Not all levels of Government are broken. Some work extraordinarily well, on very limited budgets, thanks to many selfless and dedicated public servants.

Learning Outcomes:

• What members of the Washington State Legislature can learn from local government officials
• Why local government works.
• The exceptional job done by county level officials, and why we should all be celebrating the job you do.

Keynote Speaker
—
The Townsend Group

Speechwriter, debate coach, marketing and advertising strategist, Jay Townsend has worked in four U.S. Presidential campaigns, scores of U.S. Senate, Gubernatorial and Congressional races,and a myriad of County Executive, Mayoral, legislative and judicial contests. He is the author of So You Want to Run for Public Office, The Worst Mistakes Candidates Make and Timeless Lessons from the 2016 Election. Townsend has received several national awards for his work,including the nation’s best television commercial aired in a Gubernatorial race,the best persuasion mail piece produced for a Presidential campaign,and the nation’s best newspaper ad for a political candidate. A member of the National Speakers Association and World Speakers Federation, Townsend has spoken before hundreds of audiences, including the United States Military Academy, the Marketing Research Association, and the Marist Institute for Public Opinion. He has appeared on NBC, NY1,New York’s Capitol Tonight, Canadian TV, and FOX News. He serves as a global advisor to the Luce Foundation in New York. Raised on afarm inIndiana, he earned his B.S. and M.S. degrees in Agriculture Economics and Farm Management from Purdue University.He resides with his wife Rebecca in New York City.

The State Auditor’s Office Center for Government Innovation provides resources and data tools that address current and emerging audit issues by counties statewide. Hear about how the public-facing Financial Intelligence

Tool (FIT) displays data to assist governments in their financial decision making.

Learning Outcomes:

• See how FIT provides a user-friendly way to understand and evaluate financial information as well as compare your government to peer governments

• Learn how FIT can help you analyze financial trends and evaluate your county’s financial situation with the same financial indicators used by auditors

• Explore ways to communicate your county’s story to the public

Data and Business Systems Specialist
—
Office of the Washington State Auditor

Duane Walz joined the Office of the State Auditor in 1994. He has played a key role in collecting, maintaining and publishing government financial data over the years. He is currently the Data and Systems Specialist for the Center for Government Innovation where he is tasked with creating new ways to display data. He is the technical lead on the Financial Intelligence Tool (FIT). Duane received a Lean Six Sigma Green Belt in 2013.

The State Auditor’s Office Center for Government Innovation provides resources and data tools that address current and emerging audit issues by counties statewide. Hear about how the public-facing Financial Intelligence

Tool (FIT) displays data to assist governments in their financial decision making.

Learning Outcomes:

• See how FIT provides a user-friendly way to understand and evaluate financial information as well as compare your government to peer governments

• Learn how FIT can help you analyze financial trends and evaluate your county’s financial situation with the same financial indicators used by auditors

• Explore ways to communicate your county’s story to the public

Financial Management and Data Tools Specialist
—
Office of the Washington State Auditor

Niles has been with the Office of the Washington State Auditor since the start of 2014. Since then, he’s performed hundreds of audits and managed the performance of an inventory of more than 600 government clients. He presents to a wide range of local governments on topics of accounting, reporting, and internal controls, and currently holds the position of Financial Management and Data Tools Specialist for the Center for Government Innovation.

Taking it to the Streets. A Collaborative Outreach Program. Learn how a small rural county is addressing the opioid crisis, homelessness, and behavioral health challenges in the community. Island County Human Services Outreach Behavioral Health/Opioid Outreach/Homeless Housing divisions, Island County Law Enforcement, Island County Public Health Nurses, along with Amerigroup and the University of Washington Alcohol and Drug Abuse Institute collaborate to engage the most vulnerable, high utilizer/high risk populations.

The program provides real opportunities for change including permanent housing solutions, behavioral health treatment, and successful jail transition through embedding behavioral health with law enforcement, outreach, and intensive case management.

Learning Outcomes:

• Collaboration between County Government Departments

• Funding opportunities and ideas for small Counties

• Creative program development to address current issues

Behavioral Health Lead
—
Island County Human Services

Betsy Griffith, LMHC, NCC is a therapist and counseling supervisor specializing in adolescents and families. Her primary focus is building holistic interpersonal skills through a combination of CBT and yoga and mindfulness. She graduated with a M.A. in Counseling from Marquette University in 2005. She has worked as a school counselor; a therapist in a residential treatment center for adjudicated adolescent males; a school based therapist and as a clinical supervisor to school based behavioral health and Opioid Outreach.

Taking it to the Streets. A Collaborative Outreach Program. Learn how a small rural county is addressing the opioid crisis, homelessness, and behavioral health challenges in the community. Island County Human Services Outreach Behavioral Health/Opioid Outreach/Homeless Housing divisions, Island County Law Enforcement, Island County Public Health Nurses, along with Amerigroup and the University of Washington Alcohol and Drug Abuse Institute collaborate to engage the most vulnerable, high utilizer/high risk populations.

The program provides real opportunities for change including permanent housing solutions, behavioral health treatment, and successful jail transition through embedding behavioral health with law enforcement, outreach, and intensive case management.

Learning Outcomes:

• Collaboration between County Government Departments

• Funding opportunities and ideas for small Counties

• Creative program development to address current issues

Behavioral Health Clinical Supervisor
—
Island County Human Services

Kathryn Clancy is a licensed mental health counselor and former psychology professor with over 25 years of experience in counseling and teaching. She currently supervisors Behavioral Health Pro-grams in Island County including outreach counseling and case management, jail mental health and transitions, embedded mental health with law enforcement, intensive case management with homeless, early childhood mental health and adolescent at risk intervention programs. Her exper-tise is in program development, the treatment of adolescents and young adults, suicide assessment and prevention, serious mental illness and substance use disorders.

