Submitted by City of Tenino
“What better date to declare a state of emergency than Friday the 13th?” says Clerk/Treasurer John Millard when he was directed to prepare a Proclamation putting Tenino on a more responsive footing to respond to the current COVID-19 situation now affecting Thurston County.
Mayor Wayne Founier says “I want to get ahead of any potential issues.” Washington state law gives mayor’s like Fournier the authority to take a wide variety of measures to ensure the welfare of the City’s residents. An important one is to suspend many of the rules and procedures normally required to make significant purchases. He explains: “Our normal contracting process is designed for long lead times. We can’t be reactive here; suspending the normal acquisition procedure allows us to be proactive. We want to prevent the worst from happening, not simply clean up the mess.
Proclamation addresses multiple concerns. In addition to streamlining procedures, the Proclamation provides authority for the Chief of Police to “direct any necessary population and property protection.” This gives him legal authority to direct people to move to or away from designated places. The City has also suspended any collection actions, imposition of late fees, and the accruing of interest on overdue accounts in order to provide financial relief from the hard pressed.
Effective until further notice. Without being able to accurately project a date certain by which this situation will end, the provisions of the Proclamation will be in effect until terminated, extended, or amended by further Proclamation.
For full text of the proclamation, visit the City’s Website: www.CityOfTenino.us/
