Washington State Court Decisions

Current - November 1993

• Washington State Supreme and Appellate Court Decisions
• Washington State Court Decisions published within the last 90 days

Washington State Court Decisions Affecting Cities, Towns and Counties

The following decisions are in reverse chronological order: (This is not a complete list of all new court decisions that affect cities, towns and counties in the State of Washington, but a selection of highlights.)

2002

Satterlee v. Snohomish County, 115 Wn.App. 229 (12/30/02) - [Counties/Formation] - The state constitution does not impose a duty on the legislature to create a new county upon the submission of a petition containing the requisite number of qualifying signatures. The creation of a new county is within the sole discretion of the legislature subject to conditions established in the constitution.

City of Tacoma v. The William Rogers Company, 148 Wn.2d 169 (12/19/02) - [B&O Taxes/ When a temporary staffing agency functions as the actual employer of its temporary workers, it is liable for B&O tax. Because the tax is based on gross income, no deduction is permitted for expenses involved in conducting a business. Consequently, the staffing agency is liable to pay B&O taxes on the payments received from clients for the labor of its employees.

Violante v. King County Fire Dist., 114 Wn. App. 565 (12/16/020 - [Public Disclosure/Budget Documents/Attorney Fees] - Under the public disclosure act a plaintiff is a prevailing party and is entitled to attorney fees and costs if the suit was reasonably necessary to obtain the records requested and caused the release of the records.

Rhoades v. City of Battle Ground, 115 Wn. App. 752 (12/13/02) - [Exotic Animals Ordinance] - A city has a legitimate purpose in protecting its citizens from exotic animals, and a ban on exotic animals is not unduly burdensome, does not violate due process or equal protection rights, and does not constitute a taking without compensation.

Hanson Indus., Inc. v. Spokane County, 114 Wn.App. 523 (12/5/02) - [Quiet Title/Right-of-Way Conveyance/Easement or Fee] - The successor-in-interest to the original grantors of a railroad right-of-way sought to quiet title to a portion of the right-of-way that the railroads successor-in-interest had quitclaimed to a county after abandoning the railroad line that had crossed the right-of-way. The court held that original grantors of the right-of-way intended to convey an easement rather than fee simple title.

Thurston Cty. v. Cooper Point Ass'n, 148 Wn.2d 1 (11/21/02) - [GMA/Urban Governmental Services/Sewer Service Extension] - A countys proposal to extend a sewer line from an urban treatment plant to a rural area constitutes urban growth subject to statutory restrictions imposed by the Growth Management Act. The extension violates the provisions of RCW 36.70A.110(4) because the county cannot show that the proposed extension is necessary to protect basic public health, safety and environment.

King County v. Sheehan, 114 Wn.App. 325 (11/12/02) - [Public Disclosure/List of Names] - A list of the full names - not merely the last names - of police officers is not exempt from public disclosure and must be disclosed upon request. Additionally, "a penalty of at least $5 per day is now mandatory where an agency erroneously withholds a public record, whether or not the agency acted in good faith reliance upon a statutory exemption that is not in fact applicable."

Berst v. Snohomish County, 114 Wn.App.245 (11/4/02) - [Forest Practices Act/LUPA] A Decision by a county to impose a moratorium under the Forest Practices Act is not a land use decision that can be challenged in a LUPA appeal.

Samuel's Furniture v. Ecology, 147 Wn.2d 440 (10/3/02) - [Shorelines/LUPA] -- The State Department of Ecology is required to file a timely LUPA petition in order to challenge a local government's decision to allow a development project when the local government has determined that the project is not within the shoreline jurisdiction.

Fellowship v. King County, 114 Wn.App.174 (9/23/02) - [Conditional Use Permit/GMA] Local governments have broad discretion in deciding whether to grant conditional use permits and establishing appropriate size limitations for development in a rural area.

Wellington River v. King County, 113 Wn.App. 574 (9/23/02) - [Impact Fees] - It is not unconstitutional for jurisdictions within a school district have discretion to impose school impact fees on new developments, even though the amount of fees for comparable units will often differ from one jurisdiction to another.

Police Guild v. City of Seattle, 113 Wn.App. 431 (9/16/02) - [Civil Service/Rule of Five] - The state court of appeals has upheld a Seattle civil service rule allowing the appointing authority (the chief of police) to fill a position by selecting a candidate from the top five applicants by the civil service commission. The court found that this "Rule of Five" has historic roots, was similar to the "Rule of Three" previously upheld by the court, and "substantially accomplished" the purposes of the state civil service laws. Another aspect of the Seattle rules, however, one that allowed the chief to select from either the top five candidates or the top 25 percent of the applicants, whichever number was greater, was held to give the chief too much discretion and thus was inconsistent with state law.

Burien v. Growth Mgmt. Hearings Bd., 113 Wn.App. 375 (9/13/02) - [GMA/Third Runway] - Negotiation and execution of an interlocal agreement to settle litigation is not subject to the Growth Management Acts public participation requirements.

Medina v. PUD #1 of Benton County, 147 Wn.2d 303 (9/12/01) - [Nonclaim Statutes] - Notice to a PUD of a claim for personal injury must be filed within the time frame specified in RCW 4.96.020(4). Failure to wait the full 60 days required before filing a lawsuit violates the statute.

Arborwood Idaho v. Kennewick, 113 Wn.App.875 (9/10/02) - [EMS Assessment] -- Acity'ss emergency medical service assessment that is based on the number of occupied units in an apartment complex is not a tax but a valid regulatory fee.

Reg'l Disposal v. Centralia, 147 Wn.2d 69 (9/8/02) - [Municipal Utility Tax/Transfer of Solid Waste] - A city utility tax that is imposed on the transfer of solid waste from trucks to trains is a tax that discriminates against a rail carrier in violation of 49 U.S.C. sec. 11501(b)(4) (Supp. V 1999).

Lewis County v. Growth Mgmt. Bd., 113 Wn.App. 142 (8/23/02) - [Appeal of GMHB Decision/Filing Fee] - A superior court does not have jurisdiction to hear and determine an appeal from a final order of a Growth Management Hears Board where the appellant county failed to pay the prescribed filing fee within 30 days of the order being appealed from.

Legal Def. Fund v. City of Seattle, 113 Wn. App. 34 (8/12/02) - [Land Use/General Development Plan] - Even when there are procedural errors in the decision making process, a land use decision may not be reversed under LUPA if the court determines the errors were harmless.

Boeing v. Heidy and Dept. of Labor and Industries, 147 Wn.2d  78 (8/8/02) - [Permanent Partial Disability/Reduction of Award] - An employer cannot reduce a worker's permanent partial disability award for work-related hearing loss because people of that worker's age generally suffer from age-related hearing loss. A worker's knowledge of his or her disabling condition does not affect when the rate of compensation under the Act is established.

Bates v. City of Richland, 112 Wn.App. 919 (8/6/02) - [LEOFF/Calculation of Benefits] - Richland's performance-based salary system in which pensions are calculated based on 50 percent of the midpoint of the salary range for each position rather than 50 percent of the highest step for each position violates the Pensioner's rights under RCW 41.20.050 and .060. Pensioners are entitled to have their pensions calculated based on the salary for the highest step for their positions under a performance-based system.

City of Seattle v. Mighty Movers, Inc., 112 Wn.App. 904 (8/5/02) - [Posting Signs on City Property/Traditional Public Forum] - Seattle's prohibition on posting signs, handbills, or posters on city-owned property, including utility poles, violates the state constitution's free speech provision; posting on poles adjacent to city streets and sidewalks is a "traditional public forum," and requiring the city to demonstrate a compelling governmental interest to justify banning such posting.

City of Port Orchard v. Ret. Sys., 112 Wn.App. 811 (8/2/02) - [LEOFF Reserve Fund/Payment for Temporary Disability Leave] - LEOFF's purpose under RCW 41.26.020 is to provide an income benefit for permanent separation from service due to retirement, death, or long-term/permanent disability. Consequently, it is the cities' responsibility to pay temporary disability allowances to law enforcement officers and fire fighters, prior to their retiring or becoming permanently disabled, and not the LEOFF 1 reserve fund.

Kilian v. Atkinson, 147 Wn.2d 16 (8/1/02) - [Age Discrimination/Independent Contractor] - The independent contractor operators of a bumper boat business whose concession contract with a city was not renewed may not assert an age discrimination claim under RCW 49.60.030 against a city.

Chelan County v. Nykreim, 146 Wn.2d 904 (7/25/02) - [LUPA/Boundary Line Adjustments/Timely Appeal] - Under LUPA a land use petition is barred, and the court may not grant review, unless the petition is timely filed with the court "within twenty-one days of the issuance of the land use decisions." LUPA does not distinguish between quasi-judicial decisions and ministerial decisions, consequently, a boundary line adjustment, though ministerial under the county's municipal code, is a land use decision subject to appeal under LUPA.

Hubbard v. Spokane County, 146 Wn.2d 699 (7/18/02) - [Wrongful Discharge/Violation of Public Policy] - RCW 42.23.070(1) creates a valid public policy in favor of prohibiting municipal officers from granting special privileges or exemption to others; RCW 42.23.070(1) provides the necessary public policy to sustain a wrongful discharge action in violation of public policy.

Isla Verde v. Camas, 146 Wn.2d 740 (7/11/02) - [Plat Approval/Conditions/Open Space Requirement] -A city's development requirement that subdivisions must retain 30 percent of their area as open space, violates a statutory requirement of an individualized determination that a development condition, such as an open space requirement, is necessary to mitigate an impact of the particular development. A requirement that a secondary access road be constructed as a condition of approval for a subdivision application is not an unduly oppressive requirement when the record indicates the road is reasonably necessary for the public safety and welfare.

Benchmark Land Co. v. Battle Ground, 146 Wn.2d 685 (7/11/02) - [Subdivision Conditions/Street Improvements] - A condition of development approval that requires a property owner to make improvements to an existing street bordering its proposed subdivision is invalid when studies show that the proposed subdivision would have little to no impact on safety and operations on the existing street.

Holbrook, Inc. v. Clark County, 112 Wn.App. (6/28/02) - [GMA/Adequate Notice] -- A county is not required to individually notify non-resident landowners of its GMA process. Regulations require broad-based notice procedures such as newsletters, news releases, public workshops and legal notices in newspapers, not individual notice to landowners.

Smity v. City of Kelso, 112 Wn.App. 277 (6/21/02) - [Public Duty Doctrine/Negligent Plat Approval/Negligent Building Permit Approval] - The city owed no duty to homeowners after severe landslide damaged or destroyed their homes where there was no mandatory duty to take specific action to correct an unknown inherently dangerous condition.

Watchtower Bible & Tract Society v. Village of Stratton, 536 U.S. 150 (6/17/02) - [Door-to-Door Solicitation/Registration/Permits] -- An ordinance that requires canvassers to register and obtain a permit from the mayor's office before going door-to-door promoting any cause violates the First Amendment as it applies to religious proselytizing, anonymous political speech, and the distribution of handbills.

Barnes v. Gorman, 536 U.S. 181 (6/17/02) - [ADA/Punitive Damages/Local Government Immunity] - Local governments are immune from paying punitive damages for violations of the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA). Recipients of federal funds, including states and cities, cannot be sued for punitive damages for violating laws that are tied to federal grants unless Congress expressly says so when it enacts those laws.