Taking it to the Streets. A Collaborative Outreach Program. Learn how a small rural county is addressing the opioid crisis, homelessness, and behavioral health challenges in the community. Island County Human Services Outreach Behavioral Health/Opioid Outreach/Homeless Housing divisions, Island County Law Enforcement, Island County Public Health Nurses, along with Amerigroup and the University of Washington Alcohol and Drug Abuse Institute collaborate to engage the most vulnerable, high utilizer/high risk populations.

The program provides real opportunities for change including permanent housing solutions, behavioral health treatment, and successful jail transition through embedding behavioral health with law enforcement, outreach, and intensive case management.

Learning Outcomes:

• Collaboration between County Government Departments

• Funding opportunities and ideas for small Counties

• Creative program development to address current issues

Housing Program Supervisor
—
Island County Human Services

Joanne is the Housing Resource Coordinator for Island County Human Services. She has been working on Homelessness and Affordable Housing issues for Island County since 2012. Her former career was as the Vice President with National Real Estate organization, specializing in converting luxury rental properties to coops and condo’s in major cities in the US. She moved to Whidbey Island in 2006 and is married with two grown sons.

Attendees will learn the ins and outs of the state legislative process and how to effectively engage their state legislators, including how to prepare and present testimony, engage in active outreach and lobbying, and how to use the leg.wa.gov website to obtain valuable information about legislation. Attendees will hear real life examples from Olympia insiders: Mike Hoover spent 20 years inside the state legislature, with 10 years as Senate Counsel and then assuming a leadership counsel position with the House of Representatives before becoming a contract lobbyist. Mellani McAleenan, WSAC’s Director of Government Relations, has 20 years of experience working as a lobbyist and advocate before the state legislature. This interactive session is open to all who wish to attend, including members of WSAC’s Legislative Steering Committee, as well as anyone who wants to learn more about the state legislative process.

Learning Outcomes:

• How to engage state legislators

• How to navigate the legislature’s website

• How to prepare and present testimony and “white papers”/ handouts

Director of Government Relations
—
WSAC

Ms. Mellani McAleenan joined WSAC as the Director of Government Relations and General Counsel in September 2018. Mellani has worked in government relations since 2000, most recently as Director of Government Affairs for the Washington State Dental Association. Mellani has also represented the state judicial branch of government as the primary legislative advocate for the Board for Judicial Administration, Administrative Office of the Courts, and Supreme Court. Prior to her work with the judicial branch, Mellani advocated on behalf of the business community, including six years as a Governmental Affairs Director for the Association of Washington Business. Mellani earned her Doctor of Jurisprudence degree from Seattle University and her BS in Human Services from Wayland Baptist University.

Attendees will learn the ins and outs of the state legislative process and how to effectively engage their state legislators, including how to prepare and present testimony, engage in active outreach and lobbying, and how to use the leg.wa.gov website to obtain valuable information about legislation. Attendees will hear real life examples from Olympia insiders: Mike Hoover spent 20 years inside the state legislature, with 10 years as Senate Counsel and then assuming a leadership counsel position with the House of Representatives before becoming a contract lobbyist. Mellani McAleenan, WSAC’s Director of Government Relations, has 20 years of experience working as a lobbyist and advocate before the state legislature. This interactive session is open to all who wish to attend, including members of WSAC’s Legislative Steering Committee, as well as anyone who wants to learn more about the state legislative process.

Learning Outcomes:

• How to engage state legislators

• How to navigate the legislature’s website

• How to prepare and present testimony and “white papers”/ handouts

Contract Lobbyist
—
Mike Hoover Public Affirs

Mike Hoover is an attorney with over 25 years of experience working in state and local governmental affairs. Mike began his career in 1988 working for the California State Assembly and Governor’s office before moving to private practice in Seattle. Mike enjoyed a 20-year legal career in the Washington Legislature, beginning as a staff attorney, serving as Senate Counsel for ten years, and then assuming a Leadership Counsel position in the House of Representatives for six years. Mike next served as Chief Legal Counsel to the King County Council before starting his own public affairs practice in 2018. This experience has provided him with unique expertise and hands-on work in legislative and budget processes.

Working in both state and local government, Mike has been active in almost every policy issue area, including capital and operating budgets, transportation, labor, business, environment, healthcare, education, public infrastructure, finance, and revenue. He has been an integral part of legislation and negotiations for major projects including the McCleary education reforms, Safeco Field financing, complex transportation budgets, and many state operating and capital biennial and supplemental budgets. Mike has secured funding from the state’s various budgets for his clients, and he has successfully shepherded numerous bills through the legislative process and into law.

Mike has the skills, contacts, and experience to support clients in Olympia and throughout Washington. He has worked hard to cultivate excellent bipartisan working relationships with legislators from around the state, in both the House and the Senate, and he also has significant Governor, executive, and agency contacts. He is known as a consensus builder who puts together teams and coalitions to get results.

Mike closely coordinates with his clients to keep them apprised of relevant issues and help them strategize and act to affect those issues. He understands that while the legislative process is the same, each client is different, and each budget and legislative request requires a unique strategy and coalition of legislators. Mike has the ability to partner with other professionals as necessary to ensure the resources and support necessary are always available, and he is adept at matching the right strategy with the right coalition to achieve successful outcomes for his clients. With extensive background in legislative, budgetary, and legal matters, Mike Hoover Public Affairs can provide unparalleled representation.

Washington is exploring a potential gas tax replacement to fund our roads and bridges. Conducted by the Washington State Transportation Commission (WSTC), the test-driving phase of the Washington Road Usage Charge (WA RUC) Pilot Project ended in January 2019. Approximately 2,000 drivers participated in the year-long WA RUC Pilot Project, reported their mileage, and provided feedback to help state decision-makers understand if this potential policy could work for Washington drivers.

