### Meeting Overview The City of Bellingham's City Council held their 2025 reorganization meeting on January 6, 2025, where they elected new leadership, established committee assignments, and discussed key policy matters including their state legislative agenda and public comment procedures. ### Key Terms and Concepts **Council President:** The councilmember who chairs meetings and serves as the legislative leader of the council. Hollie Huthman was elected for 2025. **Committee of the Whole:** When all seven councilmembers meet together rather than in smaller standing committees to discuss issues of city-wide interest. **Standing Committees:** Smaller groups of 3 councilmembers who focus on specific policy areas like planning, public safety, or parks and recreation. **Legislative Agenda:** The city's priority list of bills and funding requests they want the state legislature to consider during the upcoming session. **Junk Fees Ordinance:** A proposed city law that would prohibit landlords from charging tenants certain unfair or excessive fees beyond rent and legally allowed charges. **Focus Groups:** Facilitated discussions with landlords, tenants, and community organizations to gather feedback on proposed rental regulations before final adoption. ### Key People at This Meeting | Name | Role / Affiliation | |---|---| | Hollie Huthman | Newly elected Council President | | Daniel Hammill | Outgoing Council President | | Skip Williams | Council President Pro Tem | | Michael Lilliquist | Mayor Pro Tem | | Hannah Stone | Councilmember | | Lisa Anderson | Councilmember | | Jace Cotton | Councilmember | | Kim Lund | Mayor | | Nick Federici | City lobbyist | | Luke Esser | City lobbyist | ### Background Context This was the annual reorganization meeting where the council elects new leadership and restructures committees for the coming year. The meeting addressed ongoing concerns about committee effectiveness, with some councilmembers feeling that too much work was being deferred to the full council rather than handled in specialized committees. The city also moved forward with significant tenant protection measures, continuing work on regulating "junk fees" that some landlords charge beyond rent. This reflects broader housing affordability concerns in Bellingham's tight rental market. ### What Happened — The Short Version The council elected Hollie Huthman as the new council president, replacing Daniel Hammill. They restructured their committee system, combining climate and natural resources into one committee and keeping finance separate from economic development. After extensive discussion about planning committee membership, they selected Michael Lilliquist as chair with Lisa Anderson and Hannah Stone as members. The council approved moving forward with public engagement on their proposed junk fees ordinance, including focus groups facilitated by the Whatcom Dispute Resolution Center. They also reviewed their 2025 state legislative priorities, focusing on environmental cleanup funding, municipal court improvements, and housing access. ### What to Watch Next • Focus groups on the junk fees ordinance will occur at the end of January 2025 • Public comment will resume at the January 13, 2025 meeting with new security measures in place • The administration will provide feedback on the proposed committee restructuring at the next meeting ---