King v. Snohomish County, 146 Wn.2d 420 (6/6/02) - [Claim Filing Requirements/Waiver] - A county waives the defense of failure to comply with claim filing requirements by engaging in behavior inconsistent with its assertion of the defense or failure to assert the defense in a timely manner.

Los Angeles v. Alameda Books, Inc., 535 U.S. 425 (5/13/02) - [Adult Entertainment/Secondary Effects] - The U.S. Supreme Court overturned a federal court decision that invalidated a municipal ordinance that prohibits more than one adult entertainment business in the same building or structure. The case is being returned to the lower court for trial on the sufficiency of evidence presented by the city that demonstrated a link between multiple-use adult establishments and negative secondary effects.

Boehm v. City of Vancouver, 111 Wn.App. 711 (5/10/02) - [Growth Management/Transportation Element/Concurrency Determination] - The Growth Management Act requires local governments to determine that sufficient transportation capacity exists to serve the development. When parties challenge the issuance of a certificate of concurrency they must comply with the procedural rules established by the local government.

Cowles Publ'g v. Prosecutor's Office, 111 Wn.App. 502 (5/3/02) - [Public Disclosure/Death Penalty Mitigation Package] - A mitigation package submitted by a criminal defendant to a prosecuting attorney's office urging the prosecuting attorney not to seek the death penalty constitutes an "investigative record" within the meaning of RCW 42.17.310(1)(d) which exempts from public disclosure investigative records compiled by a law enforcement agency the nondisclosure of which is essential to effective law enforcement or to protect a person's right to privacy.

W. Coast, Inc. v. Snohomish County, 112 Wn.App. 200 (5/6/02) - [Public Duty Doctrine] - The public duty doctrine bars an action for damages arising from a countys denial of a preliminary plat application for a subdivision. A countys promises of future performance are not representations of existing facts.

Daines v. Spokane County, 111 Wn.App. 342 (4/23/02) - [Public Disclosure/Remedial Purpose of Statute] - The public disclosure act does not provide a remedy for a person seeking to compel an agency to disclose a public record if the agency has already previously disclosed the record and the requestor is in knowing possession. The remedies of the act are not triggered unless the action can reasonably be regarded as necessary to obtain the records.

Kleven v. City of Des Moines, 111 Wn.App. 284 (4/22/02) - [Public Records Disclosure/Disorganized Records] - The Public Disclosure Act requires disclosure only when there has been a request for "identifiable public records" and an agency may ask the requestor to clarify what information is being sought. An agency's inadvertent mislabeling of a single public record containing information responsive to a public disclosure request, does not, by itself, constitute a violation of RCW 42.17.290.

Howe v. Douglas County, 146 2d 183 (4/18/02) - [Public Duty Doctrine/Exculpatory Clauses] - Municipal corporations may seek waivers of liability for harms arising out of preexisting conditions when considering permits. However, the requirement of a waiver of liability for damages arising out of the construction and maintenance of public facilities and public property violates public policy unless the waivers are fairly authorized by statute or merely exculpate local government for harms caused by identified or obvious preexisting conditions of the property.

Condo. Ass'n. v. Apartment Sales Corporation, 146 Wn.2d 194 (4/18/02) - [Exculpatory Covenants/Building Permits/Known Risks] - A city does not owe a duty to homeowners to refuse to grant a building permit when there is a known risk of significant soil movement, however, a covenant may not exculpate a city for soil movement-related losses caused by the city's own negligence.

Miller v. City of Bainbridge Island, 111 Wn.App.152 (4/12/02) - [Nonconforming Use] - A nonconforming use is limited to the property's lawful use as established and maintained at the time the zoning was imposed and cannot later be changed into another kind of a nonconforming use without proper legal authorization. A city's failure to enforce its zoning code in regard to an unlawful nonconforming use or its prior representations that the use may be lawful is insufficient to establish that the nonconforming use is lawful.

Montlake Community Club v. CPSGMB, 110 Wn.App. 731 (4/1/02) - [Concurrency Requirements/Comprehensive Plan/Timely Appeal] -- Challenges to a comprehensive plan, or amendments, must be filed within 60 days of publication, therefore a five-year delay in appealing a subarea plan that does not amend or revise transportation or concurrency elements of a comprehensive plan is untimely.

City of Seattle v. McCoy, 112 Wn.App. 26 (4/1/02) [Drug Abatement Actions/Attorney Fees] The attorney fees provision of the eminent domain statute found in RCW 8.25.075(1) does not apply to drug abatement actions brought under ch. 7.43 RCW.

Fire Fighters v. City of Everett, 146 Wn. 2d 29 (3/28/02) - [Attorney Fees/Arbitration Proceedings] - A union has a statutory right under RCW 49.48.030 to recover attorney fees for successfully obtaining a favorable wage recovery for its members in a labor arbitration proceeding.

City of Pasco v. Dep't of Ret. Sys., 110 Wn.App. 582 (3/22/02) - [Pensions/LEOFF I Eligibility] - A firefighter's prior eligibility for Plan 1 Pension membership entitles him to have his law enforcement officers' and fire fighters' retirement system Plan 2 benefits transferred into Plan 1. The Department of Retirement Systems may correct a flawed eligibility determination "at any time," whether it does so on its own initiative or at the request of an enrollee.

Fire Prot. Dist. v. City of Moses Lake, 145 Wn.2d 702 (3/14/02) - [Annexation/Constitutionality of Petition Method] -- The state supreme court has determined by a 6 to 3 majority that the petition method of annexation is constitutionally invalid because it "gives an impermissible privilege to owners of highly valued land, thus violating the privileges and immunities clause of the Washington State Constitution.

Quinn Constr. v. Fire Prot. Dist., 111 Wn.App.19 (3/11/02) - [Public Contracts/Competitive Bidding/Tardiness] The tardiness of a bid on a public contract is subject to the same materiality analysis as other irregularities in the bidding process. A bid may be accepted notwithstanding its tardiness if the waiver of the irregularity does not result in a specific unfair advantage to the tardy bidder. The specific unfair advantage must be one involving the bidding process; an act occurring well after the bids are opened usually does not involve the bidding process.

City of Seattle v. Burlington N. R.R., 145 Wn.2d 661 (3/7/02) - [Railroad Operations/Preemption of Local Ordinances] - Local ordinances regulating railroad switching and blocking on city streets are preempted by federal law -- the Interstate Commerce Commission Termination Act of 1995 (ICCTA) and the Federal Rail Safety Act of 1970 (FRSA).

Union Legislative Council v. State, 145 Wn.2d 544 (2/14/02) - I-695/Locally-Levied Special Excise Tax] - The power to levy a special excise tax under RCW 35.58.273 and the Department of Licensing's duty to collect it once it is levied, was not repealed by implication by the state legislature's repeal of the Motor Vehicle Excise Tax (MVET).

Kleven v. King County Prosecutor, 112 Wn.App.18, (2/11/02) - [Public Disclosure/Attorney Work Product] - Under RCW 42.17.310(1)(j), records relevant to a controversy to which an agency is a party are exempt from public inspection and copying under the Public Records Act if those records would not be available to another party under superior court rules of pretrial discovery.

Eugster v. City of Spokane, 110 Wn.App. 212 (2/5/02) - [Open Public Meetings Act] - The selection process for filling a council vacancy was challenged as a violation of the Open Public Meetings Act. The court found sufficient material issues of fact to remand to the trial court for a determination of whether a proscribed meeting occurred.

Horan v. City of Federal Way, 110 Wn.App. 204 (2/4/2002) - [Outdoor Advertising/Scenic Vistas Act] - A local municipality may not order the removal of a commercial sign situated adjacent to a state highway without first complying with the compensation procedures set forth in RCW 47.42.103 of the Scenic Vistas Act.

Limstrom v. Ladenburg, 110 Wn.App. 133 (2/1/02) - [Public Disclosure/Work Product Exemption] - In a criminal case, a prosecutor does not waive the work product privilege for fact-gathering materials by complying with CrR 4.7 mandatory discovery that expressly limits the use of disclosed materials to the defense attorney.

Sheng-Yen Lu v. King County, 110 Wn.App. 92 (1/28/02) -[LUPA/Injunctive Reliev/Ripeness] -- Courts should generally defer to local jurisdictions until a final determination on the use of land is made by the highest body or officer. Because LUPA provides an adequate alternative means of review, declaratory relief is not proper in a situation where the County has yet to make a 'land use decision' within the meaning of governing statutes.

Dahl-Smyth v. City of Walla Walla, 110 Wn.App. 26 (1/15/02) - [Waste Collection Franchise/Annexation] - When a city allows a franchisee to continue its waste collection services for an additional five years after cancellation due to annexation, the city's liability to the franchisee as "measurable damages" does not include the loss in value to the certificate or franchise. Rather, the city's liability to the franchisee is limited to measurable incidental and consequential damages proximately caused by the cancellation of the franchise.

State ex rel. Munroe v. City of Poulsbo, 109 Wn.App. 672 (1/4/02) - [Resignation from Elective Public Office] -- A vacancy in elective office occurs upon the effective date of an elected official's resignation, and acceptance of the resignation is not required to create a vacancy.

2001

Det. of Brooks, 145 Wn.2d 275 (12/27/01) - [Involuntary Commitment/Sexually Violent Predators] - Sexually violent offenders have an equal protection right to have less restrictive alternatives to total confinement considered at their commitment trial.

Des Moines v. Puget Sound Reg'l Coun., 108 Wn.App. 836 (11/15/01) - [Regional Transportation Plan/Third Runway] - Local comprehensive plans do not prevent the Port of Seattle from conducting off-site dirt-hauling activities that are necessary to construct a new runway. When consistency between local comprehensive plans and a regional transportation plan is achieved after completion of the coordinated planning process mandated by the GMA, a specific project proposed by a special district within the local jurisdiction must comply with both plans in accordance with state and federal laws.

Mitchell v. Bd. of Indus. Ins. Appeals, 109 Wn.App. 88 (11/13/01) - [Veterans Preference/RCW 73.16.010] - Although RCW 73.16.010 affords qualifying veterans a preference over nonveterans in public employment, it does not establish an absolute preference requiring a public employer to hire a veteran who meets only the minimum requirements of the position.

Shoreline v. Club for Free Speech, 109 Wn.App. 696 (11/13/01) - [Adult Entertainment/Private Cabaret] -- A private nonprofit membership club that features live adult entertainment is subject to a city's adult cabaret ordinance which prohibits live adult entertainers from performing "at a distance of less than four feet" from members of the public.

Snohomish County v. Shorelines Bd., 108 Wn.App. 781 (10/15/01) - [Shorelines Hearings Board/Service of a Summons on County Planning Department] - Service of a copy of a shoreline permit appeal on a county's planning department complies with the requirement to serve the "local government" under the Shorelines Management Act, RCW 90.58.180, because the requirements of RCW 4.28.080 (requiring that service of a summons on a county in a judicial action be made on the county auditor) have not been incorporated into either the Shorelines Management Act or the Washington Administrative Procedure Act.

