Most residents of the 98848 probably don’t spend much time thinking about the Grant County Health District until something brings it to their attention. It might be a warning about unsafe water, a question about a restaurant inspection, or a public health advisory during wildfire season. What residents may not realize is how much work takes place between those announcements, from inspecting food vendors at community events to investigating communicable diseases and helping local families access healthcare. At the October 6 Quincy City Council meeting, Deputy Administrator Michele Wurl offered a closer look at that work, along with an explanation of how the Health District is funded and why Quincy continues to support its operations.

The Short Version

• Public health reaches beyond the doctor’s office. The Grant County Health District oversees food safety, drinking water and septic systems, communicable disease investigations, environmental health, and several community assistance programs.

• Quincy sees considerable activity. During April through June 2026, the district reported 58 food establishment inspections and reinspections, 78 temporary food vendor inspections, and 265 food worker cards issued in Quincy.

• Disease prevention remains an important responsibility. During January through March 2026, the district worked with 23 communicable disease cases and 12 sexually transmitted infection cases in Quincy.

• The Health District requests annual contributions from cities. Its standard request is $3 per resident, although Quincy has historically contributed $4 per resident. The City Council has not yet established its contribution for the coming year.

• Quincy has representation in public health leadership. City Councilmember Tom Harris serves as chairman of the Grant County Board of Health.

What Does the Health District Actually Do?

When people hear the words health department, restaurant inspections and food handler cards are often the first things that come to mind. Those responsibilities are certainly part of the Grant County Health District’s work, but they represent only a portion of the services provided throughout the county.

The district is responsible for protecting public health through disease prevention, environmental health services, education, and coordination with other organizations. Its employees investigate communicable diseases, respond to outbreaks, monitor food safety, oversee certain drinking water and septic system requirements, and help residents connect with healthcare and social services. The district also participates in efforts involving traffic safety, childhood injury prevention, pollution prevention, and emergency preparedness.

Unlike a hospital or medical clinic, which generally treats patients after they become sick or injured, much of the Health District’s work is intended to prevent those problems from occurring in the first place. A restaurant inspection may identify unsafe food storage before anyone becomes ill. A communicable disease investigation can help prevent an infection from spreading to additional people. A drinking water inspection can identify a potential problem before it affects a household.

These services are not limited to the larger population centers of Grant County. The Health District serves Quincy and the surrounding communities, including rural areas where access to services and resources may be more limited.

During her October 6 presentation, Wurl provided council members with reports covering the first and second quarters of 2026. Together, those reports offer a more detailed picture of the district’s work in Quincy during the first half of the year.

A Closer Look at Public Health in Quincy

Food safety represents one of the most visible responsibilities of the Health District, particularly in a community that hosts numerous celebrations, festivals, and other events throughout the year.

According to the district’s second-quarter report, covering April through June 2026, inspectors completed 58 food establishment inspections and reinspections in Quincy. During the same period, the district recorded 78 temporary food vendor inspections and issued 265 food worker cards associated with the city.

Those figures help illustrate the amount of oversight involved in protecting the public when food is prepared and served. Established restaurants are subject to inspections, but temporary vendors at community events must also meet applicable food safety requirements.

That work extends beyond inspecting kitchens. During the second quarter, the Health District reported investigating 13 environmental health complaints in Quincy. The district also recorded three drinking water or well inspections, nine septic permits, and 13 septic or drinking water evaluations.

For homeowners and businesses, these services help ensure that systems affecting drinking water and wastewater disposal meet applicable public health requirements. Problems involving contaminated water or improperly functioning septic systems can have consequences beyond an individual property, making environmental health an important responsibility in both urban and rural communities.

The district’s work also includes investigating illnesses that can spread from person to person.

During the first quarter of 2026, covering January through March, the Health District reported working with 23 communicable disease cases in Quincy, along with 12 sexually transmitted infection cases. Across Grant County, the district reported 146 communicable disease cases and 132 sexually transmitted infection cases during that period.

These investigations are an example of public health work that generally receives little attention unless an outbreak becomes a larger concern. Health District personnel may need to identify possible exposures, provide guidance, coordinate testing or treatment information, and communicate with healthcare providers or other organizations.

The first-quarter report also described the district’s response to a measles exposure in March, including a free drive-up clinic offering the measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine.

Although these activities may take place outside public view, they are part of the work required to identify potential health threats and limit their impact on the community.

Helping Families Find the Services They Need

Not every Health District program involves inspections, regulations, or infectious diseases. Some are designed to help residents navigate the healthcare system and connect with services that may otherwise be difficult to access.

One example is Community Connect, a program that helps coordinate care and connect residents with social services. During the second quarter of 2026, the district reported two clients enrolled in Quincy, along with 57 care coordination services and 48 social service referrals.

Those numbers represent services and referrals rather than 57 or 48 separate individuals. They demonstrate how assisting even a small number of residents can involve considerable coordination between healthcare providers, community organizations, and other available resources.

The district also provides services for children and families with additional healthcare needs. During the same quarter, its Children with Special Health Care Needs program reported three referrals associated with Quincy and 21 services provided. Its Access to Baby and Child Dentistry program recorded eight Quincy referrals through WIC.

For families who have never needed these programs, they may be unfamiliar. For those trying to arrange specialized care, find dental services for a young child, or connect with available assistance, they can provide an important starting point.

These efforts also reflect the broader nature of public health. While inspections and disease investigations focus on preventing immediate risks, care coordination and family support programs address barriers that can affect a person’s health over time.

Food Vendors and the Challenges of Enforcement

One of the more practical discussions during Wurl’s presentation involved temporary food vendors operating without the necessary permits.

The subject is particularly relevant to Quincy because vendors sometimes establish operations near the city but outside municipal boundaries. While the location may affect which local government has jurisdiction, food safety concerns remain the responsibility of public health officials.

Wurl described situations in which inspectors encountered unsafe food-handling practices, including raw meat stored near ready-to-eat foods and inadequate handwashing facilities. These conditions can create risks for customers regardless of whether food is being sold from a permanent restaurant, a temporary stand, or another location.

The Health District has enforcement responsibilities, but Wurl explained that responding to unpermitted operations can present challenges involving jurisdiction, staffing, and the ability to take appropriate action. Inspectors can issue warnings and citations, and more serious circumstances may require additional measures or coordination with law enforcement.

The discussion highlighted an important distinction between collecting permit fees and protecting public health. Permits are part of the regulatory process, but the underlying purpose of food safety requirements is to ensure that food is prepared, stored, and served under conditions that reduce the risk of illness.

For properly permitted vendors, those requirements also establish expectations that apply to others selling food to the public. Residents who purchase food from temporary operations should be able to expect reasonable safeguards, whether the vendor is operating at a community festival or alongside a roadway.

As Quincy continues to host events that bring residents and visitors together, temporary food safety will remain one of the more recognizable ways the Health District’s work intersects with community life.

Who Oversees the Health District?

Although the Grant County Health District works closely with county and municipal governments, it operates under its own Board of Health.

The board has legal responsibilities established under Washington state law, including oversight of public health matters and the authority to enforce applicable health regulations. Its membership brings together elected officials and community representatives from throughout Grant County.

Quincy has a direct connection to that leadership. City Councilmember Tom Harris currently serves as chairman of the Grant County Board of Health, providing local representation in discussions and decisions that affect public health across the county.

During her presentation, Wurl also explained how Health District leadership maintains relationships with the communities it serves. She and Administrator Theresa Adkinson divide responsibility for geographic service areas within Grant County, with Wurl serving as a primary contact for Quincy.

That division of responsibilities is an administrative arrangement rather than a new program or expansion of staff. It provides a way for local officials to communicate with Health District leadership about concerns, questions, and services affecting their communities.

In a county with substantial distances between communities, maintaining those relationships is an important part of coordinating public health services.

How Is Public Health Funded?

The financial relationship between Quincy and the Grant County Health District was another important part of Wurl’s presentation.

According to the district’s 2026 funding information, approximately 59 percent of its revenue comes from state sources, while federal funding accounts for another 16 percent. Licenses, permits, and fees provide approximately 13 percent, with local contributions accounting for about 5 percent. Other public health revenues, investments, and miscellaneous sources make up the remainder.

State and federal funding support a substantial portion of the district’s operations, but those funds do not necessarily cover every service the district is required to provide. Some funding is designated for specific programs or activities, leaving other responsibilities dependent on additional revenue.

Local contributions help support work such as outbreak response, communicable disease investigations, sexually transmitted infection investigations, and environmental health services that are not fully covered by permit fees.

Temporary food inspections at community events are one example of a service that may require financial support beyond the fees collected from vendors.

The Health District reported that 10 of Grant County’s 14 cities contribute financially to its operations. Each year, the district sends cities and towns a letter and agreement requesting a contribution of $3 per resident.

Quincy has historically contributed $4 per resident, exceeding the district’s standard request. The City Council has not yet formally established the amount it will contribute for the coming year.

The district also receives support from Grant County, including financial contributions, services, and office space.

For Quincy, the annual contribution is part of an established partnership rather than payment for a separate city-operated health department. The Health District provides countywide services, and local contributions help support responsibilities that benefit residents across municipal boundaries.

The funding discussion also raises a practical consideration for city leaders. Although public health may not be as visible as streets, parks, or other municipal services, its work contributes to the conditions that allow residents and businesses to function safely.

An Investment in Everyday Community Life

Much of the work described during the October 6 City Council meeting is unlikely to attract widespread attention. A routine food inspection, a drinking water evaluation, or a referral to a healthcare service seldom becomes a major community story unless something goes wrong.

That does not make those services any less important. In many cases, the purpose of public health work is to address potential problems before they become serious enough to affect a larger number of people.

Wurl’s presentation offered council members an opportunity to review both the scope of the Health District’s responsibilities and the services documented in Quincy during the first half of 2026. It also placed the city’s annual financial contribution in the context of a broader countywide public health system.

As the City Council considers its contribution for the coming year, the discussion is about more than the difference between $3 and $4 per resident. It is about the role local governments play in supporting services that protect residents, assist families, and help maintain safe conditions for businesses and community activities.

For the people who call the 98848 home, the Grant County Health District may remain most recognizable when a health warning is issued or an inspection becomes necessary. But the reports presented to the council show that its responsibilities extend well beyond those occasional encounters.

The work is ongoing, often conducted outside public view, and woven into many of the ordinary activities that make up life in Quincy. That is what makes understanding the Health District’s role—and the city’s continued partnership with it—worth the community’s attention.

I interviewed 2 candidates for the Grant County  Superior Court Judge race for 2026.

• Both Candidates were invited to be interviewed

• Both Candidates responded were asked the exact same 16 questions in the exact same order

• They never saw each others answers

• The answers have not been altered, edited, modified, editorialized, changed, or edited in any way by the staff, ownership, or affiliates of this publication.

• For each I have posted the transcript, not a story, their words. (transcripts by AI)

• For each I have posted the audio from the interview.

• A full list of the questions

• Below the interviews I will post their posted bio from their candidate website, their sign and a link to their website and or FaceBook

The Interview Begins Here

Kenneth “Ken” Chadwick Interview Audio File

Kenneth “Ken” Chadwick Interview Grant County  Superior Court Judge Race for 2026

Brent Dowlen: [00:00:00] For voters who don’t know you, tell us about yourself, your connection to Grant County, and the experiences that led you to seek a seat on the Superior Court bench

Kenneth “Ken” Chadwick: All right Well, I started off my adult career as a police officer and police sergeant. Spent 15 years doing that. Actually went to law school while I was a police officer, and I came over to, uh, Grant County in 2007, uh, on purpose.

My family had... We, we had, um, recreational property at Blue Lake. We’d come over on the weekends, and my wife and I decided there was no reason to only come here on the weekends, so we made the move in 2007 and would never consider going back. I’ve spent, uh, 24 years, alm- nearly 24 years as, as a, uh, litigating attorney on top of the law enforcement, so that gives me [00:01:00] about 40 years in the courts.

Uh, I’m a business owner now. I’ve had my law firm with different partners since 2009. I’ve had different businesses before that that were not law-related. Um, as a, uh, attorney in Grant County, I’ve done literally everything in the Grant County court system, um, civil and criminal, and District Court and Superior Court.

I’ve been appointed by the s- Grant County Superior Court over, uh, from time to time as a pro tem commissioner. It’s like a part-time judge, um, on the Superior Court. Uh, been appointed as an arbitrator numbers of times where I would act as the decider on litigation cases that are taken out of the regular trial schedule.

I’m regularly appointed as a settlement guardian ad litem, uh, by [00:02:00] the Grant County Superior Court. That’s a person that helps to make sure, for the court, advises the court whether a settlement made on behalf of a minor is reasonable to protect the rights of the minor. Um, since I’ve been in the county, I’ve done a lot of pro bono work.

Uh, I’ve done, um, a lot of work with animal rescues. Uh, I’ve... That’s kind of been a pro, uh, issue of mine is helping animal rescues. They don’t have any money, and they do run into legal issues from time to time. I also do pro bono work for veterans through the Washington State Attorney General’s Veterans Program.

Those people have served their country, and sometimes they get jammed up and they need some help. Uh, I talked about coming over with my wife. I’ve been married 43 years. That’s a long time. It is. I have two, two adult sons, um, three grandsons. So we’ve got a handful. Uh, [00:03:00] that is the- That brought me over here for, to do my legal career.

It’s, um, my legal career but for a few years, um, starting in a Seattle law firm Has been in Grant County. I have-- I was-- been asked by a number of people over the years to run for Grant County Superior Court judge. Um, and this time I was recruited and said I would do it.

Brent Dowlen: Oh.

Kenneth “Ken” Chadwick: So I’m gonna bring my nearly 40 years of experience in the law and both in law enforcement and as an attorney, uh, to bear in the Superior Court

Brent Dowlen: What part of your legal career has best prepared you to handle the broad range of criminal, civil, family, juvenile... Nope.

Kenneth “Ken” Chadwick: I could not- Okay ... I could not hear that.

Brent Dowlen: That’s fine. What part of your legal career [00:04:00] has best prepared you to handle the broad range of criminal, civil, family, juvenile, and other cases that comes before the Grant County Superior Court judge?

Kenneth “Ken” Chadwick: Well, I would say that my legal career itself has handled, has caused me to be able to handle those. I handle complex civil litigation, um, involving small amounts of money or large, in the millions of dollars. I handle criminal cases, um, a number of, number of felony cases in the superior court. Many ca- many cases in the superior court.

I’ve handle, uh, family law matters, which is broad. I mean, that covers issues involving parenting, uh, or parental rights and guardianship, so forth. And I’ve also worked in the juvenile system handling, uh... I represent juveniles who are charged with crimes in Grant County. Okay. So each of the areas you’ve discussed, I have extensive experience in.[00:05:00]

Brent Dowlen: Excellent. What do you believe is the proper role of superior court judge, and just as importantly, what is not the role of the judge? I’m gonna start with what’s not the role of the judge. The judge

Kenneth “Ken” Chadwick: is job is to interpret the law and apply it. The judge should not, as often you hear, litigate from the bench...

Uh, uh, I should say, uh, legislate from the bench. In other words, a judge should not make law. That’s not the judge’s job, particularly in a superior court, ‘cause it’s a trial court. Trial lever, c- trial-level courts are below the appellate division in Washington, they’re below the Washington State Supreme Court, and of course, they’re below the United States Supreme Court.

So when a d- issue comes up in a court in Grant County, for instance, in a superior court, the judge is required to look at a [00:06:00] statute, if that’s applicable. What does it say? It’s ... The judge is required to look at civil or criminal rules or juvenile rules that are set down by the Supreme Court that tell judges how to operate within the c- superior court.

The judge is required to follow precedent, in other words, decisions made by either the Court of Appeals, the State of Washington Supreme Court, or the Federal United States Supreme Court. Only if none of those apply, for example, if there’s a statute, and we call it an issue of first impression comes forward, say it’s a new statute, and there simply is no appellate case.

There’s ... It’s never been litigated in an appellate court. Then the court has to decide what the statute means and how it should be applied. Again, though, there are canons of interpretation that the judge should follow. Uh, [00:07:00] they, for instance, is the, is the plain language of the statute subject to more than one interpretation?

If it’s not, then you apply exactly what it says. Um, but that’s the only time a judge would step out of the following the rules, is if, in fact, it’s a case of first impression that’s never came before a court, so no other court’s ever ruled on it, and the issue before is novel and/or the statute is subject to more than one interpretation

Brent Dowlen: H- how would you describe your judicial philosophy, particularly when law, legal precedent, and your own personal beliefs may point in different directions?

Kenneth “Ken” Chadwick: That’s an easy one for me. I have a contect- a constitutional textual approach to the law. The Constitution of the United States governs [00:08:00] everything.

The Washington Supreme Court... I’m sorry, the Washington Constitution governs anything that’s not applicable to the U- US Supreme Court, and then statutes passed by the state legislature are the law. Uh, it’s important that a judge, and this is my philosophy on the law, is that a judge follows what is written down.

Uh, the people decided what the Constitution would say, people either of the United States or in Washington. The people decided what the statutes would say by electing their representatives. The judge should only be looking at the textual nature of both documents and making a decision based on that. Uh, there’s no, you, you...

So you probably hear people talk about a living constitution, for example. [00:09:00] I would say that’s nonsense. Um, a living constitution approach is where the courts should change their view of what the law says based on the social mores of the day. That’s simply inappropriate. Um, our Constitution, particularly the United States Constitution, was written nearly 250 years ago, and it still can be applied to very different things that are available to us now that were never even thought of at the time, um, issues that never were under consideration.

Maybe issues with, um, privacy related to cell phones, for example. W- when they wrote that, they didn’t know what phones were, let alone cell phones, but they did write a Fourth Amendment. You don’t have to change what the Fourth Amendment says to apply that to a cell phone. That’s the genius of [00:10:00] our Constitution, actually

Brent Dowlen: Judges sometimes have a significant discretion within the boundaries established by law. What principles should guide a judge when exercising that discretion?

Kenneth “Ken” Chadwick: Discretion has to be based on the facts before the judge and the associated law. Because judges still, even when they are in an area of discretion, there is s- there are statutory or court rule boundaries on that. Uh, for instance, in sentencing a person to, on a felony crime conviction, the statute would tell the judge that based on this particular, uh, crime that the person’s convicted of, and based on this particular person’s criminal history, that there is a [00:11:00] range of time that the judge should sentence the person.

It may be, for instance, 108 to 121 months So the judge’s discretion in that aspect, for example, would be between 108 and 121 months. Where should you put-- Where should the sentence be? That’s where my background, my unmatched in this race depth and breadth of experience comes into play. Deciding just that, deciding where that should fit.

Having been a police officer, I’ve seen the harm of crime. I have been the victim of crime. I’ve been attacked by bad guys. I’ve put bad guys in jail. I have a real-life understanding of how the law affects people. Same as in non-criminal areas. [00:12:00] Uh, I would say in family law areas, for example, the judge probably has some of the broadest discretion because the court is sitting in what’s called a court of equity rather than a court of law.

Um, the court in a court of equity is supposed to do justice. It’s pretty a bleak statement, but that’s what it is. So a judge has to, for instance, decide the visitation timing between the mom and the dad, for example, in a parenting plan. Well, I have been married forty-three years. I’ve raised two children through adulthood that are doing well as citizens, uh, solid citizens, and they have given us the fortune of three grandchildren.

There’s very little in that familial setting that I haven’t seen either personally or in law enforcement, where I’ve been in the [00:13:00] homes of very dysfunctional families. I’ve seen the effects of domestic violence or alcohol on children. Again, that breadth of ex- of experience allows me to make decisions within the discretionary zone, for example, child, um, parenting plan orders.

So to sum up, I would just say that it, it requires the judge to know what the area of discretion is, what is the area the judge can work within, and then apply the judge’s real-time experience and background and legal acumen to the decision-making.

Brent Dowlen: What does judicial temperament mean to you, and how would people who have worked with you or against you describe your temperament when circumstances become contentious or stressful? [00:14:00]

Kenneth “Ken” Chadwick: Judicial temperament is how the judge appears to others in the courtroom or outside the courtroom. Is the judge a fly-off-the-handle, yell-at-people judge?

Trust me, I’ve seen those. Or is the judge a milk toast, sit in the corner and make believe nothing’s happening judge? I’ve also seen that. I’m neither of those I will approach every issue with compassion, empathy, fairness

while at the same time requiring accountability and integrity from people within the court. Everybody that comes into the court, whether they be attorneys or litigants or witnesses or jurors, should feel like they belong there. They should feel like their voice is important. [00:15:00] They should feel like they’re being heard and listened to.

It doesn’t mean that I would be Accepting everything someone says, because I would not. Uh, my background and training is unique. Um, I’ve been trained by the FBI to interrogate people, for example. I’m, I have special skills in, in deciding whether people are honest or to be, or, or I should say, whether people are expressing honest statements when they talk.

Um, I use those skills all the time. Uh, sometimes it’s a detriment because sometimes I wish I didn’t know,

Brent Dowlen: or I

Kenneth “Ken” Chadwick: wish I didn’t have the impressions that I have. But I think you will find that talking to people about me, that I’m curious and I’m fair. I’ve-- As an example, when I’m dealing with a new prosecutor, [00:16:00] I tell them I have two rules.

Um, one is, I will never lie to them, ever. And two is, I will never ask them to do something I wouldn’t do if I were in their position. And that’s kind of how I act always. Um, the lawyers are professionals, whether they’re adversarial to me or not. Um, they need to be treated with respect. Again, it doesn’t mean I would be everybody’s friend.

It doesn’t mean I would be everybody’s enemy. People will like and dislike my decisions, I expect. That’s the nature of the business, because in some ways, it is just a zero-sum game. Uh, if a matter comes before the court, one side is gonna be happy with the decision, the other side’s not gonna be happy.

What’s important is that the side that’s unhappy with the decision understands where it came from. Like, that’s what frustrates lawyers a lot, is when, one, a judge [00:17:00] just makes a decision that really isn’t very well-based, or the judge doesn’t do enough to assure that their, uh, statements to assure that their decision is from the right decision-making process.

And I will make every effort to make sure that’s very clear.

Brent Dowlen: Superior court judges may make decisions that profoundly affect someone’s freedom, family, property, or future. How do you approach that responsibility in making a consequential decision when reasonable people could reach different conclusions? Again, I’m gonna go

Kenneth “Ken” Chadwick: back to a basic fact. I have the deepest, broadest experience, period, in this race.

That is a s- matter that cannot be contested, and it can’t be changed. Um, we all [00:18:00] know , uh, the longer we do things and the more complicated things we do tend to guide us to make better decisions each time forward. Um, we... Everybody knows we’ve made decisions we wish we wouldn’t had made before, but the smart people don’t make them twice, and I try to make sure I’m one of those people.

I’ve had enough life. I’ve had enough career in law. I did enough study in law school. I was very high in my, in my law school class. Um, I was fortunate to have good mentorship as a new attorney because strangely enough, the one thing they don’t teach you in law school is how to be a lawyer. They just teach you how to think like a lawyer, which is probably the one thing that irritates most people, ‘cause lawyers do tend to think like lawyers, which is, um, I joke, I think it’s abnormal, quite honestly.

It’s, uh... And [00:19:00] I say that having had a prior career that was not being a lawyer. Uh, I know that five different people looking at the same set of circumstances will likely have five different views of what just happened or what should happen. They will likely all be in some general range, but they’re gonna be different.

Um, we see this, uh, most recently in this Clancy case with the jury, where they had a hung jury. Apparently 11 people believed one thing, and one person didn’t. Undoubtedly, they all sat in the same courtroom, saw the same evidence, but they also brought their own individual life experience to the table when they were in the jury room, and that life experience will determine your decision-making.

Um- So I will [00:20:00] recognize that people will agree with my decisions and will not agree with my decisions. I th- that I think that’s part of human nature, especially when we’re talking about areas of discretion. Um, I will do everything I can to make sure that it’s clear why I’ve made a decision, and I will do everything I can to make sure that I am following the law so that it’s not a decision made imprudently because of the law.

Making a decision different because of opinion or background is a substantially different thing than making a decision that’s actually an error of law. So I, I think I’ll leave it at that.

Brent Dowlen: What is the appropriate balance between following legal precedent and inde- independently interpreting the Washington and United States Constitutions and statutes?

Kenneth “Ken” Chadwick: Okay. Firstly, Superior Court judges don’t interpret, in [00:21:00] most circumstances, if not nearly all circumstances, do not interpret the Washington State Constitution or the US Constitution The Superior Court is required to follow prior court’s decisions, period. If there is a decision that says X, and there’s another decision that says X, then the judge’s decision must be X.

That’s pretty clear. If it’s Y, then the Court of Appeals will most certainly turn that back around and tell the judge, “It’s X, dummy. We already told you that.” Um, now There are areas, I suppose, where there could be an area of first impression that, um, in other words, an area where a prior court has [00:22:00] not interpreted a part of the Washington State Constitution or the Federal Constitution.

Now, granted, after 250 years almost of our, of our s- na- of our Federal Constitution and, well over 100 and change on our Washington Constitution, um, there’s not a lot of those areas. Most things have been litigated, but some things haven’t been. So in the event that a case comes before the court on first impression, that there is no precedent, then the court is gonna be required, and this is how I would handle it, is going to be required to apply, um, canons of interpretation to the Constitution.

Uh, there are particular things that a court should do, um, in these canons, things they shouldn’t do. Um, I won’t go through all of them right now because, quite honestly, they’re minutiae to most people [00:23:00] and confusing. Um, but they’re, they’re braided because they are logical, and we try to follow a lot of Aristotle logic in our law.

Also, though, the court could also look to analogies, things that aren’t exactly what’s before the court, but something that kinda seems similar to figure out how to apply or how to interpret an uninterpreted part of the Constitution. Uh, you could be looking at an issue, for instance, about a red Volkswagen, but there is ac- there’s no cases on red Volkswagens under this, under this part of the Constitution, but there is one about an orange Volkswagen.

So then the court could look and see how closely is orange and red in that particular circumstance, and may have some guidance and interpretation. Um, whatever [00:24:00] decision a court, a trial court, like the Superior Court makes, uh, on a novel argument on the Constitution will undoubtedly be appealed- Mm-hmm ... and an appellate court will look at it.

And an appellate court will have a broader, uh, ability to, um, decide, um, and certainly the Supreme Court of Washington or the Supreme Court of the United States can simply say, “Uh, this is what it means.” Even if there’s been a prior interpretation, the superior courts can, uh, sorry, the supreme courts can tell you what it means.

That’s their job. But as far as the Superior Court, that’s not the job

Brent Dowlen: What role should a judge’s personal values, life experience, and understanding of the community play in judicial decision-making, and where should the boundaries be?

Kenneth “Ken” Chadwick: In the areas of discretion a court’s working with, [00:25:00] the judge’s personal experience and values are where the decisions are coming from, period. And provided that the judge is applying the law properly and coming to an area after proper application of law where there is discretion for the judge to make a decision, the judge will bring forward exactly that, their experiences, um, education, training, and so forth.

Again, um, I go back to my nearly 40 years in, in the courts, 15 in, as a police officer- Yeah ... and sergeant and nearly 24 as an attorney. Um, my background as a business owner of a law firm and other businesses, my marriage of 43 years to my wife, my raising children, [00:26:00] my owning homes, my selling homes, um, these things will formulate my, or should say will help formulate my decision-making in areas of discretion, and that’s irreplaceable.

You simply can’t replace experience and training. It, it’s impossible, um, provided that the person with the experience and training is still growing. And I would suggest that, um, my, um, vast endorsements really do tell you more than I can tell you about my decision-making and my experience. I’ve been endorsed by Washington State Supreme Court Justice Barbara Madsen.

She’s just recently retired. I’ve been endorsed by Washington State Supreme Court Justice Robert [00:27:00] Stevens, who is also retired. I am re- I am, uh, s- endorsed by, um, a local Quincy judge, um, Supreme w- Grant County Supreme Court Judge John Nodell, who retired recently. I am endorsed by three other sitting Supreme Court, uh, uh, sorry, uh, Superior Court j- judges, um, Kittitas County Superior Court Judge James Kirkham Kititas County Supreme Cour- or Superior Court Judge, uh, Chris Herrion, Mason County Superior Court Judge David Stevens, who people may recognize.

He is on the ballot this November for, um, uh, a Washington State Supreme Court justice position. I’ve been endorsed by Grant County sitting District Court Judge Nick Wallace. I’ve been endorsed [00:28:00] by a lot of ... Dr. Lowell Allred, MD, who I know is a very ... Like, everybody in Ephrata knows Lowell. He’s a great guy.

I’ve been endorsed by the Washington State Farm Bureau, and I was just as of last week, I received the recommendation of the Grant County Republican Party. Uh, so I, I think those endorsements speak loudly about my experience and background, um, louder than I can say myself

Brent Dowlen: Good one, Keith.

Kenneth “Ken” Chadwick: Can we stop?

Brent Dowlen: Yeah Criminal cases require judges to consider public safety, defendants’ constitutional rights, victims, statutory requirements, and in some circumstances, rehabilitation. How do you approach balancing those responsibilities while remaining impartial?

Kenneth “Ken” Chadwick: Again, I’m going to start with my extensive [00:29:00] experience, both as in criminal, both as a lawyer defending people. I’ve not now, nor have I ever been a government lawyer. Um, and while I’m on that, people often ask, they’ll ask me, “How can you defend a bunch of guilty people?” I hear that a lot, and it’s interesting because apparently that’s been a comment people have made for years.

‘Cause, I don’t know, had to be 30 years ago, I read Alan Dershowitz’s book, and Alan Dershowitz said, “Whenever I go to parties and everybody’s asking me, ‘How can you defend all these guilty people?’” I’m like, “Wow, nothing’s changed.” And I adopt Alan Dershowitz’s response. While I am defending a defendant, I am also defending the Constitution of the United States of America.

I don’t wanna live in North Korea, where everybody we bring to [00:30:00] the court is guilty. That’s North Korea. Fortunately, we’re not like that. Um, so dealing with the balancing, as I stated before, I’ve w- I, I was a, I’ve been a victim of violent crimes. I was a police officer. I had a literal ax murderer try to kill me one time.

Um, he knew he was an ax murderer, and I didn’t. So I know what it looks like on the other end of the arrow, so to speak I also have, in my experience, both as a police officer and as an attorney, dealt with people that have severe mental illness problems that affect their behavior. So I also recognize that, um, could be a complicating [00:31:00] factor.

Fortunately, our system has a way to address that, um, and we do our best, uh, to address that. I also have seen the ravages of drugs and their relationship to crime. Um, I’ve often told people who don’t realize that they’re paying... they’re buying drugs all the time, I say, “Well, of course you are, because you’re buying insurance.”

If you’re buying auto or house insurance, you’re bu- you’re buying drugs, because auto and house insurance is largely what covers burglary and car prowling thefts, which are almost exclusively because of drugs

So in our system, it’s important for a judge to understand those issues, but the judge is not an advocate. [00:32:00] The judge is a neutral. The prosecutor’s job is to prosecute people. The prosecutor, in most cases, is gonna want the harshest of harsh when they start, and the defense lawyer is gonna want the least harsh.

Uh, at the time a person is either convicted at a trial or comes to the court on a plea to plead guilty, which is the same as a conviction, both parties then, the State of Washington through the prosecutor and the defense lawyer, present to the court reasons why the court should adopt, for instance, an agreement between the parties for sentencing, or if there is no agreement, why the court should sentence at the high end of the range available to the court or at the low end of the range if it’s the defense.

Whether the court should sentence under one of our, um [00:33:00] Alternative sentences. One of them is called DOSA. It’s a drug offender’s, uh, alternative sentence, sentencing alternative DOSA, D-O-S-A. And that allows kind of a medium. That allows a person who demonstrates they’re addicted to drugs and accepts that they’re addicted to drugs and accepts that they will also participate in drug rehabilitation to spend a shorter sentence in jail or the prison and be released home sooner, um, to get them reintegrated.

Um, oftentimes I see the state and defense agreeing to those kinds of things because I think most reasonable people see that drug addiction drives a lot of crime. It’s not an excuse for the crime. Person commits a crime, [00:34:00] they commit a crime. But it is an explanation, and if we could remove the drug addiction, we likely can lower the recidivism, which is really the problem for society.

We don’t need to have people released from prison doing their sentence and getting picked up two weeks later doing the same crime because they want more drugs, right? That’s not helpful to anybody. Um, and it’s not soft on crime by any means to suggest that as alternative sentences are a good method for handling drug offenders.

Um But as a neutral, the judge doesn’t make these recommendations. The parties do, and they advocate for their position, and the judge has to decide whether they’re gonna accept it or not, because there is discretion for the court whether it will allow a dosa sentence, for instance, um, or not. Um, so it requires good advocacy [00:35:00] and good lawyering to get to the spot where a good decision is made.

Um, as a judge, quite honestly, I will rely on, in a lot of cases, good advocacy. I’ll rely on the parties arguing their positions factually and on the law to help me make the decision. But then again, it goes back to my experience, which is the broadest, deepest experience in this race. It’s the nearly 40 years in the courts.

It’s the 43-year marriage, raising two children to adulthood, having grandchildren, owning houses, selling houses, being a police officer, facing criminals straight on, going to victims’ homes and seeing what’s happened. Um, unfortunately, going to dead bodies and seeing what’s happened because of the criminal.

I will [00:36:00] bring all of that experience to bear when I’m deciding on a criminal matter. Um, but again, only within the discretionary ability of the court, because the Sentencing Reform Act in Washington for felony crimes sets out the rules that the courts must follow. Uh, so that’s how I will find my way there is the statute, my experience, and advocacy of the parties to help me understand how I should decide in a, um, area of discretion

Brent Dowlen: Family law, dependency, and juvenile cases can involve highly emotional circumstances and decisions with long-term consequences for children and families. What experience and approach will you bring to these cases?

