Vancouver, Wash. – The Clark County Arts Commission is seeking applicants for Clark County Poet Laureate. The position is for two years beginning May 1, 2024.

The commission has extended its deadline for applications to Sunday, Dec. 31, 2023.

Every two years the Clark County Arts Commission selects a Poet Laureate to engage our county in the literary arts. Duties include promoting poetry as an art form, expanding access to the literary arts, and encouraging poetry as a regional voice that contributes to a sense of place.

Vancouver, WA — The Clark County Auditor’s Office is accepting letters of interest from citizen volunteers who wish to serve on the county’s official Audit Oversight Committee, along with the County Auditor and a member of the County Council.

Responsibilities of the committee include:

Today, Nov. 21, the United States Postal Service delivered 13 general election ballots to Clark County Elections that were discovered in “out-of-service” USPS mailboxes within the county.

Twelve of the ballot return envelopes were signed and dated on or before election day and will be counted. One ballot return envelope did not have the date the voter signed and cannot be counted. These ballots will not affect the outcome of races or measures in this election.

Clark County’s Solid Waste Education and Outreach team encourages the community to celebrate this holiday season by taking steps to reduce waste and properly dispose of items that cannot go in curbside garbage or recycling carts.

Reducing holiday waste

When planning gatherings with friends and family, these tips can help reduce waste and make the holiday season a little greener:

This holiday season Clark County Public Health urges residents to safely dispose of batteries – and doing so just got easier! Several retail stores across Clark County are now accepting batteries for safe disposal at no charge. 

Batteries that end up in household garbage or inside of recycling carts can explode, posing significant fire risks during transportation and at transfer stations. These fires can cause serious harm to sanitation workers and can damage costly equipment at Clark County transfer stations.

Vancouver, Wash. – Clark County last month detected suspicious activity on the county network. The county, with the assistance of third-party specialists, immediately launched an investigation into the nature and scope of the activity. The investigation determined that the suspicious activity was the result of a sophisticated cyberattack. The county is working to determine the nature and scope of any potentially impacted data.

Clark County and city of Camas representatives recently kicked off a process to enter into an interlocal agreement to cooperatively work to improve water quality in the Lacamas watershed. Staff plan to have a final agreement to present to city and county councils for approval shortly after the new year. Implementation of actions to address water quality issues will begin in spring 2024. “Goals for measurable improvement in watershed and lake health must be set and action immediately taken,” said Clark County Councilor Gary Medvigy.

The report indicates that a systematic approach to organizational growth and maturity is needed.

The Clark County Auditor’s Office this week released an audit report of Clark County Public Works’ management, oversight, and delivery of capital transportation projects between 2016 and 2022. The report is available on the county’s website at https://www.clark.wa.gov/auditor/audit-reports.

The Clark County Council this week approved using American Recovery Plan Act (ARPA) funding to establish a Public Defense office. The office will be staffed by 10 full-time employees: one senior public defender, six public defenders and three legal assistants.

The two-year ARPA funding will be the foundation to begin the Public Defense office as the county transitions away from its current practice of contracting with local defense attorneys. After the two years, funding for the office will come from indigent defense contract savings in the general fund.

The Clark County Finance Committee is scheduled to be held on the second floor of the Public Service Center, Room 243 at 9:30 am Tuesday, Nov. 21, 2023.

Pursuant to RCW 42.30.030(2), which encourages public agencies to provide for public access to meetings, this meeting can also be viewed via Teams or joined telephonically.

Participants can also join online or telephone via Teams.