Recall of Kast, 144 Wn.2d 807 (9/20/01) - [Recall/Competitive Bidding Violation/Public Meetings/Removal of Disruptive Person] - A charge that a fire district commissioner violated the competitive bidding process is a legally sufficient accusation to support a recall petition. Under RCW 42.30.050, an agency's governing body may, in its discretion, order the removal of persons who disrupt a apublic meeting, so long as the discretion is exercised reasonably.

Burien v. Kiga, 144 Wn.2d 819 (9/20/01) - [Initiative 722/Constitutionality] -- I-722 embodies two unrelated subjects in violation of Wash. Const. art. II, sec. 19. Because the subjects in I-722 are unrelated, voters did not have an opportunity to cast a vote that clearly demonstrated their support for either or both subjects. In order to do so, the two subjects needed to be voted on separately. Because of the impossibility of knowing if either subject of I-722 would have garnered popular support standing alone, the entire initiative is void.

Moss v. City of Bellingham, 109 Wn.App. 6 (9/17/01) - [Subdivision/Environmental Impact Statement] - A large subdivision project does not automatically require preparation of an environmental impact statement when the development plan is consistent with the City's comprehensive plan.

Thurston Cty. v. Cooper Point Ass'n, 108 Wn.App. 429 (9/14/01) - [GMA/Sewer Extension] - In order to extend urban sewer services into a rural area, a county must show that the extension is "necessary" under RCW 36.70A.110(4). Otherwise, the extension's potential for inviting future urban sprawl contravenes an essential GMA goal of reducing urban growth into rural areas.

Babcock v. Fire District, 144 Wn.2d 774 (9/13/01) - [Public Duty Doctrine/Special Relationship] -Under the public duty doctrine no liability can be imposed against a muncipal corporation unless the municipal corporation breached a duty that was owed to an individual and not merely an obligation owed to the public in general. A fire district is not responsible for personal property damage during a fire, even though an unidentified firefighter communicated with property owners at their burning home, when a special relationship was not established between the owners and the fire department

Guillen v. Pierce County, 144 Wn.2d 696 (9/13/01) - [Public Disclosure/Accident Reports] - Although RCW 46.52.080 exempts accident reports prepared by persons involved in accidents from public disclosure or admission as evidence in certain trials, the statute does not prohibit their pretrial discovery. Only publicly held materials and data originally created for the statutorily identified federal purposes in 23 U.S.C. §§130, 144, or 152 are lawfully covered by the federal privilege and, thus, exempt from public disclosure under RCW 42.17.310(j).

Shoop v. Kittitas County, 108 Wn.App. 388, (9/10/01) - [Counties/Venue] - The legislature recently modified RCW 36.01.050, a statute specifying the judicial districts in which actions against a county may be filed, to provide that it is related to venue and not subject matter jurisdiction. Consequently, a trial court had the authority to transfer a case to the appropriate venue rather than dismissing the case for lack of jurisdiction.

Recall of Lakewood City Council, 144 Wn.2d 583 (9/6/01) - [Open Public Meetings Act/Executive Session] - Petitions for recall were not legally sufficient to show that councilmembers violated the OPMA when they met in executive session with city attorney and city manager to discuss potential litigation.

Univ. Place v. McGuire, 144 Wn.2d 640 (9/6/01) - [Nonconforming Mining Operations/Doctrine of Diminishing Asset] - Under the doctrine of diminishing asset, a landowner has the right to extract an exhaustible resource from an entire parcel of land as a lawful nonconforming use even though the resource was being extracted from only one portion of the parcel.

Caulfield v. Kitsap County, 108 Wn.App. 242 (8/24/01) - [Public Duty Doctrine/Negligent Management of In-Home Care] - A special relationship exception to the public duty doctrine applies when a county undertakes in-home care management for a profoundly disabled, vulnerable adult with multiple schlerosis.

Rothweiler v. Clark County, 108 Wn.App. 91 (8/24/01) - [Surface Water/Duty to Drain] - A county has no duty to prevent flooding damage to private property when it has done nothing to (1) inhibit the flow of a waterway or natural drain, (2) artificially collect or discharge water onto the private property, or (3) alter the flow of water such that it needed to use due care to avoid unnecessary damage to the private property.

Heinsma v. Vancouver, 144 Wn.2d 556 (8/23/01) - [Employee Benefits/Dependant Coverage] - The regulation of employee benefits is a matter of local concern and a municipality has authority to define "dependents" for purposes of insurance coverage to include domestic partners of municipal employees.

Cmty. Council v. Bellevue, 108 Wn.App. 46 (8/20/01) - [Community Municipal Corporations/Authority] - A community council does not have the disapproval authority over an ordinance that changes a city's method for calculating traffic volume and traffic capacity. Such an ordinance is not a zoning ordinance, and consequently does not require an amendment to the comprehensive plan.

Roberts v. King County, 107 Wn.2d 806 (8/6/01) - [Public Employment/Terms and Conditions/Equal Pay] - An ordinance setting forth a personnel policy or procedure establishing "equal pay for equal work" may give rise to an enforceable legal right by public employees

Iron Gates Partners v. Dept. of Transportation, 107 Wn.App. 777 (8/3/01) - [Highways/Right of Access of Abutting Property] - The owner of property abutting a controlled access public highway is not entitled to notice and a hearing before the State may make an alteration to the highway that reroutes or diverts the traffic flow in front of the property so long as the owner is not denied reasonable access to the highway.

Vancouver v. PERC, 107 Wn.App. 694 (8/3/01) - [Unfair Labor Practice] - An employer may ask questions regarding discussions occurring at a union meeting so long as they do not amount to interference with collective bargaining rights protected by ch. 41.56 RCW.

Bellevue v. Hellenthal, 144 Wn.2d 425 (8/2/01) - [Traffic Infractions/Radar Speed Measuring Device] - A certificate authenticating a radar speed measuring device need not be prepared by a police officer to be admissible under IRLJ 6.6(b), and the trial court may consider such a certificate in a contested hearing on a traffic infraction in the absence of a prosecuting attorney.

Furfaro v. Seattle, 144 Wn.2d 363 (8/2/01) - [Nude Dancing/First Amendment] -- Nude dancing receives only minimal protection under the First Amendment, and that level of protection is insufficient to support a warrant requirement.

Cmty. Mun. Corp. v. Bellevue, 107 Wn.App. 686 (7/30/01) - [Community Councils/Funding/] - Although Community Councils have independent authority to review and approve or disapprove certain city ordinances, RCW 35.14.030 expresses the Legislature's intent that the city have budgeting authority over funding for the community councils, and thus is empowered to determine the Community Councils' necessary expenses.

Ripley v. Grays Harbor County, 107 Wn.App. 575 (7/27/01) - [Surface Water/Common Enemy Doctrine/Due Care Exception] - Property owners failed to show sufficient evidence to create a question of fact as to whether the County altered a road in a manner that caused unnecessary surface water damage to their property. Property owners also failed to show sufficient evidence to support a conclusion that the improved road acted to channel and discharge surface water onto private properties in a manner different fromt he natural flow.

Wood v. Battle Ground Sch. Dist., 107 Wn.App. 550 (7/27/01) [Open Meetings/E-Mail] -- The Open Public Meetings Act does not by its terms expressly apply to members-elect of a governing body; it is up to the state legislature and not the courts to decide that it does. The Open Meetings Act can apply to the exchange of e-mail between governing body members if they intend to transact official business and discuss issues that may or will come before the body for a vote.

Hauber v. Yakima County, 107 Wn.App. 437 (7/24/01) - [Emergency Workers/Statutory Compensation] - Compensation for an emergency worker who dies while performing emergency services is limited by statute to the benefits allowed under ch. 38.52 RCW. If, however, a city, county, or state employee performs the emergency duties as a normal part of his or her job, or if the employee is responding under the provisions of a mutual aid agreement, he or she is not covered by the compensation provisions of ch. 38.52 RCW.

Foss Maritime v. Seattle, 107 Wn.App. 669 (7/20/01) - [Writ of Review/Delay] -- Even though an applicant for a writ of review delayed seeking issuance of the writ, dismissal of the writ was improper when the case was noted for trial before the city filed its motion to dismiss.

Kitsap County v. Moore, 144 Wn.2d 292 (7/19/01) - [Indigent Defendants/Appeal/Attorney Fees] - Indigent defendants are entitled to appointed counsel when appealing decisions from courts of limited jurisdiction; however, they are not entitled to attorney fees. Local governments, rather than the state, are responsible for paying the costs of appeals by indigent misdemeanant defendants from courts of limited jurisdiction (district and municipal courts) to superior court.

Little Deli Marts v. Kent, 108 Wn.App. 1 (7/16/01) - [LID Assessments] - RCW 35.43.040 grants municipalities broad powers to order local improvements and to levy special assessments to pay for them. The assessment levy may be made before the improvement is completed.

Sunderland Servs. V. Pasco, 107 Wn.App.109 (7/3/01) - [Group Care Facility/Special Use Permit] - The City's denial of a special use permit to operate a youth crisis residential center in a residence located in an R-1 zone (that was based upon requirements contained in the City's home occupation ordinance) constituted an erroneous interpretation of the law violating the Washington Housing Policy Act and the Federal Fair Housing Act.

Rabon v. Seattle, 107 Wn.App. 734 (7/2/01) - [Dangerous Dogs/Due Process] - Dog ownership is subject to governmental police power regulation and the government may regulate or destroy dogs in order to protect human citizens. The fundamental requirement of due process of law is the opportunity to be heard at a meaningful time and in a meaningful manner.

Skamania County v. Gorge Comm'n, 144 Wn.2d 30 (6/28/01) - [Federal Scenic Area/County Land Use Regulations] - Although the Columbia River Gorge Commission may challenge a county's final land use decision interpreting or applying the Scenic Area Management Plan or a county ordinance adopted pursuant to the Plan, they must do so by seeking review of the decision in the county pursuant to local law or by appealing to the Commission. Once time periods specified by local law and federal statute expire, the Commission lacks authority to invalidate a county building permit or to require homeowners to relocate.

O'Connor v. DSHS, 143 Wn.2d 895 (6/21/01) - [Public Records Act/Rules of Civil/Criminal Procedure] - Public records from a public agency available to litigants against the agency by discovery under the Civil Rules are not exempt from disclosure under the Public Records Act under RCW 42.17.310(1)(j).

Price v. Seattle, 106 Wn. App. 647 (6/11/01) - [Negligence/Landslides] - The city, as a landowner, does not owe downhill residents a general duty of reasonable care to protect them from natural conditions on the land when there is no evidence that alterations on the upland property heightened the natural vulnerability of the bluff to groundwater pressure.

Citizens v. Mercer Island, 106 Wn.App. 461 (6/4/01) - [LUPA/Zoning Variance/Telecommunications Tower] - A petitioner seeking review of a local quasi-judicial land use decision is not required by RCW 36.70C.040 to serve the petition on a person named in the written decision who filed an appeal before the local decision maker if the person has abandoned the appeal or the person's claims were dismissed before the decision was rendered.

Olsen v. King County, 106 Wn.App. 616 (6/4/01) - [Public Disclosure/Meaning of the Term "Use" in a Disclosure Request] - Local governments should broadly construe specific requests for public disclosure when asked for all documents "used or considered" in an agency's decision making process. Evaluating, reviewing and referring to a document constitutes "use" within the meaning of the PDA.