Kenneth “Ken” Chadwick: I have [00:37:00] a vast experience in family law cases, in child issues and parenting plans, in divorce trials, um, in negotiated resolutions of divorces.

I can tell you that in all the cases I’m involved at, in, they are without a doubt the most emotionally charged. People As I’ve said many times, when a person’s emotions go up, their intellect goes down. They simply make poor choices if they’re emotional. Um, that’s why husbands and wives will say things to each other in an argument that they would never have said if they weren’t angry.

Um, my job as a litigator in representing people in these matters has always been to be the objective person, even if my client is [00:38:00] unable to. And I’m not saying that derogatorily towards the client. It’s just that in areas particularly involving children, emotions can run right over the top of logic. And I’ve always made it a, um, standard to be the one that creates the objectivity, to be able to explain to my client that although they see it one way, it could be seen a different way.

As a judge, I will bring that to bear because in the family law court, which is a court of equity, not a court of law, meaning that the judge’s job is to do justice, has the broadest discretion of all the issues in a court. The court has to decide how is property gonna be separated, and that may well [00:39:00] change the lives of the parties forever.

Well, likely will, because everybody will have a different starting spot once the divorce decree comes in. The entry of a parenting plan will define the parental relationship with the children and the relationship between the parents until the children are out of high school or turn 18. This has a dramatic effect.

I’ve dealt with those. I understand those issues. I’ve litigated those issues. I’m completely prepared to take on those issues on day one and make decisive act- acts. Um, one of the things I often hear is, “How will you make tough decisions?” Well, my answer to that’s pretty simple, frankly, is I’ve always had to make tough decisions.

I don’t know that anybody makes tougher, quick [00:40:00] decisions than police officers. Police officers are faced with a set of facts that’s often only partly known, that is Somewhat evident and somewhat not evident, and that is fast-moving, and that requires an immediate solution to stop whatever’s happening.

I’ve made those decisions for a living. Um, being a judge, you’re making a decision, but fortunately you’re not making it in a split second. You’re getting more information, and if you don’t have enough information, you can ask for more. Um, so the decision for the judge, frankly, is actually easier than a police officer’s decision in most cases, because there’s more information available.

Uh, but making decisions is just something that I do. It’s in my nature. Um, I recognize that everybody won’t like my decision. Some people will, some people won’t, but I will just hope that they understand my [00:41:00] decision, which I think is more important than whether they like it or not

Brent Dowlen: Many people enter Superior Court without an attorney and may have little understanding of court procedures.

What responsibility does a judge have to make the courtroom understandable and accessible while remaining neutral and not becoming an advocate for either side?

Kenneth “Ken” Chadwick: People do bef- come before the court in what we call pro se, means without a lawyer. A person that appears pro se before the court is expected, and under the law, required to follow the same rules as an attorney.

Now, that’s difficult because they don’t know the rules usually. Now, I don’t say, I don’t say that with a broad brush because I’ve seen some pro se litigants that are really sharp, and they have obviously done their homework and studied it, and they get it. But most of the time, it tends to be a problem of [00:42:00] the pro se litigant not knowing what they don’t know, which is how you get in trouble.

It’s like a blind man walking through a room full of torches and trying not to run into them. But on the other side, you’ve got a lawyer that has the lights on and can see all of the torches- Mm ... because he knows the law. Now, it’s important that the court, particularly in a criminal matter, um, that the court makes sure that the defendant’s rights u- under the Constitution are protected.

Because those rights are there whether they have a lawyer or not. Um, it’s important in a civil case that the procedures are followed, um, whether they have a lawyer or not. It’s also, in my opinion, important for the party that has the lawyer that the pro se person is [00:43:00] held to the same standard. Because what can happen, and I’ve seen this, is a person without a lawyer frankly does not know the system, which I wouldn’t if I wasn’t a lawyer either, and they do things that can derail the process and cost the other side who has a lawyer more money.

Mm. Because they’re having to have their lawyer come back to more, more, um, hearings that shouldn’t have been necessary, that wouldn’t have happened if the person had a lawyer. Um, so I think it’s also important that courts do require that pro se persons meet the standards of a lawyer and the rules of a lawyer, because that’s the law.

And it’s fairness. Uh, I once had a law professor, um, talk about what is fairness. And I think she had, [00:44:00] in my opinion, the best description of it. Because fairness is unmeasurable in most people’s thought. I mean, know that we, we raised our children, when they would say, “That’s not fair,” we would tell them, “The fair is in Puyallup in the summer.”

Right? Because life’s not fair, right? But fairness under the law, as this professor said, and I think it’s a great explanation, is justice is done if the rules are followed and the evidence laws are followed. Whatever the result is, is justice. It’s fair. You don’t have to like it, but that’s fairness because we’ve spent...

In the United States, we’ve, our, our, our laws go back 600, 700 years on common law into England, and so we’ve had centuries to develop what’s fair. But you gotta follow the rules to get there. Not following them is not fair, and you- [00:45:00] court can’t allow a pro se person to not follow the law But like I said, with a criminal defendant, there are other issues.

Uh, in fact, with a criminal defendant, the law requires that a judge have a colloquy or a discussion with the person advising them basically that, yes, they have a right to represent themselves, but it’s not a very good idea because the prosecutor is a lawyer, and... But yet some people still say they’re gonna do it themselves.

Um, and that’s their right. But it should not get in the way of justice for either side because one person, one side or the other does not wanna hire a lawyer

Brent Dowlen: Justice requires careful consideration, but lengthy delays can also have serious consequences for defendants, victims, families, civil litigants.

How would you balance thorough-thoroughness with the need to move the case through the [00:46:00] Grant County court system efficiently?

Kenneth “Ken” Chadwick: I’ll go back to the rules governing the Superior Court, whether in civil, I think we’re talking about here, there’s a whole set of civil rules. There’s a set of local civil rules that are adopted by the Superior Court. The state civil rules are set down by the Washington State Supreme Court. Every Superior Court has to follow those, but each Superior Court gets its own, um, ability to make its own local rules, provided they’re not inconsistent with the state rules.

So you can’t... A, a local court can’t change something, but they can expand on it or make it more explanatory, um, which I would suggest is helpful. Um, our court in Grant County over the last year has introduced some new rules that are set to [00:47:00] local rules that are intended to make things more efficient. I will continue that process.

I’ve litigated in Grant County for nearly 20 years. I know intimately the things that bottleneck the system, and there are ways to, um, relieve that, which could also reduce the cost of litigation to litigants. Um, something that I’ve noticed in my, um, nearly 24 years of law is that the courts are always talking about judicial efficiency, the cost of legal, the cost of, uh, legal representation, but they’ve not always done much to help that.

Um, and there needs to be, and there are some rules that could change that. For example, some Superior Courts in our state, uh, don’t [00:48:00] allow oral argument on general motions in civil court. Motions for things related to discovery or things, you know, not, eh... They just have the lawyers, um, file briefs on a time schedule, and then the judge can review them and make a written decision.

There’s no oral argument. On important issues, like something called summary judgment in a civil matter, which is called a dispositive motion, it could end the case. So a defendant may move for summary judgment saying, um, “Court, we have no liability to this person. Please dismiss.” Or a plaintiff could say, um, “Judge, the defendant is a mat- as a matter of law res- liable to us.

Please find that they’re liable, and then we’ll go find out how much to a jury.” [00:49:00] So it can stop or All or part of the case. Those cases should have oral argument because they’re effectively the litigant’s day in court to some extent, because everything could end, right? And we wouldn’t wanna ever take that away.

Um, but potentially looking at not having oral argument on non-dispositive motions would free up the court and would save tens of thousands of dollars. For example, a simple motion in a s- in a civil case, say a motion to, um, compel the other side to give you materials that you’re entitled to under the law, probably costs around three to fi- $3,500 to $4,000.

By the time that the lawyer has drafted all [00:50:00] of the pleadings and has then appeared at court and argued it, the docket may have 10 to 20 to 25 things on it the court has to address. The, the litigant’s lawyer would have to be there at 9:00 in the morning. They may not even get heard until, till 11:00. So two hours they’re paying their lawyer to sit and look at the walls.

But the lawyer’s entitled to that because they’re not doing something else, so it is what they’ve bargained for, but it’s money that could be avoid, avoid being spent. Um, so I think those are ways to address the bottlenecking. Things I don’t have enough information about yet, but I will, are how the dockets are arranged and if there is any tailoring that could make them run more smoothly.

[00:51:00] But in our court, there are three judges, and there’s a presiding and superior... in, uh, criminal and a presiding in civil and a presiding in juvenile. But, um, I have a, a good relationship with the current elected judges. I expect that I would be able to work with them very well to bring forth any changes that I think are appropriate or at least get them to consider my, my views

Brent Dowlen: If elected, what changes, if any, would you want to explore in the administration and operation of the Grant County Superior Court, and why?

Kenneth “Ken” Chadwick: All right. The Grant County Superior Court’s administration is generally guided by the Washington State Supreme Court. The Washington State Supreme Court issues [00:52:00] rules that govern superior courts. The, in the case of our court, that would be the civil rules, the criminal rules- ... the juvenile rules, and then there’s a series of other rules for special issues, for instance, family law or minor guardianship settlements and things like that, that are different.

Then the local court can itself publish local rules that are just as enforceable as the state’s, and the local rules can be used to tailor a particular county’s administration. So for instance, what works in Seattle may not well work in Grant County, and what works in Grant County may not work in Asotin County.

So it allows the local courts to create rules to be more efficient and to fit what the judges think would [00:53:00] be the best way to handle the court. I should mention that if the Superior Court, it does have authority to issue rules. When it does, it generally, or every time I’ve seen, actually, publishes the proposed rule to the local bar association, the Grant County Bar Association, to ask the lawyers, “Do you have any input on this?”

Because a lawyer might look at it and go, “Well, that doesn’t make any sense. You know, did you consider this?” Right? Because it’s always better to have some different perspectives, but it doesn’t take the right of the court to make the decision away, but it gives the court an ability to address things it may not have thought about.

Now, our court has done well over the last year of adding some new local rules that I think will address some of the efficiency and administration issues. But there are other things I think could be addressed. [00:54:00] For example, um, the court currently in the civil arena, civil court, um, has a motion calendar that lawyers handling civil matters file motions.

Excuse me. And then-

The, after all of the pleadings are filed by both sides, there’s an oral argument, uh, at, before the judge. Some counties have local court rules that don’t have any oral argument. So it reduces the cost to the litigants because you don’t have to pay your lawyer to appear at court for you. Excuse me. And where our court, for instance, is in, um, Ephrata, say a Moses Lake lawyer is gonna have an hour round trip drive, plus they may spend two hours or more [00:55:00] at the court waiting to have their order heard.

Uh, their, actually their motion heard. And when you add up all of the cost of the motion, it could be 3,000, 3,500, $4,000 for a motion. It’s very expensive. By having non, uh, no oral argument on non-dispositive motions, I’ll talk about that in a minute, um, it does two things. It could reduce the cost of litigation, which the courts always preach that they want to have efficiency in the law and reduce cost of litigation, but they seldom do anything about it, and that’s not a shine on our Grant County Court, that’s just courts in general.

And in fact, as I said, the Grant County Court has actually taken a couple shots at that recently to help.

Excuse [00:56:00] me. So that’s a way to move that forward. Now, in the criminal... Oh, let me go back for a minute. One of the other advantages to something like that is it takes a docket away from the court, so it makes the court’s ability to address issues more efficient. Mm-hmm. And it, at least it could well do that.

And because the court doesn’t have to wait until Friday at 9:00 to answer, uh, its decision on a motion. Um, in counties that have those types of rules without oral argument, the litigants can set a hearing date, quote-unquote, ‘cause there’s not actually a hearing, for any day of the week and file all the papers on a particular schedule.

Then it goes to the judge that’s handling them, and the judge makes a decision and enters a ju- decision on the motions without having a hearing. So that could [00:57:00] happen any day of the week. At the same time, removing that requirement to the judge be in a courtroom on that day. Something that people, and I think sometimes lawyers miss, is that while a judge, um, is only maybe in the courtroom for a couple hours, they may have spent eight hours preparing, reading everything, trying to get prepared for the hearing.

Uh, that’s time that they can’t schedule anything else. Now, I said I would come back to, like, dispositive motions. I would never want a rule that adjusted argument on dispositive motions. Those in civil law are called summary judgment motions. Those are the parties’ day in court. That’s where one party or the other is asking the court to dismiss the lawsuit or to dismiss parts of it or to, uh, find for the plaintiff on parts of it without a trial.

Um, [00:58:00] so on a motion for summary judgment, you have oral argument. That may well be that litigant’s only time to be in court. Mm-hmm. And we would never wanna take that away from a person

Brent Dowlen: A voter is sitting at their kitchen table with a ballot and has never met you. What do you want the voter to understand about the kind of judge you would be if entrusted with the Grant County Superior Court Position 3?

Kenneth “Ken” Chadwick: Well, I’m gonna be a judge that is going to work from the broadest, deepest experience level in this race.

I have an experience level that is unsurpassed in this race. I was a police officer and sergeant for 15 years before becoming a lawyer. I’ve been a lawyer for almost 24 years, always a litigator, so I’ve always been in the courts. I have been a lawyer in Grant County since 2007. Mm-hmm. [00:59:00] I’ve owned a law firm or been in partnership in a law firm since 2009.

I have done literally everything there is to do in Grant County courts, um, Superior and District Court, whether it be criminal felony matters, high l- high-valued civil matters, juvenile matters, family law, divorces, parenting matters. I’ve done all those things. I’ve also practiced in the Court of Appeals in Washington.

I’ve also practiced in both, uh, federal courts in Washington, the East- Eastern District of Washington and the, um, Western District of Washington I’ve been, besides a law firm owner, I’ve also just been a business owner prior to my legal career. So I understand how the world works. I understand what faces people.

I [01:00:00] understand what’s important to people. I’ve been appointed by the Grant County Superior Court over the years as a pro tem commissioner, meaning that it’s a part-time judge handling Superior Court matters. For example, I’ve handled matters in the, um, uh, domestic violence arena and the, um, parenting matters with the parental rights issues.

I’ve also been appointed as an arbitrator regularly to, uh, handle matters as an arbitrator, which is kind of like a relaxed courtroom. We literally have the arbitration at my office. The litigates, litigants come in, make their arguments, call their, I call their witnesses. I swear people in. I listen to the testimony, and I make a decision, just as a Superior Court judge would.

And the s- and the decision is binding unless the, uh, litigant chooses [01:01:00] to ask for a trial thereafter, and there’s some restrictions on that. I have also been appointed numerous times by the Su- uh, Superior Court in Grant County to be a guardian ad litem in settlement matters for minors. I, I have... In my personal life, my background is law.

It’s, uh, not only law enforcement and the legal profession in my adult life, but I’ve also been married forty-three years to the same woman who I met in high school. And there’s a lot of those around, but we’re one of them. We have two boys that are, when you say boys, they’re men now, and they’re forty and thirty-nine.

Um, they’ve brought us three grandchildren. Um, I’ve experienced life. Uh, I’ve experienced it completely. The voters should recognize that my, uh, look [01:02:00] at the law is constitutional textual approach to the law. I think the Constitution means just what it says. Judges should not be legislating from the bench.

They should make decisions on the law. I will display empathy, compassion, and fairness in my decision-making. I will require integrity and accountability to the court. I will treat all people that come to the court as valued, whether those are lawyers, uh, litigants, jurors, witnesses, or what have you. If they’re in court, they’re important.

If they have a purpose in court, they need to be heard, and I will afford that My real-world experience has caused me to be privileged enough to get numerous [01:03:00] endorsements that I would suggest say more about my background than I could ever say. I am endorsed by two Washington State Supreme Court justices, Barbara Madsen, who just recently retired, and Richard Stevens just retired.

I’m endorsed by four Superior Court judges, um, John Nodell, who’s right here from Quincy, um, who’s retired from the Superior Court bench. He’s one of my, um, biggest supporters. He’s actually participated in the parades with me, and he’s a great man. I am endorsed by two sitting, uh, Kittitas County Superior Court judges, James Kirkham and Chris Herrion, who I have known for, as a litigator, I’ve known for years, James.

I’ve known him for a long time. And by Mason County Superior Court Judge David Stevens, who people might recognize his, uh, name [01:04:00] because he is currently a candidate for the Washington State Supreme Court. I am also endorsed by a sitting district court judge, Nicholas Wallace, Grant County. I’m endorsed by Dr.

Lowell Allred, MD, who people in Ephrata certainly know him. I’m proud to have his recommendation. He’s a good man. Because of my background, particularly in ag work and agricultural work and working with farmers and ranchers, I’m endorsed by the Washington State Farm Bureau. And I just last week received the recommendation of the Grant County Republican Party Central Committee as their, uh, judge candidate of choice I am proud and humbled by those endorsements.

I am proud that they have recognized my life’s work [01:05:00] and my dedication to the system, the court judicial system, uh, and recognize that I’m prepared to be a Superior Court judge. That’s important to me, and it should be important to voters. Judge races are difficult. Uh, ask any attorney, because all attorneys are asked by their friends and family, “Who should I vote for for judge?”

Because nobody knows judges. And judges are unlike other candidates. They can’t make statements about their positions, so to speak, because it’s not legal. Judges can’t say how they would decide things because it’s not legal and it’s not proper. Um, judges can only tell you about their background and experience and their view of the law, and they should be judged on who endorses them, because those are the people that actually [01:06:00] know.

And in this race, my endorsements are unmatched, uh, by my opponent, who my opponent is a good man. He’s actually a friend. But he’s just simply not... does not have the degree of preparedness that I do on any standard that one would apply. So I would just ask that the voters, um, look at my background, look at my experience, and look at those people that have endorsed me and their backgrounds to come to the conclusion that I am the right candidate for this position.

Thank you.

Brent Dowlen: Thank you

Website Bio (condensed)

Kenneth “Ken” Chadwick has lived and practiced law in Grant County since 2007. Before becoming an attorney, Chadwick spent 15 years in law enforcement as a police officer and sergeant. He has nearly 24 years of experience as a litigating attorney and has owned or partnered in a Grant County law firm since 2009.

Chadwick’s legal experience includes criminal defense, complex civil litigation, family law and juvenile cases in Grant County District and Superior Courts. He has also practiced before the Washington Court of Appeals and federal courts in Washington. The Grant County Superior Court has appointed him to serve as a pro tem commissioner, arbitrator and guardian ad litem in settlement matters involving minors.

Chadwick has been married for 43 years and has two adult sons and three grandsons. He also provides pro bono legal assistance to veterans through the Washington State Attorney General’s Veterans Program and has provided legal assistance to animal rescue organizations. He is seeking election to Grant County Superior Court Position 3.

Website: https://kenchadwickforjudge.com

Facebook: Facebook

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This interview is presented as part of our commitment to providing accessible, local information to the community. All candidates in the 2026 Grant County Auditor’s race were given the same questions, in the same format, and the opportunity to share their perspectives directly.

The responses published here are the candidate’s own words, presented without editing, interpretation, or commentary beyond basic transcription. Audio recordings are provided alongside transcripts to ensure full transparency.

Welcome to Quincy WA News does not endorse, support, or oppose any candidate. Our role is to provide information so residents of Grant County—including the 98848 communities—can make informed decisions based on their own judgment.

I interviewed 2 candidates for the Grant County  Superior Court Judge race for 2026.

• Both Candidates were invited to be interviewed

• Both Candidates responded were asked the exact same 16 questions in the exact same order

• They never saw each others answers

• The answers have not been altered, edited, modified, editorialized, changed, or edited in any way by the staff, ownership, or affiliates of this publication.

• For each I have posted the transcript, not a story, their words. (transcripts by AI)

• For each I have posted the audio from the interview.

• A full list of the questions

• Below the interviews I will post their posted bio from their candidate website, their sign and a link to their website and or FaceBook

The Interview Begins Here

Trevor Bevier Interview Audio File

Trevor Bevier Interview Grant County  Superior Court Judge Race for 2026

Brent Dowlen: [00:00:00] For voters who don’t know you, tell us about yourself, your connection to Grant County, and the experiences that led you to seek seat on the Supreme Court bench, or sorry, Superior Court bench.

Trevor Bevier: Yes. Uh, uh, my name is Trevor Bevier. Um, I grew up here at Grant County. Uh, graduated Ephrata High School. Um, I worked, uh, in the summer, uh, around farms and construction business.

Uh, after high school, I went to, uh, Big Bend Community College, got my associate’s degree. I went to work for a title insurance company in Moses Lake, where I spent 10 years, um, writing high-liability agriculture and commercial real estate title insurance policies. Um, I left, uh, the title business to obtain my bachelor’s degree, Central Washington University, and then my law degree from Gonzaga.

As soon as I got those, I returned back home to Grant County. Um, I joined a law firm in Moses Lake, where I was in private practice for 14 years. Uh, and, uh, left private practice to join the prosecuting attorney’s office as a civil deputy prosecuting attorney. Grant County’s been my home, um, my [00:01:00] entire life.

Only left long enough to go to schools that weren’t here in Grant County, and then, uh, and then came back. Um, it’s a community I love and, and, uh, it’s near and dear to my heart.

Brent Dowlen: What part of your legal career has best prepared you to handle the broad range of criminal, civil, family, juvenile, and other cases that come before the Grant County Superior Court judge?

Trevor Bevier: I think the entirety of my legal career has done that. Um, first and foremost, I’ve been exposed to a lot of different areas throughout my career. Um, even before becoming an attorney working in the title insurance industry, uh, I’ve spent a lot of time reviewing property records, uh, analyzing documents, uh, making sure transactions, um, were able to be insured, would close into the practice of law.

The broad range of, of practice ranging from civil litigation, real estate, both transactional and litigation, probates, wills, estates, uh, guardianships, [00:02:00] um, criminal matters, family law matters, uh, run the gambit that, uh, that has been there. Additionally, at the prosecuting attorney’s office right now, I advise the elected officials in Grant County.

I handle the outside litigation that, that the county’s involved in. Um, so I, I’ve done it all. I’ve sat in all the chairs. I’ve prosecuted cases. I’ve defended cases. I’ve been on the plaintiff side, been on the defendant side. Uh, so I understand everyone that’s going to come into that court, what they’re going to be presenting to the court and where they’re coming from.

That coupled with my experience here in Grant County, growing up here, I understand the people, I understand the issues that they’re facing, and, uh, I think all of that prepares me to sit on the bench to hear cases, um, ensure that parties are heard, and dec- decisions are rendered fairly.

Brent Dowlen: What do you believe is the proper role of a superior court judge?

And just as importantly, what is not the role of a judge?

Trevor Bevier: So the superior court judge sits as a trial court, uh, [00:03:00] mainly. So they’re going to hear cases that are brought, uh, cases involving real property, um, uh, money disputes. They’re going to hear, uh, criminal case, felony matters. Um, they’re going to hear domestic matters.

So they’re going to be, um, settling disputes. As a trial court, you’re going to, uh, take in evidence. Um, you will serve both as the trier of fact in a bench trial, and then you’ll serve as, uh, making evidentiary rulings in a jury trial, uh, ensuring the jury instructions, um, are proper so cases can be decided.

That process is also preparing a transcript if the parties disagree with the decision so they can go to an appeal. So it might not be the end decision that’s there, but it’s important to ensure that there’s a proper record, um, evidence was admitted properly, so it can be considered by an appellate court in the event the parties disagree with the ruling.

They can go to the court of appeals, and if they still disagree with the decision, they can appeal to the superior-- to the supreme court, excuse [00:04:00] me. Additionally, the superior court serves as, uh, an appellate court for district court decisions. So just like a superior court is a trial court, district court, um, is a court of limited jurisdiction, is a trial court for those matters that it can hear, and parties that disagree with the decision can appeal to the, um, superior court.

Um, in that role, it is to, um, listen to the facts, make, apply the rules of evidence, um, and issue a decision. The, the court is bound by, uh, decisions of higher courts. As I mentioned, the Courts of Appeals and the Supreme Court, they issue written decisions that guide the court. So the court has, uh, that law to follow along with the statutes.

And so the court’s job is to take in the facts, interpret the, uh, case law and the statutes, and issue a ruling. It’s not to substitute its own judgment. It’s not to, um, uh, make decisions, try to make policy. Um, that’s for the, the other courts to decide, the higher courts, [00:05:00] uh, whether or not precedent should be overturned

Brent Dowlen: How would you describe your judicial philosophy, particularly when the law, legal precedent, and your own personal beliefs may point in different directions?

Trevor Bevier: So I- my judicial philosophy would probably be closest to a textual, um, philosophy. Uh, words matter. The words are written for a reason. Um, and so the, the first thing is, is to find out what is written. Um-

If it, if that’s not enough, then you start looking to, um, you know, other cases trying to analyze, uh, things. But that’s what guides it ultimately at the end of the day is, is what the law, the applicable law is, what the facts are. Um, uh, Justice Antonin Scalia was, um, a, a model to me, and, uh, I appreciated his approach going to the text and, um, looking at the [00:06:00] law and ultimately applying it.

So as a trial court, the best thing you can do at that point, if there’s something that’s, you know, there’s no decision on point, would be to take what you have and look at the law and apply it, uh, to the best that you can. Um, ultimately, if it’s one of those decisions, it’s not gonna stop with the Su- the Superior Court, right?

I mean, it’s, it’s-- party’s going to appeal it. There’s cases that get filed that you just know are going all the way to the top court, uh, be it the Supreme Court of the State of Washington or, or the US Supreme Court. Um, and so the role of the judge at that point, regardless of, of whatever my personal beliefs are, is to apply the facts as given, apply the law as given, render the best decision you can, make the best transcript you can for the appeal.

So, um, ultimately a, a decision can be rendered once it works through the appellate process.

Brent Dowlen: Judges sometimes have significant discretion within the boundaries of established law. What principles should guide a judge when exercising this, that [00:07:00] discretion?

Trevor Bevier: So I think the, um, fairness, uh, is ultimately one that should guide, right? I mean, what should happen in a given situation? What is, is fair, um, to the parties?

You know, we can look at, uh, um, decision... Sorry, the fly is, uh, there. We can look at, um, you know, uh, what’s right and what’s wrong, um, ultimately whenever it comes down to that discretion. Um, discretion, uh, that comes to mind is in, uh, domestic matters is, um, you know, we can talk about the best interest of a child is, is looking through, um, hearing the facts of the parties, hearing the circumstances and, and trying to apply what’s, you know, best for the child.

There’s a, a lot of discretion, um, that judges have in that situation. A lot of times parties disagree with that, you know, and that’s why we have the appellate process. But ultimately looking at what right, what’s best for the parties after listening intently and treating everyone with respect [00:08:00] so that you have the ability to exercise that discretion.

Brent Dowlen: Just for the transcript and the record, guys, if we break up, it’s, we’re being dive bombed by this fly that will not go away. So if something sounds funny or off for a second, it’s, we’re being dive bombed by this very focused fly who-

Trevor Bevier: It,

Brent Dowlen: it is- ... wants to mess with us.

Trevor Bevier: It is attacking, that’s for sure.

Brent Dowlen: What does judicial temperament mean to you, and how would people who have worked with you or against you describe your temperament when circumstances become contentious or s- sorry, contentious or sal- stressful?

Trevor Bevier: So ju- judicial temperament means, um, keeping a level head, listening intently, treating parties with respect, but still applying the rules, um, and applying the law fairly. Um, I believe that I’ve earned a reputation for having a level head, um, being calm in complex situations, and acting [00:09:00] intently, and, and really thinking and analyzing the facts before just acting.

Um, not coming off the handle, not, um, acting irrationally. And I think there’s also a degree of humility within that. As a judge, you exercise, um, a lot of, uh, authority over the parties. They’re coming in, they have a dispute, they’re looking for someone to, um, resolve that, and so there’s, there needs to be a, a, uh-

Sorry, getting attacked by this fly is, um, there needs to be a, a degree of humility, um, that’s in there and recognizing that the parties are, are coming to you, uh, to resolve their matter. Um, a- and so that, that’s where the temperament comes in and, and being able to recognize that in a emotionally charged situation that you can still receive the facts necessary, you can still apply the law as required, and you can still issue a decision that, [00:10:00] um, um, that is, is fair and, and, uh, equitable under the law.

Brent Dowlen: You didn’t know I brought in the fly just to, you know- ... put you on the spot, right?

Trevor Bevier: Yeah. Yeah. It’s, uh, I didn’t know we’d be battling that this morning.

Brent Dowlen: Superior Court judges make, may make decisions that profoundly affect someone’s freedom, family, property, or future. How do you approach that responsibility of making a consequential decision when reasonable people could reach a different conclusion?

Trevor Bevier: Well, and I, I think that, uh, going back to one of the answers is i- if it’s a matter that reasonable individuals could reach a different conclusion, that’s a matter that could be ripe for an appeal. If a party disagrees with the decision, um, you know, then, then that’s their, their right to do that, and that certainly happens.

I know over the course of my career I’ve, uh, haven’t agreed with decisions that judges have made and taken it to the appellate level. Um, but as far as approaching, um, those as, as a court, I think it’s, it, it’s simple, is you listen [00:11:00] intently to the individuals as they’re presenting their case. You treat everyone with dignity and respect.

Um, you apply the law fairly to the facts that you’ve received in, and then you issue a decision, um, in a timely manner. And if parties are heard and the law has been applied in a fair manner, they can disagree with it, but they have two things: one, they feel like they’ve been heard, and two, they have, uh, a transcript that if they disagree with the decision, then, um, they can appeal it, uh, and go through to a higher court.

Brent Dowlen: What is the appropriate balance between following legal precedent and independently interpreting the Washington and United States Constitutions and statutes?

Trevor Bevier: So courts are bound by the principle of stare decisis, which is previous decisions shall control. And so, um, on, uh, a lot of issues the court is going to face, you’re going to have the law as written, which the court is, is going to be bound to apply.

Um, and then you’re going to have [00:12:00] judicial decisions that are going to guide that. And so the first part, especially the, the Superior Court, is they’re gonna be bound by the courts of appeals, um, and the, uh, the court, uh, excuse me, Washington, uh, State Supreme Court, and, um, you know, the US Supreme Court decisions.

So those are going to be important. If I disagree with the decision on that, uh, but there’s controlling precedent, then I’m bound to follow that precedent regardless of, of my personal belief. And so it, it-- going back to the words matter, um, that I mentioned earlier, reading the cases and applying the law fairly, um, that’s the role of the court.

If parties disagree with that, that’s where the attorneys and the parties have the ability to appeal a decision. If they think a case is wrongly decided, then it needs to work up through the court of appeals and ultimately to the Supreme Court for consideration of change of that analysis. But that’s the role of the parties and the attorneys, not the roles of the, uh, uh, Superior Court judge.

Brent Dowlen: What role should a judge’s personal [00:13:00] values, life experiences, and understanding of community play in judicial decision-making, and where should boundaries be?

Trevor Bevier: So I think all those apply to the judge’s ability to take in facts and apply decisions, being able to understand where a party is coming from whenever they’re listening for facts and establishing what is going to be applied to the case whenever they’re a finder of fact.

In a jury situation, the jury is going to be the finder of fact at that point. So the jury is going to be making those particular decisions, but the judge has the role of ruling on evidentiary objections to make sure that the evidence that the jury is hearing is actually proper under the rules, you know, which is very important because if evidence is admitted improperly or excluded improperly, that’s grounds to overturn.

And now all of a sudden we’re redoing this again because there was an error that was made. So that’s an important step along the way. [00:14:00] I think a judge’s sense of right and wrong is important because that is helpful in determining how the law is applied.

I think at the end of the day, most laws are written with a sense of what’s right and what’s wrong. That’s how society functions. And so if you have that barometer to help gauge within that, I think it aids in making those decisions. But ultimately, at the end of the day, the role of the judge is to apply the law as it’s written and make a record.

And if there’s changes within that, then the parties have the ability to take it to appellate courts.

Brent Dowlen: Criminal cases require judges to consider public safety, defendants’ constitutional rights, victims, statutory requirements, and in some circumstances, rehabilitation. How do you approach balancing those responsibilities while remaining impartial?[00:15:00]

Trevor Bevier: That’s a great question. Um, so as far as the criminal matters, the, the judges, um, have certain boundaries they have to follow, especially one, uh, at various stages of criminal proceeding. Whenever you talk about bail, the initial appearance, they have, um, boundaries that they have to follow as far as, uh, what they can do, conditions they can impose, uh, and other things.

And those are important safety considerations because if you have someone that’s, that’s charged with a serious crime that poses a, a public safety risk, then it’s important to, to balance that. But you have to act within those boundaries because if you don’t, um, then you, uh, you run the risk of having an appeal.

You run the risk of, of, uh, delaying those proceedings further, um, in order to have justice administered. So, um, you have to, to look at the facts, um, listen, apply the law intently. Uh, as it’s coming through on sentencing, the same thing, is you have sentencing guidelines and, and statutory [00:16:00] guidelines and case law that set boundaries on what you can or can’t do.

Um, you know, so again, that, that all comes through as, as applying the law to the facts and making sure that it’s diligent and, uh, rendering those decisions based upon the facts in front of you. But, you know, ultimately following the facts is, is, and the law is, is the most important thing that you have at that point

Brent Dowlen: Family law, dependency and juvenile cases can involve highly emotional circumstances and decisions with long-term consequences for children and families. What experience and approach will you bring to those cases?

Trevor Bevier: So while I was in private practice, the firm I did had a very robust family law practice.

Um, and I, uh, assisted with the numerous trials and briefing on issues ranging from relocation matters, um, to, uh, you know, full custody matters to, um, [00:17:00] division of assets, things like that. Domestic matters are incredibly emotionally charged. And, um, you know, the laws are also written, um, with the intent to be, you know, fair and equitable between the parties.