Now that the test-driving phase of the pilot is complete, the information collected during the pilot is being compiled and analyzed, and a comprehensive report of findings and recommendations will be submitted to the Governor, the State Legislature, and United States Department of Transportation (USDOT) in early 2020.

This session will offer an inside look into the study’s findings and recommendations.

Learning Outcomes:

• Understand what a road usage charge is

• Understand what the findings and recommendations of the pilot project are

• Understand what to expect in the 2020 legislative session

Partner
—
D’Artagnan Consulting

Jeff Doyle has 23 years’ experience advising legislative and executive branch officials on transportation law and policy development, with specific expertise in taxation, innovative finance, road usage charges, and sustainable transportation programs. He has created, led or provided key support to recent initiatives at the state, multi-state and federal level. Before joining D’Artagnan, Mr. Doyle served as Director of Public/Private Partnerships for the Washington State Department of Transportation, where he focused on innovative financing, alternative funding, and new methods for engaging the private sector in important transportation projects and policies.

Public health is an essential service guaranteed to all residents by Washington state law. From drinking water safety and restaurant inspections, to tobacco use prevention and disease prevention and control, the work of public health is to help communities to be safe and healthy. As a local board of health member, you are responsible for the protection of our community’s health. But what does this entail? This session will provide a introduction to the roles and responsibilities of local board of health have in making our counties healthy, safe and thriving communities. It is best suited for county officials who serve on and interact with their local boards of health.

Learning Outcomes:

• Understand the role local boards of health play in the public health system.

• Identify specific responsibilities local boards of health have under state law.

• Describe how local boards of health work with state and local agencies on public health issues.

Managing Director
—
WSALPHO

Jaime Bodden is the Managing Director for WSALPHO. Previously, Jaime managed and oversaw the operations of a small health department as Health Officer/Director. Additionally, Jaime has experience in community engagement, health promotion, global health, and health policy. She holds Master degrees in Social Work and Public Health from Washington University in St. Louis.

On June 30, 2019, the William D. Ruckelshaus Center issued its Final Report on the Road Map to Washington’s Future, a project assigned by the Legislature. For two years, the Center conducted a collaborative process with many people and organizations to articulate a desired future for Washington and to identify revisions, clarifications, or additions to state laws, institutions, and policies needed to reach that future.

The scope included not just the GMA, SMA, and SEPA, but laws regarding annexation, forest practices, revenue authorities and fiscal tools, and the roles and responsibilities of state agencies, regional, county, city, and special district governments. County officials input to the Road Map process included letters, interviews, and participation at three WSAC workshops and 26 regional workshops across the state. This session provides an overview of the Final Report, including the collaborative processes used, what was heard and learned by the Ruckelshaus Center team, and a summary of guidance in the form of potential transformational changes, and key reforms. This is an opportunity to learn about the findings, changes, and reforms described in the Final Report and to discuss what future actions WSAC and its members should consider in 2020 and beyond.

Learning Outcomes:

• Learn about the findings, transformational changes and key reforms outlined in the Ruckelshaus Center’s June 30 Final Report to the Legislature.

• Learn which transformational changes or key reforms align with county needs and interests, and discuss which represent priorities for county participation and/or advocacy going forward.

• Learn about opportunities for WSAC or individual county officials to participate in future collaborations, draft potential legislation, share success stories, or identify topics for future research by the state’s universities.

Senior Project Lead; Assistant Professor, WSU Extension
—
The William D. Ruckelshaus Center; Washington State University

Amanda is a Senior Project Lead at William D. Ruckelshaus Center and Washington State University Extension Faculty. At the Ruckelshaus Center, Amanda designs and leads multi-party collaborative processes that help people work together to develop and implement shared solutions to challenging public policy issues. She designed and leads the Center’s Collaboration Governance Training Program and provides trainings on systems thinking, conducting assessments and interviews, collaborative problem-solving, conflict resolution and facilitation. Amanda also designed and co-leads the Center’s Collaborative Leaders Internship Program.

On June 30, 2019, the William D. Ruckelshaus Center issued its Final Report on the Road Map to Washington’s Future, a project assigned by the Legislature. For two years, the Center conducted a collaborative process with many people and organizations to articulate a desired future for Washington and to identify revisions, clarifications, or additions to state laws, institutions, and policies needed to reach that future.

The scope included not just the GMA, SMA, and SEPA, but laws regarding annexation, forest practices, revenue authorities and fiscal tools, and the roles and responsibilities of state agencies, regional, county, city, and special district governments. County officials input to the Road Map process included letters, interviews, and participation at three WSAC workshops and 26 regional workshops across the state. This session provides an overview of the Final Report, including the collaborative processes used, what was heard and learned by the Ruckelshaus Center team, and a summary of guidance in the form of potential transformational changes, and key reforms. This is an opportunity to learn about the findings, changes, and reforms described in the Final Report and to discuss what future actions WSAC and its members should consider in 2020 and beyond.

Learning Outcomes:

• Learn about the findings, transformational changes and key reforms outlined in the Ruckelshaus Center’s June 30 Final Report to the Legislature.

• Learn which transformational changes or key reforms align with county needs and interests, and discuss which represent priorities for county participation and/or advocacy going forward.

• Learn about opportunities for WSAC or individual county officials to participate in future collaborations, draft potential legislation, share success stories, or identify topics for future research by the state’s universities.

Affiliate Associate Professor
—
University of Washington College of Built Environments

Joe Tovar served eighteen years as planning director for three Washington cities, twelve years on the state growth management board, and seven years as a consultant advising state agencies, counties, cities, and private clients. He is affiliate faculty at the UW in the College of Built Environments and adjunct faculty at WSU. The Ruckelshaus Center tapped his subject matter expertise to co-lead the Road Map to Washington’s Future, a project commissioned by the Legislature to articulate a desired future for our state and to identify revisions, additions or clarifications to state laws, institutions, and policies needed to reach that future.