Jefferson County v. Lakeside Indus., 106 Wn.App. 380 (5/25/01) - [Unenforceable Development Code/Legal Nonconforming Use] -- Because the County failed to adopt the maps contemplated by its 1989 development code, the code was incomplete and unenforceable. Asphalt batching was legal in 1990 before the County adopted an enforceable development code, consequently because the 1989 code was not enforceable in 1991, the county commissioners lacked authority to require a conditional use permit for asphalt batching.

Land Co. v. Soap Lake, 143 Wn.2d 798 (5/24/01) -[Standby Charge/Regulatory Fee v. Property Tax] - A standby charge imposed by a city upon vacant, unimproved, uninhabited lots that abut but are unconnected to its water and sewer lines is a property tax and because it is not assessed uniformly according to the values of the properties within the class, it violates article VII, section 1 of the Washington Constitution.

Hatley v. Union Gap, 106 Wn.App. 302 (5/22/01) - [Municipal Ordinances/Retroactivity/Utility Services Connection] - Municipal ordinances are presumed to apply prospectively unless they contain express language indicating that they were clearly intended to apply retroactively. An ordinance will not be given retroactive effect, regardless of the intention, if to do so would interfere with a vested right. A customer is "connected" to a utility service at the time a service connection is made from the utility main trunk line to the customer's property line, a meter is attached, and the customer pays the connection charge.

Bratton v. Spokane County, 106 Wn.App. 248 (5/17/01) - [Public Duty Doctrine/911 Call] - The special relationship exception to the public duty doctrine does not arise from a 911 operator's failure to promptly dispatch a police officer to assist persons threatened with assault, despite the operator's prior knowledge of the threatening party's history of violent tendencies, where the operator does not give express assurances to the persons prior to the actual assault that a police officer would be immediately dispatched.

Lakewood v. Pierce County, 106 Wn.App. 63 (5/4/01) - [Franchise Fee/Administrative Costs] -- A city may not charge a county a franchise fee that exceeds the city's administrative costs related to the county's right to operate its regional sewer lines beneath the city's streets.

Tapps Brewing v. Sumner, 106 Wn.App. 79 (5/4/01) - [General Facility Charges] - The City of Sumner's general facilities charge is validly imposed because RCW 82.02.020 does not prohibit any charge authorized by a statute in effect before the legislature enacted RCW 82.02.020.

Baby Tam & Co. Inc. v. City of Las Vegas, 154 F. 3d 1097. (9th4/26/01) - [Adult Bookstore/Zoning and Licensing] - A zoning ordinance that prohibits an adult use in a particular location is constitutional if it does not attempt to regulate the content of the speech contained in the bookstore, and is a facially neutral regulation involving the licensing and uses of certain zoned areas.

Somers v. Snohomish County, 105 Wn.App. 937 (4/23/01) - [GMA/Superior Court Jurisdiction] - A question of whether a county is in compliance under the GMA is an issue over which the Growth Management Hearings Board (GMHB) has exclusive subject matter jurisdiction.

City of Auburn v. Qwest Corp., 260 F. 3d 1174 (9th circ.4/24/01) - [Telecommunications/Relocation Costs] -- Cities can require Qwest to pay certain relocation costs, but cities' regulatory franchising ordinances are preempted by federal law. (See the MRSC Telecommunications Web Page for more information about this case.)

Somers v. Snohomish County, 105 Wn.App. 937 (4/23/01) - [Pre-existing ordinance/Compliance with Growth Management Act] - Although the appeal of a decision to approve a project permit application is generally the type of land use decision subject to review by a superior court under LUPA, if the underlying issue is whether a preexisting local zoning ordinance complies the with provisions of the Growth Management Act, the Growth Management Hearings Board has exclusive jurisdiction to review the matter.

Water District v. King County, 105 Wn.App. 897 (4/16/01) - [Conditional Use Permits/Validity of Condition/County Hearing Examiner Authority] - A condition placed on a conditional use permit is valid if it does not violate zoning laws, does not require unlawful conduct by the permittee, is in the public interest, is reasonably calculated to achieve some legitimate objective of the zoning laws and is not unnecessarily burdensome or onerous to the permittee. A county hearing examiner exercises such authority as is delegated by the county's legislative governing body.

Citizens v. Chelan County, 105 Wn. App. 753 (4/10/01) - [Subdivision/GMA Compliance] - The fact that similar subdivisions have been approved in the past is not sufficient to allow a residential subdivision in an area outside of the UGA.

United Development v. Mill Creek, 106 Wn.App. 681 (4/16/01) - [Plat Approval/Public Park Mitigation Requirements] - A city is entitled to set a minimum level of public parks facilities for all its citizens, and is not required to quantify and account for the effect of private recreational facilities in determining public park impacts.

Recall of Ackerson, 143 Wn.2d 366 (4/5/01) - [Recall/City Councilmember] - Facts in this case were legally insufficient to support a recall petition. To be legally sufficient, a recall petition must state with specificity substantial conduct clearly amounting to misfeasance, malfeasance, or a violation of the oath of office.

Univ. Vill. Ltd. Partners v. King County, 105 Wn.App. 321 (4/2/01) - [Property Tax/Valuation] - The constitutional requirement of uniformity in taxation does not restrict how a county values the land component of a person's property so long as the assessment ratio of the entire property remains uniform relative to similar properties.

Chelan County v. Nykreim, 105 Wn.App. 339 (3/22/01) - [Boundary Line Adjustment] - An improperly granted and invalid boundary line adjustment may be revoked. Under RCW 58.17.040(6), boundary line adjustments only apply between lots. A "lot" is a fractional part of divided lands having fixed boundaries, being of sufficient area and dimension to meet minimum zoning requirements for width and area.

King v. Snohomish County, 105 Wn.App. 857 (3/19/01) - [Claim Filing Defense] - A county is not equitably estopped from raising the claim filing defense when it raises the claim filing defense in its timely answer, but engaged in discovery and motions over a three-year period without again raising the claim filing defense until the day before the trial commenced.

Samuel's Furniture v. Ecology, 105 Wn.App. 278, (3/12/01) - [Shoreline Management/Enforcement Authority/Department of Ecology] - Under the Shoreline Management Act and the shoreline management and development permit regulations promulgated thereunder, the Department of Ecology has independent enforcement authority to ensure compliance with the Act.

Moore v. Whitman County, 143 Wn.2d 96 (2/22/01) - [Growth Management Hearings Board/Jurisdiction over Non-GMA counties] - The Eastern Washington Growth Management Hearings Board does not have jurisdiction over Whitman County because Whitman County is not required to plan under the GMA and has not chosen to plan under the GMA.

Larsen v. Town of Colton, 94 Wn.App. 383 (2/16/99) - [Zoning Challenge/Injunctive Reliev] -- A landowner seeking to stop the construction of a structure on neighboring land that the landowner claims does not comply with zoning regulations may not do so by means of a land use petition under LUPA; rather, the landowner must use an action for injunctive relief to challenge compliance with zoning regulations.

Birdsall v. Abrams, 105 Wn.App. 24 (2/15/01) - [Public Sidewalks/Snow Removal] - A city ordinance requiring landowners to clear snow and ice from public sidewalks does not give rise to a duty of care by the property owner that would support a private cause of action by a pedestrian. A property owner who clears portions of a public sidewalk and not others is not under a duty to alter the naturally occurring accumulations of snow and ice on the uncleared portions of the sidewalk.

Hopper v. Pasco, 241 F. 3d 1067 (9th Cir. 2/15/01) -- [Art Displays in Public Buildings/Free Speech Rights] - A city policy of allowing only noncontroversial art works to be displayed in city hall violates First Amendment rights of artists because the policies are not narrowly tailored to further a compelling governmental interest as required for restrictions on speech in a designated public forum.

River Park Square v. Miggins, 143 Wn.2d 68 (2/15/01),[Writ of Mandamus/No Clear Duty to Act] - A city manager and city attorney can not be compelled to issue a loan when the ordinance that creating the special fund requires an order of the city council for payment.

Wurzbach v. Tacoma, 104 Wn.App. 894 (2/15/01) - [WLAD/Accommodation] - After an employer accommodates an employee's disability, the employee is responsible for notifying the employer of improvement in his medical condition if he wants to be considered for other jobs that he could not have previously performed within his medical limitations.

Seattle v. Burlington Northern, 105 Wn.App. 832 (2/5/01) - [Railroads/Roadway Blocking Restriction] - A state or local law that restricts an interstate railroad's ability to block roadways when switching tracks is preempted by the Surface Transportation Board's authority over railway operations and the Federal Railroad Safety Act of 1970.

Keller v. City of Spokane, 104 Wn.App. 454 (2/1/01) - [Streets/Maintenance] - A city's duty to maintain reasonably safe streets extends as a matter of law to the traveling public.

Good v. Skagit County, 104 Wn. App. 670 (1/29/01) - [Railroads/National Trails System] - The National Trails System Act preempts state law property claims on just compensation for a county's development of a right-of-way into interim trail use.

Skamania County v. Woodall, 104 Wn.App. 525 (1/26/01) - [Zoning/Application of Law] - Congress intended the Columbia River Gorge Commission to apply Washington State common law to resolve zoning disputes when the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area Act or management plan does not provide a solution.

Moses Lake v. Review Bd., 104 Wn.App. 388 (1/16/01) - [Boundary Review Board Jurisdiction/Exhaustion of Administrative Remedies] - A boundary review board should be permitted to decide an issue regarding proper construction of its own procedural rule. A writ of prohibition preventing boundary review board jurisdiction should not be granted when a party has a right to obtain judicial review of the administrative body's decision pursuant to RCW 36.93.160(5).

City of Spokane Sewer Department v. State of Washington, 145 Wn.2d. 445 (1/16/01) - [Public Utilities Tax] - For purposes of deciding the apportionment point between the 3.6 percent public utility tax and the 2.0 percent B&O tax (where "sewage collection" ends),  "sewerage collection" is a term of art that is given a technical meaning as understood in the technical field of sewerage; i.e., "sewerage collection" means the collection of sewage or wastewater from building drains into a branch sewer or "lateral" and ends at the point of delivery into an intercepting sewer or sewer main that is substantially used to convey or deliver sewage or wastewater for treatment or disposal. Under the definition, an intercepting sewer is not involved in "sewerage collection" just because there are places along the line where sewage is emptied directly into the interceptor.

Pub. Safety Ass'n v. Bremerton, 104 Wn.App. 226 (1/12/01) - [Retirement Benefits/Medicare B Coverage] - A city employer has discretion as to whether to pay the Medicare B premiums for LOEFF I retirees; and at its discretion may pay for medical expenses denied its retirees by Medicare, but is not required by law to do so. RCW 41.26.150 unambiguously authorizes a city to deduct medical costs payable under Part B Medicare coverage from the amounts it must pay for a retiree's medical services, even if the retiree did not apply or pay premiums for this coverage.

Solid Waste Agency of Northern Cook County v. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, 531 U.S. 159 (1/9/01) -- [Federal Clean Water Act] - the Supreme Court ruled that the federal Clean Water Act should not prevent a group of suburban Chicago localities from building a landfill atop seasonal ponds used by migrating birds. The court found that the federal government did not have the power to stop the proposed landfill because Congress did not intend the Clean Water Act to cover small bodies of water.

