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Bellingham City Council — Public Health, Safety, Justice and Equity Committee

BEL-CON-PHJ-2026-06-01 June 01, 2026 Public Health & Safety Committee City of Bellingham
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The Bellingham City Council's Public Health, Safety, Justice and Equity Committee met on June 1, 2026, chaired by Council Member Dan Hammill, with Council Members Huffman and Williams joining as committee members. Council President Hannah Stone and Council Member Lisa Anderson were also present. The committee addressed two items: an annual informational update from the Bellingham Whatcom County Commission on Sexual and Domestic Violence, and an action item authorizing the city to accept a federal homeland security grant for 2026 FIFA World Cup security operations. The committee voted 3-0 to authorize the mayor to enter into a grant agreement with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security under the federal fiscal year 2026 FIFA World Cup grant program. The grant will fund equipment purchases — including two drones, bicycle response team protective gear, and a portable X-ray machine — as well as officer overtime and standby costs tied to Bellingham's role as an official Washington State FIFA fan zone. The city will host watch parties for six Seattle-based FIFA matches, primarily at Kulshan Trackside, with an additional event on the 1300 block of Commercial Street. Before the vote, Council Member Anderson raised concerns about Article 11 of the grant agreement, which contains federal immigration-related requirements referencing ICE collaboration — provisions she said conflicted with the Keep Washington Working Act. Deputy City Attorney James Erb clarified that the city has an established process for accepting federal grants that contain objectionable provisions: it sends formal notice to the federal government citing a preliminary injunction obtained through prior litigation, which prevents those provisions from applying to Bellingham. Anderson confirmed she would have voted no without that clarification. The first item — Susan Marks's annual report from the Domestic Violence Commission — covered the commission's current projects, funding levels, a recently completed

**Item: 2026 FIFA World Cup Grant Agreement — U.S. Department of Homeland Security** - **Vote:** 3-0 (Committee members Hammill, Huffman, Williams in favor; no opposed, no abstentions) - **Staff Recommendation:** Deputy Police Chief Jay Hart requested authorization for the mayor to enter into the grant agreement. - **Council Action:** Approved. Council Member Williams made the motion; no second required in committee. - **Grant Authority:** U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Federal Fiscal Year 2026 FIFA World Cup Grant Program - **Planned Use of Funds:** Purchase of two drones; protective equipment for bicycle response team; portable X-ray machine for hazardous devices unit; overtime and standby costs for officers during FIFA events - **Context:** Bellingham is an official Washington State fan zone location. Six Seattle-based FIFA Worl…

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**Topic 1: Whatcom County's High Denial Rate for Temporary Civil Protection Orders** Council President Stone raised concerns about Whatcom County's elevated rate of denied temporary civil protection orders — a documented pattern spanning 10 to 15 years and one that Marks described as "much higher than any other county throughout the state, including Skagit County." Temporary protection orders are 2-week measures issued ex parte (without hearing the respondent) to protect petitioners while a full hearing is scheduled. When denied, the petitioner receives no immediate protection even as the respondent is notified a petition has been filed — a gap Marks described as acutely dangerous. Marks identified several contributing factors. The county has not in many years conducted standalone hearings for temporary orders at which a judicial officer could question a petitioner directly to clarify ambiguities in their written application. Additionally, Marks said some judicial officers may be applying what amounts to a near-criminal standard of proof when the correct civil standard is preponderance of evidence — "50.1%" or more likely than not. She also cited the neurobiology of trauma as an underappreciated factor: survivors often file months after an incident, and a delayed filing may incorrectly signal to a judicial officer that there is no immediate crisis. Marks was careful to note that the pro se nature of most applications (petitioners representing themselves without attorneys) is a real factor, but cannot alone explain Whatcom's statistical outlier status. The commission's strategy to address the denial rate centers on a series of judicial training sessions to be hosted by the commission, funded through the existing Department of Justice Office on Violence Against Women grant. Two judicial officers already attended a national DV/SA training in April. The upcoming training series will cover the entire judicial bench as well as court clerks, guardians ad litem, and family law attorneys. Marks expressed optimism that training on trauma neurobiology and the proper civil evidentiary standard will produce measurable improvement. Stone's follow-up confirmed the training is directed at the court system broadly, not just judges. No Council action was taken; the discussion was informational. **Topic 2: Federal Grant Conditions and the Keep Washington Working Act** Council Member Anderson raised a substantive concern about the DHS FIFA grant agreement's Article 11, which includes immigration enforcement requirements and references ICE collaboration — provisions she characterized as inconsistent with Washington State's Keep Washington Working Act, which limits local law enforcement cooperation with federal immigration enfor…