Um, it requires calmness and it requires diligence with taking in the facts necessary, um, to establish, okay, how do we, how do we divide assets? How, who is going to be the primary, uh, custodian of the children? What’s going to be in their best interest? Um, and, and being able to treat people with respect so they, they can take that temperature down a little bit and try to take the emotion out to, to go, um, you know, here’s, here’s what is really important whenever it comes to rendering this decision for this child.

It, it, and so I think that’s important and, and having a, um, a calm temperament and, you know, really [00:18:00] letting the balancing act of, of letting the party tell their story and, and so they’re heard, but at the same time, making sure the important facts are, are actually considered in getting to, uh, the core of the issue and, and sorting through the noise, uh, to be able to get to the parties to where they can, they can move on with their lives, I, I think is the most important fact.

And, and it, it’s, it’s difficult. Those are emotionally charged, uh, situations and, and they’re, they’re tolling on an individual, but having the ability to work through complex situations with calmness and a level head, um, is how you do that.

Brent Dowlen: Many people enter the Superior Court without an attorney and may have very little understanding of court procedures.

What responsibility does the judge have to make the courtroom understandable and, and accessible while remaining neutral and not becoming an advocate for either side?

Trevor Bevier: That’s a great question. Um, and so the, the court, um, has-- a-and when I talk about the court, I’m talking about the, the Washington [00:19:00] State courts.

They have on their website resources and, and, uh, for pro se litigants. Um, it’s important that they have those resources, and they, they are able to, um, look at, uh, you know, have access to the rules if they want to proceed on their own, have access to, to resources that are available to them. Um, regardless, pro se litigants are also bound by the same rules as anyone else walking through the courtroom, and they, um, uh, so the rules of evidence still apply to them.

The rules of procedure still apply to them. Um, and so it, it’s important to have that baseline, um, that’s out there. But, uh, you know, the, the courts having that information available, whether it be, you know, posted in the, in the, uh, clerk’s office, which some of those resources are, especially the, uh, when you talk about, um, unlawful detainer cases, eviction cases, um, they have, uh, information posted for, um, the Northwest Justice Project who the [00:20:00] individuals can, um, reach out to for free legal, um, assistance and, and making sure that, uh, you know, those resources are available either through the court website or, or through the resources there at the courthouse.

Um, but it’s not the, the court’s job to get them in touch with those individuals. It’s just to have that information available. Um, because the balancing side of that is, is, is if you have one side that shows up prepared, ready to comply with the rules and argue their case, but they’re, you know, having unreasonable continuances because another party, um, has that, then it’s unfair to that party.

So it’s, it’s important to be fair to both parties, have those resources available, but cases still have to be heard.

Brent Dowlen: Justice is... Sorry, justices. That was good English. Justice requires careful consideration, but lengthy delays can also have serious consequences for defendants, victims, families, civil litigants. How would you balance thoroughness with the need to move cases through the Grant County Court system [00:21:00] efficiently?

Trevor Bevier: That’s also a great question because I’ve, I’ve been through that in, in other courts, uh, to where you’ve been bumped for, uh, whatever reason. You may have been preparing for, um, a summary judgment hearing, and you’ve requested a court date, and then all of a sudden, the week before you’re to be heard, um, it’s stricken because there’s another matter and there’s not a judge available.

And so that’s just kind of the reset side of it and whatnot. So, um, part of that is, is, is being efficient with the work, um, and having that work ethic to, to really look through the cases. So I mean, being a, a superior court judge is not an 8:00 to 5:00, 9:00 to 5:00 job. Um, you know, it, it takes more than that to prepare for a docket.

It takes more than that whenever you’re going through trial. Um, my work history in private practice, putting in those hours that it takes to, um, advocate effectively for clients and my current role as a deputy prosecuting attorney requires work outside of the 8:00 to 5:00 in order to perform the job effectively.

Ultimately, [00:22:00] the, the goal is, is to, um, be prepared for every case that you can, um, and be able to listen to cases, hear them, issue, uh, decisions, and that requires a lot of work, a lot of diligence, and a lot of effort. My work ethic was forged here in Grant County. Um, it, it’s something I take pride in and something that, uh, I would bring to the bench to be able to work through those matters.

Brent Dowlen: If elected, what changes, if any, would you want to explore in the administration and operation of the Grant County Superior Court, and why?

Trevor Bevier: One of the things that I have in mind is there is a, uh, court rule, uh, and, uh, it’s either CR78 or 79. The citation is, is gonna escape me here at the moment, but it allows for the court to establish, uh, for hearing of, uh, matters on the motion docket without oral argument if the court, you know, so deems it.

And so that’s a, that’s an opportunity for the court to review the pleadings, and your oral argument’s not [00:23:00] necessary in this matter, uh, and can issue a decision. So that can free up court docket time, uh, on Fridays. Um, I think that’ll also allow cases to move forward more efficiently because if parties, uh, recognize that they’re, you know, not going to be able to...

Uh, it, it may be an incentive for motions that maybe otherwise should not be brought to not be brought, and that would also help, uh, free up the court time. I think there’s also an opportunity to, um, look through with, uh, dockets on eviction matters. Uh, looking at, uh, the Friday civil docket, there’s a lot of evictions that are on, on the docket every single week.

Um, and so looking at, at ways to, to potentially, uh, increase efficiency to where they’re heard, uh, more quickly, um, you know, that’s gonna take a, a top-down approach, looking at the calendar, uh, and seeing what can be done, uh, with that. Um, but I think the biggest thing is, is, is my experience in, in, with my civil background, uh, will add to the experience of the other judges on the bench and will [00:24:00] complement, and will be able to work collaboratively to, um, you know, work all matters through as a whole to be able to, uh, to bring that, that, um, experience, uh, to the court

Brent Dowlen: A judge will inevitably issue rulings that some members of the community strongly disagree with. How should a judge respond to public criticism while maintaining both judicial independence and public confidence in the courts?

Trevor Bevier: So the role of the judge is to take in the facts and apply the law as it’s written.

Um, that’s the judge’s role. As far as responding to, to criticism, um, that’s something that, you know, that’s a hypothetical. I, I don’t know you know, what’s, uh, what that may look like, but I’m not so sure that it’s the role of the judge to respond in that situation because the appropriate avenue for parties that disagree with a judge’s decision is to take it to the appellate level, um, and so, you know, see if the judge in fact got it [00:25:00] wrong.

Um, we’re all, we all, we’re all human. We all make mistakes. Um, you know, even if you take in the facts and apply the law, um, a lot of appellate decisions, you know, come back as, you know, they just flat got it wrong, and that’s, that’s why it needs to come back. So, um, the, the best thing a judge can do in that situation is to have a commitment to the law, have a commitment to listening to the parties intently and, uh, you know, keep moving forward to the best that they can

Brent Dowlen: For a voter sitting at their kitchen table with a ballot that’s never met you, what do you want the voter to understand about the kind of judge you would be if entrusted with the Grant County Superior Court Position 3?

Trevor Bevier: I am an individual that everything I’ve ever done, I’ve approached, um, wanting to have a complete understanding. Um, I want to listen to all the information that I possibly can before taking action. Uh, [00:26:00] I’m also a person that, um, strives to treat everyone with respect. So if they’re coming into the courtroom, they’re gonna be heard with respect.

They’re gonna, you know, have their case heard, um, and they’re going to be able to apply it. Also, a judge that has a work ethic that, um, is unparalleled. Uh, it’s first one there, last one out. That’s just how I was raised, how I approach life. Um, and also I’m from Grant County. I’m-- I know the community. I know the people.

I know what, what drives, um, people. I know what, what’s important to people, and I think that’s helpful whenever you’re listening to peoples, having an understanding as to where they’re coming from. Um, that assists with taking in the facts and being able to apply them to the law as written. Um, above all, um, I have a commitment to the law and the Constitution.

Um, it’s the bedrock of our society. It’s important that you, [00:27:00] um, follow the law, follow the Constitution. Um, and my commitment to that is, is unparalleled. Um, I’ve been through advising the elected officials of Grant County that, um, that demonstrates, uh, the ability to work through complex situations with a level head.

Um, it, it’s my commitment to the community. I’m here, I’m raising my kid. Um, I grew up here in Grant County. I want my kid to have the same experience that I had here in Grant County, and that’s why I’m doing this. I’m doing this to, for the community. I’m doing this, um, to do everything that I can, uh, to make this community the best that it can be

Brent Dowlen: Thank you for taking the time

Trevor Bevier: Thank you

Website Bio (condensed)

Trevor Bevier is a lifelong Grant County resident and graduate of Ephrata High School. He attended Big Bend Community College before earning his bachelor’s degree from Central Washington University and his law degree from Gonzaga University.

Before becoming an attorney, Bevier spent 10 years in the title insurance industry in Moses Lake, working with agricultural and commercial real estate transactions. After law school, he returned to Grant County and spent 14 years in private practice, handling a broad range of legal matters including civil litigation, real estate, probate, estate, guardianship, criminal and family law cases.

Bevier currently serves as a civil deputy prosecuting attorney for Grant County, where he advises elected county officials and handles outside litigation involving the county. He is seeking election to Grant County Superior Court Position 3.

Website: https://electtrevorbevier.com

Facebook: Facebook

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Disclaimer:
This interview is presented as part of our commitment to providing accessible, local information to the community. All candidates in the 2026 Grant County Auditor’s race were given the same questions, in the same format, and the opportunity to share their perspectives directly.

The responses published here are the candidate’s own words, presented without editing, interpretation, or commentary beyond basic transcription. Audio recordings are provided alongside transcripts to ensure full transparency.

Welcome to Quincy WA News does not endorse, support, or oppose any candidate. Our role is to provide information so residents of Grant County—including the 98848 communities—can make informed decisions based on their own judgment.

For more than two decades, Quincy has been a case study in what reliable, affordable electricity can mean for a small community. Hydropower helped support the agricultural and food-processing industries that were already here, then became one of the reasons data centers and other large industrial users invested billions of dollars in the 98848. Those investments brought construction, permanent jobs, new tax revenue and additional economic activity to the community.

Now, some of that success has created a new challenge. Quincy still has companies interested in locating or expanding here, but there is not an unlimited supply of electricity waiting for the next large industrial customer. Grant County PUD Commissioner Larry Schaapman put the challenge plainly when asked what he sees as the utility’s biggest issue over the next decade: “Resources, resources, resources,” followed closely by the transmission necessary to get that electricity where it is needed.

That does not mean Quincy residents are in danger of suddenly losing power to new industry. Schaapman said Grant PUD has policies protecting its core customer-owners, including residential customers, irrigators and small commercial customers. The larger question is one of future growth. If Quincy and the rest of Grant County want to continue attracting major employers and industrial investment, new sources of electricity will have to be part of that future.

One possible piece of that future is now taking shape through nearly two years of work between the Port of Quincy and Colusa Indian Energy. The project is still in development, and many details remain to be finalized, but the current concept could eventually add hundreds of megawatts of locally produced electricity while creating skilled jobs and making greater use of the Port’s existing rail and industrial infrastructure.

TL;DR

• Grant PUD is pursuing new energy resources, including solar, geothermal and small modular nuclear reactors, as electricity demand continues to grow.

• Schaapman says additional energy resources and the transmission needed to deliver them are among Grant PUD’s biggest long-term challenges.

• The Port of Quincy has been working with Colusa Indian Energy for nearly two years on a possible source of new generation specifically in the Quincy area.

• CIE is currently studying a project of less than 350 megawatts that could use selected waste materials, including certain plastics, to create synthetic gas for electricity generation.

• The project could bring construction work and permanent skilled jobs in power generation, maintenance, rail, material handling and plant operations.

• The project is not yet approved or fully designed. CIE says 2029 remains a possible target for initial generation if permitting, agreements and other development work move forward as hoped.

Growth Needs Power

Grant PUD is not waiting for a single technology to solve the region’s future energy needs. Schaapman said the utility has been actively pursuing new resources for four or five years, including small modular nuclear reactors and geothermal generation. Grant PUD is working with Chelan and Douglas county utilities to explore geothermal potential and is also examining other emerging technologies, including fusion.

Solar is already becoming a larger part of the mix. Schaapman said Grant PUD expects approximately 300 to 400 megawatts of solar resources to come online over the next four or five years. That includes a project near Moses Lake expected to produce approximately 120 megawatts, with Grant PUD serving as the power purchaser. Solar and wind are not firm resources because their production changes with the weather and time of day, but Schaapman said they can complement the county’s hydroelectric system. When those resources are producing, water can effectively be saved behind the dams and used to generate electricity later.

The search for new resources is being driven by growth throughout Grant County, but the problem is particularly important in Quincy. Schaapman said cities and port districts throughout the county want additional industry because of the jobs and tax base that come with it, but energy is one of the fundamental requirements for making that growth possible.

“If this county wants to continue to grow, we’re gonna have to find new energy sources for that growth to happen,” Schaapman said. “If you don’t have that, the wheels don’t turn for businesses.”

That challenge is already affecting Quincy. Schaapman said the PUD has tried to maintain communication with Port commissioners because power availability has become a significant limitation on what they can do.

“They can’t grow right now ’cause we don’t have any power to supply with,” Schaapman said.

The Port Goes Looking for a Quincy Solution

Economic development is the Port of Quincy’s job, and its long-range planning makes continued industrial development a priority. The Port’s comprehensive plan calls for strengthening and diversifying the local economy, attracting industrial activity and encouraging industries that provide employment and improve the economic opportunities available to area residents. Its plans also call for continued development of industrial properties and the infrastructure necessary to support them.

If electricity is becoming one of the barriers to accomplishing those goals, finding another source of power becomes part of the economic-development discussion.

That effort brought the Port together with Colusa Indian Energy nearly two years ago. I met with Shelby Ahmann Chief Commercial Officer of Colusa Indian Energy to talk more about it. Ahmann said the company was introduced to Port commissioners through its relationship with the Yakama Nation. CIE is 100 percent tribally owned, and Ahmann said much of the company’s work is centered on developing energy projects in Indian Country.

The original Quincy conversation centered on finding electricity for a prospective large industrial customer. Ahmann said CIE initially believed it might be possible to locate several hundred megawatts through the larger Bonneville Power Administration system, rather than relying solely on Grant PUD. When the company began looking, however, the readily available power was not there.

CIE then began looking at the larger demand around Quincy. Ahmann said the company identified roughly 2,200 megawatts of potential demand that could materialize if electricity were available. At the same time, he said significant transmission improvements necessary to move additional electricity from existing hydroelectric generation could take six to 10 years.

Those limitations changed the conversation. Instead of only asking where the Port could find more electricity to bring into Quincy, CIE and the Port began examining whether some of the electricity needed for future growth could be generated here.

A Project That Has Changed Along the Way

The concept has evolved considerably during the nearly two years CIE has worked with the Port. An earlier version contemplated bringing additional natural gas infrastructure into Quincy and eventually developing between 1,000 and 3,000 megawatts of generation as demand grew. Ahmann said that concept included technology intended to remove carbon from natural gas, conventional combined-cycle generation and additional carbon controls on the back end.

CIE eventually stepped back from that proposal and began developing a smaller project around Washington’s existing energy and emissions requirements. Ahmann repeatedly described the company’s approach as “compliance by design,” meaning the project is being designed around the standards it would have to meet rather than designing a plant first and attempting to make it comply later.

The current concept is for a facility of less than 350 megawatts. The final generating equipment has not been selected. Ahmann said the plant could ultimately use reciprocating engines or turbines, while fuel cells are another possibility but become more difficult economically at larger scales.

How that generating equipment would be fueled is where the Quincy proposal becomes more unusual.

Turning Waste Into Fuel

Earlier public discussions around the project included wood and other biomass as possible fuels. Those materials remain possibilities, Ahmann said, but woody biomass has a lower energy content and would require substantially more material to produce the same amount of energy. That would also mean considerably more material arriving in Quincy by rail.

CIE is now studying a process that could use selected waste plastics as a feedstock to produce synthetic gas. For anyone who grew up being told not to throw plastic into a fire, that description immediately raises an obvious question: Is this simply a plant that burns plastic?

Ahmann said it is not.

The proposed system would use electrically heated pyrolysis. Prepared feedstock would be placed into a closed reactor and heated rather than burned inside the reactor. That process would extract synthetic gas, which would then be collected, compressed and moved through an on-site pipeline to the generating plant. The synthetic gas would have an energy value approaching natural gas and would then be combusted in the generating equipment to make electricity.

Ahmann said CIE would select which classes of plastic could be used based in part on their characteristics and the resulting gas. The front-end conversion process would operate as a closed system, but the resulting gas still has to be combusted at the power plant, meaning the overall facility would have emissions that must be controlled and permitted.

CIE says it intends to use what the industry calls best available control technology, including selective catalytic reduction, on the generating side of the plant. Ahmann said the company designs its projects to stricter emissions targets than simply meeting the minimum standard required in a particular jurisdiction. The final emissions profile, however, is one of the details still being developed and would be subject to review by the appropriate regulatory agencies before the plant could be built.

The same is true of other aspects of the project. CIE is still working through the plant’s footprint, sound levels, feedstock requirements and final technology package. Ahmann said a final solution has to be completed and ultimately approved before it can move through the local and state regulatory process.

Jobs Beyond Construction

For Quincy, the economic-development value of the project would not be limited to producing additional electricity. Building and operating a power plant also requires a workforce.

Construction would create work for skilled trades, but Ahmann said the permanent facility would require employees ranging from material handling and rail operations to technical plant positions. Power plant operators and technicians would receive specialized training on the equipment they operate, while the synthetic-gas portion of the facility would require its own workforce. Maintenance, plant management and other technical positions would add to that employment base.

Ahmann did not provide a final employment number because the plant design and size are still being developed, but he said CIE expects dozens of positions associated with the synthetic-gas operation in addition to jobs in rail and material handling. Unlike the image of an old biomass plant with workers feeding material into a boiler, Ahmann described a highly automated operation that would require workers trained to operate and maintain sophisticated equipment.

For a community that continues to look for ways to give local students career opportunities without requiring them to leave home, those positions could become another avenue into the skilled trades and technical workforce. Ahmann came from the trades himself and emphasized that skilled labor would be important both to construction and long-term operation of the facility.

The project could also put more of the Port’s existing transportation infrastructure to work. Ahmann described a facility with rail spurs, storage systems and modular processing equipment. Feedstock would arrive by rail and move into storage before being fed into the conversion system. CIE currently anticipates substantial rail use, although the amount will depend on the final feedstock and size of the plant.

Ahmann summed up the concept as “local power for local growth,” with Port rail infrastructure put to work alongside new construction, permanent employment and additional investment in Grant County.

Where the Electricity Could Go

Another important change from the original concept is that CIE is no longer designing the project around a single large customer. Ahmann said the company is considering an independent power producer model that could allow electricity to move onto the larger electrical system while leaving options for the Port to directly serve future tenants where appropriate.

CIE does not want to become the utility deciding which customer receives which electrons, Ahmann said. The preference would be to put power onto the system and work with Grant PUD, Bonneville or other utilities to determine how it is ultimately used. A Port tenant could potentially receive power directly in some circumstances, while electricity could also be supplied to the broader grid. Those details remain part of the discussions still ahead.

That distinction matters because the proposed plant is not simply being presented as a dedicated power source for one future data center. CIE is looking at it as generation located where demand already exists, with enough flexibility to potentially support Port tenants, the larger utility system and future growth.

Ahmann also said a properly configured facility could potentially provide additional resiliency during grid emergencies. Exactly what role it could play would depend on how the plant is connected and the agreements eventually reached with utilities.

Building the Next Chapter

There is no guarantee today that the Colusa Indian Energy project will be built exactly as currently envisioned. The company is still answering engineering questions, the Port still has decisions ahead of it, regulators will have their own requirements and agreements will have to be reached with whoever ultimately purchases the electricity.

There is, however, a possible timeline beginning to emerge. Ahmann said improvements in the availability of generating equipment have made him less concerned about manufacturing delays than he was six months ago. Permitting, local adoption and agreements with utilities are now more likely to determine how quickly the project can move. If those pieces come together, he said initial generation in 2029 remains within the realm of possibility.

The larger energy picture will continue developing at the same time. Grant PUD’s new solar resources will come online. Geothermal exploration will continue. Small modular nuclear technology will continue moving through development. Transmission projects will add capacity to move electricity where it is needed. The answer to Grant County’s future power needs is increasingly likely to be a combination of resources rather than one new plant or one new technology.

For Quincy, that matters because the community’s economic development has always depended on more than simply having land available for the next employer. Agriculture required irrigation, processing required transportation and infrastructure, and the technology boom depended heavily on access to reliable, affordable electricity. Each chapter required the community to have the infrastructure necessary for the opportunity in front of it.

The next chapter of growth in the 98848 faces the same basic test. Companies may still want to invest here, the Port may still have land to develop and the community may still want the jobs and tax base that come with new industry, but those opportunities cannot move forward without the electricity to support them.

That is why Grant PUD is searching for new resources and why the Port of Quincy has spent nearly two years looking for another solution closer to home. Colusa Indian Energy’s proposal is still only one possibility, and there is considerable work ahead before anyone knows whether it becomes part of Quincy’s energy supply.

What is much clearer is the question driving all of those efforts: if the 98848 is going to continue growing, where will the power for that growth come from?

For the first time, part of the answer may be generated right here in Quincy.

I interviewed 2 candidates for the Grant County  PUD Commissioner Dist #3 race for 2026.

• Both Candidates were invited to be interviewed

• Both Candidates responded were asked the exact same 18 questions in the exact same order

• They never saw each others answers

• The answers have not been altered, edited, modified, editorialized, changed, or edited in any way by the staff, ownership, or affiliates of this publication.

• For each I have posted the transcript, not a story, their words. (transcripts by AI)

• For each I have posted the audio from the interview.

• A full list of the questions

• Below the interviews I will post their posted bio from their candidate website, their sign and a link to their website and or FaceBook

The Interview Begins Here

Larry Schaapman Interview Audio File

Larry Schaapman Interview Grant County  PUD Commissioner Dist #3 Race for 2026

Brent Dowlen: [00:00:00] All right, Larry, tell us a little bit about yourself. What should voters know about you, your background, and what led you to seek, uh, to a seat on Grant PUD Commission again?

Larry Schaapman: Yeah. Well, thanks, Brent. Um, so I’ve lived in Quincy for 53 years. I’ve been married for 44 years, uh, married a neighbor girl down the road.

We have three children, uh, nine great- nine grandchildren and, uh, five great-grandchildren. So we’ve made Quincy our home for a long, long time. Julie, my wife, was born and raised here. Um, so got, you know, roots, longstanding roots. Been Been involved in a lot of things through the course of my career on different boards and such.

Um, started out my career, I guess, with, uh, Grant County Farm Bureau here at, uh, in 1993, and I was chairman for the-- on the board for three years. And then I s- continued to serve on the board, but I went on to the state board after that. [00:01:00] And I also served on the Potato Growers of Washington board for over 20 years, um, which our son has followed in my footsteps and has taken my place on that board as I bowed out of that because I had become Grant County Commissioner at that time back in 2012, and I just couldn’t do everything.

And then I also was on the CHS Sun Basin board here for, in-- Well, it’s kind of in the g- it spans all the way down to the Tri-Cities. But, um, I was on that board for about nine years, and I was chairman for seven of those years. So I’ve had, I’ve had a lot of board experience, had a lot of leadership experience.

Um, got intrigued and fascinated with, uh, the PUD through a conversation with a commissioner that was on there. Uh, there was a vacancy, unfortunately, that had happened, um, with, um, one of the commissioner in our district that took ill, and so he had to resign. And so state law says that you have to, uh, when that goes into resignation mode, you got [00:02:00] 90 days to fill that spot.

So there were seven of us that interviewed for that spot. And, uh, a sitting commissioner at that time, Dale Walker, had gotten me interested in, in the PUD and in public power, and, uh, it was pretty fascinating. So I went ahead and filed and just thought, “Well, I’ll just see where God takes me on this journey,” and, uh, ended up prevailing, uh, against, uh, the other seven candidates.

And, um, so it’s, it’s been a good spot for me to serve for local control for our customer owners that we have. It’s also been a good, uh, spot to represent public power. So, um, I guess that’s kind of it in a nutshell as far as my leadership goes and my, my tenure here in the community and also on the PUD board.

Brent Dowlen: Yeah. Every commissioner brings a different background to the board. What experiences in your career or personal life have prepared you to oversee a complex public utility with large budgets, critical [00:03:00] infrastructure, and long-term planning responsibilities?

Larry Schaapman: Yeah. So I think, you know, being I’ve been farming for about 44 years, uh, it’s, um There’s, uh-- I mean, my humble beginnings were back to, you know, a few acres of hay, and then, uh, started my career in potatoes, and it’s-- there’s a lot of budgeting that goes into that, a lot of, uh, money that goes into, uh, farming potatoes and just farming in general.

So it, it taught me obviously the value of, uh, of, um, the dollar. It taught me the value of a work ethic. Um, it also taught me that, um, you have to put a budget together, and you have to follow that budget, and you have to-- the, the budget’s a roadmap for, for what you do in your business. So I felt like of the-- at that time, it would’ve been 32 years, and when I became a commissioner then I had a lot of expertise just from running my own business to be able to carry that into the utility and in the grand PUD world.

[00:04:00] And then, uh, you know, operating, um, as a board member on the Potato Growers of Washington, I gained a lot of insight, a lot of, uh, of, um, I guess being able to, uh, negotiate with large businesses, the large three processors that we have here in our neck of the woods, which is gonna be Lamb Weston, Simplot, and McCain Foods.

And I served on all those negotiating committees for almost that whole 20-year career that I was on Potato Growers of Washington. So, um, you know, you’re working with multi-million dollar companies on that level, and you’re negotiating your contract, the fate of your livelihood with them. And, uh, so there’s, there’s a lot of things that I gleaned business-wise from those experiences.

Brent Dowlen: How do you define the role of PUD commissioner? Where should governance end and management begin?

Larry Schaapman: Yeah, that’s a good question. [00:05:00] So the role of a PUD commissioner really is to give oversight and, uh, direction to our general manager. That’s, that’s the only individual that we really have, if you will, uh, control of, control over at the PUD.

They re- uh, they report to the commission, and then they go ahead and they, uh, oversee the management of the business after that. Um, but you need to be astute enough to be aware of what’s going on at the utility and understand the business units that are there, uh, to be able to give the influence that you need to to your general manager, uh, to make the utility function in the fashion that it was designed to function, and that’s deliver power and, uh, stay on budget and watch your capital projects that you have going on, um Just to keep things on track so that the, you, you meet your targets [00:06:00] that you, that you have designed, uh, to meet from your, your goal setting that you have through your budget on an annual basis.

Um, I think the governance, I kind of spoke to that. That’s, that’s all part of the governance piece of overseeing the, the manager, um, and watching the functionality of the utility, make sure it doesn’t, you know, get out of, out of control. But with all that being said, you really, at, at the forefront of my mind anyway, being a good commissioner is making sure that you have your customer owners’, you know, their, their true interest in mind.

Um, you wanna protect them in the rates that they have. We’ve had a lot of industrial, large industrial growth that, um, has, you know, caused some concern for folks, and it’s caused some questions about, you know, running out of power and, um, how everybody’s gonna have power and, and what’s gonna happen if we run out.

And that’s, [00:07:00] that’s really not the case here. We have, as a commission, and this dates back to 2015, we passed a resolution that protected our core customer owners. And so what that means is that you will always get your power, both, uh, residential and irrigators. Uh, you’re guaranteed that power. If there’s any power outages that might have, the curtailment will come on the large industrial side, but they have backup generation that they can use too if there’s, you know, a, a hiccup on the market, if you, if you will.

Um, and I’m gonna quote the Martin Luther King event that happened about two years ago. It, um, we were pretty close to the grid having some blackouts, and there was enough transmission and there was enough power swaps that could happen to keep the lights on for everybody here in Pacific Northwest. And we were, we were just extremely close to somebody in our [00:08:00] grid area, which is the nine western states, that there could have been some outages, and particularly in Washington.

So It, um, it, it just showed the resiliency of the importance of the grid, the importance of transmission, getting power to where it needs to go, and, and the functionality really of the grid itself and all that’s involved in that, whether it’s, um, public power swaps that you’re doing with people or just swaps on the market.

There’s, there’s-- I don’t wanna get into the minutiae here, but there’s some things that, um, we’re, we’re involved with where other utilities, they, they have certain responsibilities of making sure that they’re supplying a certain amount of power to the grid, and if they fail, somebody else has to make it up.

And of course, if they fail, then there’s penalties that come along with that failure, fines and stuff that come along with that as well. So, um, kind of a long answer, but, um, it’s kind of all tied in, uh, in governance [00:09:00] and, you know, we, we can’t think just Grant County. You gotta think a little bit more, I don’t wanna use the word globally, but, um, at least the Western energy grid has to be taken into consideration ‘cause you’re sort of a partnership in all this as well

Brent Dowlen: What qualities do you believe are most important in evaluating or working with a general manager or CEO?

Larry Schaapman: Yeah. Well, it’s all about relationship, right? You have to, you have to have a good working relationship, you have to trust, um, and that comes through building that relationship. It’s just kinda like having, if you will, a good friend, so to speak, or I suppose you could use a business partner as an analogy.

But if you don’t trust your partner, um, it, it-- the relationship is, is, uh, destined to fail. Um, so you have to trust who you have in that leadership position that’s doing that, that they’re transparent with you, [00:10:00] um, that there’s nothing that maybe they might be, uh, keeping from you. And, and, and you can f- you can kind of...

If you’re involved in the utility and you’re involved with some of the players in the, in the business units that are in that utility, you, you know if your general manager has a good pulse on what’s going on with the business ‘cause people have a propensity to complain, right? And so, uh, we’re, we’re not exempt from getting complaints from employees either, just like we would customers, so...

And you work through those things, and there’s processes to do that because we can’t-- that’s not our job to field complaints of PUD employees. I mean, there’s a, there’s a order, uh, to that, uh, to the way that business is done, and there’s a process that’s used through supervisors and managers and, and then on up to vice presidents and then ultimately to the general manager.

But if you’re aware of what’s happening to [00:11:00] utility, if you’re spending some time with the folks that are there, you can, y- you can have a pretty good pulse on what’s, on what’s going on if your general manager’s being upfront and leading, leading by example and, uh, leading with transparency

Brent Dowlen: What technical experts, engineers, financial staff, and community, community members...

Sorry, let me rephrase that. When technical experts, engineers, financial staff, and community members all have different opinions, how do you make a decision?

Larry Schaapman: Yeah. Um, at, I guess at the end of the day, you know, you, you, you look at the technical information that’s been given to you. Uh, you have to look sometimes at the political will of the people because we’re, you know, I’m, I’m elected by, by the, uh, the, my constituents, the people of this county.

So y- you, you gotta be in touch with what their desires are. [00:12:00] Um, and you just gotta look sometimes, uh, step back and look at the, the 10,000-foot look and the, and the greater good for the utility. And, and when I talk about the utility, I don’t want folks to think that it’s all about the utility. I want folks to understand that they are the utility.

They are the customer owners. So when we’re making decisions on what might appear to be the utility, it’s things that we see, things that we know, things that we understand because of history, um, or historical events maybe that have happened that are gonna make, uh, an outcome more successful than not. So, um, there, there’s just a, there’s, uh, there’s the myriad of things that go into there, kinda like a bunch of bubbles around this circle, right?

And you just kinda, you weigh all those out and you... At the end of the day, you know, it’s, it gets to be a financial decision on what’s, what’s the best economics, best [00:13:00] economic outcome for your customer owners and for all your owners. Let me back up. I don’t wanna just discount our large industrials. They have a, they have a huge impact to our budget.

They’re, um, they’re a, they’re a great asset for us to have in here in Grant County because of the value that they bring, the return on investment that we get from them, which, which helps offset our rates and keep them low and predictable

Brent Dowlen: What do you believe is the single biggest challenge facing the Grant PUD over the next 10 years?

Larry Schaapman: Yeah, well, that’s gonna be resources, resources, resources, okay? And then right on its heels is gonna be the transmission to get those resources to where they need to be delivered. So let me break that down a little bit. So we are, we are at a crossroad now where we are pursuing feverishly, and we have been for about four or five years already, uh, new resources.

So we’re taking a look at small modular reactors. [00:14:00] We are, uh, exploring geothermal. Um, we’ve, we’ve talked about some gas turbine generation for peaking, which in this state is kinda taboo because we have our Clean Energy Transformation Act that we have to comply with, which by 2045, everything’s gonna, everything’s gonna have to be totally green.

And then the other thing we’re looking at is, um, some fusion as well, which is in all practical senses is, is kind of a version of, uh, fu- is, uh, nuclear. So, uh, those things, you know, they’re, they’re typically 10 years out. Um, so we’ve been working on some of these for a while. I think, you know, geothermal, we have a interlocal agreement with both Chelan, Douglas, and ourselves, where we’re doing some test holes around Douglas County, Chelan County, and Grant County, um, exploring, you know, how much capacity we might have if geothermal did become, um, [00:15:00] a deal, if you will, a big deal.

Um, and it’s, you know, it’s green, it’s clean. It’s, uh, very little water usage, um, to, to add back to it ‘cause it, it’s, you’re not steaming anything off. It’s a closed loop. So there’s some real promise that’s there. Um, not typically intrusive to folks, um, as far as land mass, if you will. Uh, and small modular reactors don’t take that much land mass either.

You can build a 320-megawatt, um, nuclear reactor on about five to 10 acres. Um, so they’re, they’re pretty small. They’re pretty compact right now. Um, that’s still kind of in its infancy. There’s a couple of-- There’s two companies ahead of us that are in the queue for, uh, one of the outfits that we’ve been working with.