Mabe v. Spokane County Municipal Court, Wn.App. 827 (1/9/01) - [Local Writ Practice Rule] - A local writ practice rule that limits the availability of the statutory writ procedure for cases pending in courts of limited jurisdiction to petitions filed by a defendant who is in custody, is inconsistent with RCW 7.16.040 because the in-custody limitations in the local rule impose additional requirements on the availability of the statutory writ process.

In re the Personal Restraint of Erickson and Sundstrom, 142 Wn.2d 608 (1/4/01) - [Sex Offender Risk Notification] - The risk classification of certain sex offenders by the State Department of Corrections and local law enforcement authorities pursuant to RCW 4.24.550 and RCW 72.09.345 does not violate the due process rights of sex offenders when the consequences of risk classification provides for release of information about offenders to the public.

2000

Plano v. City of Renton, 103 Wn.App. 916 (12/26/00) - [Recreational Use Statute] -- RCW 4.24.210 provides immunity for public entities for unintentional injuries to users of land or water areas made available to the public for recreational use without charging a fee of any kind for the use. Because the city charges a use fee for overnight tie up at its moorage docks, it can not claim recreational use immunity for an injury that occurs on a necessary and integral part of the moorage.

City of Spokane v. Marquette, 103 Wn.App. 792 (12/21/00) - [Municipal Court Jurisdiction/Two-Year Statutory Limit] - Municipal court judges are permitted to suspend all or part of a sentence, but the suspension cannot last more than two years from the date of sentencing unless a tolling event occurs. An arrest warrant for non-compliance with conditions of probation does not toll a probationary period as long the defendant is within the jurisdiction and amenable to process.

Battle Ground v. Benchmark Land Co., 103 Wn.App. 721 (12/15/00) - [Development Permit/Takings] -- ) A development company is not bound to make improvements to a street where the city fails to show an essential nexus between the required road improvements and a public problem or to establish a rough proportionality between the impact of the proposed development and any need for making the road improvements.

Hubbard v. Spokane County, 146 Wn.2d 699 (7/18/02) - [Wrongful Discharge/Violation of Public Policy] - A complaint by a public employee claiming wrongful discharge as a violation of public policy will be dismissed if a clear mandate of public policy cannot be proved.

King County v. Hearings Board, 142 Wn.2d 543 (12/14/00)- [Innovative Zoning Techniques/Recreational Uses] - 1997 amendments to King County's comprehensive plan and zoning code, which allow active recreational uses on properties located within a designated agricultural area, do not qualify for innovative zoning techniques under RCW 36.70A.177 and therefore violate the Growth Management Act.

Tiberino v. Prosecuting Attorney (Spokane County), 103 Wn.App. 680 (12/14/00) - [Public Records/Employee E-Mail] - A county employee's personal e-mails that are unrelated to governmental operations are "public records," but are exempt from disclosure as "personal information" because the public has no legitimate concern in their content.

Manufactured Housing Communities of Washington v. State, 142Wn.2d 347 (11/9/00) - [Mobile Home Parks/Right of First Refusal to Purchase] -- Ch. 59.23 RCW, a statute that affords qualified mobile home park tenants a right of first refusal to purchase the park, is unconstitutional as a taking of private property for private use in violation of the Washington State Constitution, art. I, sec. 16.

Amalgamated Transit Union Local 587 v. The State of Washington, 142 Wn.2d 183 (10/26/00) - [Constitutionality of Initiative 695] - Initiative 695 is unconstitutional because it violates the state constitutional requirements for initiatives; consequently, the requirement for voter approval of tax and fee increases by the state and local government is invalid.

Chancellor v. DRS, 103 Wn.App. 336 (11/9/2000) - [Pensions/Calculation of Retirement Benefits] - A municipal ordinance defining vacation conversion pay as part of police and fire department employees' basic salary for purposes of calculating retirement benefits is invalid because it is in conflict with state statutes.

Spokane v. White, 102 Wn.App. 955 (10/19/00) - [Domestic Violence Ordinance/Conflict with State Statute] - A municipality may legislate on the same subject as the state so long as no conflict exists. Spokane's domestic violence ordinance is constitutional even though it contains a less serious form of mental culpability than the corresponding state statute.

Wood v. Lowe, 102 Wn.App. 872 (10/12/00) -[Public Records/Employment Records/Employee's Own Records] - The Public Disclosure Act only applies when public records have been requested, and disclosure is not necessary until and unless there has been a specific request for records. An employees general request for her personnel file is not a request for an identifiable public record as contemplated under the Public Disclosure Act.

Robinson v. Seattle, 102 Wn.App. 795 (10/2/00) - [Preemployment drug testing] -- - [Preemployment drug testing] - Seattle's preemployment drug testing program is unconstitutional because it allows testing of applicants for employment positions that are not directly and genuinely involved in the safety of the public. The testing constitutes an unreasonable intrusion upon the private affairs of job applicants, and can only be justified for applicants who will carry firearms or whose duties might otherwise jeopardize public safety.

Peters v. Vinatieri, 102 Wn.App. 641 (9/22/00) - [Government Entry onto Private Property] -- In order to document the possibility of illegal sewer hookups, water conditions and a public swimming pool at a private RV park, two Lewis County Health Department officials drove onto a private access road and videotaped two RV hookups. The owner of the property sued the County Health Department and its director for trespass and violation of his privacy rights. The court ruled that the county had a statutory duty to enter the plaintiff's property to identify a failing septic system, and that entrance onto the private property did not constitute trespass or invasion of privacy.

University Place v. McGuire, 102 Wn.App. 658 (9/22/00) -- [Nonconforming Use/Abandonment/Site Development Permit] - In this case the city sought judicial review of a local hearing examiner's reversal of the city's denial of an application for a permit to develop property in a manner that did not conform with current zoning regulations, but that had been historically allowed. The court determined that the historical use had been abandoned and therefore did not survive as a permissible nonconforming use. [Good discussion of the elements of abandonment of a nonconforming use (surface mining).]

1515-1519 Lakeview Blvd. Condominium Ass'n v. Apartment Sales, 102 Wn. App. 599, (9/18/2000) - [Public Duty Doctrine] -- The special relationship exception to the public duty doctrine exposes a government agency to negligence liability if (1) a party directly contacts or is in privity with a public official, (2) the public official gives express assurances to the party, (3) the party justifiably relies on the assurances that the party specifically sought, and (4) the party is injured as a result.

Howe v. Douglas County, 102 Wn.App. 559 (9/12/00) - [Liability waiver/Subdivision Annexation] - A county may require a liability waiver as a condition of annexation of a subdivision. RCW 58.17.110 does not subject a municipality to liability for the inadequacy of various improvements required as part of annexation.

Faben Point v. Mercer Island, 102 Wn.App. 775 (8/28/00) -- [Subdivision Approval/Interim Critical Areas Regulations] - Unambiguous municipal regulations that have been adopted in accordance with the provisions of the Growth Management Act will not be interpreted to supersede unambiguous, nonconflicting municipal zoning ordinances. A local governmental entity's prior erroneous interpretation and enforcement of a land use regulation does not alter its meaning, create a substitute regulation, or foreclose proper interpretation and enforcement in subsequent cases.

Ockerman v. King County, 102 Wn.App. 212 (8/28/00) - [Public Disclosure/Response by Agency/Timeliness] - Under RCW 42.17.230, an agency is not required to provide a written explanation of its estimate of the time needed to fulfill the disclosure request. Furthermore, the agency is not required to fulfill the request in a piecemeal fashion; the agency may wait until it has compiled all of the requested records before disclosure is made.

Kent v. Beigh, 102 Wn.App. 269 (8/28/00) - [DUI Blood Test] - At issue in this case was whether the city police were authorized under RCW 46.20.308 to perform a blood test on a driver suspected of driving under the influence when three previously administered breath tests reported interference. The court found that because the specific exceptions to permitting blood samples in lieu of breath tests were not present, there was no authority to require a blood test.

International Assoc. of Fire Fighters v. City of Everett, 146 Wn. 2d 29 (3/28/2002) - [Attorney Fees] - RCW 49.48.030, which provides that reasonable attorney fees shall be assessed against an employer in a successful action to recover wages or salary owed, allows a labor union to recoup attorney fees when the employees it represents recover wages in a proceeding in which only the union has counsel.

Schultz v. Snohomish County, 101 Wn.App. 693 (8/7/00) - [Subdivision/30-day Time Period] - The county's two-part filing process for a short subdivision does not violate an applicant's right to have a written decision on an application within 30 days of submission.

Babcock v. Mason County Fire Dist., 101 Wn. App. 677 (8/4/00) - [Public Duty Doctrine/Volunteer Rescue Exception] - Under the public duty doctrine, a government official's negligent conduct does not render the government liable in tort unless the duty breached was owed to the injured person as an individual, rather than to the public in general. The volunteer rescue exception applies only when a government agency gratuitously assumes the duty to warn an individual of a danger or to come to the aid of the individual and then breaches the duty.

Wenatchee Sportsmen Association v. Chelan Co., 141 Wn.2d 169 (7/20/00) - [Site Specific Rezone] - A challenge to a site-specific rezone must be brought under Land Use Petition Act (LUPA) within 21 days of rezone approval. A site-specific rezone that is not timely challenged may not be collaterally challenged in a later action for judicial review of an agency's approval of a plat application to develop property within the rezoned area.

Rural Residents v. Kitsap County, 141 Wn.2d 185 (7/20/00) - [Interim Urban Growth Area/Planned Unit Development/Vesting] -- The submission of a completed preliminary plat application together with an application for approval of a proposed planned unit development creates a vested right to have the entire application considered under the statutes and ordinances in effect on the date of submission. A noncomplying interim urban growth area designation remains in effect only during the period of remand from the growth management hearings board.

Musso-Escude v. Edwards, 101 Wn.App. 560 (7/17/00) - [Prosecuting attorney/Immunity] - A prosecuting attorney is absolutely immune from suit for actions taken within the scope of his or her duties in initiating and pursuing a criminal prosecution.

Lybbert v. Grant County, 141 Wn.2d 29 (6/8/00) - [Service of Process/Waiver of Defense] - A county can waive the defense of improper service of process under RCW 4.28.080 by actively litigating the action for a significant period of time in a manner inconsistent with the defense and failing to assert the defense before the statutory time limitation applicable to the action has expired.

State V. Allerdice , 101 Wn.App. 25 (6/05/00) - [Eminent Domain/Attorney Fees] - Under RCW 8.25.070, owners who immediately turn over their property are entitled to attorney fees if the jury verdict is at least 10 percent more than the government's highest settlement offer.

City of Spokane v. Labor & Indus., 100 Wn.App. 805 (5/12/00) -- [Prevailing Wages/Annual Maintenance] -- In a city-owned facility, paid for with public funds, and operating to benefit the public, annual maintenance work performed under contract is not exempt from prevailing wage under RCW 39.12.020.