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**Susan Marks, Director, Bellingham Whatcom County Commission on Sexual and Domestic Violence** Presented the commission's annual report. Advocated for continued and expanded city/county funding support, framing the commission's cross-sector convening role as a competitive advantage in federal grant applications. Expressed concern about Whatcom County's outlier status on protection order denial rates. Optimistic about the judicial training pipeline. Cautious but forward-moving on restorative justice. Seeking coaches for Coaching Boys into Men pilot and sponsorships for the MMIWP Summit. **Council Member Dan Hammill (Chair)** Presided over both items. Expressed appreciation for Marks's annual presentation. Efficiently managed the FIFA grant item and brought it to a vote. **Council Member [Akemi] Huffman** Expressed strong appreciation for Marks's work, framing it as "small steps of systems change." Noted personal history with the restorative justice learning series and expressed particular enthusiasm and hope for that work to receive funding. **Council Member Williams** Connected to the domestic violence work personally through people he has known who experienced DV. Noted the…
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**Susan Marks, on the value of the commission's cross-sector membership:** "When people say, well how would I ever get a superintendent or a judicial officer to like call me back or be interested? And we have some of those relationships. So, I think that really makes a big difference." **Susan Marks, on the restorative justice pilot strategy:** "It's been such an ongoing curiosity, what does making this right look like? And that's really what it's about — is making it right for people, not ju…
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- **Full Council vote tonight (June 1, 2026):** Committee Chair Hammill stated he will bring the FIFA grant authorization forward to the full City Council at the evening's regular meeting. Final action pending. - **FIFA World Cup watch party events:** Six Seattle-based FIFA matches to be screened at Kulshan Trackside; one additional event at 1300 block Commercial Street. Exact dates not specified in source documents. - **Judicial training series (winter 2026):** The commission will host a series of trainings for the full judicial bench, court clerks, guardians ad litem, and family law attorneys, covering trauma neurobiology and civil evidentiary standards for protection orders. Funded by the DOJ Office on Violence Against Women grant. - **Restorative justice pilot case:** The commission plans to shepherd one domestic violence/sexual assault case through a restorative justice process using volunteer facilitators, without additional funding, in order to document the model for future grant applications. Timeline not specified. …

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**Before this meeting:** The city had not yet authorized entering into the 2026 FIFA World Cup grant agreement with the Department of Homeland Security. **After this meeting:** The Public Health, Safety, Justice and Equity Committee voted 3-0 to recommend that the mayor be authorized to enter into the agreement, and the chair committed to bringing the item to full Council the same evening for final action. **Before this meeting:** The immigration compliance provisions in Article 11 of the DHS grant agreement had not been publicly discussed or flagged for the Council record. **After this meeting:** The city's protocol for managing objectionable federal grant conditions — formal notice of a preliminary injunction through prior litigation — is now on the public record as an establis…
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--- # Public Health, Safety, Justice and Equity Committee ## City of Bellingham City Council ### June 1, 2026 --- ## Meeting Overview The Bellingham City Council's Public Health, Safety, Justice and Equity Committee convened on the afternoon of June 1, 2026, as part of a broader slate of council committee meetings. Committee Chair Dan Hammill called the meeting to order and was joined by Council Members Huffman and Williams, with Council President Hannah Stone also present. The agenda was brief but substantive: two items, each touching a distinct dimension of public safety in a city navigating both longstanding community challenges and a once-in-a-generation international event. The first item brought Susan Marks, director of the Bellingham Whatcom County Commission on Sexual and Domestic Violence, before the committee for her annual update — a tradition that has become something of an anchor in the council's calendar for those who care about survivor services, restorative justice, and the slow, difficult work of systems change. The second item was more immediate: a request to authorize the city's entry into a grant agreement with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to fund security preparations for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, with Bellingham designated as an official fan zone location. What the meeting lacked in drama — both items ultimately passed or were received without objection — it more than compensated for in substance. The domestic violence update in