This session is open to all, but directed specifically at county commissioners.

Attendees will learn about Washington State’s Voluntary Stewardship Program (VSP), which serves to protect critical areas through the use of voluntary, incentive-based programs while seeking to maintain agricultural viability within 27 participating counties.

VSP is an alternative to regulation under Washington State’s Growth Management Act (GMA). The GMA requires counties complete comprehensive plans and set development regulations to guide future growth, but has not been applied to agriculture. Recent court cases resolved to apply GMA to agriculture, and the VSP is an alternative solution created to protect critical areas while maintaining agricultural viability without resorting to regulation. This session will cover – Why VSP was developed and why is it important to your county The relationship between VSP and the Growth Management Act County requirements for participating in VSP Implementing a VSP work plan through the county work group Monitoring, evaluation, and consequences Reporting requirements and rolesCurrent VSP implementation efforts.

Learning Outcomes:

• Understand the Voluntary Stewardship Program and how it applies in their county

• Understand the current state of Voluntary Stewardship Program implementation

• Be able to explain the significance of the Voluntary Stewardship Program to their constituents

VSP Coordinator
—
Washington State Conservation Commission

Bill Eller is a Washington State Conservation Commission staff member and serves as the Voluntary Stewardship Program Coordinator and Elections Officer for the Commission. He has been with the Conservation Commission for over 10 years.
Bill previously practiced both criminal and civil law while at the Yakima County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office for nine years, and was an adjunct professor at Central Washington University for ten years teaching undergraduate classes in the law.

The Elson S. Floyd Medical School accepted its third cohort of medical students with over 1500 applications and 80 accepted. The class hails from 20 counties across the state, 12 of which are rural, and 100 percent are from or have significant ties to Washington. The goal of the medical school is to recruit medical students from rural communities, train them in rural communities and place them in the locations they are needed most. The Elson S. Floyd Medical School incorporates medicine, nursing, pharmacy and exercise physiology to train students to meet the current and future needs of our state. We have built numerous partnerships with hospitals, clinics, and health departments to expand our reach throughout the state.

Learning Outcomes:

• Elson S. Floyd Medical School is the newest medical school in the state.

• Understand that an emphasis is placed on recruiting students from rural communities.

• Understand that the an emphasis is to train and place students in rural communities.

Vice Dean, Academic and Community Partnerships
—
WSU Elson S. Floyd College of Medicine

Dr. Ken Roberts is the Vice Dean for Academic and Community Partnerships in Washington State University’s Elson S. Floyd College of Medicine. As Vice Dean, he is responsible for the overall administration of the educational program at the four campuses where medical students will be trained. He works to develop and maintain partnerships with community clinics and hospitals, and facilitates academic partnerships between the campuses and the medical community, businesses, and stakeholders invested in increasing medical care access throughout the state. His office leads outreach efforts to reach students in rural and underserved communities to promote careers in medicine.

Planning a capital improvement to your historic courthouse? The Historic County Courthouse Rehabilitation Grant Program was established during the 2005-07 biennium with the goal of supporting counties in their efforts to preserve and rehabilitate our state’s historic courthouses. Since inception, the program has awarded over $18M in state matching grants to 26 counties, leveraging over $48M in overall capital investments to these highly significant public buildings. The next application cycle for grant funding will be held in the summer of 2020 for funds available in the 2021-23 biennium. This session will cover the eligibility criteria and application process, provide examples of past successful projects, and debunk concerns over the perceived restrictions historic designation places on public buildings. The County Courthouse Grant Program is a program of the Washington State Department of Archaeology & Historic Preservation. The Washington Trust for Historic Preservation administers the program under contract with the agency.

Learning Outcomes:

• Introduce attendees to the County Courthouse Grant Program

• Understand program criteria and application process

• Demonstrate examples of successful applications

Executive Director
—
Washington Trust for Historic Preservation

Chris Moore is the Executive Director for the Washington Trust for Historic Preservation. Established in 1976, the WA Trust is a nonprofit, membership organization dedicated to safeguarding Washington’s historic places through advocacy, education, stewardship and collaboration. As Executive Director, Chris oversees day-to-day management and operation of the organization and spearheads advocacy efforts, working across the state with local communities engaged in efforts to preserve those historic and cultural resources that enrich our environment and add to Washington’s unique sense of place.
Chris holds an MA in Preservation Studies from Boston University.

No matter the sector or size of your government, the risks are similar. These could involve disruption to public services resulting from a cyber-attack or an employee being duped into transferring money or protected information to an imposter. This presentation will talk through some of these risks, the impacts, and protective measures to defend your government against cyber-attacks. Everyone in a local government has an important role to play in helping to minimize cybersecurity risks. All staff should be proactive in protecting information and systems. The State Auditor’s Office Center for Government Innovation would like to share resources that will help governments respond to ever-evolving cybersecurity threats to their systems and data.

Learning Outcomes:

• Understand that everyone regardless of their position has a role in protecting against cyber attacks.

• Learn about the risks, the impacts, and protective measures needed to defend your government against cyber-attacks.

• Be aware of available resources that will help governments respond to everevolving cybersecurity threats to their systems and data.

Chief Information Security Officer
—
Office of the Washington State Auditor

Aaron Munn joined the Office of the Washington State Auditor (SAO) in September 2014 as the Chief Information Security Officer. He serves as SAO’s internal chief authority for IT security functions, policies and processes. In total, Aaron has over 17 years of service with the State of Washington and 12 years’ experience within the IT security field. Additionally, Aaron recently retired from the Washington Army National Guard with more than 26 years of service. His most recent assignment was cybersecurity operations.