Um, and so they’re kinda helping perfect that and move it along, um, because for a long time it’s just been at the Department of Energy, kinda hung up and stranded there for a little while doing all the, all the research and, and, [00:16:00] uh, studies that needed to be done on it. But, so yeah, those, those are the big things that we have.

Those are the big things that we have, only from the standpoint if, if this county wants to continue to grow, um, it’s gonna-- we’re gonna have to find new energy sources for that growth to happen. And in the case of like geothermal, for example, you, you’re just not gonna drill a hole anywhere in the ground and find out where the hotspot’s at, where you could actually generate that kind of steam that would come out to run the, the generator.

So, you know, it might be that, you know, you’re gonna be potentially talking about more transmission and to get things to where they need to go. You talk to almost every city or port district in this county, every one of them wants to grow. I mean, every one of them wants more industry because they want the tax base, they want the jobs, they want all the things that go along with that growth, and energy is, is, is the, really the main component.

If you don’t have that, the wheels don’t turn for, for [00:17:00] businesses, right? So to speak. So, um, yeah, energy is the top, the top thing that’s on our mind today, and it has been for the past five years.

Brent Dowlen: So

Grant County has become a national hub for data centers and infrastructure because of its affordable electricity. What role should Grant PUD play in supporting economic development while ensuring local residents continue to benefit from low-cost hydropower?

Larry Schaapman: Yeah. Well, that’s a good question, only because it’s-- the debate gets kinda going back and forth on, uh, what Grant County’s role should be in economic development.

And I’m-- Let me, let me just be clear that we are not in economic development. We only deliver energy to the folks that, uh, port districts might attract, um, that cities might attract, and, uh, it’s our responsibility to see if [00:18:00] we can provide them the energy that they need. Um, for us to go out and do all these things on speculation, if you will, um, could potentially be suicide.

It could be detrimental to our core customers, our customer-owners. And, um, we have, as I said earlier in the interview, we have gone through great pains to make sure that our core customer-owners are protected, which is our residential, uh, irrigators and, uh, small commer- small commercial. I forgot to put that in the first, the first answer that I gave.

So, um, w-we kinda get, we kinda get pulled into this whole, uh, economic development picture, and it’s really not our picture to get pulled into. We, we are a supporter of that, right, by what we do and what we provide, just like cities would maybe be with their water and some of their other services that they have.

But it’s not our job to go out and, and, [00:19:00] uh, generate interest in folks, uh, on an economic development level. Our job is to deliver power

Brent Dowlen: How should Grant PUD balance the needs of residential customers with the growing demand from the data centers and other large industrial resource resources users?

Larry Schaapman: Yeah. Okay. So kind of answered that a little bit, but I’ll answer a little bit different maybe this way. Uh, for starters, um, the one-- I can’t stress enough that our core customer owners are protected.

Um, they will always have the lowest resource power that’s available. And let me clarify that. Um, we had put that into that resolution because there’s always been a lot of talk about dams and fish passage and people wanting to take them out. And we had decided at that time that it would be prudent for us to put in the lowest possible resource for the core customers because there might come the day, [00:20:00] 50 years, 100 years from now, where dams are gone.

Well, what are you gonna do, right? What’s the next lowest resource? And we know that solar’s not firm, wind’s not firm, but they’re a part of the equation, right? And they’re complementary to, uh, the resource that we have with, with the hydro facilities because you can use those resources during the day or during the wind, and you can store your water, you can store your fuel, if you will, uh, behind your ponds, behind your dams, um, to use that later to generate and to supply people when it’s dark or when the wind doesn’t blow or so, so they complement each other, right?

Uh, data centers, um, we, we know as we’re going forward, and we have taken, um- I guess, um, I’m gonna use the word position. That isn’t quite the word I’m looking for, but we, we have explored what it’s gonna cost to serve them going [00:21:00] forward with some of these ne- new resources that are coming on currently. So we have quite a bit of solar that’s coming on probably over the next four to five years.

We’re looking at 3 to 400 megawatts of solar. We’ve already got one online that’s down in Moxie, and, uh, we’re the offtaker of that. Then you go, “Well, how do we get it up here?” Well, we don’t. We do power swaps on the lines and take some here, and you add it down there. Um, we have the Quincy Solar Project that’s being developed over by Moses Lake.

Not sure how it got the Quincy name, but anyway, um, there’s supposed to be, I think that it’s around 120 megawatt project when it comes on. We will be the offtaker of that. Um, and that’ll get added into the transmission farther down the line, which will be useful for, let’s say, the Moses Lake area, for example.

So when you can put more energy on farther down the line, it’s kinda like a, it’s like a ditch, right? When water’s going down it. If, if you got another place to add more water later on, you can take more water out earlier, farther upstream. So might be [00:22:00] able to take more power out at Afrada or more power out in Quincy to supply the data centers or whoever the industry might be.

The thing is, is we’ve-- I guess what I’m getting at here is we’ve looked at those resources. As we’re layering them in, as we go forward, we know the costs that are gonna happen ‘cause we do contracts with these folks. And so we have already developed the new rate schedule that’ll take for tier one and tier two rates, tier two being the new resources that are coming on.

Tier two would be the available hydro resource that’s available that, that, uh, g- as it continues to shrink, they get less and less and less of that, so then they’re gonna be dependent more on the tier two. So their rates, their rates are starting to look like they’re gonna be double digits, somewhere anywhere from 9 to 12% on an increase on average, uh, o- over the next 10-year trajectory where our rates for our, uh, core customer owners are gonna be in that 3 to 3.5% range.[00:23:00]

And people say, “Well, why is our power going up?” Well, you know, I, I guess every- everything goes up, right? I mean, your groceries are higher, your gas is higher, your cars cost more. I mean, we’ve had-- Since COVID, we’ve had, uh, 30-plus percent increases on materials that, uh-- You’re talking transformers, you’re talking poles, you’re talking wires.

All this stuff costs more money, and we have 4,400 miles of line going out around this county that we have to maintain. The poles, you know, they get older. They have to be replaced and refurbished and, you know, rehabbed And, uh, I mean, all that costs money and that pole that maybe was, you know, back in the, in the ‘50s might have been $100 to get a pole.

I don’t know. Last quote I heard on a pole was north of $3,000 for a pole, you know? So, um, it’s, it just costs money for maintenance. I mean, maintenance on your home, you know, costs money. You just go down to the hardware store and go, “Boy, that didn’t cost that much last year,” you know? But it, it, it’s just a fact of life that...

But I think, I [00:24:00] think, uh, capturing what we’re capturing from the large industrials and not putting any burden, any, uh, rate pressure on our core customer owners, um, we’ve been very successful at, and we’ve managed to keep the rates for our core customers at a, at a livable increase. When you look at what other utilities around us are doing, and they’re, they’re running in the double-digit increases on other utilities.

And I’m talking Avista, Seattle City Light, Puget Sound Energy folks that are in our state, right? So

Brent Dowlen: Grant County continues to grow rapidly, especially in areas like Quincy. How should Grant County PUD plan for the growth while avoiding unnecessary costs for existing rate payers?

Larry Schaapman: Now, would you repeat that last part again?

Brent Dowlen: Yes. How should Grant County PUD plan for the growth while avoiding unce- unnecessary costs for the existing rate payers?

Larry Schaapman: Yeah. Well, I kind of alluded that, too, a little bit in the earlier question. So as we add on more [00:25:00] resources, obviously the cost-- You cause the cost, you bear the cost, right? And that’s the philosophy that we have at the PUD.

Um, and, and the, uh, large industrials are well aware of that, and they’re aware of it on the national level, too, because they’ve signed the, uh, letter of intent that says, you know, they’re, they’re willing to pay their freight. They’re willing to pay their way, uh, to stay wherever they’re paying and playing, playing and paying, right?

So, um, we

We, uh, we are very specific, very intentional about protecting our core customers to make sure there’s no, none of this drift from cost drift that comes from the growth that we’ve experienced. So I ca- I can’t stress that enough. I try to tell that to as many folks as you can, as I can. Um, but you just don’t always have a large audience, right?

To tell that to. And you can, you can [00:26:00] send out flyers, you can send out mailers, you can do whatever, but, uh, you can’t make people read stuff either, right? You’re probably well aware of that.

Brent Dowlen: What does keeping rates affordable mean to you, and what trade-offs are acceptable to accomplish that?

Larry Schaapman: Hmm.

Yeah. Well, I think keeping rates affordable really are based around the m- the methodology of cost of service, right? And so you, uh, you really have to know what each one of your classes is costing you, and we have quite a few between residential, small commercial, irrigators, large commercial, small industrial, um, large industrial.

You got ag processing, and now we’re developing a new rate, which is basically the data center rate. It’s gonna be rate schedule 20. Um, so with, with that being said, uh, we’re very cognitive of, of [00:27:00] what each class is costing us, what it takes to keep them As not whole because w- ‘cause residential and irrigators, we don’t even come close to collecting what the cost is to serve them.

Um, but we do, we do consider being the customer owners that they should have a social benefit for what this utility brings, being public power, right? So with, with that being said, we, we apply an, an adder, if you will, that- that has the large industrials paying more than it costs to serve them, and that’s really what is the social benefit to the customer owners in the residential and irrigators, ‘cause that’s offsetting the[00:28:00]

Kinda like a-- I’m trying to think of the right word here, Brent, but that’s, that’s offsetting what it would actually cost them to pay if they were to pay full cost

Brent Dowlen: Grant PUD manages billions of dollars in public assets. How would you approach making investments that may not pay off for 20 to 30 years while still keeping today’s rates affordable?

Larry Schaapman: Hmm. Yeah. Well, you know, so I’m gonna use this as an example. When... You’re right, we have billions of dollars. I mean, the dams themselves are billions of dollars worth of assets, let alone all the infrastructure that we have running through the county.

But when I first became a commissioner in 2012, um, the day I sat down in that seat, they were doing, uh, they were doing a rate increase, and they... And it was a room full of people. There was, you know, 50, 60 people in that room, and rates were gonna go up 8% on a three-year basis. And, um, people were not happy about that, obviously, and that was a huge increase.

And it didn’t take me very [00:29:00] long when I was on the commission and started looking at the budget and looking at our debt and realizing that, hey, we had, we had this resource that we had just gotten re-licensed in 20-2007, I believe it was, and we had debt with a peak that was peaking out in about 2014, 2015.

And it was really putting a lot of rate pressure on, on what was happening at that time, which was the cause for the 8% increase year over year. And I remember looking at our general manager and I says, “You know,” I said, uh, “we’ve got a license that goes out to 2052. We’re rehabbing these dams.” And one of them was done, and we were just getting ready to get started on Priest Rapids Dam.

And I said, “It, it makes apl- absolutely no sense that our debt is gonna peak out and then, like, almost fall off a cliff and that folks 20, 30 years down the road really aren’t gonna have this rate pressure, um, [00:30:00] because we paid all the debt for them.” And I said, “It seems to me like we should go back out to market, and we should restructure our debt for a more fair and equitable generational fairness on how rates were charged.”

So surprisingly enough, that advice was followed. Um, we did a lot of restructure of our debt, and that brought our rates back down into that 2% category. Um, and then of course, as the large industrial started growing from that time forward, um, we were returning quite a large return from them, which helped keep our, uh, core customer rates low as well.

So, um, that’s the best example that I can come up with is, you know, you- when you, when you look at assets, you gotta look at a generational fairness, right? So it’s, um, we’re, we’re not mom and dad like our kids think maybe we are, right? Our, our kids, our kids can be responsible for some of the debt ‘cause they’re gonna get to use this asset, so they should be responsible, and [00:31:00] grandkids, for what it costs for the upkeep of that.

Brent Dowlen: So Beyond keeping electrical rates low, how should Grant PUD measure success?

Larry Schaapman: Hmm

Yeah. Well, f- I guess for me success is that you have a, you have managed your rates well, you have

Gotten a return on those that have come after the fact, if you will, you know, and are using your assets that you, that you currently have, um But I think probably most of all is the, is communication. Communication, communication, communication. We just need to figure out how to get out in [00:32:00] front of the-- our, our constituents, our customer owners more, to tell them the success stories that we have to tell about where we’re at financially.

I mean, we have a debt-to-net-asset ratio is, you know, probably somewhere in the neighborhood of 40, 42% is all. Um, we’ve managed these assets well and have gotten some good returns on some of our load-growing customers that we’ve had. Um, and all that has helped pay down debt. All that has helped keep core customer rates low.

And y-you do-- You know, life’s kinda funny. You do one thing that upsets somebody or upsets one group, and then you’re, you’re under attack, and everybody forgets about all the wonderful things that you did, right? So, um, it’s from, from my perspective, we could-- if we could find more ways [00:33:00] to get ourselves re-engaged back into the communities in this county to just share with them what’s going on at the utility and what we’re doing to help take out some of the concern, some of the fear, um, you know, the fear of we’re gonna run out of power, the fear of, are my lights not gonna come on?

Um, the fear of, well, are, are they paying their fair share, you know? And a lot of people will look at the kilowatt, uh, charge that comes out on each one, and what people don’t understand, and this is one reason why communication would really assist in that, is that it costs a lot more to produce-- or not to produce.

It costs a lot more to deliver power to residential and to irrigators. I mean, when you think about the 4,400 miles of line we got running around, three-phasance infrastructure that’s all over this county that feeds irrigation equipment everywhere, right? Um, Chelan and Douglas County don’t have [00:34:00] those kind of miles of lines, right?

That they have to, that they have to deal with. They got trees they gotta deal with in Chelan. That’s a whole ‘nother issue. But the, the price, the price that the large industrials are paying is less than what the residentials are paying. And the disconnect is that they take that power on a transmission level, and we don’t have to break it down with miles and miles of lines.

They come-- When they have come in, they have, uh, it’s called a construction and aid in Kayak. It’s construction and aid of cons- of cost and construction and aid, aid Anyway, it-- they, they pay for the substations and the infrastructure that goes into all that goes to building that, right? So they’re putting the money up front to do those, and then they take it at the-- to, to build those facilities, and then they take it at a transmission voltage, [00:35:00] which is a whole lot different.

So let’s-- let me break it down for you. It’s-- You bring it in at 230 volts, um, and that’s what a, a, a large industrial will take it from, from there through the transformers into their facilities. When we-- By the time we get it out into the county, it comes to us through two different ways. One is gonna be through a 480-volt system, which is for irrigators, so that’s three-phase.

That’s three wires that go out on each pole, and each one of those are going out with about 13,000 volts on each one, and then your transformers come off of there and reduce it down to the 480. When it comes... Now, that’s irrigators. When it comes to your house, you’re gonna see sometimes only a single wire on a pole because it only takes a 13,000-volt line to bring it, string it through, hook up to your transformer, your little round, clunky thing that you got hanging out maybe in your, in your alley or out by your front yard or out on the street or wherever it might [00:36:00] be out on the road.

Um, and then that breaks it down to you into 220 volt. So you’ve got two legs that come to your house, two 110s, two 120s to make 240 volt. And so it costs more money. There’s more wires, there’s more poles, there’s more transformers to get that all reduced down so that you can take it. So it does cost more to serve residential and irrigators.

And so when you look at the cost of what a kilowatt hour is between residential and, uh, large industrial, everybody goes, “Well, they’re not paying their fair share.” Well, they’re, they’re paying more than their fair share, but that’s just the way that it’s delivered to them. It doesn’t take as much to provide them power

Are you learning anything, Brent?

Brent Dowlen: Commissioners hear from homeowners, farmers, businesses, industrial customers, and environmental groups who have competing priorities. Those interests conflict. What principles guide [00:37:00] your decision-making?

Larry Schaapman: Yeah. Well, first and foremost, core customer is always gonna kinda trump everything.

Um, they’re the customer-owner. They’re the ones that we need to keep in mind. Try and find the balance in it all. Um, and but at the end of the day, y- you know, you just need to be cognitive of the fact that people, they, they wanna tell you their story. They wanna tell you the concern that they have, the problem that they might have, and you just have to be open, and you have to take the time to listen to what they have to say.

And I just operate on the principle that people don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care, right? So if, if I’m not gonna give anybody the time of day, um, it’s gonna communicate that I don’t care, and then I, I, I can’t listen to all of these people and find, you know, the balance. And I, and I’m willing, I’m quite, I’m quite willing, and I’ve been plenty vocal with, uh, with...

I, I guess kind of with both sides, [00:38:00] the, the benefit that large industrials might, might bring. But I’m also been very vocal with the fact that I am not gonna put our core customers at risk, our customer-owners. You know, they’re, they’re the public. They’re the voting public. They’re the ones that own this utility.

And yes, some of them come here after the fact, after things were built, but they’re still the public. And any, any county, any city that’s gonna grow, you just... those people just become part of the city. They come become part of the county. They become part of the utility. They’re just... When I first came on the commission, I wanna say, don’t quote me, but we were probably somewhere, and this is 2012, we were probably somewhere around 35,000 meters, and today we’re 55,000.

So, and our large industrials are probably When I say large, I’m probably data center ‘cause there’s some other industries that are out there. They probably only make up about 15 [00:39:00] to 20 of those meters. So a lot of that growth has come through. People have come in because jobs have happened. Um, there’s been other businesses, so there’s other meters, but they’re, um, they’re here and you have to listen to ‘em all

Brent Dowlen: One of the biggest issues facing Graham PUD today is the controversy surrounding acquiring private property and easements for new transmission lines. How do you balance the need to build infrastructure that services the public with protecting property rights of individual land o- landowners? Under what circumstance, if any, do you believe that use of eminent domain is appropriate?

Larry Schaapman: Yeah, that’s, um, that’s kind of a sticky wicket when it comes to talking to some folks, especially with property owners on a, on a particular route. Um, you know, growth in this county, growth in this country, um, you can, you can look anywhere and you don’t have [00:40:00] to look very far, and everything is built on either easements or right of ways.

And so you have to be appreciative, in fact, of the folks before us, generations before us, that were willing to give easements to allow progress to happen. Now, some of that was, was progress that was wanted, right? So I mean, when, when this utility first became a utility back in 1938, um, the reason why it became a public utility, uh, was because of what the Granges did over in the legislature in 1931.

And they lobbied for public utilities to be formed because quite frank- frankly, the, the, the rural residents were still burning candles and oil lamps, and all the city folks had power. And that’s all the farther that, uh, the folks wanted to serve them was just in the cities ‘cause it cost too much money to string wires out in the county.

[00:41:00] So when we became a public utility district... Well, there was Public Utility District 1, which was in the ‘30s, and then in 1938, uh, Grant County PUD District Number 2 formed and absorbed number 1. And so number 1 was up in Coulee City, and so that was taken over, and then they were-- they bought, um, Soap Lake Power or Soap Lake Electric, I think is what it was called.

And then the office, the main office moved to Soap Lake, and then in, uh, 19... In the fall, I think, or,

uh, I don’t have my notes in front of me, but in ‘30, I believe it was in ‘38 as well. They all kinda happened quickly. It was January, February, so Coulee City, Grand Coulee s- or Coulee City was bought, Coulee City Power, and then Soap Lake Po- Electric was bought. The office moved to Soap Lake, and then [00:42:00] by fall it was, um, it was moved to Ephrata because that ended up being the county seat.

So

When that happened, there was that natural progression that people wanted power, right? And power, they welcomed poles out. You know, we welcomed poles out when the irrigation project came and we needed power to go run pumps and things of that nature. And then we had growth. Um, we had some, uh, we had BPA lines that we, uh, corridors that we assumed or that we purchased back in the m- early ‘70s, ‘73, um, which gave us a lot of, uh, transmission lines that kinda went throughout the county.

So then as the county matured, right, and as the infrastructure was used up, we needed more, um, more infrastructure, more transmission lines that needed to come in. Uh, before I was a commissioner, there [00:43:00] was a, there was a transmission line that was, uh, going in, proposed to go in across the north side of Quincy from Columbia, uh, gener- or not Columbia Generate, but Columbia, um, switchyard over by Palisades that went all the way over to Rocky Ford, which is the dip that goes from Ephrata to Moses Lake.

It was about a 13 or 14-mile line. Uh, that went in, and from that they tapped off and took a line from down Road P, which came on down into Quincy, and, uh, kinda went into the eastern Quincy part where Yahoo was being built and, um, some other ones started to come out there, eventually H5 and some of the other ones.

So I gave a t- a transmission easement for that line that came down P Road, and it was right by our house. And I didn’t bat an eye. I just... You know, I knew Quincy was gonna grow, and it needed to grow, and these businesses wanted to come here, these data centers at that time. And, um, it [00:44:00] just, it was just part of progress.

Um, so those are tapped out now, right? And so you have, you have to figure out how you’re gonna get more power to where you need it. I don’t care if it’s Quincy, Moses Lake, or wherever it might be. And on every route, there’s always been challenges from folks There was. I became commissioner in 2012, as I said, and that line was just starting to be built, and we still had a couple of holdouts on the one line that went across the north side.

And, you know, went up, had conversations with them, um, and it was a matter of we were able to move a pole... And the-these were transmission poles, there was no distribution that was tied to them. So we, we had a variance that we could go a few feet one way or the other. So we made a, we made a move for the one, and, um, the other one ended up getting past whatever the impasse was with them.

So that line cleared up and was able to go in without any [00:45:00] condemnation. Uh, so to bring power, let’s say for example into Quincy on the contested line that’s happening there, um, there were a few different routes, but the fact of the matter is, is when the initial concept was floated out there about, uh, it w- it was only transmission, so we’re-- they were talking about bringing transmission in and how we were gonna get it to Quincy.

So there was, there was three different routes that was taken a look at. Uh, two routes to the west, uh, went through the Ancient Lakes area. Uh, it was, uh, we had some state lands, some federal lands that we were gonna have to deal with, which the permitting process is a little bit more challenged, but it’s still challenging, but it’s doable.

Um, but we’re also, uh, we’re gonna be faced with some culturally sensitive issues there. And when you start getting close to the river and you start, um, doing things, um, you get the tribes and other agencies involved in that because of the traversing of the [00:46:00] Indian tribes up and down the river way back in the day, right?

So, um, it’s, it’s really hard, like when we had the fracture at the dam and we drew down the river, we had to, we had to patrol that river and protect all the culturally sensitive areas that were there so that they didn’t get looted, right? And so there’s, there’s a lot of responsibility that we have when it comes to protecting, um, the culturally sensitive areas, which are usually obviously tied to the tribes.

So, um, but when... On this particular route, I mean, I’m just gonna speak to the 4B route and just be upfront and, uh, when, when we were looking at that route, it was one of the straighter shots that was gonna come into Quincy. We were gonna be able to utilize, tie into it down by George and use the line, uh, existing corridor that we had from George to Quincy almost all the way until we got close to town, then we took, we took a, a left-hand turn and went west [00:47:00] So that was a benefit.

The other benefit was the fact that, um, we had the, we had the distribution corridor out there, and we were gonna dismantle that, and we were gonna couple both the transmission and distribution together. So it made sense, um, for us to do that route. It was a straighter shot, uh, for us to go from there than to go up and over the hill and through Ancient Lakes.

And one thing that we never did do when we, uh, the two routes that went through Ancient Lakes was we got it up here as far as the hill there by, um, where the rest area’s at going toward Wenatchee, but we never finished the route into Quincy, and it still had to come into Quincy. So we were gonna have impacts coming to landowners coming in through Quincy as well.

So that never got addressed. We just talked high level what transmission would look like. So when the coupling of the distribution with the [00:48:00] transmission was put together, it became a lot more palatable for, um, us as a commission to take a serious look at that route and, um, and vote that as the best alternative that we had to do.

You are always going to have folks that are unhappy with some of your decisions that you make. It doesn’t matter what they are. In this case, it was transmission. We had one little short segment out there, about less than a half a mile, that didn’t have any poles at all. Um, and we had some conversations with those folks there, but they were pretty resistant ‘cause they didn’t have poles there at all, although there was poles on both sides of their circle that they had.

And then we went through some great pains of closing over two miles worth of canals, working with the Bureau of Reclamation and the irrigation district, and that project’s gonna be a little over a million and a half [00:49:00] to get those canals closed. But that allowed us to move poles that were Originally kind of they are, uh, pinned to be about 40 feet out from the road.

Well, that-- when we closed those canals, we were able to co-locate into that Bureau of Reclamation right away. It’s called co-locating. So, um, that brought the poles right back up to the road. The impacts to the irrigators just went away. Their circles were able to pass on through. Um, we took it out of one landowner’s field that, uh, they pastured and didn’t have to Mickey Mouse around with their fence.

And they had some issues with induction. Induction is a concern that happens with transmission that can transfer, uh, some a, a, a current, if you will, from the transmission line down to a wire that’s energized, not to a dead wire that’s grounded, but to a wire that’s energized ‘cause you [00:50:00] can’t ground an electric fence or it doesn’t do its job, right?

So, um, so we corrected that and did it through what’s called a caustic cure so that those folks will get a five, five-strand barbed wire fence around their, around their property now for their cattle to be able to graze without having induction issues. So, we had a few that have said, have said no. Um, we’ve tried to work through things, you know, as best as possible, um, and, uh, have just kind of arrived at the conclusion that there’s just sometimes you’re gonna be at an impasse.

And so unfortunately, eminent domain on the state books and the state law, um, allows you to, and, and this is a last resort, but allows you to, if you have folks that are not willing to work with you and they have, um, [00:51:00] you have no recourse except to go ahead and exercise that eminent, eminent domain, then it goes before a judge and the judge decides whether it’s for a public benefit.

And in this case, the judge determined, um, that it was for a public benefit and the ruling was in favor for Grant PUD to, uh, receive eminent domain and, and proceed forward with the project. We’re waiting for some other legal hurdles to go through on that, but, um, you, y-you know, I don’t have any examples, Brent, but I can only imagine as highways were built, as roads were built, as other, whether it was canals that were built that came through here, there was people that said, “You know, you’re not coming through my property” or, “You’re not gonna be on my property.”

And, and that’s really, I mean, this, this law is on the books from way back in the ‘50s, okay? Or maybe even earlier than that. Um, just because that’s the vehicle that you al- at the end of the day when you be- [00:52:00] when you come to an impasse that you have to exercise to be able to make something happen, right? I mean, could you imagine if you were driving down I-90 and all of a sudden, uh, George didn’t want I-90 to go through there, so they had to loop up and do an L shape or something to go around.

You know, it’s just, so, uh, um, that, that law was put in place for things to move forward

Brent Dowlen: Grant PD conducts much of the business in public meetings, yet many residents don’t follow these meetings closely. What would you do to improve transparency and help the public better understand major decisions before they’re made?

Larry Schaapman: Yeah, that’s kind of gonna round back up to, um, what I talked about earlier in our interview, and that was I think we could do a better job of probably going out and getting in front of the people of Grant County more. And what does that look like? You know, I’m not sure. There’s, there’s, um, there’s Rotary, there’s Lions, there’s Kiwanis, there’s city council meetings, [00:53:00] um, there’s port meetings.

I mean, I’ve invested myself a little bit, not much, but some in trying to stay connected with the port commissioners here in Quincy, and, uh, just making sure that, you know, we got some sort of open dialogue that goes on, things that maybe they’re planning. You know, let them know our constraints that we might have, because it’s been a big deal for them, obviously, to run out of power because it’s, it’s kinda shut them down, right?

I mean, they can’t, they can’t grow right now ‘cause we don’t have any power to supply with. So, um, we, we just need to figure out and be m- maybe-- we need to be more intentional about how we’re gonna get out before our, uh, folks in the county and, and try and inform them. There’s been-- I, I know, I get that.

There’s been some complaints about even us having our business meetings, you know, during the day. But I mean, we all come in in the morning, we’re there all day long. It’s like our job, right? We’re-- we show up, we show up at 8:00 and, you know, we’re there till 4:00 and 5:00 in the afternoon sometimes every Tuesday.[00:54:00]

And You know, folks, they’re either gonna take off or there’s virtual options obviously that have happened, and they- if it’s something that’s important to them. Our website’s always got all the information on it if people, you know, wanna get on and find out what the meeting’s about, what’s happening at the meeting.

And we-- And, you know, our, our large industrial folks are pretty astute. They know what’s going on, right? So it’s kinda like, I, I... You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make him drink. So it’s, it’s-- There’s, there’s things out there that are opportunities for people to go, and even go later to listen to a commission meeting that’s is recorded.

The business meetings are all recorded, so you can listen to those online. And, you know, just reach out to us. I mean, don’t... Reach out to me. Uh, don’t, don’t d-don’t go grumble about it and then, uh, I don’t know about it. You know, talk to me. Come, come see me. It’s, it’s, it’s a two-way street too, [00:55:00] right?

Brent Dowlen: How will you yourself stay connected with people in your district so you’re hearing from more than just the loudest voices?

Larry Schaapman: Yeah. I think, uh, you know, as I live in the community and I get around, and of course I’m gonna say it’s predominantly Quincy, um, I’ve, I’ve found that, um, I’ve probably gotten a little lax. And, and I don’t wanna blame this necessarily on COVID, but I think we’ve all got a little laxidasical after COVID.

You know, we d- we weren’t... We didn’t get out there for a period of time and, and I don’t know if we got out of the habit of doing some of those things. But it’s been good for me to get, like, invited down to, uh, South Grant County, uh, Chamber of Commerce, uh, forum that they had. It was nice to get connected with some folks down there.

Again, folks that I knew, um, and to meet some new folks, right? So looking for opportunities to, to get out, to see people, to, uh, let them know. I just need to be more intentional about that again. So this, this, uh, election has made me [00:56:00] aware of maybe the disconnect that I or we as the PUD have had and, uh, what we need to do to kinda make that a little bit more robust.

Brent Dowlen: Is there one current grant PUD policy or initiative that you believe is working well? And is there one area where you believe the commission should consider a different approach?

Larry Schaapman: Well, that’s an interesting question. I don’t know if I’m gonna have a really good answer for you outside of the fact that we have a-- we have our legal review department now that has kind of been stood up, and they’re, they’re all about policies right now, and they’re going through all the policies that we have, and they’re looking at the policies that work and the policies that don’t work.

And the ones that don’t work, you know, why don’t they work? What do we need to change them? And the policies that are no longer needed, why do we need to still have them on the books? So it’s, it’s, um, uh, with our new general manager, John Mertlik, our-- uh, there’s been a changing in the guard, and it’s been really refreshing, and, uh, we’re seeing [00:57:00] some things that are starting to happen that we used to just kinda do, uh, status quo.

And, um, so I’m, I’m very appreciative of the, uh, initiatives that he’s taking on trying to streamline things and make better business practices, better, better business management practices.

Brent Dowlen: Finally, if voters only remember one thing from this interview, what do you they-- what do you hope that it is, and why should they trust you to continue to serve as their Grant County PUD Commissioner?

Larry Schaapman: Hmm. Yeah, well, you know, trust, that’s a big word, and you just-- you would like to think that people trust you, right? I, I would just have to say, you know, if, if, if you have the time to research and talk to some folks, I’m not gonna give you specific names right now, but, um, just, just talk around and ask about me and the work that I’ve done, my body of work that I’ve done for the last 14 years being your commissioner.

The [00:58:00] people that I’ve gone out and helped with, uh, power issues that they have with getting connections. Uh, people that, um, I’ve helped with on this line route where there was impacts that were gonna affect them. People that I went out and visited with and, um, on, on the previous line that was built, you know, trying to get things resolved for them.

And, and the fact that, you know, I, I just-- I, I have-- I believe I have an open door. I just want people to know that my door is open. Um, obviously, my life is public, um, except when I go home. You know, that’s where I shut it off, and I, I wanna have time with my family. I wanna have time with my wife. Um, there’s a time and a place to do everything.

But I mean, I’m on Facebook. I’m in-- Uh, I’m on the webpage. I mean, my phone number is public. My email is public. Um, so there’s no reason why they can’t get ahold of me as well. Um, but [00:59:00] just look at what I’ve been doing. Just, um, go back in history. Just understand that, you know, I was, I was a driver with trying to help with, uh, our core customers being protected.

Um, I’ve been a big proponent of talking about our customer owners and changing Our culture and how we think about our customers, um, that they’re ju- they’re just not meters. They’re, they’re people. They’re people that we have a responsibility to and, uh, people that we need to inform on what’s happening and, and to just settle their nerves on what’s going on.

So I would appreciate, you know, your vote, uh, going forward for, to continue on this charge and, and to, uh, help figure out ways for us to reinvent ourselves with the new resources that we’re taking a look at and how we’re gonna get those resources de- delivered in a, in a reasonable way and, and, uh, in an equitable way that doesn’t impact people.

And, and hopefully, um, when we start our next line, our [01:00:00] communications will be a little bit different than what they were before. We’ve had some what, you know, we’ve, we’ve talked about maybe some of the things we could have done differently on this one. Um, but we also did things in a normal fashion that we always have too, and that had, that has been successful.

So, um, can’t make people read their mail. Can’t make people, um, read the paper. Can’t make people go to the website. Can’t make people go to the webpage and, and, uh, look for those kind of things on their own. So, um, yeah, there... Are there things-- There’s always room for improvement. Continuous improvement is, is really what, um, I want my main focus to be, and, uh, I want us to be about at the PUD with, with, uh, continuing to improve our communication with our customer owners better.

Brent Dowlen: Thank you for taking the time

Larry Schaapman: You are quite welcome. Thanks, Brett.

Website Bio (condensed)

Commissioner Schaapman was appointed to fill a vacancy on the commission in 2012 and successfully ran for a six-year term in 2013. He has been a resident of Grant County for 40 years and has operated several businesses in the area during that time. He currently owns and manages a family farm in the Quincy area and served on numerous agricultural boards in the region, including the Washington State Farm Bureau.

Website: Facebook

Questions for Candidate

Grant Pud Commissioner Position 3 Interview Questions

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Disclaimer:
This interview is presented as part of our commitment to providing accessible, local information to the community. All candidates in the 2026 Grant County Auditor’s race were given the same questions, in the same format, and the opportunity to share their perspectives directly.

