living circumstances had changed but was adamant that she was not stepping down.
No matter how uncertain her plans, Abrahamson should have been more forthcoming so anyone who might be interested in the position could begin thinking about and weighing a bid for the office.
Similarly, as soon as her resignation was received, district officials should have made a public announcement that an elected official had stepped down. Instead, the vacancy was kept quiet until just a few hours before the meeting where a replacement was selected, and a pre-written press release passed out immediately after the decision.
State law does not require the advertising of vacant elected offices for non-partisan positions, though most are surprised to hear so. Perhaps that’s because junior governments almost always electively choose to seek resumes from the public before replacing an official who was previously selected by voters. Or perhaps it’s because it’s so obviously the right thing to do. Whatever the case, there is certainly no requirement that the process be closed — it’s a choice.
Furthermore, we would argue that the only reason it’s not a requirement is to afford small governments the ability to fill a position quickly in rare circumstances where timeliness is of the essence. In this case, no critical decisions were made during Monday’s meeting. The board could easily have delayed the decision, advertised for a week and then held a special meeting, having a new commissioner in place before the board’s next regular meeting in July.
Instead, the resigning commissioner didn’t tell the public she was stepping down, the district kept the news quiet and then appointed a hand-picked replacement.
It’s highly unlikely that anyone more qualified or more deserving than Brunke might have stepped forward for the position, but unfortunately we’ll never know.
