Committee of the Whole — City of Bellingham City Council

There was no substantive policy discussion during the public portion of this meeting. The session consisted solely of a procedural call for old and new business (which drew no responses) and an announcement of the executive session topic. **Litigation Matter — Scopali v. City of Bellingham et al.** The presiding officer identified one pending litigation matter as the subject of executive session: *Scopali v. City of Bellingham et al.* No background, context, fiscal implications, or legal posture were described on…

No public comment period occurred during the Committee of the Whole (consistent with standard committee format as noted on the agenda). No members of the public testified. No Council members expressed positions on any policy matter during the public portion of the meeting. **Speaker 1 (Chair, likely Hannah Sto…

The transcript is brief and contains limited quotable material. The following are verbatim from the transcript: **Speaker 1 (Chair), opening the meeting:** "Okay, welcome back. So this afternoon in committee of the whole, we just have one item which is old and new business." **Speaker 1 (Chair), on the absence of old/new business items:** "Okay, seeing none at this time, we have one item for executive session." **Speaker 1 (Chair), describing the executive session item:** "This is a litiga…

This meeting produced no changes to policy, ordinances, budgets, land use designations, or any other public matter. The delta from before to after this meeting is: - **Council was formally convened** and entered executive session on *Scopali v. City of Bellingham et al.* - **No old or new business** was raised by any Council member, meaning no agenda…

--- ### Meeting Overview The Bellingham City Council's Committee of the Whole convened on the afternoon of May 18, 2026, beginning at approximately 3:02 p.m. in Council Chambers at City Hall. The session was brief and procedural: no old or new business items were raised by council members, and the body moved immediately into a closed executive session to discuss a single litigation matter — *Scopali v. City of Bellingham et al.* — before planning to reconvene in open session at 7:00 p.m. that evening. --- ### Key Terms and Concepts **Committee of the Whole (CTW):** A standing committee of the Bellingham City Council in which all council members participate. CTW meetings are held to receive reports, ask questions, and vote on recommended actions for consideration at the full Council's regular meeting. There is no public comment period during committee sessions. **Executive Session:** A closed, non-public portion of a government meeting permitted under Washington State's Open Public Meetings Act (OPMA) for specific limited purposes, including discussing pending or threatened litigation, personnel matters, and real estate negotiations. No final action may be taken in executive session; results are "reported out" in open session. **Litigation Matter:** A legal dispute in which the city is a party — either as plaintiff or defendant. When litigation is pending or reasonably anticipated, the city attorney may brief elected officials in executive session to protect attorney-client privilege and litigation strategy. **"At al." (et al.):** Latin abbreviation for *et alii*, meaning "and others." When a lawsuit caption reads "*Scopali v. City of Bellingham et al.*," it means Scopali is suing the City of Bellingham and at least one other named defendant. **Old and New Business:** A standing agenda item at committee meetings where council members may raise topics for follow-up from prior meetings (old business) or introduce items for future consideration (new business). At this meeting, no items were raised. **Reported Out:** The procedural step after an executive session in which the presiding officer publicly announces what, if any, action was taken or directed as a result of the closed session. Executive session results from this afternoon were to be reported out at the 7:00 p.m. evening council session. **Open Public Meetings Act (OPMA):** Washington State law (RCW 42.30) requiring that meetings of governing bodies be open to the public, with narrowly defined exceptions such as executive session. It governs how Bellingham's council meetings must be conducted and noticed. --- ### Key People at This Meeting | Name | Role / Affiliation | |---|---| | Hannah Stone | Council Member; Chair, Committee of the Whole | | Hollie Huthman | Council Member; CTW member (listed on agenda) | | Daniel Hammill | Council Member; CTW member | | Edwin H. "Skip" Williams | Council Member; CTW member | | Lisa Anderson | Council Member; CTW member | | Michael Lilliquist | Council Member; CTW member | | Jace Cotton…