Western Telepage v. City of Tacoma, 140 Wn.2d 599 (5/11/00) - [Public Utility Tax on Paging Services] - The local public utility tax on paging services is consistent with the state law definition of a taxable telephone business under RCW 82.04.065(4). The City of Tacoma's ordinance does not violate RCW 35.21.710 as it represents Tacoma's good faith effort to properly classify and tax paging services, and does not represent an increase in the local B&O tax rate.

Escamilla v. Tri-City Task Force, 100 Wn.App. 742 (5/4/00) - [Drug Forfeiture Hearing/Timeliness] -- Under RCW 34.05.413, a forfeiture hearing required by RCW 69.50.505 is timely commenced if, within 90 days of the date that the claimant notifies the seizing agency of a claim of ownership or a right to possession of the seized property, the agency notifies the claimant that some stage of the hearing will be conducted.

Sundquist Homes v. Snohomish PUD #1, 140 Wn.2d 403 (4/27/00) - [Counties/Relocation of Franchise Facilities] - RCW 36.55.060(4) requires a utility franchisee to bear the cost of facility relocation if such relocation is made necessary by the improvement of a county road. A county may not assume the franchisee's relocation costs, but the statute does not prohibit the imposition of those costs on third parties.

City of Seattle v. McCoy, 101 Wn.App. 815 (7/17/00) - [Drug Abatement/Taking] - Applying ch. 7.43 RCW, the drug nuisance abatement statute, to specific property used as a restaurant and club violates the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution, and constitutes a taking of property without compensation and without due process of law. State nuisance and property common law is not an exception to a taking under the facts presented in this case because it denies the plaintiffs of all economically viable use of their property without compensation.

Cotton v. City of Elma, 100 Wn.App. 685 (4/21/00) -- - [Judges] - A public official who abandons his or her office is estopped from ousting the succeeding incumbent in a quo warranto action.

Contested Election of Schoessler, 130 Wn.2d 368 (4/20/00) --[Residency Requirement] -- RCW 35A.12.030 requires a mayoral candidate to have established residence in the city for at least one year prior to the election. Evidence showed that Schoessler was not a resident of any address within the City of Wenatchee during the year preceding the election.

Wells v. Western Washington Growth Management Board, 100 Wn. App.657 (4/10/00) - [Growth Management Act/Invalidity] -- Under RCW 36.70A.320(1) of the Growth Management Act, comprehensive plans and development regulations are deemed valid upon adoption. A city or county subject to a determination of invalidity has the burden of demonstrating that the ordinance or resolution it has enacted in response to the determination of invalidity will no longer substantially interfere with the fulfillment of the goals of the Act.

West Coast, Inc. v. Snohomish County, 104 Wn.App. 735 (4/10/2000) - [Preliminary Plats/Modification/Impact Fees] - A condition of preliminary plat approval, in this case school impact fees, is tantamount to a contractual obligation that is binding on the applicant absent extraordinary circumstances justifying a failure to perform.

Colacurcio v. City of Kent, 163 F.3d 545 (12/8/98, 9th Cir.), No. 963697, rev. den. (4/4/00), 68 U.S.L.W. 3628
(See 12/8/98)

Farm Owners Ass'n v. Shorelines Bd., 100 Wn.App. 341 (3/31/00) - - [Shoreline Substantial Development Permit] -- Shoreline uses should be restricted to those "compatible to the natural biological limitations of the land and water."

City of Erie v. Pap's A.M., "Kandyland," 529 U.S. 277 (3/29/00) - [Adult Entertainment/Public Nudity] - In a case involving an Erie, Pennsylvania ordinance that banned all public nudity, the U.S. Supreme Court determined on March 29th that the city's ordinance was a content-neutral restriction that regulates conduct, not First Amendment expression. The court upheld its earlier decision in Barnes v. Glen Theatre, Inc., 501 U.S. 560 (1991), and ruled that cities may prohibit nude dancing when they can show that it has harmful "secondary effects" on a community, such as higher crime and lower property values. In terms of demonstrating that secondary effects pose a threat to the community, a city is not required "to conduct new studies or produce evidence independent of that already generated by other cities, so long as the evidence relied on is reasonably believed to be relevant to the problem addressed."

Deboer v. City of Bellingham, 206 F. 3d 857 (3/5/2002) - [Qualified Immunity] - Plaintiff  sued the City for violation of due process concerning an employment agreement terminable only for cause.  A common law breach of contract claim provides adequate process for the deprivation of a real or personal property right derived from contract, unless the deprivation constitutes a denial of a present entitlement. Present entitlement is a right to which one is presently entitled either to exercise ownership dominion or to pursue a gainful occupation. Plaintiff did not have present entitlement in a property interest. Thus, the injury suffered is no more than a contractual injury. Wrongful termination of the contract may be remedied by a common law breach of contract claim.

Open Door Baptist v. Clark County, 140 Wn.2d 143 (3/16/00) - [Constitutional Law/Free Exercise of Religion] - Churches must comply with a county's conditional use application process. However, the county must ensure that its application fees do not burden the church's free exercise of religion, should the church demonstrate that such a burden would otherwise be present.

Foisy v. Conroy, 101 Wn.App. 36 (3/6/00) - [Municipal Judges/De Facto Judge/Surety Bond] - RCW 3.50.097 provides that municipal judges must post bonds only if a law or ordinance directs them to do so. A person is a de facto judicial officer and his/her acts are generally valid if the person is in actual possession of the office and discharges its duties under color of title.

Williams v. Thurston County, 100 Wn.App. 330 (3/3/00) - [Public Duty Doctrine/Building Inspections] -- The special relationship exception to the public duty doctrine is not established between a government entity that conducts inspections to identify building code violations and the owner of the building simply by a government agent's inspection and approval of the building.

Westside Bus Park v. Pierce County, 100 Wn.App. 599 (3/3/00) - [Vesting/Short Plat] - A developer has a vested right to the storm-water drainage regulations in effect at the time of application for short plat approval even though the application does not reveal the proposed use, as long as the county knows of the intended use and accepts the application as complete.

Stewart v. Boundary Review Bd., 100 Wn.App. 165 (2/28/00) - [Boundary Review Board Authority/Annexation] - A boundary review board does not have authority to determine whether the "agricultural" designation in a final county comprehensive plan complies with the Growth Management Act. Compliance with the Act is an issue for a growth management hearings board. Under RCW 36.93.157, a boundary review board located in a county with a comprehensive plan adopted under the Growth Management Act is statutorily required to ensure that an annexation is consistent with the substantive provisions of county-wide planning policies.

Spokane Research v. City of Spokane, 99 Wn.App. 452 (2/24/00) - [Public Disclosure/Performance Evaluation Summaries] - The public has a legitimate interest in disclosure of a city manager's performance evaluation, and a person in the position of a city's chief executive officer cannot reasonably expect that evaluations of the performance of his or her public duties will not be subject to public disclosure. Therefore, information regarding a performance evaluation for a city manager is not exempt eve if it would otherwise qualify under RCW 42.17.310(1)(b).

Smith v. Okanogan County, 100 Wn.App. 7 (2/8/00) - [Public Disclosure Act] - The public disclosure act applies only to public records. Consequently, disclosure is not necessary unless and until there has been a specific request for records. An important distinction must be drawn between a request for information about public records and a request for the records themselves. The Act does not require agencies to research or explain public records, or to create an otherwise nonexistent document; the Act only requires agencies to make public records accessible to the public.

City of Bellevue v. Lorang, 140 Wn.2d 19 (2/3/00) - [Telephone Harassment Ordinance] - A telephone harassment ordinance which forbids "profane" speech (defined as language which manifests irreverence toward God or sacred things) is unconstitutionally overbroad because it forbids anti-religious speech.

Caswell v. Pierce County, 99 Wn.App. 194 (1/31/00) - [IUGA Validity] -- The validity of a county's Interim Urban Growth Area (IUGA) ordinance is an issue subject to review by a growth management hearings board and cannot be challenged in superior court under the Land Use Petition Act (LUPA). If a county acts in accordance with its IUGA ordinance, a petitioner may not challenge the ordinance under LUPA on the basis that the ordinance is contrary to the Growth Management Act.

State v. Wadsworth, 139Wn.2d.724 (1/13/00) - [Local Judicial Authority/Weapons] - The Legislature has authority to constitutionally delegate to "local judicial authority" under RCW 9.41.300 the responsibility for designating and marking areas in buildings used for court proceedings in which possession of a weapon is prohibited under the statute.

1999

Freedom County v. Snohomish County, 95 Wn. App. 839 (1999) The state constitution does not provide a right of citizens to form a new county; and the voters may not create a county by petition. Consequently no action may be maintained in the name of a political entity that does not exist. The discretion and power to create or decline to create a new county resides in the legislature alone.

Columbia Gorge v. Klickitat County, 98 Wn.App. 618 (12/23/99) - Land Use/Motion to Intervene - In a land use matter, the requirements of a CR 24(a) motion to intervene are liberally construed to favor intervention; a motion to intervene is timely if it is filed before the commencement of the trial; and a party has the right to intervene on a timely motion if it claims an interest relating to the subject of the action and if the disposition of the action may impair or impede its ability to protect that interest.

Limstrom v. Ladenburg, 136 Wn.App. 595 (12/22/99) - Public Disclosure/Reasonableness of Estimate of Response Time - In this challenge to a county's estimate of time required to respond to a public disclosure request, the court determined that the 30-day estimate of the time needed to produce certain documents was reasonable even though the county actually provided the documents within 15 days.

Spokane v. Civil Serv. Comm'n, 98 Wn.App. 574 (12/21/99) - Collective Bargaining Agreement/Civil Service Commission Rules - A collective bargaining agreement which changes the process of promotion in the police department supersedes the civil service commission rules if a statutory conflict exists between the collective bargaining statutes, ch. 41.56 RCW and any other statute, ordinance, rule or regulation of any public employer.

Vine St. Comm'l v. City of Marysville, 98 Wn.App. 541 (12/20/99) - [ULID/Impairment of Contract] - Property owners who petition for the formation of a ULID, whose properties are then assessed for the special benefits thereby accruing, and who subsequently pay their assessments in full, have enforceable rights to receive the special benefits for which they have paid.

Isla Verde Int'l v. City of Camas, 99 Wn.App.127 (12/17/99) - [Inverse Condemnation] - A city's 30% open-space set-aside ordinance is unconstitutional if it is not roughly proportional to the impact of the proposed development upon the city's inventory of open space. However, a requirement that a secondary access road be constructed as a condition of approval for a subdivision application is not an unduly oppressive requirement when the record indicates the road is reasonably necessary for the public safety and welfare.

Waremart Inc. v. Progressive Campaigns Inc., 139 Wn.2d 623 (12/16/99) - [Signature Gathering on Private Property] - There is no constitutionally protected right under Article II, Section 1(a) of the state constitution to enter private property to solicit signatures for initiative petitions when the property owner has never tolerated signature-gathering activities, never promoted any public services on its premises, open up areas to public activities, or provide any area for citizens to congregate. Where privately owned property is functionally equivalent to a public forum or town square, the courts recognize a narrow exception to a private property owner's sovereignty over the property in favor of the activities of initiative petitioners.