NACo’s County Explorer tool provides easy access to hundreds of county and statelevel indicators. The information ranges across multiple categories; from county administration to policy issues, including transportation, housing, health, and public safety. Join us for an interactive session that will showcase the redesigned user interface and functionality – while exploring the application of the tool. Attendees will learn how to compare counties across multiple data points, access advocacy materials, and use the time-series functionality. Attendees will also learn how to leverage the power of county-level data to tell their unique county story and have the opportunity to ask questions.

Learning Outcomes:

• Be able to use County Explorer to compare counties across multiple data points

• Can easily access advocacy materials provided within County Explorer

• Be able to use County Explorer’s time-series functionality

Data Analyst & Developer
—
National Association of Counties

Ricardo Aguilar is a Data Analyst & Developer with NACo’s County Innovations Lab. He works primarily on data analyses, County Explorer development, as well as building maps, query engines, and other interactive data tools. Before his full-time position, Ricardo worked as a NACo research intern, a faculty assistant for the Global Land Analysis and Discovery Lab and a teaching assistant for the Department of Geographical Sciences at the University of Maryland, College Park.

Ricardo holds a Bachelor of Science in Geographical Studies and a Master of Professional Studies in Geospatial Information Sciences from the University of Maryland in College Park, Maryland.

Could “kindness” be a business model? Spokesman-Review editor Rob Curley will explain how Spokane’s oldest and largest news organization embraced the concept of “the virtuous circle” — showing how a community grows in innumerable ways when it works together for the positive. More importantly, this unique strategy illustrates how a company can show leadership during difficult times for its industry to prove that positivity can feed more than just a bottom line … it can re-energize its hometown.

Editor
—
Spokesman-Review

Dating back to the early days of the Internet, Spokesman-Review editor Rob Curley has long been considered one of the newspaper industry’s biggest innovators. Through his times at some of the biggest newspapers in the nation like The Washington Post and Orange County Register to working at small mid-western papers like the Lawrence Journal-World and Topeka Capital-Journal, it’s his love of community journalism that drives him.

After building some of the most award-winning news sites on the Internet, he has been featured on the cover of national magazines and even an Apple commercial. Creativity Magazine named him one of the 50 Most Creative People in the World, and he’s one of the only newspaper editors in the world to give “Tech Talks” to Google’s programmers on the web giant’s main campus in Silicon Valley.

In 2019, Editor & Publisher magazine named The Spokesman-Review as one of the “10 Newspapers That Do It Right” in the United States, focusing on the newspaper’s ground-breaking community events series. With a quick wit and natural knack for whimsical storytelling, Curley is a sought-after speaker on the national and international levels.

The legislative session may be short, but the amount of information that flows through those 60-105 days can be overwhelming. Rather than focusing on how a bill becomes a law, this session walks attendees in detail through the how to use the leg.wa.gov website to obtain valuable information about legislation as well as the information provided by WSAC to its members about WSAC’s priorities and legislative positions. Bill terms and naming conventions will be explained and demystified so that you always know when and where to focus when tracking bills. Learn how to prepare and present testimony and engage in active outreach and lobbying. This interactive session is open to all who wish to attend, including members of WSAC’s Legislative Steering Committee, as well as anyone who wants to expand their insights into the state legislative process. Attendance at Wednesday’s session may be helpful but is not necessary to an understanding of this session.

Learning Outcomes:

• How to navigate the legislative website & track bills

• How to decipher bill terms versions

• How to engage state legislators in meetings and testimony

Director of Government Relations
—
WSAC

Ms. Mellani McAleenan joined WSAC as the Director of Government Relations and General Counsel in September 2018.  Mellani has worked in government relations since 2000, most recently as Director of Government Affairs for the Washington State Dental Association. Mellani has also represented the state judicial branch of government as the primary legislative advocate for the Board for Judicial Administration, Administrative Office of the Courts, and Supreme Court.  Prior to her work with the judicial branch, Mellani advocated on behalf of the business community, including six years as a Governmental Affairs Director for the Association of Washington Business.  Mellani earned her Doctor of Jurisprudence degree from Seattle University and her BS in Human Services from Wayland Baptist University.

The legislative session may be short, but the amount of information that flows through those 60-105 days can be overwhelming. Rather than focusing on how a bill becomes a law, this session walks attendees in detail through the how to use the leg.wa.gov website to obtain valuable information about legislation as well as the information provided by WSAC to its members about WSAC’s priorities and legislative positions. Bill terms and naming conventions will be explained and demystified so that you always know when and where to focus when tracking bills. Learn how to prepare and present testimony and engage in active outreach and lobbying. This interactive session is open to all who wish to attend, including members of WSAC’s Legislative Steering Committee, as well as anyone who wants to expand their insights into the state legislative process. Attendance at Wednesday’s session may be helpful but is not necessary to an understanding of this session.

Learning Outcomes:

• How to navigate the legislative website & track bills

• How to decipher bill terms versions

• How to engage state legislators in meetings and testimony

Contract Lobbyist
—
Mike Hoover Public Affairs

Mike Hoover is an attorney with over 25 years of experience working in state and local governmental affairs. Mike began his career in 1988 working for the California State Assembly and Governor’s office before moving to private practice in Seattle. Mike enjoyed a 20-year legal career in the Washington Legislature, beginning as a staff attorney, serving as Senate Counsel for ten years, and then assuming a Leadership Counsel position in the House of Representatives for six years. Mike next served as Chief Legal Counsel to the King County Council before starting his own public affairs practice in 2018. This experience has provided him with unique expertise and hands-on work in legislative and budget processes.

Working in both state and local government, Mike has been active in almost every policy issue area, including capital and operating budgets, transportation, labor, business, environment, healthcare, education, public infrastructure, finance, and revenue. He has been an integral part of legislation and negotiations for major projects including the McCleary education reforms, Safeco Field financing, complex transportation budgets, and many state operating and capital biennial and supplemental budgets. Mike has secured funding from the state’s various budgets for his clients, and he has successfully shepherded numerous bills through the legislative process and into law.

