Public Meetings Lawsuit Settled

YAKIMA, Wash. (AP) – A county in southern Washington state has settled a lawsuit for $13,000 that alleged Yakima County Commissioners violated the state’s open public meetings law in 2018.

The Yakima Herald-Republic reported that Yakima-based attorney Liz Hallock filed a lawsuit claiming City Council and its commissioners violated state law when they attended a Chamber of Commerce luncheon on July 2018.

During the lunch, commissioners provided updates on government business.

Event tickets were $30.

The county acknowledged that those without a ticket were not able to attend.

The settlement also acknowledged that a quorum of elected commissioners who spoke at the event, posed a gray area under state law.