Pierce County Charter Review

Every ten years the Pierce County Charter comes under review. Three commissioners from every Pierce County Council district are elected to sit on the commission to deliberate and create amendments for the people to vote on to change the county charter. The commission lasts for six months. In 2025 Pierce County elected a commission to do just that.

The Pierce County Charter Review started out 2026 with a bang. Within minutes of their first meeting, and before the commissioners were sworn in, the Pierce County Deputy Prosecutor Michelle Luna pulled the commissioners into a closed-door executive board meeting. All members of the public were asked to leave the room, and the zoom video feed was cut.

The most significant amendment proposal of this charter review is C1, to make the Pierce County Sheriff an appointed position and not an elected one. I believe this is a terrible idea. This proposal would give the County Executive too much power and remove power from the people. Only one other county has done this and it's King County. Pierce County should not emulate King County. They have given all of their power away and now there are serious law enforcement concerns.

Don't misunderstand me though, there are many bad proposals. Some of those include creating a children's commission (C29) for 14–25 year-olds. On its face this doesn't seem so bad until you realize it's an un-funded mandate. C29 would require a large level of staffing increase and that isn't addressed in the amendment. In fact, the commission has no authority to propose spending.  All amendments that require spending put the burden on the county council to find and spend more money.

There is an especially egregious one that allows the county to use eminent domain (C42) to take property because the property looks abandoned or the vegetation is overgrown. The language says it takes 7 years to run the process but there is a lot of ambiguity. The worst part is they can then use that property to give to the homeless or sell it or fix it up... there is no limit and no required tie to a project like a road or public facility. Thankfully on 6/8/26 the C42 was voted down. For the extensive list of proposed amendments, go to the Pierce County Charter Review website. It is worth noting, however, that the staff have struggled to maintain this list and it is often weeks behind.

The Commission will meet twice a week for the rest of June. The days are Monday and Wednesday except the last week is Monday and Tuesday. The schedule and links to the zoom meeting can be found on the Pierce County Charter Review website main page. I believe it is important that we fill the room and the zoom with as many voices as possible to ensure the commissioners feel the pressure. They need to know their decisions impact their constituents. We, as citizens of Pierce County, need to stand strong in opposition of the reckless amendment proposals this commission wishes to clog our already busy midterm ballot with.