Mike has the skills, contacts, and experience to support clients in Olympia and throughout Washington. He has worked hard to cultivate excellent bipartisan working relationships with legislators from around the state, in both the House and the Senate, and he also has significant Governor, executive, and agency contacts. He is known as a consensus builder who puts together teams and coalitions to get results.

Mike closely coordinates with his clients to keep them apprised of relevant issues and help them strategize and act to affect those issues. He understands that while the legislative process is the same, each client is different, and each budget and legislative request requires a unique strategy and coalition of legislators. Mike has the ability to partner with other professionals as necessary to ensure the resources and support necessary are always available, and he is adept at matching the right strategy with the right coalition to achieve successful outcomes for his clients. With extensive background in legislative, budgetary, and legal matters, Mike Hoover Public Affairs can provide unparalleled representation.

Join the Association of County Human Services to hear why now is the time to protect your investments to ensure the needs of your community are being met. This session will highlight actions you can take to promote success and safeguard against unintended consequences where the cost burden will fall on counties.

Learning Outcomes:

• Participants will gain a thorough understanding of HB1406 and how it can create more housing units

• Participants will understand how the Martin v. Boise court ruling impacts their community’s response to encampments

• Participants will be briefed on other legislation and developments that affect housing and homelessness

Housing and Homelessness Division Manager
—
Kitsap County Human Services

Kirsten Jewell, EMPA, manages the Housing and Homelessness Division in Kitsap County, including overseeing strategic planning, administering annual community investments of $3M, coordinating countywide efforts, data collection and analysis, and community education. She has worked with homelessness and affordable housing programs in Kitsap County and at the state level for more than 15 years

Kirsten is the Chair of the Governor’s State Advisory Council on Homelessness, and Co-Chairs the ACHS – Homelessness and Affordable Housing Committee. She also serves on the Washington Low Income Housing Alliance – Homeless Advisory Committee.
Kirsten is a life-long resident of Kitsap County. She earned her Executive Master of Public Administration at the Evans School of Public Policy and Governance, UW.

Join the Association of County Human Services to hear why now is the time to protect your investments to ensure the needs of your community are being met. This session will highlight actions you can take to promote success and safeguard against unintended consequences where the cost burden will fall on counties.

Learning Outcomes:

• Participants will gain a thorough understanding of HB1406 and how it can create more housing units

• Participants will understand how the Martin v. Boise court ruling impacts their community’s response to encampments

• Participants will be briefed on other legislation and developments that affect housing and homelessness

Director of Policy and Advocacy
—
Washington Low Income Housing Alliance and Housing Alliance Action Fund

Michele is the Director of Policy and Advocacy with the Washington Low Income Housing Alliance and Housing Alliance Action Fund. She joined the staff of the Alliance in 2009 after working for eight years as community organizer with the Tenants Union of Washington State, where she helped tenants to organize for justice in their homes and to win new rights. She believes deeply in the power of organized communities to make change and believes that homelessness will end when the public will demands it.

Come January, the state’s Heath Care Authority will have completed their transition to contracting with Managed Care Organizations (MCOs) to administer behavioral health care to people who are covered by Medicaid in Washington State. Crisis services in some regions of the state will also be privatized. Does this mean that counties can now sit back and let the insurance companies assume the responsibility for the care of our residents? If this new model fails, it will impact the most expensive systems in your counties: EMS and the Criminal Justice System.

Join the Association of County Human Services to hear why now is the time to protect your investments to ensure the needs of your community are being met. This session will highlight actions you can take to promote success and safeguard against unintended consequences where the cost burden will fall on counties.

Learning Outcomes:

• Increased knowledge of Medicaid behavioral health system transformation.

• Increased understanding of local impact resulting from state-wide change.

• Increased awareness of the changes in regional or local oversight in an era without RSNs or BHOs

Health Analyst
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Skagit County

Julie de Losada is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor and Child Mental Health Specialist. She began her career path at the age of 15 working in a unique on campus pre-school supported by her high school and local community college. This gave Julie her first insights into the wonder and magic of young children and their ability to be resilient despite significant life challenges. Julie’s early desire to support families and children lead her to the field of family and child counseling, and later into the “behind the scenes” world of regional Medicaid administration where she spent 12 years developing and supporting local systems to provide behavioral health coverage to eligible low-income adults, children, pregnant women, older adults, and people with disabilities.

For the last three years, Julie has paired her extensive knowledge of Medicaid with the foundational public health framework. As a Health Analyst for Skagit County Public Health, Julie addresses issues of equity and social determinants of health through overseeing prevention and developmental disabilities programs, local behavioral health programs, and as liaison between local county government and the regional and state Medicaid systems.

Julie has served on several state taskforces and committees. She currently serves as North Sound Regional Representative for the Washington State Association of Public Health Officers; as Behavioral Health Committee Co-Chair for the Association of County Human Services; and as Program Council Member for the North Sound Accountable Communities of Health.

The 2020 Census is just around the corner – and getting the count right is important to the fair and accurate distribution of political power and economic resources nationwide and within the state. Washington communities recognize the importance of the Census and are banding together to make sure everyone in the community is educated about the census and motivated to respond. Each community will adopt a different approach, but many communities are embracing the challenge of ensuring a complete count with the goal of building and reinforcing community ties for the long-run. Come hear about new innovations adopted to ensure a complete count at less cost – and learn what communities around the state are doing to prepare! At the end of my session, participants will have a good understanding of the innovative processes that the Census Bureau has introduced that guarantee the 2020 Census won’t be anything like the census that your grandparents remember, know what communities in the state are doing to organize for the 2020 Census, and understand what resources are available within the state and across the nation to support the effort to educate residents about the importance of the census and motivate participation.

