Voting Rights Complaint Dismissed
Franklin PUD is pleased to announce it has settled and resolved a complaint made against it under the Washington Voting Rights Act (WVRA). The settlement was approved and the complaint dismissed by a Franklin County Superior Court judge on January 27, 2025. The settlement affirms the legality of the PUD’s existing commissioner district boundaries, while changing the PUD’s electoral system to a district-based system for both primary and general PUD commissioner elections starting in 2026.
“The PUD is pleased to move forward and get back to its core business of providing quality, low-cost utility service,” said Scott Rhees, the PUD’s General Manager/CEO. “This resolution affirms the PUD’s existing boundaries and implements a change the PUD’s Board of Commissioners authorized last year to ensure all voices in our community are heard.”
In June 2024, the PUD received a notice of an alleged violation of the WVRA. After receiving the notice, the PUD worked in good faith with the plaintiffs to ensure the PUD’s commissioner district boundaries and system of voting were in compliance with the WVRA. In September 2024, while the PUD did not agree that its system of voting or commissioner district boundaries were in violation of the WVRA, the PUD’s Board of Commissioners voluntarily authorized a change to its electoral system, to adopt a district-based system for primary and general elections to avoid even the appearance of a potential violation of the WVRA, and to minimize disruption and cost impacts on PUD ratepayers.