The responses published here are the candidate’s own words, presented without editing, interpretation, or commentary beyond basic transcription. Audio recordings are provided alongside transcripts to ensure full transparency.

Welcome to Quincy WA News does not endorse, support, or oppose any candidate. Our role is to provide information so residents of Grant County—including the 98848 communities—can make informed decisions based on their own judgment.

I interviewed 2 candidates for the Grant County  PUD Commissioner Dist #3 race for 2026.

• Both Candidates were invited to be interviewed

• Both Candidates responded were asked the exact same 18 questions in the exact same order

• They never saw each others answers

• The answers have not been altered, edited, modified, editorialized, changed, or edited in any way by the staff, ownership, or affiliates of this publication.

• For each I have posted the transcript, not a story, their words. (transcripts by AI)

• For each I have posted the audio from the interview.

• A full list of the questions

• Below the interviews I will post their posted bio from their candidate website, their sign and a link to their website and or FaceBook

The Interview Begins Here

Jacque Rasmussen Interview Audio File

Jacque Rasmussen Interview Grant County  PUD Commissioner Dist #3 Race for 2026

Brent Dowlen: [00:00:00] Jacque, tell us a little bit about yourself. What should voters know about you, your background, and what led you to seek the seat on Grant County PUD Commission?

Jacque Rasmussen: My name is Jacque Rasmussen. I am proud to call Grant County home. I was raised in Grandview, Washington. Um, I’m the oldest of five. I have two brothers, two sisters.

My parents are hardworking. My dad worked at Hanford, and my parents were also farmers. We raised horses, cattles. We grew alfalfa. So a lot of my younger years were spent on the farm, riding my horses, um, you know, doing farm chores. But through those experiences, and they were wonderful experiences, but through those experiences, I learned the value of hard work, I learned responsibility, and I learned how to take care of the land.

Um, after graduating from Grandview High School, my husband and I married. We’ve been [00:01:00] married for 43 years. We moved to Cheney and attended Eastern Washington University. We graduated in 1991 with our teaching certificates, and Quincy School District hired both of us. So we made Quincy our home for the past 35 years.

Um, we raised our three children here. We taught the children in this community, and we’ve watched Grant County grow. Um, and so it was really a hard decision for me when I decided to retire, um, because I loved what I did. I loved being part of Quincy School District, and I loved the students that I taught.

Um, so even though I’ve retired from teaching, I still want to serve, but I want to serve in a different way, and because, like I said, I, I do love this county, I decided that I wanted to step up and run for Grant County PUD Commissioner[00:02:00]

Brent Dowlen: Every commissioner brings a different background to the board. What experiences in your career and personal life have prepared you to oversee a complex public utility with large budgets, critical infrastructure, and long-term planning responsibilities?

Jacque Rasmussen: Okay, so like I said, I’ve worked in Quincy School District for 35 years, and a lot, a lot of that has prepared me, I believe, for, um, the serving on the commission.

Um, so when I was a teacher, I worked with families, I worked with students, I worked with administrators, I worked with community leaders, I worked with colleagues, and I learned to be a good listener. I learned... And, and not just a listener, an active listener. I learned to collaborate. I learned to communicate well with people.

Um, s- and I think that that’s huge. If you want, if you wanna be a commissioner, then I think that it’s really important that you [00:03:00] listen to the ratepayers. The other thing is, at, you know, at working in the school district, I took on a lot of leadership responsibilities. I was, um, on our district leadership teams.

I was on building leadership teams. I was on the, uh, Quincy Education Association executive board. I mentored many teachers, and I also ran the mentoring program when new, new teachers came to Quincy School District. I oversaw that program for a lot of years. I also, um, was a volleyball coach. I was an academic coach, I was a cheer coach, and I was a dance coach, and those experiences taught me the importance of teamwork and everybody working together towards a common goal.

Um, but, but I truly think that one of my biggest strengths is being a good listener, and, and that’s what I would bring to the table, is, um, listening to our ratepayers and making sure [00:04:00] that they are engaged in part of the process when big decisions are being made that are, that’s going to impact them

Brent Dowlen: How do you define the role of PUD commissioner?

Where should governance end and management begin?

Jacque Rasmussen: So I liken it to Quincy School Board and Quincy teachers. And so I, you know, when you think of that, the commissioners are the governing body of the PUD. And, um, the CEO, the general manager, he runs the day-to-day operations. So as the commissioners, um, you know, they oversee the budgets.

They oversee the, like, the, the big projects. They’re the voice. You know, they should be communicating with, uh, the rate payers. Um, they’re, uh, they’re in charge of, um, hiring and evaluating the CEO[00:05:00]

Brent Dowlen: What qualities do you believe are most important in evaluating and working with the general manager and CEO?

Jacque Rasmussen: I think, um, what’s really important that I’ve said earlier is, um, communication, being able to communicate well, being able to collaborate. I also am somebody that will do my homework. I’m not going to just be spoon-fed information.

I want to know, and I’ll do the homework. I know how to research too. I worked as a librarian for a lot of years, so I will do my research, and I’m not afraid to ask the tough questions. And I... W- can you repeat the question?

Brent Dowlen: What qualities do you believe are most important in evaluating and working with the general manager or CEO?

Jacque Rasmussen: Okay. I, yes, I think I’ve answered it. I think communication is very important. I think, um, collaborating and [00:06:00] listening to different perspectives

Brent Dowlen: When technical experts, engineers, financial staff, and community members all have different opinions, how do you make a decision?

Jacque Rasmussen: I think being informed, making sure that I am informed before making any decision. And I know that deci- I mean, you’re not gonna make everybody happy, but it’s important to listen to the different perspectives and, um, get as much information, you know, from the ratepayers and, and also speaking to the engineers, taking into consideration all of those perspectives and making sure that your decision is informed

Brent Dowlen: What do you believe is the single biggest challenge facing Grant PUD over the next 10 years?

Jacque Rasmussen: I think managing growth, rapid growth, and [00:07:00] I am not opposed to growth. Um, and I, I... and, um, but I think what’s happening is, um, w- uh, it was

Okay, so I, I, I think b- before we’re promising power to large companies, we need to make sure that, that we have that power. Um, right now there’s a, a lawsuit that I’m reading about in, um, Moses Lake because th- th- they’re saying that they were promised power and now they don’t have this power. So I think growth is good.

I support, I support growth, but I think that we have to be responsible and we have to be transparent when we’re letting rate payers know what’s happening, and also our custom- yeah, the customers

Brent Dowlen: [00:08:00] Grant County has become a national hub for data centers Because of its affordable electricity, what role should Grant PUD play in supporting the economic development while ensuring local residents continue to benefit from low-cost hydropower?

Jacque Rasmussen: Um, I think that we need to make sure that the ratepayers, the, the, the farmers, the residents, the small business, they’re not being burdened with the costs of the infrastructures that’s needed for these, um, data centers.

S- um, so I think that, um, we, we need to make sure that we’re protecting property rights and we’re, uh, protecting ratepayers. And I’ve even, uh... The CEO, he has e- of Microsoft, he has come out, and I’ve, I’ve read articles where he has stated that the data centers [00:09:00] should be paying for that, that, that growth, that infrastructure.

And, um, and I believe that growth should pay for, for the growth needed or for the, the infrastructure needed

Brent Dowlen: How should Grant County, Grant PUD balance the needs of the residential cus- customers with the growing demand of the data centers and the other large industrial uses that are coming in?

Jacque Rasmussen: Well, I think Grant County PUD, I mean, they are definitely working with, you know, their, their core customers. They have said that the core customers, they are going to be receiving the lowest, um, r- rates.

So even though their rates are gonna be increasing for the next, you know, 10 years, I think they’ve, they’ve said that there’s gonna be, like, a 3% increase for the next t- you know, 10 years. Um, [00:10:00] big industries, their, their rate increase is, like, 10% each year. So I think Grant County PUD is trying to make sure that the, um, that the, uh, core customers, that their rates are staying low

Brent Dowlen: Grant County continues to grow rapidly, especially in areas like Quincy. How should Grant PUD plan for growth while avoiding the unnecessary cost for existing payers?

Jacque Rasmussen: So, um, I think what, what’s frustrating, I’ve watched, um, the Wanapum Mountain View project, that, that, uh, transmission project, and, uh, you know, the PUD, they quoted that as being $38 million.

That number has more than doubled, and you’re- we’re looking at 86 to 91 [00:11:00] million right now. And when, when I specifically asked about that, they said, “Well, we forgot to add in the, uh, distribution lines.” So that was really frustrating for me to hear that because it’s like how on earth, if you’ve presented this to the public and you’ve told us that it’s gonna be, you know, 38 to $41 million- And how is it now that, that it’s doubled and somebody forgot to add in the distribution lines?

So I think that being good stewards of, of the rate payers’ money, that we need to make sure that we’re spending that money wisely because, you know, they’re, they’re way over budget on this project currently. Um, the other thing that’s really frustrating is the PUD, they hire outside consulting firms [00:12:00] like HDR, which is great, but when you pay that much money, $2.6 million, to hire a consulting firm, and then you ignore their advice or what they analyzed as best versus worst routes, that’s concerning.

$2.6 million we spent on that, and then we’re not going to, um, use their analysis? So I think, getting back to the question, I, I, I believe that as commissioners, we need to make sure that the core customers are being protected, and I think that as commissioners, we also need to make sure that we are spending the money wisely

Brent Dowlen: What does keeping rates affordable mean to you?

What trade-offs are acceptable to accomplish that

Jacque Rasmussen: Keeping rates affordable is very important to me. I- it’s very important [00:13:00] to our farmers and our agriculture co- community because they’re the backbone of this county. So, um, I will do whatever I can to make sure that we keep, uh, the rates low. But I don’t feel...

I think that I also support, um, protecting private property rights, and so I don’t think it should come at the expense of, um, you know, the PUD using imminent domain to condemn private, private property for the transmission lines. A lot of people are already paying in rates, and some people are being asked to pay for it with their homes and their farms, and I would do whatever I could as a PUD commissioner to protect, um, private property rights

Brent Dowlen: Grant PUD manages billions of dollars in public assets. How would you approach making investments that will, [00:14:00] that may not pay off for 20 or 30 years while still keeping today’s electric rates affordable?

Jacque Rasmussen: Well, honestly, I think that, um, uh, you know, the way that they sell and buy power, they’ve done a great job, and they’ve been making millions of dollars in the way that they have been selling, um, power.

The PUD operates on a $700 million budget, um, and infrastructure is definitely important. And I believe that when we’re creating new infrastructure, that we first need to u- you know, look at using public lands or current, you know, what the current lines are and if we can add to those lines. Um

Brent Dowlen: Beyond keeping electric rates low, how should Grant PUD measure success?[00:15:00]

Jacque Rasmussen: I think that, yes, keeping the rates low, but I think letting the people, the rate payers be a voice, let them be engaged. Um, right now, uh, Grant County PUD commissioners, they hold their meetings in the middle of the day, 1:00, and it makes it really hard if you want to speak about something or if you want to learn more about something.

Most people are working that time, and they can’t, you know, make it over to those meetings at 1:00 in the day, and now they’ve even cut down on their meetings. It used to be that they had them twice a month. Now they’re just once a month. And, um, I, I would really strongly encourage, or I don’t know, you know, what I could do, but start holding those meetings in the evening and open it back up to once or twice a month rather than, um, just once a month [00:16:00] so the community can become engaged, the community can be a voice.

Um

Brent Dowlen: Commissioners hear from homeowners, farmers, businesses, industrial customers, and environmental groups who are often competing priorities. When those interests conflict, what principles guide your decision-making?

Jacque Rasmussen: I think I’m an honest person, I’m a fair person, I, um, I ask good questions, um, and I make informed decisions.

So, and I listen to different perspectives, and before I make a decisions, I’m gonna make sure that it’s an informed decision and, um

Right is right, and I’m going to try to, you know, make sure that I always, you know, do what best serves our customers [00:17:00] in the county

Brent Dowlen: One of the biggest issues facing Grant PUD today is the controversial-- controversy surrounding acquiring private property and easements for new transmission lines. How do you balance the need to build infrastructure that services the public with protecting property rights of individual landmo-- landowners?

Under what circumstances, if any, do you believe the use of inno-eminent domain is appropriate?

Jacque Rasmussen: So currently I am involved. Uh, Grant County PUD is using, um, eminent domain to condemn our private property. They’re, you know, we’re, um, they’re taking us to court, and we’ve filed a motion to dismiss. So I think I will bring firsthand experience to that if I’m on the commission because I will fight for property rights.

When you’ve worked your whole life for something [00:18:00] and then to have it taken away through the use of eminent domain

It’s really upsetting and it’s really frustrating. However, if it’s necessary and if that’s the only route, I mean, I would look at everything and I would make sure that the property owners have a seat at the table, they’re involved through that whole process. My experience, they were 30% through the project before I learned what was happening to my property.

That was really frustrating. Um, so I believe protecting property rights is very im- v- very important, and I will do my best to make sure that property rights are protected. The other thing with farmers, I don’t think maybe some people understand, when you cut in, uh, to, like 100 feet of their property, [00:19:00] their circle, that’s affecting their entire farm.

So, so the acreage around that whole, uh, circle for 100 feet, they’re losing profit on that because they’re not able to, um, grow that entire, um, that circle, you know, 100 feet. So it’s a huge impact when they’re using eminent domain on, um, residential property, farms. Um, and I guess too, my experience, I don’t want to live under a 230 kV, kV line.

Um, so I’m definitely gonna consider moving because I don’t want to live under a 230 kV line, and I think that that’s how a lot of people feel, that, you know, that they don’t wanna live under that massive of a power line

Brent Dowlen: Grand PD conducts much of its business in public meetings, yet many residents don’t follow those meetings closely. What would you do to improve transparency and help the public better understand [00:20:00] major decisions before they’re made?

Jacque Rasmussen: I would change... I, I would work hard to change the time that they have their meetings.

Um, they hold, they hold their meetings in the middle of the day at 1:00 and Tues- on Tuesdays over at, um, over in Ephrata. It makes it hard for working people to attend those meetings and, um, to, to stay informed. Um, I think communication is very important too. If you’re having a, a, a major project that’s going to be coming through your property, then you need to let those people know.

They... Y- you know, either contact them by phone, put a door hanger on their door. Um, but to say that, you know, “Oh, well, we put it, you know, in a flyer in your PUD bill,” not everybody reads those flyers. Um, and so they don’t sometimes see it or pay attention to it. [00:21:00] So as a commissioner, if I were elected, I would make sure that if, if there was going to be, you know, a big project like a 230 kV line that’s going to be impacting your property, and especially if you’re in my district or the area that I’m gonna be serving, I’m gonna be contacting you.

Yeah. And I’m going to be letting you know. I’m not gonna wait till you’re 30% through the project and the decision’s already made as to, you know, what route would’ve been best. So, um, I just think, uh, putting myself out there, opening meetings up, um, in the evening rather than during the day and, um, social media is great too.

I think that I would utilize s- social media if I was elected as a PUD commissioner because I think a lot of people, you know, follow, follow on social media [00:22:00]

Brent Dowlen: How will you stay connected with the people in your district so you’re hearing from more than just the loudest voices?

Jacque Rasmussen: I’m fortunate because I have been a teacher for 35 years in this community, so I love s- uh, th- you know, that I love staying connected with former students.

I love, you know, seeing them running businesses, sitting on the city council meetings. Um, so definitely, um, I will always have that personal touch. I, uh, uh, th- part of this campaign has been really f- really fun for me. My, my 35 years has been spent at Quincy school district events, and now that I’m transitioning into th- this campaign, I have enjoyed so much going to city council meetings, uh, att- attending community events, atten- [00:23:00] uh, visiting the senior centers.

Um, and so I just think it’s really important to, uh, be visible, to stay connected with the communities that you serve, and, um, make sure that you are approachable. Like, if people have concerns, if they have issues, I want them to know that they can come, they can talk to me, that I am an approachable person, and that I am going to listen to them, and I’m gonna treat them fairly, and I’m gonna treat them with respect, and I’m going to listen to all perspectives or all sides of something before I make a decision

Brent Dowlen: Is there one current PUD policy or initiative that you believe is working well, and is there one area where you believe the commission should consider a different approach?

Jacque Rasmussen: I think Grant County PUD, they are, they are working well and [00:24:00] they’ve really looked at the core customers. Um, th- you know, they’re tr- they’re trying to keep those rates low.

Um, uh, but you know, prices are m- moving up. We’re needing more infrastructure. So, um, I, I, I think the commissioners are working hard on, on that, and I think that that’s important. I, I believe too that we should keep the rate, rates as low as we can for our core customers. Um, the use of eminent domain and condemning private property, I, I, I think that they need to look at that policy and revisit it.

You know, what, what their current policy is, is that they will pay 25% land value when they take an easement. Uh, and so that’s concerning. If you’re going to take [00:25:00] people’s private property for easements, then you need to revisit that policy, and you need to make it fair for the landowners so that they’re getting fair market value for the, for the land that they’re giving up for the easement.

And I would definitely dive more into that and, um, look, look at those policies more closely

Brent Dowlen: Finally, if the voters only remember one thing from the interview, what do you hope it is, and why should they trust you to serve as their Grant County PUD Commissioner?

Jacque Rasmussen: I hope that they learn that I am a good listener, that I will listen to them. I hope that, um, they vote for me because, um, I think maybe-- I think change is needed at, uh, the, uh, PUD Commission.

Um, the commissioners have served a lot of time on those, [00:26:00] uh, on that commission, and I think that they’re n- we need to get new blood in there and new ideas. And I think that, um, that to get the community more engaged with some of these big decisions that are being made for our county, we need to get, um, uh, the ratepayers involved.

If that means, you know, changing the time of the meetings to the evening, you know, then I think we need to do that.

Brent Dowlen: Thank you for taking the time.

Jacque Rasmussen: Thank you.

Website Bio (condensed)

Quincy resident, retired teacher, wife, mother, and grandmother. I am running for Grant PUD Commissioner to bring transparency, accountability, and a stronger voice for ratepayers while protecting affordable public power and property rights.

Website: Facebook

Questions for Candidate

Grant Pud Commissioner Position 3 Interview Questions

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Disclaimer:
This interview is presented as part of our commitment to providing accessible, local information to the community. All candidates in the 2026 Grant County Auditor’s race were given the same questions, in the same format, and the opportunity to share their perspectives directly.

The responses published here are the candidate’s own words, presented without editing, interpretation, or commentary beyond basic transcription. Audio recordings are provided alongside transcripts to ensure full transparency.

Welcome to Quincy WA News does not endorse, support, or oppose any candidate. Our role is to provide information so residents of Grant County—including the 98848 communities—can make informed decisions based on their own judgment.

2026 Candidate Interviews

As part of our 2026 election coverage, we invited candidates in several local races to participate in interviews designed to give voters a chance to hear directly from the people asking for their vote.

This page serves as a hub for those interviews. Each race is listed below with links to the individual candidate interviews and supporting information.

What to Expect

To keep the process as consistent and fair as possible, we followed the same basic format for each race:

• Every candidate in the race was invited to participate.

• Candidates who participated were asked the same 20 questions, in the same order.

• Candidates did not see the other candidates’ answers before their interview.

• There were no follow-up questions or debate between candidates.

• Candidate answers have not been altered, edited, editorialized or changed by the staff, ownership or affiliates of this publication.

• Each candidate page includes a transcript of the interview rather than a traditional news story. Transcripts were produced using AI and are presented as a written record of the candidate’s responses.

• The original interview audio is included so voters can listen to the candidate’s answers directly.

• The complete list of questions is provided for reference.

• Each candidate page also includes the candidate’s publicly posted biography, campaign sign or campaign image, and links to their campaign website and/or Facebook page when available.

The purpose of these interviews is not to tell you who to vote for. It is to give candidates the same opportunity to answer the same questions and give voters the information they need to make their own decisions.

Select a race below to hear directly from the candidates.

Sheriff’s Race

Assessor’s Race

Grant Superior Court Race

Grant County PUD

Auditor’s Race

County Commissioner’s Race

Disclaimer:
This interviews are presented as part of our commitment to providing accessible, local information to the community. All candidates in the 2026 Grant County Auditor’s race were given the same questions, in the same format, and the opportunity to share their perspectives directly.

The responses published here are the candidate’s own words, presented without editing, interpretation, or commentary beyond basic transcription. Audio recordings are provided alongside transcripts to ensure full transparency.

Welcome to Quincy WA News does not endorse, support, or oppose any candidate. Our role is to provide information so residents of Grant County—including the 98848 communities—can make informed decisions based on their own judgment.

I interviewed 2 candidates for the Grant County  Commissioner Assessor’s race for 2026.

• Both Candidates were invited to be interviewed

• Both Candidates responded were asked the exact same 20 questions in the exact same order

• They never saw each others answers

• The answers have not been altered, edited, modified, editorialized, changed, or edited in any way by the staff, ownership, or affiliates of this publication.

• For each I have posted the transcript, not a story, their words. (transcripts by AI)

• For each I have posted the audio from the interview.

• A full list of the questions

• Below the interviews I will post their posted bio from their candidate website, their sign and a link to their website and or FaceBook

The Interview Begins Here

Anson Bartrand Interview Audio File

Anson Bartrand Interview Grant County  Assessor

Race for 2026

Brent Dowlen: [00:00:00] Please introduce yourself to our readers. Who are you? What is your connection to Grant County, and what would you like people to know about you personally and professionally?

Anson Bartrand: Hi, my name is Anson Bartrand. I am a third-generation Grant County resident, uh, and citizen.

I... My family’s been here since my da- my dad and his grandfather moved here shortly after World War II, and, uh, they’ve loved this area. And I, I look forward to raising my family here as well. I am the CFO of a land investment and management company, and I hope to bring that experience to the assessor’s office.

I have, uh, bachelor’s degrees in accounting and marketing management, and I also finished up law school over at the University of Idaho. And so I have- a ton of [00:01:00] education behind me. Perhaps I’m over-educated, but I think that it’s important to

Have a certain legal background and a certain accounting background, especially when you’re in a position of leadership over a large county department.

Brent Dowlen: Yeah Why are you running for Grant County Assessor, and why do you believe you’re qualified for the particular office?

Anson Bartrand: I’m running for... I’ll address the first question first.

I’m running for Grant County Assessor because I am aware that there’s been a lot of contention between the departments in Ephrata, the assessor’s office, the auditor’s office, and the treasurer’s office, and that friction ultimately harms the people of Grant County. I hope to bring a reasoned approach, and treat [00:02:00] people with dignity, and work hard for the people of Grant County, while still serving the conservative values of their, our constituents, the farmers, the businessmen, the landowners, the residents.

Um, can you repeat the second question?

Brent Dowlen: Yeah. Why do you believe you’re qualified for this particular office?

Anson Bartrand: So I’ve already discussed my educational background a little bit. I also have a bit of experience in the private sector, serving as a leader and working to... Working with budgets, working with limited resources to try and accomplish the goals of the company, which was Sentinel Shores.

Brent Dowlen: Okay. What experience, education, and training or professional background do you have that you believe has prepared you to serve as Grant County Assessor?

Anson Bartrand: [00:03:00] So working as CFO for a land investment and management company, although I do not have experience in property valuation specifically, I’m not trained in USPAP standards, I am very much familiar with this industry, and I’m very much familiar with how property valuations happen, and I’m aware of some of the standards.

I am not trained. But as assessor, you need someone who’s more equipped to lead a department, someone who has training, and my training is private sector. I don’t come from government bureaucracy. And I have some experience on, uh, nonprofit, uh, committees and boards. I served on the central committee for the Grand Columbia Council BSA when it was around.

I, um, have served [00:04:00] in various positions within the Grant County Republican Party on its executive board, and I believe that that experience has enabled me to be a better leader for the people of Grant County

Brent Dowlen: Many voters don’t have much interaction with the assessor’s office until they receive a property valuation notice.

In your own words, what does the Grant County Assessor do, and what does the assessor not control when it comes to somebody’s property tax bill?

Anson Bartrand: So the assessor’s office needs to be very proactive in helping landowners when they come. A lot of times a landowner will complain or, to the assessor’s office, or they’ll just go directly into filing an appeal with the Board of Equalization.

My goal is to implement a bit of a more formal mediation process first, because landowners, when they argue before the Board of Equalization, the Board of [00:05:00] Equalization is instructed to presume that the assessor’s office is correct. And so I hope to implement a more formal mediation process where the landowner who considers his property to be assessed too high and the assessor’s office can simply discuss and say, “Hey, what do we believe the valuation should be?”

I believe that an assessor needs to be humble and acknowledge that we’re not always right, and I know that there are a lot of landowners that feel like the assessor’s office doesn’t take into account what they put forward. Like they might go and get a fair market appraisal and go to, and get their own appraiser, and the value is substantially lower than what the assessor’s office lists the property at, and the assessor’s office doesn’t have to consider that [00:06:00] fair market appraisal.

Which, in my opinion, should have a fairly substantial weight, especially when an assessor’s office is conducting thousands of app- 60,000 appraisals across Grant County all at once

I think that With that program in place, the landowner’s interests would be better reflected and in an environment which is not as imposing as going to the Board of Equalization, and it would save the Board of Equalization a bunch of time by resolving a lot of these conflicts earlier.

Brent Dowlen: What do you believe the Grant County Assessor’s office currently does well, and what specifically would like to change to im- or improve if elected?

Anson Bartrand: I believe the assessor’s office does, by and large, a reasonable job at valuing property across Grant County. I... It’s very hard [00:07:00] to, um, value property, um, and I think that they do

A reasonable job, I won’t say a great job, and I certainly hope to improve that process. But some of the things that I hope to improve are, again, that process for landowners to mediate their differences rather than going directly to the Board of Equalization. Uh, second thing I hope to work on is coordinating with the other departments within Grant County to provide the best possible service that they can to the people of Grant County and the landowners of Grant County.

Another thing I hope to work on is budgetary responsibility. The assessor’s office has 15 employees and a substantial budget, over two million dollars, [00:08:00] which is a burden on the people of Grant County. I’ll look for ways that we can ef- more efficiently serve the people of Grant County with the resources that we have.

Brent Dowlen: Washington State requires property to be assessed according to state law and the valuations be fair and uniform. What would you do as the assessor to ensure that similar properties and property owners are treated consistently through Grant County?

Anson Bartrand: You have processes to value property. In reality, no property is 100% the same as the other property.

Under USPAP standards, you use fair market comparable sales in order to value the property. And what’s a comparable sale? You look at the neighborhood, you look at all the characteristics, but it’s really hard. You’ll never [00:09:00] have a perfect number that every appraiser would agree to, but you do your best job with the information you have and you try and do it in a way that Is expedient.

You don’t wanna spend m- $20 million appraising property across Grant County because you, you could spend as much money as you want to, but you want a process which is expedient, and you want a process which can fairly value property

Brent Dowlen: Grant County includes residential neighborhoods, farms, agricultural lands, small communities, recreational properties, commercial businesses, major industrial facilities, data centers, and rapidly developing areas.

How would you approach the challenge of accurately and eq- equitably valuing su- valuing such different types of properties?

Anson Bartrand: Grant County [00:10:00] is a very broad and diverse county. Yeah. And as I said, you have to consider each property as it is. Um, and there are different approaches to valuing commercial property. You can use replacement cost as opposed to simply fair market comps b- because how are you going to value data centers, for example, in Grant County?

You, you can’t use comps because, I mean, the data centers are new and they aren’t being sold-

Brent Dowlen: Mm-hmm ...

Anson Bartrand: in fair market sales. And so you have to use techniques under USPAP standards in order to value property. You have to consider what the information you have, and you need to do so in a way that, um, is ultimately fast because you [00:11:00] can’t value every property, um, using conventional appraisal standards.

Y- it’s a mass appraisal.

Brent Dowlen: Okay If a Grant County homeomer... If a Grant County homeowner receives an assessment showing a substantial increase in their property’s value even though they haven’t sold, remodeled, or made significant improvements to it, how would you explain how that can happen and how the county arrived at that valuation?

Anson Bartrand: So there are a few ways that can happen. Um, one of the things that can happen is, um, the assessor’s office might be, uh, looking at comparable sales in the area which have suddenly skyrocketed the price. It could be that they’re comparing to properties which are not logically within the neighborhood. So like for example, if you’re comparing two properties in Moses Lake [00:12:00] that are on the shoreline of Moses Lake, they’re going to be valued significantly higher than other nearby properties.

But like if they’re on a canal, you’ll end up with a different value, and sometimes the assessor’s office does not perfectly draw the boundaries to reflect that. And so you, when you’re talking with the landowner, you’re listening to them and seeing, okay, well, they- they’re sudden- noting a sudden increase, and they, they feel like perhaps these comparable sales don’t make any sense, and maybe they don’t.

You need to have humility when you’re considering that. Um, if the landowner, um-

You would explain why you’re using the properties you’re using to the landowner. Um, and you’d also [00:13:00] listen to the landowner if those other things don’t make sense to use.

Brent Dowlen: If a property owner believes the assessor’s office has gotten the value of their property wrong, what should they expect from you and your staff?

And what should they do to challenge that assessment?

Anson Bartrand: So if they believe that a property value is wrong, ideally, under my proposed system, they would go to the assessor’s office, and we’d set up a meeting, and we’d discuss and mediate through this difference of opinion regarding the value of the property.

And, um, maybe the answer is somewhere in the middle. Maybe it’s more to one side than the other based off of the facts that you have. You’d have to consider all the property’s characteristics and the comparable sales and all those factors. Another thing that you would... I- if they’re unwilling [00:14:00] to come to a consensus, then you would go to the Board of Equalization.

And, um, ultimately, when landowners go to the Board of Equalization, unfortunately, I, I very much disagree with this as a landowner here in Grant County, if you go to the Board of Equalization, you... as a landowner, you’re presumed to be wrong. The Board of Equalization has specifically instructed that they’re to assume that the assessor’s office is right, which I believe that’s wrong.

But that’s unfortunately the system in which we live under Washington state law.

Brent Dowlen: What is your philosophy towards property assessment appeals, and how will you balance being responsive to individuals, property owners, with your responsibility to apply the same valuation standards throughout the county?

Anson Bartrand: So you have to respect what the landowner says when they disagree with [00:15:00] their property evaluation, and you have to be fair and consistent throughout the county. And when you’re doing a mass appraisal, sometimes you get it wrong, and so you’re willing to correct that. But you’re fair and consistent in your char- in your valuation of the property, and y- there are guidelines which govern that, and I believe very much in the rule of law

Brent Dowlen: What information and measurements would you use to determine whether property assessments across Grant County are accurate, consistent, and equitable?

Anson Bartrand: So you could do a sampling to make sure that the way you’re valuing property is accurate, and that’s actually done by, I believe it’s the Department of Revenue that conducts, uh, regular audits. And it tells counties, “We believe that you are assessing property across your county at around 95% of the true and fair [00:16:00] value.”

Um, and so you have that as sort of telling you how accurately you’re doing it. Um, and that’s one metric that the State of Washington has for determining if counties are valuing property fairly across the board, uh, relative to the rest of the state. As far as within Grant County, you might ultimately be assessing property differently to where it should be.

One example that I can think of is a recent case from the Board of Equalization. There’s a property in Ephrata that’s had a for sale sign on it for many years, and, uh, they’ve been trying to sell it for around half of its assessed value. Mm-hmm. [00:17:00] Now, if it’s not selling for half of its assessed value, maybe the assessed value is wrong, and you need to look and see why it’s wrong.

And in that particular case, I believe that the landowner made a very compelling argument that the assessor’s office should have listened to. But when it goes before the Board of Equalization, the- Um, Board of Equalization is specifically instructed to assume that the Assessor’s Office is right.

Brent Dowlen: Mm-hmm.

Agriculture remains one of Grant County’s most important industries. What do you believe farmers and agricultural property owners should know about how you would administer agricultural and current use property assessments and programs?

Anson Bartrand: So the Assessor’s Office handles current use applications, and I believe that agriculture is the backbone of the American economy, and it’s certainly the backbone, the heart, and the soul of Grant County.[00:18:00]

Um, we need to protect farmers and work collaboratively with farmers when they are submitting their current use applications, when they’re in- valuing their property, and ensure that they’re protected. Because agriculture faces a number of difficulties on every side. They’re facing water shortage, they’re facing all of these.

We don’t need them to also have to face a bureaucratic machine that doesn’t work.

Brent Dowlen: Grant County has experienced a substantial industrial development and boom, including data centers and other large and complex facilities. What challenges do these properties present for an assessor, and how would your administration approach valuing them accurately?

Anson Bartrand: Data centers are very difficult to value, and it’s a new challenge that Grant County faces. We don’t have [00:19:00] sales of data centers that we can compare with, and so you have to value them based off of their, uh... You have to use other techniques under USPAP standards- Mm-hmm ... including replacement cost, including, um, potentially income generation if you have that information provided by them.

You have to u- you have to follow the standards in order to value the data centers.

Brent Dowlen: The assessor’s office maintains records for tens of thousands of parcels, including valuations, ownership information, legal descriptions, maps, property characteristics. How would you use technology to improve the accuracy, efficiency, accessibility, and transparency of the office?

Anson Bartrand: I believe technology is a very wonderful tool, and it used to be that 100 years ago, you were valuing property on the order of however many dollars per acre, and it was [00:20:00] just, like, flat all the way across the county. Now, we have tools that you can say, “Okay, what neighborhood is it in? What is the land being used for?”

And so technology has brought the assessor’s office a long way. I believe it can bring the assessor’s office further. One of the requirements under state law is that you have to, uh, conduct a physical inspection of each property every six years. And, uh, most counties across Washington, not Grant County, um, place a picture of the house on that, um, to...