Learning Outcomes:

• How the 2020 Census will be conducted and why it is important

• What is being done already to educate the WA state residents

• What counties can do to support this education process and encourage participation

2020 Census
Coordinator
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Office of Financial
Management

Lisa McLean serves as the coordinator of the statewide 2020 Census outreach effort. Working with nonprofit, philanthropic, and appointed and elected leaders across the state, she spearheads the state’s efforts to educate and build awareness about the 2020 Census—and ultimately encourage confidence, trust, and participation in the process. To this task, Lisa brings 25 years of experience managing nonpartisan grassroots political organizing projects in the Americas, Africa, Middle East, and Europe. She holds a BA in Economics from Boston College and an MA in International Affairs from Johns Hopkins University.

This session provides an overview of 2 laws designed by Congress to protect and consider the environment. The Endangered Species Act and the National Environmental Policy Act and the most effective ways for state and local governments to have input.

Learning Outcomes:

• Structure and procedures for species testing and critical habitat designation under the Endangered Species Act

• Purpose and considerations under the National Environmental Policy Act

• Ways for local governments to effectively influence federal agency decisions effecting their counties

Deputy Solicitor for Parks and Wildlife
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Department of the Interior

Karen Budd-Falen was appointed by the Secretary of the Interior (DOI) as the Deputy Solicitor for Parks and Wildlife in November, 2018. Prior to her current appointment, Karen served for three years in the Reagan Administration, U.S. Department of the Interior, Washington, D.C., as a Special Assistant to the Assistant Secretary for Land and Minerals Management. She later served as a law clerk to the Assistant Solicitor for Water and Power. In between her stints in Washington D.C., she, along with her husband Frank Falen, were the owners of a private law firm located in Cheyenne, Wyoming. Karen has also worked as an attorney at Mountain States Legal Foundation, a public interest legal foundation in Denver, Colorado.

At DOI, Karen works on issues relating to the Endangered Species Act, national wildlife refuges and National parks. While she was in private practice, Karen represented private property owners, ranching and farming organizations, and local governments. Karen has assisted local governments in asserting their rights of consistency review, cooperation and coordination in federal agency decisions; private property owners in protecting their Constitutionally guaranteed property rights, other multiple users in supporting grazing and multiple use on federal/public lands; exposing the amount of fees paid by the taxpayers under the attorney fee shifting statutes.

Some of Karen’s publications include The Right to Graze Livestock on the Federal Lands: The Historical Development of Western Grazing Rights, Idaho Law Review, Spring, 1994; Protecting Community Stability and Local Economies: Opportunities for County Government Influence in Federal Decision and Policy Making Processes, Whitman College, 1996; and Counterpoint: Opportunities Lost and Opportunities Gained: Separating Truth from Myth in the Western Ranching Debate, Karen Budd-Falen editor, Lewis and Clark Law School Environmental Law, 2006.
Karen was featured in Newsweek Magazine’s “Who’s Who: 20 for the Future” for her work on property rights issues (September 30, 1991). Karen was awarded Wyoming’s Outstanding Ag Citizen in 2001; the “Always There Helping” award from the New Mexico Stock Growers Association in 2003; the “Bud’s Contract” award from the New Mexico Public Lands Council in 2006 and the Individual of the Year award from the Arizona/New Mexico Counties for Stable Economic Growth in 2011.

Karen has presented testimony before the U.S. House of Representatives, Subcommittee on Forest Health; the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Resources; the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Resources relating to the National Environmental Policy Act; the U.S. House of Representatives Full Committee on Natural Resources; and the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. Karen has also testified before committees of the Wyoming Legislature.

Karen is an active volunteer and coach for Future Farmers of America (“FFA”). Karen grew up as a fifth generation rancher on a family-owned ranch in Big Piney, Wyoming. She received her undergraduate degrees and her law degree from the University of Wyoming. Karen and Frank have two children, Isaac (wife Reva Falen) and Sarah (husband Hunter Perala) and grandson, Wesley.

Gordon Graham will “drill down” on what “real” risk management is all about and how to proactively address these problems lying in wait – and what the consequences are when these issues are ignored. Gordon will then give the attendees some thoughts on the “ten families of risk” and provide a process for identifying the specific issues (systemic and idiosyncratic) that your county organization faces in each of these families – and how to build viable control measures to address these identified risks.

In this program, Gordon will show you how to recognize, prioritize, and mobilize by identifying issues that historically have caused similarly situated agencies problems.

Learning Outcomes:

• Learn how to identify the real risks faced in each of these ten families.

• Learn how to build processes to address these identified risks and help prevent these problems from occurring.

• Leave the program with an expanded level of knowledge regarding real risk management and how it applies to your specific county operations.

Owner
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Graham Research Consultants

Gordon Graham is a retired 33 year veteran of California Law Enforcement. During his tenure as a police professional, he was awarded his Teaching Credential from California State University, Long Beach. He was later graduated from University of Southern California with a Master’s Degree in Safety and Systems Management.

Subsequent to this he was graduated from Western State University with a Juris Doctorate. His education as a Risk Manager and experience as a practicing Attorney, coupled with his extensive background in law enforcement, have allowed him to rapidly become recognized as a leading professional speaker with multiple areas of expertise.

Mr. Graham has taken this background as a street cop, supervisor and manager and coupled it with his formal education as a risk manager and his education and experiences as an attorney and is the Co-Founder of Lexipol – a company designed to standardize policies, procedures and training within fire departments and law enforcement agencies around America.

Over the last decade, Mr. Graham has made over 3,000 presentations to various groups including law enforcement, corrections personnel, fraud investigators, fire professionals, EMS, other first responders, legal professionals, educators, city, county and district employees, law firms, hospitals and real estate companies along with many other high-risk private sector organizations.