Harbour Village Apts. v. Mukilteo, 139 Wn.2d 604 (12/16/99) - [Residential Dwelling Unit Fee] -- The City of Mukilteo's residential dwelling unit fee is really a property tax because it's central purpose is to raise revenue; and because the ordinance imposes a tax on rental property, and only rental property, it violates the constitutional prohibitions against nonuniform taxation of real property.

New Castle Invs. v. City of LaCenter, 98 Wn.App.224 (12/10/99) - [Transportation Impact Fee Ordinance] - A city's transportation impact fee ordinance is not subject to the vesting statute for land use ordinances, RCW 58.17.033, because transportation impact fees do not fall within the definition of "land use control ordinances." Consequently, the city's impact fee can be applied to a proposed development even though the application for preliminary plat approval was perfected prior to the effective date for the city's ordinance.

Enterprise Leasing v. City of Tacoma, 139 Wn.2d 546 (12/2/99) - Local B & O Tax Classifications -- A municipality has the authority to define its taxation categories as it chooses unless it is restrained by a constitutional provision or legislative enactment. The state's business tax scheme does not specifically limit a city's authority to classify activities for local B&O taxes, consequently the city may classify automobile rental activities as a "service," rather than as a "retail sale," for purposes of the state business tax.

City of Bellingham v. Chin, 98 Wn.App.60 (11/22/99) - [Drug Nuisance Abatement Statute] - Ch. 7.43 RCW, which authorizes a trial court to order the closure for up to one year of any building or unit that is used for the unlawful trafficking of controlled substances, applies to business premises as well as to residential buildings.

Lindsey v. Tacoma-Pierce County Health Dept., 195 F.3d 1065 (9th circ., 11/19/99) - A local resolution by a county health board that bans all outdoor tobacco advertising is preempted by the Federal Cigarette Labeling and Advertising Act (FCLAA). It was Congress' intent to establish a comprehensive federal program to deal with cigarette labeling and advertising with respect to any relationship between smoking and health.

Des Moines v. Puget Reg'l Council, 97 Wn.App. 920 (11/15/99) - [Regional Transportation Plan] - The Puget Sound Regional Council's regional transportation plan is not required to include specific mitigation measures even though they were required by existing local comprehensive plans. If the GMA coordinated planning process does not result in consistency between regional and local plans, the regional plans must prevail.

City of Des Moines v. Port of Seattle, 98 Wn.App. 23 (11/15/99) - Port is not required to revise its plan for expansion at local airport in order to comply with local comprehensive plans.

State of Washington v. Deborah Parker, Steven Jines, and Anna Hunnel, 139 Wn.2d 486 (11/4/99) -- In this group of consolidated cases the court was asked to decide whether the personal belongings of automobile passengers who are not arrested may be searched incident to the arrest of the driver. The court ruled that the arrest of one or more of the automobile's occupants does not, without more, provide the "authority of law" under our state constitution to search other, nonarrested passengers, including personal belongings clearly associated with such nonarrested individuals.

Hadaller v. Port of Chehalis, 97 Wn.App. 750 (10/29/99) - Public Bidding - A contractor's bid on a public contract, rather than the invitation to bid, is an offer to contract; the invitation to bid is a solicitation for an offer. Furthermore, a bidder on a public contract does not have an action for damages against the public agency for alleged irregularities in the bid process, but is limited to seeking an injunction before the contract is awarded to another contractor.

International Association of Firefighters v. Dept. of Retirement Systems, 146 Wn.2d. 207 (4/25/2002) -- Airport Operation Technicians employed by the Port of Bellingham are not persons employed primarily to perform fire fighting activities within the meaning of RCW 41.26.030(4) and therefore are not within the coverage of the LEOFF system. To be eligible for LEOFF benefits, a worker must be a full-time fire fighter under both RCW 41.26.030 and WAC 415-104-225.

Cowles Publishing Company v. City of Spokane, 139 Wn.2d 472 (10/21/99) - In cases where a suspect has been arrested and the matter referred to the prosecutor, the "investigative records" exception to the Public Disclosure Act does not provide categorical nondisclosure of all records in the police investigative file. Police incident reports are presumptively disclosable upon request, unless it can be shown by an in-camera review that nondisclosure in a given case is essential to effective law enforcement. RCW 70.48.100(2) limits the use of booking photos to legitimate law enforcement purposes only.

Dykstra v. Skagit County, 97 Wn.App. 670 (10/11/99) - Even though a testamentary devise of real property is exempt from the short plat process (RCW 58.17.040(3)), the lots created by a will are still subject to other land use regulations such as minimum lot size. Furthermore, the improper enforcement of local zoning ordinances in the past does not confer any development rights on a property owner.

Furfaro v. City of Seattle, 97 Wn.App. 537 (9/27/99) - Warrantless arrests in an adult nightclub for violating Seattle's standards of conduct ordinance (prohibits stage dancers from sexual self-touching during a nude dance performance) constitute a prior restraint of expression that is presumptively protected under the First Amendment.

Macsuga v. County of Spokane, 97 Wn.App. 435 (9/14/99) - An employer's failure to follow Equal Employment Opportunity Commission interpretive guidelines to the Americans with Disabilities Act is not a per se violation of Washington's law against discrimination.

Swoboda v. Town of LaConner, 97 Wn.App. 613 (9/13/99) - Historic Preservation --In a challenge to the constitutionality of the town's historic preservation ordinance, the court determined that the ordinance contained ascertainable standards to protect against arbitrary and discretionary enforcement and defined prohibited or required conduct with sufficient definiteness, and therefore was not unconstitutional as applied.

City of Bellevue v. East Bellevue Community Council, 138 Wn.2d 937 (9/9/99) -- A community municipal council has authority under RCW 35.14.040 to disapprove a rezoning ordinance setting particular densities for parcels of land within a range of densities allowed under an amended comprehensive plan previously approved by the community council.

Concerned Ratepayers Association v. PUD No. 1 of Clark County, 94 Wn.App. 219 (8/14/98) -- In this case the court was asked to decide whether a public disclosure request for a technical document was "used" by the agency in a way which qualifies the document as a public record. The court determined that whether information has been "used" depends upon whether the requested information bears a nexus with the agency's decision-making process. A nexus exists where the information relates not only to the conduct or performance of the agency or its proprietary function, but is also a relevant factor in the agency's action.

Halverson v. Skagit County, 139 Wn.2d 1 (9/9/99) - A county cannot be held liable for levee-induced flooding when the county did not build the levees or own the property on which they were built. Furthermore, even if the county had control over the levees, the common enemy doctrine would provide a defense against any liability.

Bickford v. City of Seattle, 104 Wn.App. 809 (9/7/99) - Because the Seattle Civil Service Commission has jurisdiction to conduct an investigation to determine whether an employee's resignation was a constructive discharge without cause, the employee must first exhaust administrative remedies by appealing a discharge to the Commission.

Prekeges v. King County, 98 Wn.App. 275 (8/30/99) - [Land Use Regulations/Public Notice] -- If a LUPA petitioner had a fair opportunity to participate in the administrative process, the defects in public notice of a land use application do not excuse his failure to file a timely administrative appeal. Additionally, for purposes of obtaining a right to personal notice as one who has "submitted comments," a person must submit the comments in writing; a voice mail message does not obligate the County to mail him a notice of the decision.

Collins v. Lobdell and Spokane Valley Fire Protection Dist. No. 1, 188 F.3d 1124 (9th Cir., 8/24/99) - A public sector employer does not violate the Fair Labor Standards Act by requiring employees to take time off rather than paying them overtime. The fact that the FLSA allows public sector employees to use comp time and requires the employer to allow the use of comp time does not mean that employees have the absolute discretion over the use of comp time.

Nolte v. City of Olympia, 96 Wn.App. 944 (8/20/99) - A city may not impose impact fees on projects outside of its borders. However, if a city enters into a utility extension agreement (UEA) based on the promise to pay impact fees which are later found to be invalid, the city is relieved of its duty to perform under the UEA.

Torres v. City of Anacortes, 97 Wn.App. 64 (8/9/99) - Under the "public duty doctrine" there is no liability for a public official's negligent conduct unless it can be shown that there was a duty owed to the injured person as an individual, as opposed to a duty owed to the public in general. To create a "special relationship" between a police officer and a citizen, Washington law requires direct contact setting the citizen apart from the general public, and "express assurances" of assistance that give rise to a justifiable reliance on the part of the citizen.

Guillen v. Pierce County, 96 Wn.App. 862 (8/6/99) - In this case the court determined that the entire accident history of a county intersection was not exempt from discovery by virtue of 23 U.S.C. §409, which provides that reports, surveys, schedules, lists, or data compiled or collected for the purpose of identifying, evaluating, or planning the safety enhancement of potential accident sites, hazardous roadway conditions, or railway-highway crossings in order to utilize federal funds, shall not be subject to discovery or admitted into evidence in a state court proceeding or in an action for damages.

Samis Land Company v. City of Soap Lake, 96 Wn.App. 819 (7/27/99) - In this case, Division III of the Court of Appeals invalidated the City of Soap Lake's ordinance which allowed the City to assess a $60 per year per lot fee as a "standby charge" against vacant, unimproved land which abutted lines providing water or sewer service but which were unconnected. The court applied the three factors set out in Covell v. City of Seattle in determining that the charge imposed by the City was an invalid nonuniform property tax rather than a valid regulatory fee.

Rustlewood Assn. v. Mason County, 96 Wn.App. 788 (7/23/99) - Although a county may classify water and sewer utility customers based on statutory criteria, an additional fee imposed to remedy a perceived inequity in service costs between recipients is illegal.

Benjamin v. Wash. State Bar Ass'n, 138 Wn.2d 506 (7/22/99) - For purposes of determining if a public employer's need for loyalty from a policy-making employee outweighs the employee's free speech interest in commenting on matters of public concern, whether a public employee is a "policy maker" depends on whether the employee has discretion and is relatively unsupervised in setting priorities, developing programs, seeking funding, performing studies, and managing a budget.

Landmark Dev., Inc. v. City of Roy, 138 Wn.2d 561 (7/22/99) - A municipality, in determining its water system users' equitable share of the system's cost via the computation of water charges authorized under RCW 35.92.025 need not deduct grants and donations used for improving the water system. Also, a municipality may charge a different connection fee to two similarly situated developers if there is a rational basis for the different treatment and its actions are not arbitrary and capricious.

Sintra v. City of Seattle, 96 Wn.App. 757 (7/19/99) - The only issue in this appeal has to do with the calculation of postjudgment interest and interest on costs. In this case, the court determined that interest on the prejudgment interest component of a revised judgment dates back to and accrues from the date the original verdict was entered until the date the revised judgment was entered.

Schofield v. Spokane County, 96 Wn.App. 581 (7/15/99) - A land use decision is not required to strictly conform to a comprehensive plan; rather, the plan's provisions are to be used as a planning guide, not a decision-making tool.

Girton v. City of Seattle, 97 Wn.App. 360 (7/12/99) - The City of Seattle's steep slope ordinance is not unconstitutionally vague and strict application of the ordinance did not violate the property owner's right of substantive due process since it is aimed at achieving a legitimate public purpose, uses means that are reasonably necessary to achieve that purpose, and is not unduly oppressive on the property owner.