With a date stamp for when they last looked at the house, and I believe that that would help, uh, people of Grant County, including realtors, to better, um, be able to receive and communicate [00:21:00] information regarding property. Um, I believe that technology can... A lot of the processes can be automated- Mm-hmm ... and perhaps end up with some financial savings for the people of Grant County.

Um, I, I look forward to integrating with technology. One drawback that I see from the assessor’s office is, um, or the Grant County spent, uh, several thousand dollars, uh, getting iPads for, or tablets, I can’t remember which they were, for the assessors when they go around and conduct field inspections. But, um, those computers that they got ultimately were not able to use the software that [00:22:00] the assessor’s office was using, and so they sit in Ephrata doing absolutely nothing.

I, I think we need to use technology responsibly, with an eye towards saving the taxpayers of Grant County money rather than adding to their burden. I think-

R- fiscal responsibility is one of my main concerns, and I hope to bring my experience as a CFO to help s- solve some of these problems

Brent Dowlen: What information do you believe Grant County property owners should be easily, should be able to easily find and understand about their property assessment, how it was determined, available exemptions or programs, and their right to appeal?

Anson Bartrand: Okay. So I, I believe that all of that information should be readily accessible on the website. And if you know how to [00:23:00] dig and where to dig, I mean, you can find it. There are multiple property tax exemptions available. You can get a property tax exemption if you are disabled. You can get it if you are a senior, um, and with a certain qualifying level of income.

You can get, uh, it if the property is in current use. And there, there are all these programs, and a lot of property owners are unfortunately unfamiliar with the system enough to navigate it. And one of the main struggles is, so there’s a senior property tax exemption. Ha- ha- seniors a lot of times struggle with technology.

And, and so you need an assessor’s office that is willing to work with these seniors. As I was at the Grant County Fair, there was a person I was talking to [00:24:00] who was unaware of the senior property tax exemption, and she has been noticing that the property taxes have been going up and up and up. And she’s on a fixed income, and she is struggling with, how am I going to make ends meet?

How am I going to hopefully keep this property still available for my kids when I pass on? And I believe that the assessor’s office needs to help these individuals. And when they go to the assessor’s office, they need a responsive group of people, a task force who’s dedicated to helping them.

Brent Dowlen: Washington provides property tax exemptions and deferral programs for certain qualifying residents, including seniors, people with disabilities.

What responsibility do you believe the assessor’s office has to educate residents about programs for which they may [00:25:00] qualify or help them navigate the process?

Anson Bartrand: I believe we have a very high responsibility. I believe that there are better ways than simply posting it on the website to reach a lot of those people.

And one of the things I would potentially be open to is having town halls across Grant County, uh, in which these people can come and hopefully learn more about the process i- that they need to go through in order to help them save money and lower their property tax burden

Brent Dowlen: The county assessor is also responsible for managing an office and its employees.

How would you describe your management style, and what would you do to recruit, train, retain, or hold accountable the people responsible for assessing properties throughout Grant County?

Anson Bartrand: So if you ask any of my friends, I have a fairly laid-back [00:26:00] style, except when it comes to thing... if things are not done properly, I will ensure...

I, I’m not going to be an absentee assessor. I’m going to be right there in the trenches, helping them with it and working towards serving the people of Grant County. I have management experience, uh, as a CFO. I have other professional experience leading other people, and I have nonprofit board experience as well.

And I, I believe that all of that will come to Help serve the people of Grant County

Brent Dowlen: If elected, what are your three highest priorities for the first year as Grant County Assessor? What specifically would you hope to accomplish on each of them?

Anson Bartrand: [00:27:00] So my three pri- highest priorities, uh, one would be budgetary responsibility.

I wanna make sure that the people of Grant County get the most bang for their buck in the assessor’s office, and ensure that money is spent properly and not wasted. And if there’s any efficiencies that can be re- achieved, I hope to achieve those efficiencies. Two, I hope to ensure that property is fairly and accurately assessed.

I think that that’s a core duty. I think that Daughtered

County Assessor’s Office does an okay job at it, but I think that there’s room for improvement. The third goal I hope to achieve is to help communicate to landowners and, uh, foster good relationship [00:28:00] with the landowners as well as other departments in Ephrata. I- There, there’s a lot of animosity in Ephrata, and there’s a lot of animosity with the landowners too, and I believe that if you comport yourself in a professional manner and Treat people civilly that, that will help bring about the best experience for the people of Grant County.

Brent Dowlen: Four years from now, what specific results or measurements should Grant County residents be able to look at to determine whether you fulfilled the commitments you’re making during this campaign?

Anson Bartrand: Well, I think that one thing that they can look at is the budget. Um, I hope to achieve some synergies and, uh, reduce the budget of the assessor’s office.

Um, and [00:29:00] that will be directly measurable in terms of people’s levy rate. They’ll be able to see, oh, the Grant County is not sending as much money to the assessor’s office, and that’s an absolute win for the people of Grant County, and something which is actually very easily measurable. You have numeric data for that.

As far as, uh, property evaluations, um, that’s a little bit harder to measure. You would need studies in order to measure the accuracy of that. But I believe that landowners will be able to look at their property tax bill and say, “That, that’s reasonable. I think my property’s worth that.” And so I think that You’ll end up with a more accurate and hopefully on a, at least on an individual base, measurable for the people, uh, for the taxpayers of Grant [00:30:00] County metric.

Um, another thing I hope they’ll be able to look at is, uh, the departments up in Ephrata working collaboratively together and solving problems, and putting the people of Grant County first rather than their own egos. And so I believe that hopefully four years from now, they’ll look at all that and say, “You know what?

I think Anson Bartran did a good job as an assessor, and he put our conservative values first,” and yeah.

Brent Dowlen: You’ve had an opportunity to explain your experience, your approach to office, your priorities. What’s the final case you wanna make to Grant County voters as they decide whether to elect you as their next county assessor?

Anson Bartrand: One thing about the assessor’s office, it’s very oftentimes [00:31:00] overlooked. People sometimes don’t even know the difference between an assessor and an auditor. They, they both start with an A, and th- they don’t know. They do something up in Ephrata. Um- But some things that they need to consider when deciding whether or not they want a conservative in the office or not is the assessor has a lot of power.

You, you don’t want someone liberally assessing your valuation of property. Um, but beyond that, they also have the power to, as I was going into earlier, con- they have to conduct a physical inspection of property at least every six years according to state law, and that could be simply looking at a house from the street, or that could be a bureaucrat traipsing around your yard.

[00:32:00] And I believe very much in property rights and privacy rights as well, and I believe that you should limit the amount of intrusion upon privacy and intrusion upon property as possible. And that is something that the assessor’s office, uh, of various counties have begun to implement more and more. There have been some counties, uh, that have had their assessor’s office begin to implement drone technology to aerially surveil people’s property.

And I do not want drones flying over my yard, and I don’t want them flying over your yard either. So like the sheriff’s office, you need someone who shares your conservative values

Website Bio (condensed)

Anson Bartrand My professional background includes years of business experience, including serving as Chief Financial Officer (CFO) for a land investment and management company. In that role, I gained firsthand experience overseeing budgets, financial reporting, property-related matters, and responsible fiscal management. That experience has taught me the importance of accuracy, transparency, and making sound financial decisions—qualities that are essential for an effective County Assessor..

Website: https://www.ansonbartrand.com

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Grant County Assessor Candidate Interview

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Disclaimer:
This interview is presented as part of our commitment to providing accessible, local information to the community. All candidates in the 2026 Grant County Auditor’s race were given the same questions, in the same format, and the opportunity to share their perspectives directly.

The responses published here are the candidate’s own words, presented without editing, interpretation, or commentary beyond basic transcription. Audio recordings are provided alongside transcripts to ensure full transparency.

Welcome to Quincy WA News does not endorse, support, or oppose any candidate. Our role is to provide information so residents of Grant County—including the 98848 communities—can make informed decisions based on their own judgment.

I interviewed 2 candidates for the Grant County  Commissioner Assessor’s race for 2026.

• Both Candidates were invited to be interviewed

• Both Candidates responded were asked the exact same 20 questions in the exact same order

• They never saw each others answers

• The answers have not been altered, edited, modified, editorialized, changed, or edited in any way by the staff, ownership, or affiliates of this publication.

• For each I have posted the transcript, not a story, their words. (transcripts by AI)

• For each I have posted the audio from the interview.

• A full list of the questions

• Below the interviews I will post their posted bio from their candidate website, their sign and a link to their website and or FaceBook

The Interview Begins Here

Clayton Johnson Interview Audio File

Clayton Johnson Interview Grant County  Assessor

Race for 2026

Brent Dowlen: [00:00:00] Please introduce yourself to our readers, who you are, what’s your connection to Grant County, and what you would like people to know about you personally and professionally.

Clayton Johnson: So my name is Clayton Johnson. I’m running for Grant County Assessor. A little bit about me, um, I am a husband and a wife of 20 years.

I have three amazing children, uh, one of whom is off serving his country in the United States Marines My connection to Grant County, uh, my wife, her family was from here. So, um, when I got out of the military, um, spent some time back where I grew up. So I grew up outside of, um, Pittsburgh in a, in a small steel mill, um, blue-collar town, and then, uh, joined the military and went back there for a little bit.

And then, um, we decided to move over here when, um, my wife’s family came over here. So, uh, we ended up moving here, um, and then that’s, that’s all, all she wrote there. We’ve been here ever since, since then. [00:01:00] Um, as soon... Pretty much almost, you know, maybe six months after I was here, um, I got an opportunity to go work at the assessor’s office, and I have been in the assessor’s office now for nine years.

I spent the first seven years of that as the commercial and industrial appraiser. Um, so I would do all the appraisals for, um, all the commercial and industrial properties, um, in Grant County. And I... Also some residential. Um, I didn’t strictly do commercial and industrial. Um, as you know, Grant County’s not huge in the commercial, um, some of the areas.

Um, there’s, there’s very little commercial, uh, say a place like Soap Lake. You know, there’s not a whole lot of commercial, um, properties to do. So I, I dabbled in some of the other stuff too, residential. Um, and then for the last two years I have been the sales analyst. So as a sales analyst, I, uh, look at market trends for real estate, uh, see what homes are selling for, [00:02:00] uh, and then make adjustments based on, um, bringing them up to true and fair market value.

Um, so a, a little bit about how that works, um, when, when we’re assessing properties, we are required to be at 100% of true and fair market value. So let’s say a house is, is... Their replacement cost new less depreciation is 100,000, um, but it sells for 200,000. We would have to adjust that to bring it up to its true and fair market value of $200,000.

And then what that, what you do is you apply that adjustment to all like and kind homes in that area. Um, and that’s what brings us to true, uh, the true, the true and fair market value. Um, and so that’s what I’ve done for the last two years. Also, with the sales analyst position, um, you do a lot of defending, uh, your values, uh, in the Board of Equalization.

So, um, anybody can, you know, say, “Okay, I don’t agree with your value,” um, and put in a, a petition to the Board of Equalization, um, to, to challenge [00:03:00] per se their value. Um, and I’ll go through those and I’ll, um, do a deep dive on that parcel and see can we support the value or is there adjustments that need to be made.

Um, because when you are looking at, you know, I think we’re upwards of almost 70,000 parcels in Grant County now, um, each individual parcel you can’t do a deep dive on that because We just, we would have to have a thousand appraisers to do that, um, on each parcel every year. So in a mass appraisal system, you’re, you’re looking at everything in mass.

So you’re comparing apples to apples, single family residence to single family residence, um, commercial building to commercial building or what have you. But when we do a deep dive, we might go even further and say, “Okay, well, they’re both apples, but let’s break them down to a Honeycrisp, to a Honeycrisp, or a Granny Smith to a Granny Smith.”

Um, and by doing that, what we’re doing is putting it into like a direct sales comparison grid. Um, and it’ll, [00:04:00] it’ll compare your homes a- and adjust them to be, um, exactly the same, adjust for the differences in the homes. Um, and we do a lot of that during our appeal process because, um, that’s the time we get to really, you know, like I said, do those deep dives into those parcels.

Um, in a mass appraisal, you can’t do that with every one, so... And that’s been part of my job as, as a sales analyst. Um, beyond that, you know, I, I’ve helped with, you know, training of other new appraisers, um, you know, as a senior position in the office, a sales analyst is a senior position in, in the office.

Um, uh, it’s not a supervisory role, um, but since it’s a senior position and since I’ve been doing it for nine years, um, I’ll, I’ll help out with other appraisers when we get new appraisers, um, which in the last six months, I think we’ve had four new appraisers. So you need that person to, you know, try to, you know, help them, help them [00:05:00] out a little bit.

So, um, that’s not necessarily part of my job, but just something that’s, um, that kinda comes with the job.

Brent Dowlen: Why are you running for Grant County Assessor, and why do you believe that you are qualified for the particular office?

Clayton Johnson: So I’m running for Grant County Assessor because since I’ve been working in that office, I’ve seen the problems. Um, I’ve seen areas that can be improved, um, and I know that I have the knowledge and experience, um, being there nine years.

I have that knowledge and experience in, in that con- continual drive for improvement in not only myself, but the office. Um, so you know, it’s, it’s really the next step in, in my career. Um, I care about the assessor’s office, and so I wanna see it succeed, and I feel like I have what it takes to be the one, um, to make it better.

Um, and now is, now is a n- [00:06:00] n- no better time than now to, to get that started.

Brent Dowlen: What experience, education, training, or professional background do you have you believe has prepared you to serve as Grant County Assessor?

Clayton Johnson: Well, that’s gonna be experience, experience, experience. You know, I have, um... Originally, I said over 250 hours of, uh, of continuing education is what I had put out there, but I also recently just did a two-day class, so you know, 16 more hours on top of that.

So I have, uh, needless to say, a ton of, of continuing education e- around property assessments. Um, obviously, nine years of experience in the office, but it’s just not, it’s not just those nine years of experience, it’s the classes, um, everything you learn, um, along the way. Um, that’s where I... That’s where, you know, what I believe will make me a good Grant County Assessor.

Um, as far as, you know, leading the office, you know, it... [00:07:00] I don’t necessarily have a leadership experience in the office. Um, but like I said earlier, I’ve raised three kids. Anybody who’s raised kids kinda knows that, um, it takes a leader to lead a family. Um, so it might not be professional experience in leadership, but, um, it’s experience nonetheless.

Brent Dowlen: Many voters don’t have much interaction with the assessor’s office until they receive a property valuation notice. In your own words, what does the Grant County Assessor’s Office do, and what does the assessor not control when it comes to somebody’s property tax bill?

Clayton Johnson: So when it comes to the property tax bill, that actually is sent out by the treasurer.

What the assessor’s office does is we value properties for taxing purposes, and we set the levy rates. Um, what we don’t do is come up with the budgets. Um, our main focus in the assessor’s office is valuations, um, exemptions. Uh, we do some, some [00:08:00] mapping, um, boundary line adjustments, things like that. Um, but mostly what the assessor’s office deals with is valuation.

Um, what was the second part of that question?

Brent Dowlen: In your own words, what do they do and what do they

Clayton Johnson: What can’t we change?

Brent Dowlen: Right.

Clayton Johnson: What can’t we change? So a lot of what the assessor’s office does is, um, bound by the state Department of Revenue. Um, how we value properties is, is set by Department of Revenue. Um, we can’t... We have to value properties at 100% of true and fair market value.

That is not something that the assessor’s office can change. So, you know, I, I know a lot of people say, “Oh, lower my, lower my property value.” Um, that’s not, that’s not gonna happen. I’m not gonna be a, a candidate that comes out here and says, “Oh, I’m gonna lower everybody’s valuation. Vote for me.” That’s just not how this works.

Um, again, it’s, it’s state, state law is what we follow. Um, we [00:09:00] have RCWs that we have to follow that tell us how to value property. Um, so that’s one thing that we can’t change. Now, can we, as an assessor, can I advocate, um, for my community? Absolutely, and I absolutely will do that. Um, but I can’t just make up new rules.

That’s just not how, um, government works, unfortunately.

Brent Dowlen: What do you believe the Grant County Assessor’s Office currently does well, and what would you specifically like to change or improve if elected?

Clayton Johnson: So I think what we do well, I mean, there, there’s a lot of things that we do well. Um, I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, I’m not running against the Assessor’s Office.

Um, I’m running to make it better. Um, so my focus is going to be on the parts of the office that I believe can get better, and the one big part of that for me is transparency. Um, I, I’ve harped on transparency my whole campaign. I’ve put it on my signs. A, a lot of people don’t like that word because, “Oh, I’m [00:10:00] tired of hearing politicians talk about transparency.”

I, I feel that. I, I completely understand that, but it’s not just a word to me. I really do mean when I say that I wanna be a transparent office. And transparency isn’t just about showing people the process. That is a big part of it. It’s also about educating them on the process, getting out there and talking to people.

Um, even throughout my campaign so far, I’ve been, you know, out there talking to people, explaining the process. Um, obviously doing this job for nine years, I’ve been explaining it, you know, throughout those nine years too. Um, but even, even during my campaign, um, any time anybody asks me a question, um, I’ve gotten, I’ve gotten comments on social media, “Well, how do you do this?”

or, “What about this?” I will always answer those because it is important for people to understand the process. If you understand something, you’re more likely to accept it than if you don’t understand it at all. Like I said, we can’t change [00:11:00] things drastically, but we can at least educate people on how they work and give them a better understanding and hopefully, um, help them to accept it a little bit more.

Brent Dowlen: Washington requires property to be assessed according to state law evaluations to be fair and uniform. What would you do as assessor to ensure that similar properties and property owners are treated consistently throughout Grant County?

Clayton Johnson: That is a great question because- It is very important that you are consistent.

Um, like I said in my analogy earlier, the apples to apples, um, and then the even further, the different varieties of apples, um, to each other. You know, it’s important that when we’re valuing property, we are comparing it in the market to similar properties. Um, that’s consistency, making sure that everybody is being valued the same way.

Now, when I say that, some people go, “Oh, well, [00:12:00] you can’t value me the same as my neighbor because we’re not the same house.” No, I didn’t, I’m not saying that you’re gonna be valued the same, but we need to value you the same way. Um, it, there, there’s a difference there. Um, and, you know, it’s, there’s, there’s some intricacies in the process of, of property valuation.

It’s not, um, not everybody can just, you know, go in there and say, “This, this home’s worth X amount of, of money.” You know, that’s, that’s, there’s, there’s some, some things, um, that you have to understand about the cost approach and all of, all of that. And I, I know those things because I’ve been doing this, and I have, I have a lot of good ideas on how to ensure that we’re more consistent in our property valuations.

Um, making sure that we are getting our cost approach down correctly, um, that way we’re... Say a h- say a home has had a remodel. If we haven’t reflected that, well, then its cost isn’t [00:13:00] correct. So then when it sells for, for a percentage higher than its, its, its cost is, well, we’re not gonna have that cost correct, so then we’re gonna use the market to bring that up to its market value, and that’s affecting so many other parcels.

So ensuring that, that, that cost approach is correct too, um, is very important, and that’s something that I believe that we need to, um, focus on, um, that way we become more consistent in our, in our valuations

Brent Dowlen: Grant County includes residential neighborhoods, farms, agricultural lands, small communities, recreation properties, commercial businesses, major industrial facilities, data centers, and rapidly developing areas. How would you approach the challenge of accurately and equitably valuing such different types of property?

Clayton Johnson: So, you know, I hate to harp on to my experience, but I already have kind of done that. Um, you know, I... Like I [00:14:00] said earlier, I was the commercial and industrial appraiser, so I have experience doing those. Um, I, I’d done- I’ve done residential, so I have experience doing those. Um, I haven’t dabbled too much in the ag department, I will say that.

Um, but y- I’m familiar with it. I’m familiar with the current use program and, and the different programs that we have for, for those. Um, but, you know, as far as making sure that they’re valued properly individually, that’s, um... I guess, I guess it really comes down to I’ve, I’ve done that and I have the experience, um, in, in know how to value those properties.

You mentioned data centers in there. Um, data centers typically are, you know, high, high value properties, and those are typically done by the state. So we’ll have, um... it’s called an advisory appraisal. We’ll have the state come in and do those. Um, I would like to continue to have that happen, um, because they’re the experts in that area.

Um, I don’t... I, [00:15:00] I know the basis of how those valuations are come up with, but, um, I’m not an expert in that field. So I guess, you know, to answer the question simply is making sure that I have the right people or the right contacts to do those different types of properties, um, that way they’re being done fairly.

So if it’s an ag property, I have an ag team. If it’s a residential property, I have a residential team. Commercial. All the different fields or all the different types of properties, we have people that handle those. And so giving them the tools necessary, um, and the training necessary to excel in those fields is, is important and, and that would be my goal.

Brent Dowlen: If a Grant County homeowner receives an assessment showing a substantial increase in their property’s value even though they haven’t sold, remodeled, or made significant improvements to it, how will you explain how that can happen and how the county arrived at that valuation? [00:16:00]

Clayton Johnson: So, uh, I, I do this almost on, on the daily.

Um, as being the sales analyst, and I mentioned earlier, I am in, uh, in charge of doing, a, a large portion of the appeals. So essentially that’s what that is, is an appeal but not necessarily going through the whole process. Um, people call all the time and say, “How’d you come up with this value?” Well, as I explained earlier, it’s, it’s market adjusted cost approach.

So that’s how we come up with the value. Giving them the information and saying, “Okay, well, what’s, what neighborhood are you in?” You know? “Okay, let me pull up your parcel. I’ll take a look at your house. Okay, well, you know, you got an adjustment based on these sales.” And then explaining those sales, um, explaining the whole process to them because most of the time when somebody calls me, they don’t know the whole...

They don’t know the process. They have an idea maybe of how property’s valued in Washington State, but they don’t know the, the whole process. Um, so just, just explaining that to them. You know, at the end of the [00:17:00] day, is everybody gonna be happy and satisfied with that? Probably not. I’ve, I’ve had that. Um, I’ve had a lot of people who call and I explain the whole process.

“Okay, well, here’s the sales. Um, did you know that your neighbor sold their house, identical house to yours?” Doesn’t happen often ‘cause identical houses are few and far between, but you have some of the newer divisions where the houses are very similar. Um, “Did you know that they sold it for X amount, and you’re valued at X amount?

And we value properties at 100% true and fair market value.” “Oh, that’s how that works?” And, and, and just explaining that part to them, um, most of the time they’ll go, “Okay, I understand.” Um, not always are they like, “Oh, yay.” You know that’s, that’s just not the case. I mean, uh, let’s be honest, you know, property taxes aren’t the most popular thing.

Um, and I don’t think that I’m single-handedly gonna make everybody love property taxes. Um, but, uh, I will strive to make them understand it at least, and that’s all that I can really do. [00:18:00]

Brent Dowlen: If the property owner believes the assessor’s office has gotten the value of their property wrong, what should they expect from you and your staff, and what should they do to challenge that assessment?

Clayton Johnson: So there is a 30-day appeal period after you get your change of value notice. Um, I haven’t looked into that. I... Somebody told me recently that, you know, some other counties, uh, may do a longer appeal period. That may be something that we look at in the future, um, because I do often get people who call a little bit after that and say, “Oh, that’s a very short period of time, 30 days.”

Especially depending on when the notices come out, your change of value notice. Um, last year those change of value notices came out in December. Um, December’s a holiday m- month. You know, it’s like, it’s 30 days, you know, you got people traveling and stuff like that. Um, but if you miss it in that 30 days, by law we can’t do anything.

We just... Unless it was an error on our side, which, in which case we will fix it. Um, but you know, [00:19:00] the, the process for appealing or, or questioning it is, is you can fill out a board of equalization petition. A lot of times if you call and we have a, we have an error, then we can, we can take care of it. You know, we at the assessor’s office, we don’t, we’re not married to the values.

We wanna make them fair and accurate and correct. Um, we’re not trying to just get the highest value, um, we’re trying to get the most fair value, and that is our, that is our job. Um, and if you feel that we didn’t get that, um, you have the right to petition to the board of equalization. Now, when we receive those petitions, um, we’re going to, like I said earlier, we’re gonna do a deeper dive into your parcel, um, and make sure that we have it correct.

If we don’t, we’re gonna change it. Um, if we do, you still have the option to go in front of the board of equalization, which is, is consists of three taxpayers and I believe two alternates. Um, they’re just, [00:20:00] they’re trained by Department of Revenue. Uh, they’re hired by the, by the county, but they’re not, they’re not affiliated with the assessor’s office.

And they’ll, they hear the, they hear the appeals and they, they make a decision on it. Um, if y- if you have- information that is going to change that value, you know, they’ll, they’ll consider that. Um, I’ve gotten questions before, you know, “Why do most of the hearings, why do you guys, why does the assessor’s office always win in the hearings?”

Um, we don’t always win, um, but there is a high percentage of, of us being, our values being sustained or us making an adjustment and that, that value being sustained. And the reason for that is, is because if there is something that warrants your parcel value being lowered, before I got to that board of equalization hearing, I’ve already made that adjustment and I’ve already reached out to you.

I’m not going in front of the board of equalization if I’m not very, very confident that I, with the [00:21:00] information that I currently have, that I, that your value is correct. I, I’m not, like I said earlier, we’re not married to the value. If our value is incorrect, we’re gonna do what we need to do to make it correct.

Um, so when I’m sitting in front of that board and defending that value, I’m very, very confident in that value. Um, sometimes there’s information that we’re not aware of and, uh, a property owner will call and say, “Hey, I have X, Y, or Z,” and, “Oh, well, we weren’t, we weren’t aware of that. Um, that does have an effect on the value, and we’ll make that change.”

Um, usually that happens before we get to a board of equalization hearing. Um, sometimes we don’t get that information and, you know, then it’s like, well, we, we couldn’t do anything till now, and, you know, it’s up to the board to make that determination. Um, but like I said, any time there is something that’s going to warrant a lower valuation, um, whether it can be done for now or for the next year, we’re going to, uh, we’re going to make that adjustment and, and make it right because at the end of the day, we’re here [00:22:00] just to make your value fair, um, and accurate

Brent Dowlen: What is your philosophy towards property assessment appeals, and how would you balance being responsive to individual property owners’ concerns with your responsibility to apply the same valuation standards throughout the county?

Clayton Johnson: So, you know, I, I listen to everybody. If, if you question your value, we’re gonna look into it.

That’s, that’s our job. We are here to serve the public, so we will do our due diligence and look into your parcel and, and make sure that we have the correct value. I can’t... Obviously, I can’t say, “Oh, okay, I’m just gonna go ahead and lower it because you don’t like it.” I mean, that’s just not how, how it works.

Um, I’m not gonna lower it for any reason except for that it’s warranted to be lower. If there’s, if there’s issues or whatever, um, we’ll, we’ll lower it. Um, but if it, if it’s supported by the sales and, and you, you know, it’s at its [00:23:00] market value, um, that is an issue with the system, not our office. Um, a lot of times, you know, people don’t agree with the system of property valuation in Washington State.

That isn’t something that the assessor’s office really has any control over. Um, again, will I advocate for my people? Absolutely. If that’s what my people want, they want, um, they want me to go to Olympia and, and try to get reform in property valuations, absolutely. Um, but I can’t just do it on a, on a county level.

Brent Dowlen: What information and measurements would you use to determine whether property assessments across Grant County are accurate, consistent, and equitable?

Clayton Johnson: So we do... You know, that’s kind of part of my job as a sales analyst. I do sales ratio studies, um, that tell us, you know, the, the cost approach value versus the market values and, and we adjust accordingly.

So, [00:24:00] um, that’s how we ensure that they’re valued correctly. Um, we have, we have systems that, that do that. Um, and again, it kind of goes back to, uh, the, how I explained the process of it. That’s just part of the process, um, checking to make sure that we are, uh, we’re following the protocol and, and testing, and, and testing, um...

At the end of our... After we do our market adjustments, we would do what we call testing. So we’ll look at what last year’s value was versus this year’s value. That’ll tell us if, oh, there’s an error here, and it, it... Somebody put an extra zero in here, and now this person’s at a million. Um, we will be able to catch that because it’ll, it’ll pop out on that testing.

So there, there is protocols, um, checks and balances per se that, that as- ensure that we’re not, um, overvaluing, um, properties or, um, undervaluing. I mean, there, there could be [00:25:00] times where you... maybe somebody accidentally deletes the house off the parcel, and next, next thing you know, the, it’s only $40,000 and there’s a, it’s a house on the, you know, in, on the waterfront or something.

That would be more than 40,000 ‘cause the land alone for that is more. But, um, y- you know, those types of things get caught in those checks and balances in that, in that testing.

Brent Dowlen: Agriculture remains one of Grant County’s most important industries. What do you believe farmers and agricultural property owners should know about how you would administer agricultural and current use property assessments and programs?

Clayton Johnson: So, uh, first I have to say that I absolutely agree that, that farming and agriculture is, is the backbone of Grant County. It’s part of the identity of Grant County. Um, I want it to stay that way. Um, I, I think that, um, it’s very important that we, we keep farm ground and, and we, we make it manageable for farmers.

That’s why I’m a big proponent of the current use [00:26:00] program. Um, that, that current use program, we have, we have people in our office who, who are in charge of that program. Um, I, I tend to... And like I mentioned earlier, I tend to leave the, leave those types of things to those experts. I know about the program.

Um, but as far as, you know, how to get into that program, what the requirements are and all of that, um, I... We have somebody that handles that. So, you know, I would always, uh, recommend that they talk to that person. Same with the senior exemption program. Um, I know that wasn’t part of this question, but, um, it is, it is an exemption program as well, and we have somebody in our office who handles that.

So any of these exemption programs like farm, uh, current use and open space, um, I, I usually refer to the expert in that area, um, for the details on it. Now, it will be my goal to be out there in the community letting these people know that these programs exist. [00:27:00] Um, current use, I believe most of the farmers at this point are probably pretty aware of it.

Um, I, I think a large majority of the major farming operations in Grant County are probably part of this program already. Um, but if there’s changes in it or whatever, um, we need to vocalize that to them. But that goes with the... That’s, that’s part of my transparency. Yeah, it, that’s, that goes for everything, and that’s, and that’s part of it.

You know, letting... Getting out there and telling these farmers like, “Hey, did you know that there’s, there’s changes in the requirements?” Or whatever, um, things might be going on with that exemption, uh, getting out there and letting people know. Um, that’s, that’s my whole goal is, is educating the, e- educating the public and, and being transparent on those things.

Brent Dowlen: Grant County has experienced a substantial indus- industrial development, including data centers and other large and complex facilities. What challenges do these [00:28:00] properties present for an assessor, and how would your administration approach valuing them accordingly?

Clayton Johnson: So I did- Or

Brent Dowlen: accurately, sorry.

Clayton Johnson: Yeah. Uh, as I mentioned earlier, um, the large-- the high-value data centers are typically handled by the state.

Um, that is something that I don’t believe will change. I, I don’t have any intentions on changing that process, um, because like I said, those are-- they’re the experts in that. They have people who do that. Um, and that kinda goes for a lot of the large, the high-value, um, properties. Whether it be your, um, large industrials like your SIM plots, uh, your, uh...

Who’s another one? International Paper type. Your, your really high-value properties where, you know, the building isn’t the highest value. It’s, it’s everything that comes with the building, the machinery and equipment. Maybe, um, with data centers it’s, it’s the energy that they’re putting out or their server space or, or what have you.

Um, there-- those are very, [00:29:00] um, intricate valuations, and I, I believe the way it’s done now with it being done by the state is probably the, the way to continue to do that. Um, a- and that goes for some of the other industrial ones too. Um, if it’s, if it’s not broke, don’t fix it. Um, they are... You know, they-- I believe they’re valuing those properly.

Um, maybe the data centers might not agree that they’re being valued properly. Um, but, uh, you know, leaving... I- it kinda goes back to what I said about leaving the experts in my office to do those things. The-- that’s the same thing, leaving it to the Department of Revenue. They are the ones who are the experts in that, in that field.

Um, let’s, let’s let them handle that. Um, and we’ll, we’ll focus on, uh, the stuff that we’re already... what we have in, you know, that we’re valuing in our county. [00:30:00] Obviously, those are in our county too, but, um, it, it’s just always kind of been, since I’ve been there at least for nine years, um, it’s always been handled by, by the state.

And they’re, they’re coming up more, and there’s gonna be other complex properties that are starting to come up. Uh, solar farms is, is one that, um, I’ve heard some, um, talk of development of solar farms happening. They may be in that, in that same realm of very complex properties that need to be, um, handled differently than your average cost, market-adjusted cost approach.

And so, um, we’ll, we’ll cross that bridge when we get to them, but, uh, those I’ll leave to the experts in, in that particular field.

Brent Dowlen: The assessor’s office maintains records for tens of thousands of parcels, including valuations, ownership information, legal descriptions, maps, property characteristics. How would you use technology to improve the accuracy, efficiency, accessibility, and transparency of the office?

Clayton Johnson: Okay. So [00:31:00] technology, um, this has been something that I was, I was asked a question at a forum last night about AI, so, um, I- I’ll jump right into that one. If it’s going to help maximize efficiency in my office, I’m all for it. Um, I don’t know of... I haven’t heard of any offices using technology such as AI, um, in their valuation process.

Doesn’t mean it doesn’t happen. I just haven’t heard of it yet. Um, but if it’s going to make my office run better, um, and more efficiently and save the taxpayers money, then I’ll do it. Um, I don’t know if that’s the case. I haven’t... AI and, and some of this new technology is very new. Um, we, we haven’t explored that.

If it’s something I need to explore, then I absolutely will. Um, again, I’m all about making the office run as efficiently as possible. Um, there’s been talks of, uh... There’s some programs out [00:32:00] there that use, I don’t think they’re drones, um, because there’s some... I think there’s some ethics things there with drones.

But I wanna say they’re maybe like planes or something that use some technology to, um, get advanced imagery of houses so that maybe we don’t have to have boots on the ground. Um, is that better than having an appraiser go out there, um, and knock on the door and talk to them, or at least be out there in the neighborhood, um, in, in getting a picture of the house?

