Kenai Peninsula Assembly president proposes filling vacant seats until 30 days left in a term

Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly President Ryan Tunseth filed an amendment Oct. 8 that would let the Assembly fill vacant seats until fewer than 30 days remain in a term and let some appointees serve more than a year. The Assembly holds a public hearing on the ordinance tonight, Oct. 20, at 6 pm.

Borough code now has a majority of the remaining members fill a vacancy by the second meeting after a resignation is accepted, unless 45 days or less remain before the next regular election. In that case, the seat waits for the voters. The amendment drops that election window.

Tunseth first proposed the rewrite in September. As introduced Sept. 15, the ordinance widened the window to 90 days, gave the Assembly 60 days to appoint, added a one-year district residency requirement and wrote a ballot procedure into code.

The amendment strikes the 90-day clause, going "from 90 days back to 30 days remaining in a term to align with state statute," his memo says. State law bars appointments with fewer than 30 days left in a term.

The amendment also rewrites how long an appointee serves. For vacancies declared after candidate filing closes, appointees would serve until certification of the following year's regular election or of a special election, whichever comes first. State law says an appointee "serves until the next regular election, when a successor shall be elected to serve the balance of the term."

Two of the nine Assembly members were appointed this summer. Brent Hibbert was chosen Aug. 18 for the District 1 Kalifornsky seat after Scott Griebel resigned. Nate Berga was chosen Sept. 1 for the District 7 Central seat after Michael Hicks resigned. Both seats were declared vacant before candidate filing, which ran Aug. 16 to Aug. 31.

Hibbert is not on the Nov. 3 ballot. Lisa McDonald and Teresa Mullican are running for the District 1 seat, and Berga is the only District 7 candidate.

The file's only public comment came from Mary Griswold of Homer, who emailed Assembly members Sept. 23, before the amendment was filed. She asked for 45-day limits instead of 60 and 90 days. "90 days is too long to go without representation," she wrote.

A companion ordinance, also up for a hearing tonight, would set voting thresholds for Assembly actions, including adopting actions by a majority of the quorum. Both ordinances were introduced Sept. 15 and would take effect immediately if enacted.

The Assembly has not voted on either ordinance. Residents can testify at tonight's hearing, two weeks before the Nov. 3 borough election.