Brower v. Pierce County, 96 Wn.App. 559 (7/12/99) - A property owner may commence an action for damages under RCW 64.40 based on improper governmental action in conjunction with an application for a permit only if the administrative process fails to provide adequate relief.

Spokane Research & Defense Fund v. City of Spokane, 96 Wn.App. 568 (7/13/99) -- Lease agreements, loan items, and feasibility studies for an economic development project are public records because they relate to the conduct of government or the performance of governmental functions. However, loan application records may be temporarily exempt under RCW 42.17.310(1)(r) while an application is pending.

City of Spokane v. Edward S. Carlson, 96 Wn.App. 279 (7/01/99) -- Spokane Municipal Code (SMC) sec. 16.52.020(2), that requires that a driver involved in an accident stop "at the scene of such accident or as close thereto as possible" to exchange information, is not unconstitutionally vague even though it does not clearly delineate who must stop, or when or where.

Miller v. Tacoma, 138 Wn.2d 318 (7/1/99) -- Balloting by members of a city council when meeting in executive session to evaluate the qualifications of applicants for appointment to the planning commission violates the Open Public Meetings Act. Council balloting to achieve a consensus on a candidate for appointment to the commission was beyond the scope of the action that may take place in executive session for the purpose of evaluating candidate qualifications. The council's secret balloting was illegal even though it took a final vote on the appointment in open session.

Jersey's All-American Sports Bar, Inc. v. Washington State Liquor Control Board, et al., No. C98-1622C, slip op. (W.D. WA 6/29/99) -- The U.S. District Court for Western Washington ruled that a state statute, RCW 66.28.080, requiring bars and nightclubs to obtain permission from government offices before providing live music or entertainment violates the First Amendment right to protected expression. As a result of this ruling, local governments are permanently enjoined from enforcing RCW 66.28.080 as it is presently drafted.

Deja Vu-Everett-Federal Way, Inc. v. City of Federal Way, 96 Wn.App. 255 (6/28/99) - The collateral estoppel effect of the Supreme Court's decision in Ino Ino (132 Wn.2d. 103, May 1997), completely bars Deja Vu, a plaintiff in that action, from relitigating the constitutionality of a four-foot limitation for erotic dancers. Note also that the court granted attorney fees to the City of Federal Way for having to defend a frivolous claim.

Hertog v. City of Seattle and King County, 138 Wn. 2d 265 (6/24/99) - City and county governments are liable for the actions of offenders under their supervision who are released pending their trials or are on probation. Municipal probation counselors, county pretrial release counselors who have supervisory authority, and their employing agencies have a duty to protect others from reasonably foreseeable danger resulting from the dangerous propensities of probationers and pretrial releases under their supervision.

Heal v. Hearings Bd., 96 Wn.App. 522 (6/21/99) - In developing critical areas policies and regulations, a city or county must include in the record the best available science, as a factor to be considered along with all other factors mandated to be considered by the Growth Management Act. Growth management hearings boards have jurisdiction to review a city or county's critical areas policies, but only for the limited purpose of reviewing whether the policies are in compliance with the requirement to include the best available science in the process of developing the policy.

Bellevue v. Jacke, 96 Wn.App. 209 (6/21/99) - Community property principles, such as whether a marriage is "defunct" or whether a legally cognizable "community" exists, are not relevant to a prosecution for domestic violence assault.

Honesty in Environmental Analysis v. City of Seattle, 96 Wn. App. 522 (6/21/99) - Although the Growth Management Act did not require a city or county to adopt policies to protect critical areas, if they chose to do so, they must use the best available science as one of the factors to be considered in adopting critical areas policies and regulations.

Development Services of America v. City of Seattle, 138 Wn.2d 107 (6/10/99) - In this case the court found that the City lawfully interpreted and applied its helistop conditional use ordinance when it required the applicant to show the requested helistop was "actually necessary" to its business services.

King County v. Central Puget Sound Growth Management Hearings Board, 138 Wn.2d 161 (6/10/99) -- A comprehensive plan provision is not immune from challenge merely because the County was required to adopt the provision by its county-wide planning policies. Once those provisions are adopted into the comprehensive plan they become subject to citizen appeal.

National Electrical Contractors Association v. Chase Riveland, 138 Wn.2d 9 (6/3/99) - The Department of Corrections must comply with the electrical licensing and worker safety laws as they relate to inmate labor on construction and renovation projects. However, statutes relating to use of inmate labor do provide exemptions for the agency from competitive bidding and prevailing wages on public works.

Sievers v. City of Mountlake Terrace, 97 Wn.App. 181 (6/1/99) -- RCW 4.96.020 (4), which prohibits the commencement of an action against a local governmental entity until 60 days have elapsed after the claim was first presented to and filed with the governing entity, requires strict compliance.

Weyerhaeuser v. Land Recovery et al., 95 Wn.App. 833 (5/28/99) - A conditional use permit application is subject to the permitting statutes and ordinances in effect at the time the original application was submitted, consequently, a developer is not subject to county wetland regulations enacted after submission of its application for a conditional use permit.

Children of the Rosary v. City of Phoenix, 154 F.3rd 972, rev. den. 67 USLW 3713 (5/24/99) - The City of Phoenix can exclude noncommercial advertisements (such as religious and political messages) from display on the outside of city buses as long as it does not discriminate against particular viewpoints. The court ruled that bus advertising is a nonpublic forum, and a policy which allows only commercial advertising on the buses is a reasonable way to protect a city revenue source and maintain neutrality on political and religious issues.

Johnston v. City of Seattle, 95 Wn.App. 770 (5/24/99) - A failure to strictly comply with the claim filing procedures of RCW 4.96.020(4) and a local ordinance, both of which require a claimant to wait 60 days after a claim has been filed with a local governmental entity before commencing a legal action, requires dismissal of the action.

BBG Group, LLC v. City of Monroe, 96 Wn.App. 517 (5/17/99) - A disappointed bidder on a public works project has standing, before the contract is signed with the winning bidder, to seek an injunction to enjoin the execution of the contract; however, an unsuccessful bidder has no right of action for damages, even if the contract was wrongly awarded.

Bunko v. Puyallup Civil Serv. Commission, 95 Wn.App. 495 (5/7/99) - The appearance of fairness doctrine was not violated when three Puyallup Civil Service Commissioners had conversations with the police chief during a recess in an open hearing when none of the conversations were related to the merits of the matter before the Commission and none of the commissioners had a personal stake in the outcome of the hearing.

Telford v. Board of Commissioners, 95 Wn.App. 149 (4/16/99) - Although both WSAC and WACO have some characteristics of private entities, their essential functions and attributes are those of a public agency: they serve a public purpose, are publicly funded, are fun by government officials, and were created by government officials. Consequently, for purposes of Washington's Public Disclosure Act, WSAC and WACO are public agencies.

Western Telepage, Inc. v. City of Tacoma, 95 Wn.App. 140 (4/16/99) - In this case the court was asked to determine if the statutory definition of "telephone business" found in RCW 82.04.065 includes paging services. The court ruling clarified how paging services are classified for tax purposes and determined that the City of Tacoma was entitled to tax Telepage at the same rate it taxed other telephone businesses.

ACLU v. Blaine School District No. 503, 95 Wn.App.106 (4/12/99) -- In determining the actual per page cost for providing photocopies of public records, an agency may include all costs directly incident to copying such public records including the actual cost of the paper and the per page cost for use of agency copying equipment. In determining other actual costs for providing photocopies of public records, an agency may include all costs directly incident to shipping such public record, including the cost of postage or delivery charges and the cost of any container or envelope used. Staff time to copy and mail the requested public records may be included in an agency's costs. Note that in an effort to further the policy of the public's right to access public records, the court allowed the ACLU to recover all reasonable costs incurred in litigating the dispute.

Wolfe v. Bennett PS&E, Inc., 95 Wn.App.71 (4/9/99) -- Under the public duty doctrine a public entity must owe a duty to the plaintiff as an individual rather than to the public in general; therefore, a county has no duty to warn a hired survey firm that their client's plat application revision process is expiring.

Hudson v. City of Wenatchee, 94 Wn.App. 990 (4/6/99) - Owners of a locksmith service challenged the City's actions in aiding citizens locked out of their cars, alleging that the City's actions constituted a gift of public funds in violation of the state constitution. The court determined that no unconstitutional gift of funds occurred since the City's actions were party of the police community caretaking function to assist citizens, and that this policy promoted a fundamental government purpose.

Rural Residents v. Kitsap County, 95 Wn.App. 383 (3/29/99) - An urban growth project may not be approved for an area that is outside of an Interim Urban Growth Area (IUGA). The designation of an interim urban growth area is an effective development regulation, and the legislative intent is to prevent urban growth in rural areas while the planning process is occurring.

Gig Harbor Marina Inc. v. City of Gig Harbor, 94 Wn.App. 789 (3/26/99) - In this case the court ruled that a statute which entitles a prevailing party to recover attorney fees in an appeal of a land use decision, RCW 4.84.370, is constitutional.

Burrell v. Star Nursery, Inc., No. 97-17370, 9th Cir. (3/25/99) - Employers may be held liable for the sexually harassing conduct of their supervisors even if they neither knew nor should have known that the misconduct was occurring. However, an employer may not be held liable for the harassing conduct of co-workers unless it was aware (or should have been aware) of the misbehavior.

Baker v. Tri Mountain Resources, 94 Wn. App. 849 (3/22/99) -- RCW 4.84.370 only provides for an award of attorney's fees incurred before the Court of Appeals or the Supreme Court.

Benchmark v. Battle Ground, 103 Wn.App. 721 (12/15/00) - [Development Permit/Takings] -- ) In this case a land development company sought judicial review of a city's requirement that it make certain road improvements as a condition of plat approval. The court determined (1) that a preliminary plat application is not "approved" until the local legislative body giving its approval enters a written decision that includes findings of fact and conclusions of law as required by RCW 58.17.100; and (2) that a development company is not bound to make improvements to a street where the city fails to show an essential nexus between the required road improvements and a public problem or to establish a rough proportionality between the impact of the proposed development and any need for making the road improvements.

Clark County Natural Resources v. Clark County Citizens United, Inc., 94 Wn.App. 670 (3/12/99) - The Growth Management Act (GMA) does not require counties to use the Office of Financial Management's (OFM's) population projections as a cap on non-urban growth; rather, the OFM projections are to be used when planning for urban growth.

City of Tacoma v. Franciscan Foundation, 94 Wn.App. 663 (3/5/99) - Although cities may enact ordinances prohibiting discrimination, they may not enforce such laws which conflict with state law, ch. 49.60 RCW. Consequently, Tacoma's anti-discrimination ordinance cannot be enforced against religious nonprofit organizations, since religious organizations are specifically excluded from the definition of employer under RCW 49.60.040(3).

Diehl v. Mason County, 94 Wn.App. 645 (3/5/99) - A county's use of its own developed population growth projections, instead of the Office of Financial Management's projections, when determining its urban growth areas, were determined to be inconsistent with requirements of the Growth Management Act.

King County v. PERC, 94 Wn.App. 431 (3/1/99) -- A public employer's failure to give notice to a public employees bargaining unit of a change affecting a mandatory subject of collective bargaining constitutes an unfair labor practice; and a public employer's "renewal" of an employment policy that has not been enforced for several years may