(The Center Square) – As much of the region leans into a new public safety task force, elected officials from Spokane Valley aren’t sure whether to join the discussion that could lead to another jail proposal.
Spokane Mayor Lisa Brown and Spokane County Sheriff John Nowels launched the initiative at the end of September after more than a year of preparation. Those discussions reached the public in May, but tensions between the city administration and county officials left it in the hands of the private sector.
The Downtown Spokane Partnership carried the torch along with other organizations that will lead the new Safe & Healthy Spokane Task Force. The goal is to return to the local governments in spring 2026 with policy and funding recommendations that residents may see on a ballot the following November.
Only three people on the 40-member task force haven’t confirmed whether they will accept the invite.
“Spokane Valley, kind of overall, is not trusting of the city of Spokane,” Councilmember Jessica Yaeger told The Center Square last week. “They can’t try to balance their budget on the backs of my citizens.”
Yaeger was referring to a $57 million bill that Brown sent to the county last May. It came as a surprise after the last mayor agreed not to charge unincorporated residents for a wastewater facility in the city.
According to reporting by The Spokesman-Review, the treatment facility also serves almost all of the Valley. The Board of County Commissioners and the Spokane Valley City Council both received the bill around the same time each jurisdiction began publicly discussing the idea of a new regional task force.
While the initiative has gained momentum since then, with officials from the city of Spokane and the county agreeing to participate, the Valley still isn’t sure whether to accept the invitation. Yaeger said she’s open to the idea if the city of Spokane and Brown are held accountable for sending that $57 million bill.
“Spokane Valley remains an important part of our task force,” Lance Beck, president and CEO of the Greater Spokane Valley Chamber of Commerce, told The Center Square, “and we will always have that seat for them at the table. We haven’t received any official notice back that they won’t participate.”
Beck is among the few who helped organize the effort over the past year or two. He noted that they invited Deputy City Manager Erik Lamb to represent the Valley, but haven’t received a response yet.
The task force will meet later this month to set up several subcommittees to guide their work over the next few months, but Beck said there’s no deadline to sit down at the table. Communications Manager Jill Smith said the Spokane Valley City Council may decide during a meeting scheduled for October 21.
Beck said the position of one elected official doesn’t dictate that of the rest of the dais. City Manager John Hohman and Mayor Pam Haley both sat on the planning team, but the goal was for non-elected officials to sit on the task force. Neither Hohman nor Lamb responded to a request for comment.
“No official decisions will be made until next week’s conversation with council,” Smith said.