Um, ‘cause we, we do, um, keep records of pictures of the houses. That way, we can see what we’re valuing and see if there’s changes throughout the years. Um, is that, is that better for that? I don’t know, because we haven’t used that program yet. But is it... My question and, and what I would look at is, is it more cost efficient for the taxpayers?

Um, there might be great programs and technology out there that can make our job a lot easier, but it might, [00:33:00] might also cost millions of dollars for the taxpayers, and I don’t think that they’re gonna, they’re gonna appreciate that. Um, so it, it really all comes down to, does the technology make sense for efficiency and for our budget?

Brent Dowlen: What information do you believe a Grant County property owner should be able to easily find and understand about their property assessment, how it was determined, available exemptions and programs, or their rights to appeal?

Clayton Johnson: All of it. Every single last bit of it. Um, I, I hate to sound like a broken record, but transparency is huge for me.

I want, I want you to be able to not... Look, call me. I, I absolutely will a- answer every phone call and explain everything, even now as my job, now as a candidate, and if I get elected as assessor, I will gladly explain the process to everybody. But I want you to be able [00:34:00] to not have to do that. I don’t, I don’t want you to have to come into our office to find out this information.

I want it to be clear and accessible to everyone. Uh, what that looks like as far as, you know, maybe that’s, maybe that’s updating our website. There is a lot of stuff on our website now. Um, maybe it’s getting that, getting the information on how to find the information out there to more people. Um, you know, getting out there and talking to people, um like I stated before, you know, letting them know, “Okay, well, you can find that information here.”

Um, that, that is one way to get the information out to everybody. Um, uh, I, I’m somebody who I believe, you know, we don’t have a social media right now. Um, it’s 2026. I mean, uh, whether we like it or not, people are on social media, so maybe it’s time that we, you know, go down some of those avenues. I know the sheriff’s office, um, they were talking about last night they have, like, 60,000 people, um, following their social media [00:35:00] on Facebook.

Um, you know, why, why can’t we have something where, you know, we’re out there telling people, “Okay, there’s a change to the senior exemption” and, you know, we put that on our website, but not everybody knows to go to our website. Um, but, you know, your friend shares a post about the assessor’s office being in your neighborhood, then next thing you know it travels and then, then somebody’s like, “Oh, I saw on Facebook that the assessor’s in our neighborhood.”

And so, um... Or, or like I said, change it to an exemption program or, “Hey, this is where we’re at now. Change of values just went out. You only got 30 days. Make sure, make sure you get, uh, get your petition in if you disagree.” Um, and then, y- you know, having that stuff in multiple places. Because again, it’s on our website, but not everybody’s going to the Grant County website and then going to the assessor’s office and then digging around on there to find it.

Um, I really do think that we should be, we should be using, um, social media more than we are. [00:36:00] Um, and that’s just getting more into the technology per se, although social media, I mean, is not really a new technology. That’s kind of something that is, uh, uh, been around for quite some time. Um, so yeah. Yeah, just, uh, utilizing that more.

Brent Dowlen: Washington provides property tax exemptions and deferral programs for certain qualifying residents, including seniors and people with disabilities. What responsibility do you believe the assessor’s office has to educate residents about programs for which they may qualify and help them navigate the application process?

Clayton Johnson: It... You know, we have a huge responsibility to do that. Um, again, people aren’t necessarily gonna know about these programs if you don’t go out there and, and tell them about them. Um, word of mouth helps, you know, people will talk about them. Um, but it is definitely the responsibility of the assessor’s office to make sure that people are aware of, [00:37:00] of the different exemptions.

Uh, we have a few that are very common. The, the current use and the senior exemption are the two that, that jump out as the most common. But there is a, there is a few other exemptions, um, that we don’t get very often. There’s an exemption, um, that I, uh, was, uh, informed about recently that is for, um, remodels, and I don’t, I don’t recall hearing about anybody talk about that one.

Um, I don’t know all the details on it. It’s something I have to, would have to look into. Um, but, you know, getting, getting that information out there about those exemptions, um, is in- is important. And, uh, again, it’s goes back to my transparency, you know, informing everybody about all the different things that our office has.

Brent Dowlen: The county assessor is also responsible for managing an office and its employees. How would you describe your management style, and what would you do to recruit, train, retain, retain, and hold accountable the people [00:38:00] responsible for assessing property throughout Grant County?

Clayton Johnson: That is, that is a, a, a- Hot topic maybe right now, ‘cause, because our office is lacking in experience.

A- and we have, we have some people who have been there for a while, but, um, I think I mentioned earlier, in the last six months, I believe four of our appraisers are under six months. So, um, retaining employees really, in my opinion, comes down to treating them with respect and, you know, making the office an environment where people wanna work.

Um, people don’t leave jobs that they enjoy, or people don’t leave jobs where, um, they feel comfortable. People leave jobs because they’re not happy. Um, can I make everybody happy? No. Some people are gonna find a, a higher paying job. They’re gonna relocate. Those types of things happen. Um, but what we need to do is make it so [00:39:00] people are leaving for the right reasons and not the wrong reasons.

And, and too often in our office in the last, I’ll say five to seven years, um, people have left because they were unhappy. Um, and I can’t say exactly why all those people left. Um, that’s, that’s for, for them. That’s, you know, I’m not inside their head. I don’t know exactly why. Um, but I, I know not all of them left, um, because, you know, they had an opportunity that was, n- that they couldn’t pass up.

Uh, so, and with, with that, like I said, with having all these new people, that’s why I do believe it’s really important that we, that we elect an assessor who has experience and who can hit the ground running. Um, with the lack of experience we have in our office right now, uh, if we were to get an assessor who doesn’t have any experience, they’re going to have to spend, uh, years learning how [00:40:00] to do the job.

I mean, i- in order to get an accredited as, accredited as an appraiser, um, you have to have at least one year of doing the job, um, and that’s after you’ve, after you’ve started or after you’ve done some of the qualifications to get accredited. Um, it’s a process. Um, and so, you know, to be honest with you, right now, we don’t really have the, the experience in the office, um, to have somebody run in the office who doesn’t at least know, you know, doesn’t have any experience in property valuation.

Um, now, y- you know, I started in that office with not, not... I knew the basics of, of the assessor’s office, but I wasn’t an expert in it either. It can be, it can be taught, um, but at, at this point, it’s, it would probably be best to have somebody, um, elected with experience, and not only somebody elected with experience, but somebody who has the support of the office that they’re gonna lead.

Um, I have that. Um, being as somebody who’s been in [00:41:00] that office for nine years, I have, I have built relationships with the people in my office. Um, they respect me. Um, they, they will be willing to work for me, um, because I’ve always treated them with respect. Um, and, and I, I believe that they, um, they will, they will work hard for me, um, and they, they support me, and, you know, that’s gonna be very important for, for a leader to already have that, that team that’s built.

Um, I’m part of that team, and, you know, become the assessor, I would just be, you know, I’d be becoming the captain of that team. Um, but, uh, I don’t think... I, I’m certain that all of them would be more than happy for that to happen.

Brent Dowlen: If elected, what are your three highest priorities for your first year as Grant County Assessor?

What specifically would you hope to accomplish from each of them?

Clayton Johnson: Getting the office back to fully staffed is going to be one [00:42:00] priority, because when we are lacking staff, we don’t meet deadlines. Um, we... It just makes work for everybody else harder. Um, and then, you know, when you make work for everybody else harder, then you lose more people, and then you...

It’s, it’s a never-ending cycle of, of trying to get, um, back on track. So, uh, first priority is definitely going to be, um, get fully staffed. We’re, we’re missing our, our chief deputy or chief appraiser right now. Um, we don’t have one. Um, and then obviously, if I was elected, I’d have to fill my position, which then opens up...

There, there’s a whole... There’s other... There’s... It would create, um, openings, and we need to get that filled, and we need to g- get all of our staff trained, um, and, and up to speed. And, and that would be a, a large, a big priority, uh, for my first year. Um, and then another big priority for my first year would be getting out [00:43:00] there and, um, getting the public educated.

Um, I know I, I, I’ve mentioned it so many times. Uh, people are probably gonna read this and be like, “You know, I’m tired of hearing about his, his transparent educating, educating the people,” but it, it’s something that we need to do. Um, if... The more you do that now, the less you have to do that in your future.

Um, once you, once you get the message out there to people and they know, um, it makes everything a lot easier. So, you know, those would be probably my two biggest priorities. Um, and then get back on track as far as... And that, and again, that comes with getting the office fully staffed. Um, once that happens, then we can get back on track and start to meet our deadlines and, and, and get to where we’re not only meeting deadlines, but we’re al- we’re, we’re getting it done ahead of time.

That way, um... ‘Cause when you rush, you make mistakes, and in, in our field, mistakes are not, um... Y- you don’t wanna make mistakes, ‘cause you’re messing with [00:44:00] people’s money, essentially. Uh, and you, you don’t wanna do that. Um, and it’s just, it’s better to be ahead, um, and, and, and not trying to p- play catch up. So, yeah.

Uh, more, more, more education, uh, hiring more people, and getting back on track would p- be my top priorities. Um, top priorities. I have a lot of priorities, but, you know, those would be the top ones.

Brent Dowlen: Four years from now, what specific results or measurements should Grant County residents be able to look at to determine whether you fulfilled the commitments you’re making during this campaign?

Clayton Johnson: Well, in four years I would like them to go... I would like them to think to themselves, “Man, I’m happy that I voted for Clayton Johnson. I, I’m... He’s got things back on track. Um, I know him. He’s been out in our community.” You know, um, I, I would like them to [00:45:00] look at our office and say, “Oh, I... Four years ago, I didn’t know anything about that office, but now I know how it operates and, um, I- my value’s been consistent for the last four years.”

Um, you know, obviously there, it’s... I can hit the ground running with my experience. Um, can... You know, I don’t think our office is, is broken. There’s, uh, there’s some pieces that do need, um, adjusted, but I don’t think we’re, we’re, we’re broken. Um, but I would like for people in four years to go, “Oh, he went in there and he really, he really made that office run efficiently.”

Um, I would like in four years for me to be running that office so well that everybody’s like, “We’re gonna let him do that for another eight years,” or another however many years I, I decide to keep going. Um, i- ideally, you know, you, if you run the office smoothly, um, you can continue to run that office. Um, and I, I don’t plan on [00:46:00] going anywhere.

This is, this is my career. Um, you know, I’ve, I’ve been in that office for nine years, and I don’t plan on, um, going anywhere, whether that’s as a, as an appraiser or as a, as the assessor.

Sorry, somebody fell

Brent Dowlen: You’ve had the opportunity to explain your experience, your approach to the office, your priorities. What is the final case you’d like to make to Grant County voters as they decide whether you elect-- to elect you as their next county assessor?

Clayton Johnson: So experience. Uh, we need somebody to run that office who has the experience, has the support of the office, and, and knows the problems and knows where they need to be fixed.

Um, I’m that person. Um, I’m the only one that’s going to be on that ballot in November that has, has the [00:47:00] experience to hit the ground running. Um, that’s what this office needs. They need somebody who, um, from day one can get in there a- and start to, start to work, um, to get us caught up. Um, and there... A- and I honestly believe that, that, that there’s no better person than me for that...

to do that. So, um, I would love for everybody to vote for me, um, in November. And if anybody ever has any questions for me, they can feel free to reach out to me. I, um, I, I’m on social media and, and I will continue to, you know, be out there in the community answering questions. Um, my phone is always on, and I’m always...

I’m, I, I’m a public servant now, uh, and that’s part of who I am, and I don’t plan on changing that. Um, whether I’m the assessor or still just an employee of the assessor’s office, uh, I work for the public. Um, if you see me out, ask me a question. Um, if you have a [00:48:00] question about the assessor’s office, reach out to me.

Um, I am, I am... At the end of the day, like I said earlier, transparency is not just something I put on my signs. Um, I live it. Um, and I will continue to live it. Um, so yes, please vote for Clayton Johnson for Grant County Assessor.

Website Bio (condensed)

Clayton has worked in the Grant County Assessor’s Office for nine years, including seven years as a commercial and industrial appraiser. Two years ago, he was promoted to appraisal analyst, where he focuses on real estate market analysis. He has completed more than 250 hours of continuing education in property assessment.

A military veteran and man of faith, Clayton has been married for 20 years and is the father of three sons. He describes himself as a public servant rather than a politician and is running as a nonpartisan candidate with an emphasis on fair, impartial property assessments free from political influence.

Website: https://www.claytonforassessor.com

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Grant County Assessor Candidate Interview

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Disclaimer:
This interview is presented as part of our commitment to providing accessible, local information to the community. All candidates in the 2026 Grant County Auditor’s race were given the same questions, in the same format, and the opportunity to share their perspectives directly.

The responses published here are the candidate’s own words, presented without editing, interpretation, or commentary beyond basic transcription. Audio recordings are provided alongside transcripts to ensure full transparency.

Welcome to Quincy WA News does not endorse, support, or oppose any candidate. Our role is to provide information so residents of Grant County—including the 98848 communities—can make informed decisions based on their own judgment.

I spent a surprising amount of time looking backward this week.

I sat down with Harriet Weber to talk about the Quincy Valley Historical Society’s celebration of America’s 250th anniversary. I wrote about five people being added to the Quincy High School Wall of Fame. Then I found myself digging through community meetings from 2018 because some of the th…

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Last Friday night the 18th at Jackrabbit Stadium, the action on the football field briefly gave way to a different kind of recognition.

Five people with deep ties to Quincy High School stepped onto the track to be welcomed into the Quincy School District Wall of Fame: Les Albright, Paul Collard, Nate Harris, Chris Pontarolo-Maag and Armando Tafoya.

Their stories span generations of Quincy athletics. Some made their mark wearing a Jackrabbit uniform. Others spent decades serving athletes and fans from behind the scenes. Their paths after Quincy have taken them to college athletics, NCAA basketball courts, professional careers and halls of fame of their own.

But on Friday night, they came together again as members of the Quincy Wall of Fame Class of 2026.

The five recipients were selected by a committee consisting of community members, former students, and current and former staff members. Nominations were submitted electronically, with the committee making its final selections in June.

Les Albright

For more than four decades, Les Albright has been a dedicated supporter of Quincy athletics. Whether operating the game clock or volunteering behind the scenes, Albright has been a dependable presence at countless athletic events.

His unwavering commitment and countless hours of volunteer service have helped create memorable experiences for generations of Quincy student-athletes and fans. His dedication exemplifies the spirit of community that makes Quincy athletics special.

Paul Collard

Paul Collard is being recognized for his outstanding contributions to athletics as both a Quincy High School student-athlete and one of the Pacific Northwest’s most respected football officials.

A three-year varsity basketball starter and co-captain of the 1976–77 Jackrabbit team, Collard helped lead Quincy to a third-place finish at the Washington State Basketball Tournament.

Following high school, he built an exceptional 22-year career as a football official, earning induction into the Pacific Northwest Football Officials Hall of Fame in 2020. He was also honored with the Washington Officials Association’s Tom Cross Award, recognizing his leadership and dedication to officiating.

His career reflects a lifelong commitment to athletics and sportsmanship.

Nate Harris

Since graduating from Quincy High School in 2003, Nate Harris has become one of the nation’s premier collegiate basketball officials.

After beginning his officiating career while still in high school, Harris has spent the past 15 seasons officiating NCAA Division I basketball across some of the country’s top conferences, including the Pac-12, Big Ten, Mountain West, West Coast Conference and others.

He has officiated six NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament appearances, including a Round of 32 matchup between North Carolina and Michigan State.

Beyond the court, Harris is passionate about mentoring the next generation of officials and, alongside his wife Jessica, co-founded a ministry dedicated to supporting sports officials nationwide.

Chris Pontarolo-Maag

Chris Pontarolo-Maag is recognized for his athletic achievements, perseverance and professional success.

As the starting point guard for Quincy High School’s 2005 boys basketball team, he helped lead the Jackrabbits to a second-place finish at the State Championship. Determined to continue competing at the highest level, Pontarolo-Maag earned a spot as a walk-on with Gonzaga University’s men’s basketball program.

He contributed to teams that won the Maui Invitational, captured back-to-back West Coast Conference championships and advanced to the NCAA Sweet Sixteen.

After earning degrees in exercise science and finance, he built a successful career at Nike, where he now serves as a lead software engineer specializing in artificial intelligence and machine learning.

His journey reflects resilience, determination and a lifelong pursuit of excellence.

Pontarolo-Maag was unable to attend Friday night’s ceremony in person. A fellow Quincy alumnus accepted the Wall of Fame honor on his behalf.

Armando Tafoya

Armando Tafoya distinguished himself as an outstanding student-athlete at Quincy High School and continued that success at Central Washington University.

A four-year varsity letter winner in football, Tafoya also established himself as one of Quincy High School’s top throwers, setting the school record in the discus and ranking third all-time in the shot put.

Despite overcoming injuries early in his collegiate career, he developed into one of Central Washington University’s premier throwers, capturing the 2017 GNAC Indoor Weight Throw Championship.

His perseverance, work ethic and athletic accomplishments earned him a place among the Wall of Fame Class of 2026.

Their Names Join Quincy’s History

The ceremony ended, the inductees left the track and the football game continued, but the recognition will remain.

Plaques honoring Albright, Collard, Harris, Pontarolo-Maag and Tafoya will be displayed on the wall outside the Quincy High School gym, adding five more names to the history of people who have represented Quincy High School through achievement, service and dedication.

And the next class is already beginning to take shape.

Nominations for the Quincy School District Wall of Fame Class of 2027 opened Wednesday, September 23, giving the community another opportunity to recognize former students, staff and supporters whose contributions deserve a permanent place in Quincy history.

History will not be sitting quietly behind glass at the Quincy Valley Historical Society & Museum this weekend. It will be firing black powder, pressing apples, playing the fiddle, dancing the Virginia reel and walking the museum grounds dressed for the 1770s as the Historical Society invites the 98848 to take part in A Weekend of Heritage & Community, a multi-day celebration of America’s 250th anniversary.

For Director of Operations Harriet Weber, the weekend is about more than marking a milestone. After more than a year of planning, she hopes the celebration gives people an opportunity to experience history, learn something they did not know and spend time together as a community.

“This is the most ambitious festival we’ve ever put on,” Weber said. “But it’s because it’s America 250.”

Weber remembers the work that went into Quincy’s Centennial in 2007, but said the Historical Society has never attempted a celebration on this scale. “I’m a firm believer that you need to celebrate things in life,” she said. “They can be fun, but they’re also educational and inspiring. And so that’s been my goal.”

TL;DR

• A Weekend of Heritage & Community celebrates America’s 250th anniversary with events Friday through Sunday.

• A George Washington historical interpreter is visiting Quincy and participating throughout the weekend.

• The Spirit of ’76 Living History Association will establish a colonial encampment at the museum.

• Saturday includes apple pressing, fried bread, old-time games, weaving, black powder demonstrations and more.

• Five-time National Fiddler Champion Jacie Sites and the Nitpickers will perform twice Saturday.

• The Ceremony of Oneness will bring 27 country-of-origin flags together beneath the American flag.

• Saturday evening features a Heritage Barn Dance and candlelit colonial encampment.

• Sunday concludes the weekend with A Heritage of Faith in the Heritage Barn.

Bringing History Out of the Museum

The celebration reaches beyond the museum grounds before Saturday’s main festival even begins. A George Washington historical interpreter is visiting Quincy and speaking with local students, giving them an opportunity to encounter the first president through living history rather than only through a textbook.

Friday evening, Washington will be joined by a local John Hancock for An Evening with George and John in the Pioneer Church. Riley Youngren will play the church’s harpsichord, mixing Mozart with Beatles music, while Washington speaks between musical segments. Weber described it as a deliberately lighthearted approach to history, joking that it is George and John “without Paul and Ringo.”

By Saturday morning, the experience expands across the museum grounds with the arrival of the Spirit of ’76 Living History Association. The group is traveling from the west side of the state to establish a colonial encampment near the Heritage Barn, where members will camp, cook their own food and demonstrate aspects of everyday life from the period. Black powder demonstrations will add another element of living history, and visitors can return Saturday evening from 8 to 9 p.m. to see the camp by candlelight during the Spirit of ’76 Camp Glow.

A Celebration Meant to Be Experienced

Saturday’s Celebration of Harvest & Culture runs from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., although the Spirit of ’76 encampment will remain open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Much of the day is built around activities that allow visitors, particularly children and families, to experience pieces of the past instead of simply reading about them.

There will be apple juice pressing, old-time games, a weaving demonstration and fried bread prepared in the Summer Kitchen. George Washington will have a trivia booth, the Sagebrush Mercantile will be open, and Jimmy’s Hot Dogs will have food available for purchase. Samples of the apple juice and fried bread will be free.

Music is also a major part of the day. Jacie Sites and the Nitpickers will perform twice in the Heritage Barn, from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and again from 1 to 2 p.m. Sites is a five-time National Fiddler Champion traveling from Idaho for the celebration. Between the two sets, members of Spirit of ’76 will present a fife and drum performance.

Taken together, the activities reflect Weber’s larger goal for the weekend. A visitor may come because the children want to play the games, because someone wants to hear a national champion fiddler or simply because they are curious about the colonial encampment. Once they are there, each activity becomes another opportunity to encounter a piece of history.

Out of Many, One

One of the most meaningful parts of Saturday for Weber is not new to the Historical Society. At 2:15 p.m., the Ceremony of Oneness returns to the Heritage Barn, bringing together 27 flags representing the countries of origin of people whose stories became part of the American story.

Volunteers will carry flags representing countries including Mexico, Ireland and Sweden. State Rep. Alex Ybarra will speak, the Quincy High School Spectrum Choir will perform two patriotic selections and George Washington will offer brief remarks. The group will then proceed outside, where the 27 flags will be placed around the base of the American flag.

For Weber, the image represents E pluribus unum — “out of many, one.”

“All these different countries, we should be one people,” Weber said.

The Spectrum Choir will sing the national anthem at the flagpole before Spirit of ’76 conducts another black powder demonstration to close the major daytime festivities and shift towards eveing. In a community like Quincy, where families trace their histories to many different parts of the world, the ceremony connects the nation’s larger anniversary with the people who make up the 98848 today.

From the Minuet to Footloose

After the daytime festival ends, the Heritage Barn will reopen at 7 p.m. for a community barn dance designed to move through several generations of American dance.

The evening begins with the minuet, representing the 1700s, before moving into the Virginia reel. Sites will return with her fiddle to provide live music for the reel, followed by a country waltz and later generations of popular dances. Harvey and Diana Cameron will teach the Macarena and another line dance before Quincy High School theater students who performed in Footloose last spring lead the evening’s finale.

Weber is not expecting anyone to master generations of dance in one evening. The dances will be taught quickly, practiced a couple of times and then attempted with the music. Like much of the weekend, the goal is to give people a chance to participate and perhaps discover something new while having fun together.

During the evening, visitors will also be able to step outside for the Spirit of ’76 Camp Glow from 8 to 9 p.m., offering a very different look at the colonial encampment after dark.

Sunday Looks at a Heritage of Faith

The weekend concludes Sunday morning with A Heritage of Faith at 11 a.m. in the Heritage Barn, a program Weber particularly wanted to include in the anniversary celebration. The service is designed as a historical journey through portions of America’s religious history rather than a typical Sunday worship service.

Narrator Ron Huxtable will help guide the audience through different periods, beginning before the nation’s founding with the Puritans and moving through the First and Second Great Awakenings, Revolutionary War, Civil War and into more modern periods. Jess Slusher will serve as officiating pastor and present excerpts from sermons connected to the different eras, while hymns and live music will change along with the historical timeline.

Local musicians will help tell that story, including the Roseburg children on violin and piano and gospel pianist Glenda Bishop. A small choir will lead “The Battle Hymn of the Republic” when the program reaches the Civil War era. Members of Spirit of ’76 will also participate, and a final black powder demonstration following the service will bring the weekend to a close.

Why Celebrate 250 Years?

Weber is in her 25th year with the Quincy Valley Historical Society & Museum, and the America 250 celebration has become one of the most ambitious projects of that tenure. Her reason for putting so much effort into the anniversary, however, is relatively simple: she believes important things are worth celebrating and history is worth understanding.

Her hope is not that everyone leaves knowing every name, date or detail presented during the weekend. She would rather see someone encounter a person, idea or piece of history that makes them curious enough to learn more.

“It’s a good thing to celebrate 250 years of freedom,” Weber said. She also hopes visitors “learn something” and perhaps find themselves challenged by something they assumed they already understood.

That distinction matters. The history of the United States is not a story without mistakes, disagreements or difficult chapters. It is a story and a work in progress; it is our story. Weber and the Historical Society know the value of learning from history and are always striving to share that with us as a community. History gives a community an opportunity to understand where it came from, appreciate what previous generations built and learn from what they got wrong along the way. The United States of America is the longest running Constitutional Republic in history. Our story as a nation is still being written and by knowing our history we write an even brighter future.

Weekend Schedule at a Glance

Friday, September 25

• George Washington visits local schools (though out the day)

• 7 p.m. — An Evening with George & John, Pioneer Church

Saturday, September 26

• 10 a.m.–4 p.m. — Spirit of ’76 History Encampment

• 11 a.m. — Spirit of ’76 Black Powder Demonstration

• 11 a.m.–1 p.m. — Apple Juice Pressing

• 11 a.m.–2 p.m. — Old-Time Games & Weaving Demonstration

• 11:30 a.m.–12:30 p.m. — Jacie Sites & the Nitpickers

• 12:30 p.m. — Spirit of ’76 Fife & Drum

• 12:30–2 p.m. — Fried Bread Dough in the Summer Kitchen

• 1–2 p.m. — Jacie Sites & the Nitpickers

• 2:15 p.m. — Ceremony of Oneness

• 3 p.m. — Spirit of ’76 Black Powder Demonstration

• 3 p.m. — Daytime Festival Ends

• 7 p.m. — Heritage Barn Dance

• 8–9 p.m. — Spirit of ’76 Camp Glow

• All day — George Washington Trivia Booth, Sagebrush Mercantile, cotton candy and Jimmy’s Hot Dogs

Sunday, September 27

• 11 a.m. — A Heritage of Faith, Heritage Barn

• Following the service — Spirit of ’76 Black Powder Demonstration

History Worth Passing Along

After more than a year of preparation, the tents will eventually come down, the period clothing will be packed away and the museum grounds will become quiet again. What Weber hopes remains is a little more curiosity about the people and events that came before us, along with an appreciation for what it means to reach a milestone few nations have reached.

That may ultimately be the best reason for the 98848 to participate. The weekend is not asking residents simply to look backward. It is giving parents and grandparents an opportunity to bring children with them, giving neighbors an excuse to gather together and giving another generation a chance to encounter stories that only survive when someone decides they are worth telling.

For one weekend in Quincy, those stories will not be sitting quietly behind glass. They will be outside the museum, playing music, pressing apples, carrying flags, dancing in the barn and inviting the next generation to come take a closer look.

When you enter Quincy from the west on Highway 28, the first impression is largely industrial. It is a view that reflects an important part of the economy that has helped the Quincy grow, but it doesn’t necessarily reflect the parks, neighborhoods, schools, businesses and people that make up rest of the 98848. Beginning this fall, that entrance will start looking different as years of planning for the Quincy West Gateway Beautification Project finally reach the planting stage.

The project will add trees, shrubs, native-style grasses and other landscaping along the Highway 28 corridor beginning near Road R NW and extending east toward 10th Avenue SW. Microsoft has provided funding for much of the beautification work, while the City of Quincy has handled the public-project side of turning the concept into something that can actually be built. Perhaps the most important part of the project’s history, however, predates the drawings and engineering work. Quincy residents were asking for this nearly eight years ago.

TL;DR

• West Gateway Beautification: Landscaping is moving forward along the Highway 28 entrance to Quincy from the west.

• Years of Community Input: Residents identified a need for more trees and greenery and specifically asked for “beautiful entrances to our community” in 2018. Similar requests came up again in 2019.

• Long Road to Construction: Microsoft funded early design work and provided funding for landscaping, while the project worked through engineering, contracts, COVID-era delays and coordination with the City of Quincy and WSDOT.

• The Plan: Trees, shrubs, berms, grasses and flowering plants will change the appearance of the largely industrial corridor.

• Community Planting: Planting days are planned for October 6 and October 8, with community members invited to participate.

• A Second Phase: Additional landscaping toward the cemetery is being planned for spring 2027, pending WSDOT approval.

The Conversation Started in 2018

During a recent conversation with Lisa Karstetter of Microsoft and Quincy Municipal Services Director Carl Worley, Karstetter pulled out records from Microsoft’s old Voice of the Community meetings. We had been talking about the West Gateway project, but those records changed the context of the conversation. Instead of looking at the project as something new happening along Highway 28, they showed that some of the ideas behind it had been coming from Quincy residents for years.

In 2018, 62 people attended one of those meetings and were asked to identify Quincy’s strengths, its challenges and what they wanted the community to look like in the future. Participants saw plenty of strengths, including Quincy’s natural resources, location, available room to grow and local leadership. Their list of challenges was equally direct. Downtown was described as tired and in need of revitalization, and participants raised concerns about housing, transportation, childcare, community connectivity and the hospital. They also identified something much simpler: Quincy needed more trees and more green space.

When the same group looked ahead and described what they hoped to see five years later, their list included a park and bike system, a reinvigorated downtown, a recreation center, affordable housing, an updated or new senior center and a new hospital. It also included “beautiful entrances to our community.”

Sitting with Karstetter and Worley in 2026 and looking back at that list was interesting because a surprising amount of it is now either complete or underway. Quincy has a new hospital. The Q-PLEX is moving forward. Sections of a larger trail system are taking shape. Downtown and B Street have seen improvements, and tree programs have added greenery around town. The West Gateway is another piece of that much older list that is now moving from an idea to a physical project.

The request for beautification wasn’t limited to the 2018 meeting. In 2019, residents again talked about revitalizing the community and the main highway, beautifying streets coming into town, adding walking and biking routes and bringing in more trees and greenery. One of the descriptions recorded from those conversations was a desire for Quincy to become more of an “oasis in the desert.”

Turning Community Input Into a Plan

Karstetter said Microsoft would take the ideas from those community meetings back internally and look for projects that fit areas the company could support, including sustainability, education and workforce development. Trees were one of the ideas that fit, eventually leading to tree-planting efforts and the Rooted in Quincy program. Beautifying the entrance to town became another project Microsoft could help fund.

Microsoft paid for a consultant to develop concepts that included both the Highway 28 entrance and B Street. Community involvement continued during that process. Displays were set up locally, and people could review the concepts, place stickers on the boards and provide feedback about what they wanted to see when they drove into Quincy and what they wanted downtown to look like. The resulting concept was eventually presented to the Quincy City Council, which approved it.

Approval of a concept, of course, is a long way from putting a tree in the ground. The project then ran into many of the same problems that affected public projects across the country during and after COVID. Engineering schedules backed up, contracts reached their time limits and had to be revisited, and the city still had to work through the requirements that come with building within a state highway corridor. Worley said the city went through several contracts during that process as schedules continued to slip.

Karstetter said funding Microsoft had provided for trees and other portions of the project remained with the Columbia Basin Foundation while those pieces came together. She was also clear that Microsoft’s financial involvement doesn’t give the company control over when a public project moves forward. Private-sector projects can often move faster, while public projects have to work through requirements designed to provide oversight and accountability. When another government agency is involved, the timeline can grow longer still. In this case, because the project sits along State Route 28, WSDOT also has a role in what can be built and where.

That history helps explain why a project residents were talking about in 2018 is reaching the planting stage in 2026. It also illustrates something that came up repeatedly during my conversation with Karstetter and Worley: projects around Quincy don’t necessarily happen in the order residents first hear about them. Some move when grant funding becomes available, some depend on another project being completed first, and others have to wait on engineering, permits or another government agency.

What Drivers Will See Along Highway 28

Today, when you enter Quincy through the West Gateway, you’re greeted by some of the newer retail development and landscaping on one side of the highway. The north side is a different story, with the switchyard, water treatment facilities and industrial plants most of us are familiar with. I’m not usually much of a beautification guy, and everything sitting along that corridor serves an important purpose in our community, but even I can admit some landscaping would go a long way.

The West Gateway plans cover the Highway 28 corridor from the Road R NW area east toward 10th Avenue SW. If you’ve driven through recently, you may have already noticed the city building up dirt along the north side of the corridor. Those aren’t simply piles of dirt waiting to be moved. They are part of landscaped berms designed to provide height, shape and screening…

The 2022 concept drawings provide a useful before-and-after look at the original vision for the corridor, while the more recent plans show how that vision has developed into specific plantings and construction details. One view looks across Highway 28 toward the industrial facilities that dominate much of the current landscape. The proposed version shows the same facilities, but trees and other landscaping soften the foreground and give the entrance more definition. The industrial side of Quincy remains part of the view; the landscaping changes how the community is introduced around it.

More recent plans show how that broad concept has been translated into specific plantings. The current schedule includes serviceberry, Douglas maple, limber pine, ponderosa pine and Douglas fir. It also calls for hundreds of shrubs, including big sagebrush, rabbitbrush, mock orange, dwarf mountain pine, purple willow, western spirea and snowberry. Large seeded areas include grasses and flowering plants such as yarrow, snow buckwheat, showy milkweed and pearly everlasting.

The plans even identify a possible location for a future “Welcome to Quincy” sign. That sign is not part of the current phase; the plans specifically identify its fabrication and installation as future work.

Some details are also being adjusted before planting begins. Karstetter explained that several trees shown in the design needed to be moved because their mature height would eventually put them into overhead utility lines. The project plans include clearance requirements around those lines, so planting locations are being adjusted in the field before holes are dug.