Ever wonder how your favorite social accounts can prompt you to say, “Heck yes!” to their posts? Wonder no more – the practice of writing to your audience produces some of the most engaging content on the internet.

Learning Outcomes:

• How to hone in on who your most engaging audience members are

• Content planning for your calendar

• Understanding your followers by looking at a journey map

CEO
—
Spry Digital Marketing

Lacey Faught is a natural and trained storyteller, and as CEO of Spry, she leads with transparency, compassion, and an eye towards value. She is obsessed with cultivating online communities and generating quality feedback for all of Spry’s clients. Lacey has a degree in Broadcast News and Political Science from WSU and started Spry in 2011.

Digital Strategist
—
Spry Digital Marketing

Adrienne Harvey is a seasoned digital strategist, with expertise in content creation, project management, and social media. With experience at organizations large and small, Adrienne knows firsthand how impactful social media can be. Prior to joining Spry in 2018, Adrienne consulted in academia and worked in financial services digital marketing.

Rural communities have different digital habits than urban communities. Unlike urban environments, rural communities use social media in different ways to communicate.

Learning Outcomes:

• Ideas on reaching rural audiences

• Analog + digital partnerships

• Examples of different applications and websites you can use in your rural community

CEO
—
Spry Digital Marketing

Lacey Faught is a natural and trained storyteller, and as CEO of Spry, she leads with transparency, compassion, and an eye towards value. She is obsessed with cultivating online communities and generating quality feedback for all of Spry’s clients. Lacey has a degree in Broadcast News and Political Science from WSU and started Spry in 2011.

Digital Strategist
—
Spry Digital Marketing

Adrienne Harvey is a seasoned digital strategist, with expertise in content creation, project management, and social media. With experience at organizations large and small, Adrienne knows firsthand how impactful social media can be. Prior to joining Spry in 2018, Adrienne consulted in academia and worked in financial services digital marketing.

Although we are all aware and trying to combat the opioid epidemic, that epidemic has many faces to include the new silent killer and emergence of Fentanyl. This presentation will be dually focused, first on introducing a free and easy tool to collect data on overdoses in your communities. HIDTA developed an OD mapping real time tool which tracks basic overdose data along with the specific location of the overdose. This tool provides a bird’s eye view of how the opioid epidemic is impacting your community and where. The second focus will be to discuss the new and emerging silent killer illicit Fentanyl and its impact on this epidemic.

Learning Outcomes:

• What is OD Mapping and who is using it now

• Defining the new threat of Fentanyl here

• How to get access to and use OD Mapping

Criminal Intelligence
Specialist
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Spokane DEA Task Force

Dustin Baunsgard is a Criminal Intelligence Specialist with the Northwest High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (NW HIDTA) and is assigned to the Spokane DEA Task Force. A 20 year veteran of law enforcement, Dustin came from an information technology background, which has resulted in a unique application of technology to drug related investigations. As a member of the US Attorney’s Office Opioid Overdose Working Group since its inception, Dustin has championed the adoption of ODMap by multiple law enforcement agencies throughout the Eastern District of Washington. Dustin is qualified as an expert witness in both state and federal court with areas of expertise to include mobile device forensics, cell site analysis, and telephone toll analysis and holds the following professional certifications: CelleBrite Certified Operator, CelleBrite Certified Physical Analyst, Certified Vehicle System Forensic Examiner, Certified Vehicle System Forensic Technician, and certified Video Evidence Recovery Analyst. Dustin has twice been recognized with the National HIDTA Program’s Outstanding Intelligence Analyst of the Year award.

Project Safe
Neighborhoods
Coordinator
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Eastern District

Caitlin Baunsgard has been a part of law enforcement since graduating from the University of Washington in 2004. Ms. Baunsgard began her work with law enforcement as a criminal intelligence specialist with the Northwest High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area and the Washington State Patrol. Ms. Baunsgard began her career as a prosecutor during her tenure at Gonzaga University School of Law, and continued after graduation in 2009 as a Special Deputy Prosecuting Attorney for Spokane County. Ms. Baunsgard was hired as an Assistant United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Washington in 2012, wherein she maintains an emphasis in the prosecution of high-level transnational drug trafficking organizations. She is currently the Project Safe Neighborhoods Coordinator for the Eastern District responsible for the successful implementation of evidence-based strategies to reduce violent crime in our communities.

Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Coordinator
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EDWA

Stephanie Van Marter has been a part of law enforcement since the age of 18 when she began to work for the Spokane Police Department. While working both part time and full time at SPD in juvenile programs and crime analysis for over 5 years, Ms. Van Marter graduated from Gonzaga Law School and began her career as a prosecutor with the Ada County Prosecutors Office in Boise ID. Ms. Van Marter was hired as an Assistant United States Attorney in the EDWA in 2002 and has been there now for 17 years. While an AUSA, Ms. Van Marter has prosecuted and tried a wide variety of criminal offenses to include the possession and use of Biological Weapons (United States v. Kenneth Olsen and United States v. Ryan Buquet); Espionage; the manufacture, possession, receipt and distribution of child pornography; child sexual and physical abuse, violent offenses to include murder, involuntary manslaughter and threats to various federal officials; CITES treaty violations; various firearms cases and a number of multi-defendant Title III drug trafficking prosecutions to include OD related Deaths and Murder in connection with Drug Trafficking Offenses. AUSA Van Marter also has a number of collateral duties and assignments to include the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Coordinator (OCDETF) for the EDWA which she has held for the last 7 years and is also the Senior Litigation Counsel (SLC) for office who is responsible for assisting with training both AUSA’s and law enforcement as to pertinent issues. In her off time, Ms. Van Marter is also a member of the National Ski Patrol.