particular offered a rare window into the granular, often invisible machinery of survivor support: the procedural thickets of pro se protection order hearings, the promise and challenges of restorative justice, the difficulty of getting temporary orders granted in a county with unusually high denial rates, and the ongoing effort to build relationships across schools, courts, and tribal communities. The FIFA grant discussion, meanwhile, offered an unexpectedly pointed moment when a council member raised concerns about federal immigration enforcement language embedded in the grant contract — a concern that required the deputy city attorney to step in and explain an ongoing legal injunction protecting the city from those terms. --- ## Annual Update: Bellingham Whatcom County Commission on Sexual and Domestic Violence There was a small moment of procedural confusion at the outset. Council Member Hammill noted that Council President Stone was listed on the agenda as one of the presenters. Stone …
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--- ### Meeting Overview The Bellingham City Council's Public Health, Safety, Justice, and Equity Committee met on June 1, 2026, chaired by Council Member Dan Hammill and joined by Council Members Huffman and Williams. The committee heard two items: an annual update from the Bellingham Whatcom County Commission on Sexual and Domestic Violence, and a request to authorize an agreement with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security for a FIFA World Cup security grant. --- ### Key Terms and Concepts **Bellingham Whatcom County Commission on Sexual and Domestic Violence:** A joint commission formed in 1998 by the City of Bellingham and Whatcom County to coordinate community-wide efforts to address sexual and domestic violence. It does not provide direct services but supports and coordinates organizations that do. **Pro Se:** A Latin term meaning a person represents themselves in court without an attorney. Many survivors seeking civil protection orders navigate the court system pro se, which can create barriers to accessing legal protections. **Temporary Protection Order (TPO):** A short-term court order — typically lasting about two weeks — that can be issued quickly to protect a person from contact or harm while a final hearing is scheduled. The commission noted Whatcom County has a high denial rate for TPOs compared to other counties in Washington State. **Preponderance of Evidence:** The civil legal standard used in protection order hearings, meaning it is "more likely than not" (roughly 50.1%) that the alleged conduct occurred. This is a lower bar than the criminal standard of "beyond a reasonable doubt." **Restorative Justice:** An approach to addressing harm that focuses on repairing relationships and accountability rather than solely on punishment. The commission is developing survivor-centered restorative justice processes as an additional option alongside existing legal pathways. **Neurobiology of Trauma:** The scientific understanding of how trauma affects memory, behavior, and reporting. Training on this topic is intended to help judicial officers understand why survivors may delay filing for protection orders or present their accounts in ways that seem inconsistent. **FIFA World Cup Grant (Federal Fiscal Year 2026):** A targeted federal grant from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to fund security and preparedness for FIFA World Cup events. Bellingham is designated as an official fan zone location. **Keep Washington Working Act:** A Washington State law that limits local law enforcement's cooperation with federal immigration enforcement (ICE). Concerns were raised that language in the FIFA grant contract could conflict with this law. **Preliminary Injunction:** A court order that temporarily prevents a law or policy from being enforced while litigation is pending. The City of Bellingham is party to a lawsuit against the federal government, and a preliminary injunction currently prevents certain federal grant conditions — including immigration-related requirements — from applying to the city. **Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and People (MMIWP):** A national crisis of disproportionate violence against Indigenous women and people. The commission hosts an annual summit on this issue to raise awareness and coordinate community action. --- ### Key People at This Meeting | Name | Role / Affiliation | |---|---| | Dan Hammill | Bellingham City Council Member; Chair, Public Health, Safety, Justice & Equity Com…
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Public Safety Social Services Government Operations Bellingham Police Department Bellingham Whatcom County Commission On Sexual And Domestic Violence Cherokee Nation Department Of Homeland Security Dispute Resolution Center Dvsa Law Advocates Lummi Nation Office On Violence Against Women Tulalip Tribes Western Washington University Whatcom Racial Equity Commission Anton George Chief Mertzig Dan Hammill Deborah Parker Hannah Stone Huffman Councilmember James Erb Jay Hart Lisa Anderson Sarah Chaplin Susan Marks Williams Councilmember Behavioral Health Coaching Boys Into Men Criminal Justice Domestic Violence Federal Grants Fifa World Cup Security Ice Immigration Enforcement Immigrant Rights Judicial Training Keep Washington Working Act Language Access Missing Murdered Indigenous Women Neurobiology Of Trauma Preliminary Injunction Pro Se Petitioners Protection Orders Public Safety Umbrella Racial Equity Restorative Justice School Prevention Sexual Assault Social Services Trauma Informed Practice