It is the kind of detail that helps explain why a beautification project can take considerably more planning than the finished product might suggest. Once completed, drivers will mostly see trees and landscaping. Behind them are engineering plans dealing with everything from utility clearances and sight distances to stormwater, sidewalks and the eventual size of the vegetation.

Why Beautification Matters

There is a reasonable question that comes with a project like this. Quincy has roads to improve, pedestrian crossings to address and other infrastructure needs. Why spend time and money making an entrance to town look better?

Worley said the answer partly comes down to how public projects are funded. The West Gateway isn’t simply taking the place of another city project on a list. Microsoft has provided much of the support for the beautification work, while other transportation and infrastructure projects move forward using their own funding sources, including grants that can only be used for particular types of work. The city often has to move on a project when the right funding becomes available rather than simply working straight down a single priority list.

There are also transportation improvements tied into the larger area. Worley pointed to rapid-flashing pedestrian beacons, sidewalk improvements and trail connections that are being assembled as individual projects and funding opportunities make them possible. The West Gateway includes a sidewalk that will help extend that network toward 7th Avenue near the cemetery.

For Karstetter, however, beautification has another purpose: community pride. She pointed out that people form impressions about a place before they have the opportunity to know the people who live there. Quincy has a large industrial footprint, and for someone entering from the west, that can dominate the first impression before they reach the rest of the community.

“I think when you take pride in something like that to say, when you start coming in and going, ‘This is beautiful. It’s, like, we live here,’” Karstetter said. She hopes that feeling extends beyond appearances and encourages residents to take greater pride in, and better care of, the parks, neighborhoods and other community investments around them.

Worley described his reason more simply as appreciating the beauty it can add to town. He and Karstetter pointed out that Quincy already has things people remember when they pass through the area, including the crop signs and Christmas lights along the freeway. Karstetter would like Quincy’s streets and public spaces to become part of that impression as well.

Help Plant the Quincy West Gateway

• Dates: October 6 3PM to 7PM - Planting

• Dates: October 8 3PM to 6PM - Irrigation and Staking

• Where to Meet: North Side of HWY 28 across from ACE

• Who Can Participate: Anyone

• What to Bring: Gardening/Work Gloves and water

• Tools Provided?: Shovels

• What to Wear: Weather Appropriate clothing

• Food/Refreshments: BRING WATER

• Do You Need to Sign Up?: No, we will find a place for you to help

The October planting is not necessarily the end of the West Gateway project. Karstetter said a second phase is being planned that would continue the landscaping farther east toward the cemetery. That phase still requires WSDOT approval, so while it is not yet final, Worley said he expects it to be approved, and the hope is that site preparation can take place through the fall and winter with additional planting in spring 2027.

Eight Years From an Idea to a Shovel

Looking back at the 2018 Voice of the Community notes provides some useful perspective on how change happens in a small community. Residents can raise an idea at a meeting, but that doesn’t mean construction begins the following year. Funding has to be found, plans have to be developed, public agencies have requirements to meet, and sometimes an unexpected event like COVID adds years to the process. Karstetter described the community-engagement process Microsoft was using at the time as research and listening, planning, funding, executing, communicating and evaluating, with community sessions repeating about every six months.

It is also worth remembering what those Quincy residents were asking for in 2018. They wanted a new hospital, recreation opportunities, trails and bike routes, a revitalized downtown and more trees. They also wanted an actionable community vision, something that has since developed into the Better Together 98848 Action Plan available at 98848vision.org and a better-looking community. Not everything on those old lists has happened, and some of the things that are happening have taken much longer than anyone probably imagined. Still, enough has changed around the 98848 that looking back at the list today tells a different story than it did eight years ago.

The West Gateway Beautification Project is one more piece of that story. What began with residents asking for more trees, more green space and beautiful entrances to Quincy eventually moved through community feedback, concept drawings, funding, engineering and years of work behind the scenes. This October, residents of the 98848 will have the opportunity to take the next step themselves: showing up, grabbing a shovel and helping plant the entrance their neighbors began asking for eight years ago.

There are losses, and then there are rivalry losses. Unfortunately for everyone wearing Jackrabbit green and yellow Friday night, this one wasn’t particularly close. Ephrata came into Jackrabbit Stadium and handed Quincy a 62–7 loss in the annual Battle of the Basin football game, giving Tiger fans plenty to celebrate and those of us in the 98848 a Friday night we’d probably rather leave in the rearview mirror.

We’ll give them this one. They earned it. But don’t get too comfortable over there, Ephrata. The Battle of the Basin is bigger than one football game, and Friday night was only the end of the fall chapter.

TL;DR

• 🏐 Ephrata got the better of the Lady Jacks volleyball teams during Tuesday’s rivalry matchups.

• ⚽ Quincy JV girls soccer defeated Ephrata 5–1.

• ⚽ Quincy varsity girls soccer defeated Ephrata 4–1, extending its undefeated start to the season.

• 🏈 Ephrata defeated Quincy 62–7 in Friday night’s Battle of the Basin football game.

• 🐰 Fall rivalry week is over, but the Jackrabbits and Tigers will see each other again when winter sports begin.

If You’re Newer to Jacks Country

There isn’t some complicated origin story behind the Quincy-Ephrata rivalry. No ancient disagreement between the towns needs to be uncovered, and as far as we know, nobody stole anybody else’s mascot a hundred years ago.

They’re simply our neighbors. With only about 15 miles separating Quincy and Ephrata, they’re close enough that generations of athletes from the two communities have grown up competing against one another. Families know families, students know students, and plenty of people in one community work, shop or have friends and relatives in the other.

That’s all perfectly friendly until somebody puts on an orange-and-black jersey. Then things change a little.

For generations of Jackrabbits, Ephrata has been the school just down the road. They’re close enough to bring a crowd when they come to Quincy and close enough for Quincy fans to return the favor. A road game doesn’t require an overnight trip or much planning. You get in the car, head down the highway and, before long, there are those orange jerseys again.

That proximity has made the Tigers a natural rival, and last week gave the two schools plenty of opportunities to renew the argument.

Rivalry Week Was Bigger Than Friday Night

The rivalry started Tuesday, and if we’re keeping score, we’ll admit right up front that it wasn’t the greatest week the 98848 has ever had.

Ephrata got the better of the Lady Jacks volleyball teams, giving the Tigers the early advantage. Things looked considerably better outside, where the Lady Jacks JV soccer team defeated Ephrata 5–1 before the varsity squad followed with a 4–1 victory.

We were there for the varsity match and have already told that story. Quincy entered the night undefeated and walked off the field the same way, extending its winning streak with perhaps its most satisfying victory of the young season. Beating another opponent is good. Beating Ephrata by three goals is just a little more fun.

Then came Friday.

We were at Jackrabbit Stadium for that one, too, and we’re not going to spend several hundred words dissecting it. Anyone who watched the game knows what happened. Turnovers hurt Quincy repeatedly, Ephrata took advantage of its opportunities, and the Tigers controlled the game on their way to a 62–7 victory.

Sometimes your rival gets you.

This time they really got us.

Enjoy Those Bragging Rights, Ephrata

There have naturally been a few metaphorical shots fired from the other side of the Basin since Friday night. After winning 62–7, that’s to be expected.

We can’t even complain about it too much. If Quincy had hung 62 points on Ephrata at Kiwanis Field, does anyone seriously believe the 98848 would have politely congratulated the Tigers on a game well played and then never mentioned it again? Of course not. We’d still be talking about it.

That’s one of the reasons rivalry games are fun. The final score counts exactly the same in the standings as a game against anybody else, but nobody experiences it quite that way. Beating your rival feels better. Losing to your rival hurts worse. A big win buys bragging rights, and a big loss means occasionally having to grit your teeth while the people 15 miles down the road exercise theirs.

So enjoy it, Tigers. Friday night was yours.

Just remember that Friday night wasn’t the last Quincy-Ephrata game on the calendar.

Winter Is Coming

Rivalry week may be behind us, but the fall sports season certainly isn’t. There are still plenty of matches and games ahead, and we’ll keep showing up for our Jacks in the gym for volleyball, along the sidelines for soccer and under the Friday night lights for football.

A few weeks ago, after a difficult football season opener against Prosser, we challenged Quincy to think about becoming a kind of 12th Man for the Jacks. The idea was simple: the players and coaches are responsible for what happens between the lines, but the rest of the 98848 gets to decide what kind of community surrounds them while they do it.

Maybe that idea shouldn’t stop at the gates of Jackrabbit Stadium.

Our volleyball players deserve to look into the stands and see their hometown behind them. Our soccer players should hear Quincy celebrating a big goal and encouraging them when the goal goes the other direction. The same goes for every athlete who puts Quincy across the front of a uniform and represents this community.

Winning certainly makes that easier. Last week’s 4–1 varsity soccer victory over Ephrata was a lot more fun to watch than Friday night’s 62–7 football loss. Nobody needs us to pretend otherwise.

But hometown support can’t only show up when the scoreboard gives us something to celebrate.

There is still plenty of fall sports ahead. We’ll keep following the Lady Jacks volleyball teams as they take the court. We’ll keep watching a soccer program that has given the 98848 plenty to cheer about already this season. And we’ll be back under the lights with Jackrabbit football as those young men continue working through a difficult season.

Then, eventually, the final volleyball match will end, the last soccer whistle will blow and the football helmets will be put away.

When that happens, our support shouldn’t disappear. It should simply follow the Jacks indoors.

Basketball will put Quincy and Ephrata across the court from one another again. Wrestling will bring Jackrabbits and Tigers together on the mats. New athletes will get their turn to represent Quincy, and the bleachers will give the rest of us another opportunity to represent and support them.

The venues will change. The sports will change. The athletes will change.

The hometown shouldn’t.

Same Rivalry, Next Round

Friday’s football game wasn’t the ending anyone in the 98848 wanted for fall rivalry week. A 62–7 loss hurts, and putting “Ephrata” on the other side of that score certainly doesn’t make it hurt any less.

That’s the deal when you have a rival. You take the losses along with the wins, endure a little trash talk when things go badly and make sure you’re ready to return the favor when the opportunity comes around again.

More importantly, we keep showing up. That’s something bigger than Ephrata week. Whether it’s volleyball, soccer, football, basketball, wrestling or whatever Jackrabbit team is competing that day, these are young people from our community putting themselves out there. They’re practicing after school, traveling for away games, competing in front of their classmates and neighbors and learning all the things high school athletics can teach when things go right and when they don’t.

The athletes have to play the games. The coaches have to coach them. The rest of us have a much easier assignment: fill the stands, make some noise and make sure our kids know the 98848 is behind them.

And yes, Ephrata has the football bragging rights this year. They’ve earned them, and we’ll begrudgingly allow them to enjoy them.

For now.

Because there is still plenty of fall sports left to play, and we’ll be there supporting our Jacks through it.

Then winter will arrive.

The gyms will fill. The wrestlers will hit the mats. Quincy and Ephrata will find themselves staring across another court or another mat at one another, and another chapter of a rivalry separated by just 15 miles will begin.

Different sport. Different athletes. Same two towns.

And when the next Battle of the Basin begins, let’s make sure our Jacks look into the stands and see the same thing they should see every time they compete:

Their hometown showed up.

Some weeks around the 98848 make it easy to focus on results.

The Lady Jacks soccer team beat Ephrata Tuesday night and kept their undefeated season rolling. Friday night, the Battle of the Basin went very differently, with Ephrata handing our football team a hard 62–7 loss. Quincy Valley Allied Arts put five singers and a pianist onstage for three night…

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The Quincy School Board did not vote on a new cell phone policy September 8. It did not change school meals, create new rules for student clubs or overhaul school safety. But during a lengthy work session at Quincy Middle School, board members and student representatives did something that could help shape several of those conversations in the months ahead: they decided what they want to know more about. For families across the 98848, that discussion offered an unusually clear look at some of the questions the board expects to wrestle with this school year.

TL;DR

• The School Board used its annual Board Topic Calendar work session to identify subjects it wants to revisit during the 2026–27 school year.

• Cell phones emerged as a possible dedicated study topic, with interest in hearing directly from teachers and students about how phones affect the school day.

• Board members want digital safety, including student technology use and screen time, incorporated into future school safety discussions.

• The district’s expanding School Safety Officer program could receive a closer public look, including an explanation of how SSOs differ from the police department’s School Resource Officer.

• Board members want a district-wide look at student clubs and activities, while student representatives raised concerns about parking and school meals.

• These were planning discussions, not final policy decisions.

Building the Board’s Calendar

The September 8 meeting included the usual business of a school board meeting consent items, reports and policy readings but the agenda also set aside approximately 45 minutes for a “Board Topic Calendar” work session. Another work session was scheduled for discussion of the Washington State School Directors’ Association General Assembly Handbook.

The purpose of the topic calendar discussion was essentially to decide what information the board wants brought before it during the year, when it wants that information and whether different subjects warrant a written report, oral presentation or more extensive work session.

Some items are already part of the district’s regular business. School Improvement Plans, budget information, Career and Technical Education planning and other required reports have natural places on the calendar.

The more revealing part of the conversation came when board members began identifying subjects they believe deserve additional attention.

Those ranged from facilities and special education to artificial intelligence, student activities, school safety and youth substance-use prevention. Student representatives also added issues they are seeing and hearing about inside Quincy schools.

The result was not a new set of district policies. It was more like a roadmap of questions the board wants to ask.

Cell Phones Could Get a Conversation of Their Own

One of the subjects that generated interest was student cell phone use.

Rather than simply adding cell phones to an existing report, the discussion moved toward giving the subject its own study session or work session. Board members talked about hearing from teachers about what they experience in their classrooms as well as hearing from students about their experiences with phones during the school day.

That distinction matters.

The board did not propose or approve a district-wide cell phone ban during the meeting. The conversation was about studying the issue, gathering information and considering what rules, if any, might eventually make sense for Quincy schools.

Timing could also matter. District administrators noted that state-level action concerning cell phones in schools may affect what local districts eventually need to consider.

For now, the question in Quincy is not simply whether students should have phones. The larger question is how those devices are affecting classrooms, teachers and students and what the people experiencing that environment every day have to say about it.

School Safety Now Includes the Digital World

Cell phones also opened the door to a broader realization during the work session: when the district talks publicly about school safety, technology has not necessarily been the focal point of that conversation.

Board members discussed adding digital safety to future safety reporting, including issues involving district technology, tablets and screen time. That would expand the meaning of “school safety” beyond doors, buildings and physical security.

The district’s physical safety efforts are changing as well. Administrators told the board that the School Safety Officer program has expanded and that there is now an SSO at Quincy High School. The discussion included the possibility of a future presentation explaining the SSO program and, importantly, the difference between a School Safety Officer and a School Resource Officer.

Those titles sound similar, but they do not represent the same position.

The distinction is particularly relevant because the September board packet also included a renewal agreement between Quincy School District and the City of Quincy for one School Resource Officer during the 2026–27 regular school year. The agreement lists Officer Halterman at a regular rate of $72.25 per hour and an overtime rate of $108.39.

A future safety presentation could therefore give the 98848 community a clearer picture of who is working inside local schools, who employs them, what their responsibilities are and how the different positions fit together.

Looking Beyond Athletics at Student Opportunities

Another topic the board wants to understand better is what students can do outside the classroom.

The district regularly discusses athletics, but board members expressed interest in taking a broader district-wide look at clubs and other student activities. The conversation included questions about what clubs are available, how stipend money is allocated, whether schools are making full use of activity budgets, what participation looks like and how students can start new clubs.

The district already has a sizable collection of student organizations.

Quincy High School’s ASB financial reports in the September board packet list accounts for organizations including FFA, FCCLA, DECA, FBLA, Drama Club, MECHA, TSA, HOSA, SkillsUSA, ASL, Youth Action and Photo Club, among others.

A fuller report could move the conversation beyond simply listing what exists. It could show how many students participate, which opportunities are thriving, where gaps exist and whether students throughout the district have meaningful ways to become involved outside athletics.

That is the kind of information that can turn a line in a board report into something parents and students can actually use.

Students Put Parking and Food on the Table

Some of the most practical topics came from the student representatives sitting at the board table.

Parking was one of them.

A student representative raised concerns about student parking permits and enforcement. The district noted that the expanded safety presence provides additional monitoring of parking areas, and administrators suggested parking could be addressed as part of a future safety report.

Food was another.

A student representative asked about providing more healthy and fresh options in school meals, referencing conversations with fellow cross-country athletes. Administrators indicated the subject could be incorporated into a future food service discussion.

Neither conversation produced an immediate change, but both demonstrate one of the purposes of having student representatives involved in board discussions. A topic that may appear relatively small on a district-level agenda can be a daily issue for hundreds of students.

Other Subjects Are Coming Back Too

The board’s developing calendar stretches well beyond phones, food and clubs.

Members discussed receiving additional information about special education following recent changes to district programs, including the transition program for students ages 18 to 20. The district’s ongoing work with math curriculum and instructional materials also surfaced as a future topic, along with the implementation of SchoolLinks for High School and Beyond Plans.

Board members discussed future budget reporting, climate survey results and artificial intelligence as well.

Youth substance-use prevention was another subject specifically identified for future discussion. Board members and administrators talked about examining not only substance use and prevention efforts, but also what resources are available or unavailable in the community and how students can access help.

Facilities could receive additional attention as well. During that portion of the discussion, a board member pointed to the importance of keeping the public informed about the condition of district facilities, particularly if those needs eventually become part of a future bond conversation.

Taken together, those subjects give the 98848 an early look at where some of this year’s longer School Board conversations may be headed.

A Roadmap for the School Year

Most School Board meetings are ultimately measured by what the board votes to approve or reject. The September 8 topic-calendar discussion was different.

Its importance may not be clear until later.

Over the coming months, subjects discussed during the work session should begin returning to the board table in the form of reports, presentations and potentially longer work sessions. Some may eventually lead to policy discussions. Others may simply give board members and the public a better understanding of what is happening throughout the district.

That makes the calendar worth watching.

For parents, students, teachers and other residents across the 98848, the September conversation provided an early roadmap: cell phones, digital safety, school security, student opportunities, substance-use prevention, facilities, parking and even what students find on their lunch trays are among the questions Quincy School District may be talking about this year.

And sometimes knowing which questions are coming is the first step toward understanding the decisions that may eventually follow.

There are no Oklahoma cornfields, Austrian mountains, South Pacific islands or royal palaces waiting behind the curtain at Quincy Middle School this weekend. Instead, Quincy Valley Allied Arts is putting five local singers, one pianist and more than two dozen Rodgers and Hammerstein songs and medleys in front of the 98848 and trusting the music to do the rest. For anyone who grew up watching the classic movie musicals, it may only take a few familiar notes to understand why.

TL;DR

• What: Quincy Valley Allied Arts presents Rodgers and Hammerstein’s A Grand Night for Singing

• The format: A one-act musical revue rather than a traditional play or musical, running approximately 70 minutes

• Performers: Miles Plagerman, Kylie Youngren, Mikaela Bosnar Vela, Riley Youngren and Lindsay Hintz

• Pianist: Cecelia Couture

• Music Director: Riley Youngren, who also performs in the revue

• Choreographer: Mikaela Bosnar Vela, who is making her QVAA performing debut

• Director: Alec Lobe

• Performances: Thursday, Sept. 17, Friday, Sept. 18 and Saturday, Sept. 19 at 7 p.m. at Quincy Middle School

• Tickets: $10, with first-come, first-served seating; tickets are available through ⁠QVAA.com

This Isn’t a Traditional Musical

Audiences accustomed to QVAA’s larger theatrical productions should understand what A Grand Night for Singing is and what it isn’t before the lights come up. There is no plot connecting the evening, no elaborate scenery and no cast of characters carrying a story from beginning to end. It is a musical revue, built around songs written by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II and originally heard in productions including Oklahoma!, The King and I, South Pacific, Cinderella and others.

The stage reflects that simplicity. String lights hang in front of the back curtain, a grand piano occupies center stage, and two small platforms give the performers places to sit, move and create occasional miniature scenes. The three women wear contemporary dresses while the men wear button-up shirts. There is choreography, but the production never attempts to visually recreate the shows from which these songs came.

Once director Alec Lobe welcomes the audience, the music takes over. The full cast begins with an opening medley of “Sounds of the Earth,” “So Far” and “A Grand Night for Singing,” followed by “The Surrey with the Fringe on the Top.” From there, solos, duets, small groups and full-ensemble numbers follow one another with almost no spoken introductions and frequently only seconds separating one selection from the next. The program lists 25 musical numbers or medleys before the final bows.

That continuous format is important to understanding the experience. This isn’t a concert where someone tells a story between songs or explains what the audience is about to hear. Rodgers and Hammerstein’s music is given roughly 70 minutes to stand on its own.

Five Voices With Nowhere to Hide

For four members of the cast, the production represents a considerable change from the last time QVAA audiences saw them. Plagerman, Kylie Youngren, Riley Youngren and Hintz all appeared in last spring’s Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, a production filled with a large ensemble and the visual elements audiences generally associate with musical theater.

This time, most of that theatrical machinery has been removed. That puts considerably more responsibility on the five voices and makes the quality of those voices one of the production’s strengths.

The harmonies were particularly effective during Wednesday night’s dress rehearsal. When the two male performers sang together or the three women combined their voices, the individual vocal layers remained recognizable while blending into a smooth and complete sound. That can be heard in different combinations throughout the program, including Riley Youngren and Plagerman performing “All At Once You Love Her” and Vela, Hintz and Kylie Youngren joining for “Many a New Day / Wash That Man.”

Vela is the one performer audiences did not see in Joseph. She is making her QVAA performing debut while also serving as choreographer for A Grand Night for Singing, and her powerful voice and ability to project made her immediately noticeable during rehearsal.

Plagerman gets an opportunity to show audiences another side of his voice after often being heard within the larger ensemble of Joseph. His softer but strong, clean vocal quality fits the era of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s music particularly well. That was noticeable during “The Surrey with the Fringe on the Top,” where his voice had the quality one might expect to hear in one of the classic movie adaptations. The number also features Vela, Hintz and Kylie Youngren.

Riley Youngren has an additional challenge, serving as music director while also performing as one of the five featured singers. His numbers include “We Kiss in a Shadow” and “This Nearly Was Mine,” while Kylie Youngren, Hintz and the rest of the company move between solos, duets and ensemble combinations throughout the evening. Rehearsals began in early August, and by Wednesday’s dress rehearsal the comfort among the small group was apparent in the way they interacted and performed together.

The Sixth Performer at Center Stage

With nearly everything else stripped away, Cecelia Couture’s piano becomes as essential to the production as any of the singers.

Couture remains at the grand piano throughout the performance, providing the musical foundation underneath nearly 70 minutes of singing while also carrying the transitions that allow one number to move quickly into another. The program even gives her one selection of her own, appropriately titled “My Favorite Transition.”

That role becomes particularly noticeable because there is so little downtime. At Wednesday’s rehearsal, two, three and sometimes four numbers could pass back-to-back before there was a meaningful pause. With no orchestra and no scene changes to reset the room, the piano provides much of the continuity.

The vocals were also clean and intelligible during dress rehearsal, allowing the harmonies and individual performances to remain the focus rather than the technical side of the production. For a revue that depends almost entirely on hearing five voices and one instrument clearly, that is not a minor detail.

When a Song Opens an Old Memory

The most interesting part of A Grand Night for Singing may depend less on what happens onstage than on what an audience member brings into the theater.

For this reporter, it happened during “The Surrey with the Fringe on the Top.” Growing up in a family that watched musicals meant many of these songs were already tucked away somewhere in memory, even if they hadn’t been heard in years. As the familiar music returned Wednesday night, so did memories of sitting with family watching Yul Brynner and other performers from the classic era of movie musicals.

Other numbers produced similar moments. “We Kiss in a Shadow,” “Something Wonderful,” “Do I Love You,” “I’m in Love with a Wonderful Guy,” “Maria” and the medley containing “Wash That Man” are among the selections that may be immediately recognizable to audiences familiar with Rodgers and Hammerstein.

Not every number requires that familiarity to work. “Don’t Marry Me,” performed by Riley Youngren, Plagerman, Hintz and Kylie Youngren, was unfamiliar to this reporter but produced one of the rehearsal’s humorous moments as the men essentially explain to the women why they are not exactly ideal marriage prospects. Other selections use pairings and light choreography to create small scenes, including Riley and Kylie Youngren’s performance of “Shall We Dance.”

Those moments keep the revue from becoming five people simply standing in place and singing. Still, there is no disguising what audiences are coming to see: this is an evening devoted almost entirely to Rodgers and Hammerstein’s music.

A Grand Night Begins Tonight

Quincy Valley Allied Arts’ A Grand Night for Singing opens tonight, Thursday, Sept. 17, and continues Friday, Sept. 18 and Saturday, Sept. 19. All three performances begin at 7 p.m. at Quincy Middle School. Tickets are $10, seating is first-come, first-served, and tickets are available through ⁠QVAA.com.

There won’t be an Oklahoma cornfield waiting when the curtain opens, and audiences won’t be transported to an Austrian mountain or a South Pacific island by elaborate scenery. What QVAA is offering the 98848 instead is considerably simpler: five singers, Cecelia Couture at the piano and a collection of songs that have outlived the original Broadway casts that first sang them.

For the right audience member, all it may take is the first few notes of an old favorite to make Quincy Middle School disappear anyway.

There are some wins that mean a little more when you live in the 98848, and beating Ephrata is usually somewhere on that list. Tuesday night, the Quincy Lady Jacks gave their hometown crowd plenty to celebrate, defeating the rival Ephrata Tigers 4-1 at Jackrabbit Stadium to remain undefeated through the first five matches of the season. Yet the bigger story emerging from rivalry night may not be one victory or even a perfect record. Through five matches, Quincy has outscored its opponents 23-1, and Tuesday offered a closer look at the teamwork, communication and persistence behind those numbers.

TL;DR

• Rivalry Win: Quincy defeated Ephrata 4-1 Tuesday night at Jackrabbit Stadium.

• Undefeated: The Lady Jacks improved to 5-0 to begin the 2026 season.

• 23-1: Quincy has scored 23 goals while allowing only one through its first five matches.

• Longwill on the Attack: Allanah Longwill scored all three Quincy goals witnessed by Life in the 98848 photographer Sarah Dowlen after she arrived with the match tied 1-1.

• Garcia in Goal: Goalkeeper Aylen Garcia (#13) helped Quincy protect the lead as Ephrata created several dangerous opportunities.

• Teamwork Stands Out: Quincy’s passing, communication, ball handling and defensive recovery were among the most noticeable parts of Tuesday’s performance.

• Home Crowd: A strong Quincy turnout, including an increasingly vocal student section, added to the rivalry atmosphere as the Lady Jacks pulled away.

• Up Next: Quincy travels to Brewster Thursday, September 17, for a 4:30 p.m. match.

A Rivalry Match Still Up for Grabs

98848 News photographer Sarah Dowlen arrived after the opening portion of Tuesday’s match with Quincy and Ephrata tied 1-1. At that point, nothing about the game suggested the Lady Jacks were simply going to cruise toward another victory.

In fact, Dowlen’s first impression was that Quincy appeared to be holding back somewhat. The Lady Jacks were not attacking the ball as aggressively as they would later in the match, and Ephrata remained very much in contention. The Tigers created chances throughout the game, including breakaways and near-goals that forced Quincy’s defense and goalkeeper Aylen Garcia to respond.

Then Quincy began finding its rhythm.

“Once Quincy seemed to hit their groove,” Dowlen said, the teamwork became one of the most noticeable parts of their play. Their passing was generally clean and direct, turnovers on passes were limited, and the Lady Jacks seemed increasingly aware of where their teammates were going to be before the ball arrived.

It did not look like a collection of players trying to figure one another out in September. It looked like a team that already knew how to play together.

“They looked like these girls had been playing together for a number of years,” Dowlen said. “Their teamwork was very good.”

Five Matches Tell a Bigger Story

Tuesday’s victory becomes more significant when placed alongside what Quincy has done during the opening weeks of the season.

The Lady Jacks opened September with a 2-0 victory over Moses Lake, followed by an 8-0 win over Chelan and a 6-0 victory against Liberty Bell. Quincy then went on the road and defeated Cascade 3-0 before returning to Jackrabbit Stadium Tuesday for the 4-1 win over Ephrata.

That puts Quincy at 5-0 with 23 goals scored and only one allowed.

Ephrata’s goal Tuesday was the first to get past Quincy all season.

Those numbers help explain the undefeated start, but Tuesday’s match also showed some of what is happening underneath them. Quincy has players with speed and strong ball-handling ability, but Dowlen repeatedly noticed how well the Lady Jacks worked together. Players appeared to understand where teammates were, where the ball needed to go and when opportunities were beginning to develop.

Defensively, Quincy also showed an ability to recover. When Ephrata managed to break through, Lady Jack defenders worked back into position and got themselves between the Tigers and the goal. Garcia, wearing #13 in goal Tuesday, made several strong saves as Ephrata attempted to stay within striking distance. Dowlen also noted that there were a couple of occasions when the result could easily have gone differently, but Garcia and the Quincy defense ultimately kept Ephrata from adding another goal.

The 4-1 final score could make the game sound easier than it was. Ephrata had opportunities, and the Tigers’ goalkeeper made several strong saves of her own that prevented Quincy from adding to the total. The difference was that as the match progressed, Quincy became increasingly effective at turning possession into opportunities.

Longwill Keeps Pushing Forward

Dowlen missed Quincy’s opening goal, but she watched Allanah Longwill account for the next three.

Of those goals, it was Longwill’s final one that stood out most. Dowlen watched her stay with the ball whenever it entered her area of the field, refusing to surrender the play and continuing to push the attack forward.

“She didn’t give it up,” Dowlen said. “She kept pushing forward.”

That persistence reflected something Dowlen noticed across the Quincy lineup. The Lady Jacks communicated and encouraged one another throughout the match. Mistakes and turnovers did not appear to linger. Players went back to work, found the next ball and continued playing.

Dowlen said she would not necessarily describe Quincy as a team that simply “looked undefeated.” What she saw was something more tangible: a group that looked as though it had put in the work necessary to earn those victories.

Five straight wins are impressive. A 23-1 scoring margin gets attention. But those numbers become more interesting when the habits visible on the field begin explaining how they happened.

The Rivalry Was in the Stands, Too

Quincy had a good hometown turnout Tuesday, including families and a sizable student section. Ephrata brought a respectable crowd of its own, giving Jackrabbit Stadium the feel expected when the two communities meet.

Early in the portion of the match Dowlen witnessed, however, the Quincy side was relatively quiet.

That changed along with the game.

As the Lady Jacks began finding their rhythm, the crowd became increasingly involved. The student section started its own cheers, bringing some of the organized energy normally associated with the stands during football season.

Dowlen believes the encouragement made a difference.

“The crowd started cheering some more, and especially the student section started doing their own little cheers,” she said. “I think the encouragement helped the play.”

By the closing minutes, the uncertainty that had accompanied the 1-1 tie was long gone. With roughly two minutes still remaining, the Quincy student section began chanting, “This game’s over.”

This time, the scoreboard agreed.

More Than the Final Score

When the final whistle sounded Tuesday night, the rivalry gave way to celebration.

Dowlen captured teammates picking up Longwill and hoisting her into the air after the match, a spontaneous celebration for a player who had helped turn a tied game into a convincing Quincy victory. It was the kind of photograph that says something a standings table cannot: teammates celebrating one another after the work is finished.

Dowlen described the night as feeling like “a great hometown game,” one where the home team had done the work ahead of time and then continued doing the hard work during the match to bring home the win.

Quincy will not have much time to linger over rivalry night. The Lady Jacks travel to Brewster Thursday, September 17, for a 4:30 p.m. match, where they will put that undefeated record on the field again.

Five matches do not tell us how an entire season will unfold, but they can tell us when something is worth watching. The Lady Jacks are 5-0. They have scored 23 times. They have surrendered one goal.

And after sending Ephrata home with a 4-1 loss Tuesday night, the 98848 has another hometown team giving its community a reason to show up and see what happens next.

Press Release from Chief David Durfee….

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

September 16, 2026

Grant County Fire District 3 Board Approves 2027–2031 Strategic Plan

QUINCY, Wash. — Grant County Fire District 3 has completed its 2027–2031 Strategic Plan, which was formally approved by the Board of Commissioners on September 9, 2026.

The five-year plan establishes the District’s priorities and provides a framework to guide decision-making, investments, and service to the communities of the Quincy Valley.

Development of the plan included input from District members, community stakeholders, regional partners, and the Board of Commissioners through surveys, meetings, workshops, and prioritization efforts.

“This plan reflects a tremendous amount of input from our members and the community,” said Fire Chief David Durfee. “It gives us a clear direction for the next five years while providing the flexibility to address changing needs and opportunities.”

The plan will be put into action through annual work plans that identify specific objectives and projects, align priorities with the budget, and provide a means to track and report progress.

Grant County Fire District 3 thanks everyone who participated in the planning process and helped shape the District’s direction for 2027–2031.

The complete 2027–2031 Strategic Plan is available at www.gcfd3.net/strategic-plan-2027-2031.

For more information, please contact:
Grant County Fire Protection District No. 3
Fire Chief David Durfee
Phone: 509-787-2713
Email: ddurfee@gcfd3.net

This statement is published as an official press release issued by Grant County Fire Protection District No. 3 Chief David Durfee. The content has not been altered, edited, or modified in any way by the staff, ownership, or affiliates of this publication.

This platform is providing distribution of this material solely as a public information service on behalf of the District’s public information office. Responsibility for the content rests entirely with Grant County Fire Protection District No. 3.

This Round Up is a little late. After the weekend we just had, I decided I was okay with that.

Between the September 11 remembrance, B Street Bash, FCAD and Church in the Park, there was a lot packed into a few days. For me, Saturday was especially different because instead of moving constantly through FCAD looking for the next picture, interview or piec…

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