Executive summary

The Bellingham City Council's Public Health, Safety, Justice and Equity Committee convened on the afternoon of June 1, 2026, as part of a broader slate of council committee meetings. Committee Chair Dan Hammill called the meeting to order and was joined by Council Members Huffman and Williams, with Council President Hannah Stone also present. The agenda was brief but substantive: two items, each touching a distinct dimension of public safety in a city navigating both longstanding community challenges and a once-in-a-generation international event.

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What’s next

- **Full Council vote tonight (June 1, 2026):** Committee Chair Hammill stated he will bring the FIFA grant authorization forward to the full City Council at the evening's regular meeting. Final action pending. - **FIFA World Cup watch party events:** Six Seattle-based FIFA matches to be screened at Kulshan Trackside; one additional event at 1300 block Commercial Street. Exact dates not specified in source documents. - **Judicial training series (winter 2026):** The commission will host a series of trainings for the full judicial bench, court clerks, guardians ad litem, and family law attorneys, covering trauma neurobiology and civil evidentiary standards for protection orders. Funded by the DOJ Office on Violence Against Women grant. - **Restorative justice pilot case:** The commission plans to shepherd one domestic violence/sexual assault case through a restorative justice process using volunteer facilitators, without additional funding, in order to document the model for future grant applications. Timeline not specified. …

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Full meeting narrative

--- # Public Health, Safety, Justice and Equity Committee ## City of Bellingham City Council ### June 1, 2026 --- ## Meeting Overview The Bellingham City Council's Public Health, Safety, Justice and Equity Committee convened on the afternoon of June 1, 2026, as part of a broader slate of council committee meetings. Committee Chair Dan Hammill called the meeting to order and was joined by Council Members Huffman and Williams, with Council President Hannah Stone also present. The agenda was brief but substantive: two items, each touching a distinct dimension of public safety in a city navigating both longstanding community challenges and a once-in-a-generation international event. The first item brought Susan Marks, director of the Bellingham Whatcom County Commission on Sexual and Domestic Violence, before the committee for her annual update — a tradition that has become something of an anchor in the council's calendar for those who care about survivor services, restorative justice, and the slow, difficult work of systems change. The second item was more immediate: a request to authorize the city's entry into a grant agreement with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to fund security preparations for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, with Bellingham designated as an official fan zone location. What the meeting lacked in drama — both items ultimately passed or were received without objection — it more than compensated for in substance. The domestic violence update in particular offered a rare window into the granular, often invisible machinery of survivor support: the procedural thickets of pro se protection order hearings, the promise and challenges of restorative justice, the difficulty of getting temporary orders granted in a county with unusually high denial rates, and the ongoing effort to build relationships across schools, courts, and tribal communities. The FIFA grant discussion, meanwhile, offered an unexpectedly pointed moment when a council member raised concerns about federal immigration enforcement language embedded in the grant contract — a concern that required the deputy city attorney to step in and explain an ongoing legal injunction protecting the city from those terms. --- ## Annual Update: Bellingham Whatcom County Commission on Sexual and Domestic Violence There was a small moment of procedural confusion at the outset. Council Member Hammill noted that Council President Stone was listed on the agenda as one of the presenters. Stone …

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Study guide

--- ### Meeting Overview The Bellingham City Council's Public Health, Safety, Justice, and Equity Committee met on June 1, 2026, chaired by Council Member Dan Hammill and joined by Council Members Huffman and Williams. The committee heard two items: an annual update from the Bellingham Whatcom County Commission on Sexual and Domestic Violence, and a request to authorize an agreement with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security for a FIFA World Cup security grant. --- ### Key Terms and Concepts **Bellingham Whatcom County Commission on Sexual and Domestic Violence:** A joint commission formed in 1998 by the City of Bellingham and Whatcom County to coordinate community-wide efforts to address sexual and domestic violence. It does not provide direct services but supports and coordinates organizations that do. **Pro Se:** A Latin term meaning a person represents themselves in court without an attorney. Many survivors seeking civil protection orders navigate the court system pro se, which can create barriers to accessing legal protections. **Temporary Protection Order (TPO):** A short-term court order — typically lasting about two weeks — that can be issued quickly to protect a person from contact or harm while a final hearing is scheduled. The commission noted Whatcom County has a high denial rate for TPOs compared to other counties in Washington State. **Preponderance of Evidence:** The civil legal standard used in protection order hearings, meaning it is "more likely than not" (roughly 50.1%) that the alleged conduct occurred. This is a lower bar than the criminal standard of "beyond a reasonable doubt." **Restorative Justice:** An approach to addressing harm that focuses on repairing relationships and accountability rather than solely on punishment. The commission is developing survivor-centered restorative justice processes as an additional option alongside existing legal pathways. **Neurobiology of Trauma:** The scientific understanding of how trauma affects memory, behavior, and reporting. Training on this topic is intended to help judicial officers understand why survivors may delay filing for protection orders or present their accounts in ways that seem inconsistent. **FIFA World Cup Grant (Federal Fiscal Year 2026):** A targeted federal grant from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to fund security and preparedness for FIFA World Cup events. Bellingham is designated as an official fan zone location. **Keep Washington Working Act:** A Washington State law that limits local law enforcement's cooperation with federal immigration enforcement (ICE). Concerns were raised that language in the FIFA grant contract could conflict with this law. **Preliminary Injunction:** A court order that temporarily prevents a law or policy from being enforced while litigation is pending. The City of Bellingham is party to a lawsuit against the federal government, and a preliminary injunction currently prevents certain federal grant conditions — including immigration-related requirements — from applying to the city. **Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and People (MMIWP):** A national crisis of disproportionate violence against Indigenous women and people. The commission hosts an annual summit on this issue to raise awareness and coordinate community action. --- ### Key People at This Meeting | Name | Role / Affiliation | |---|---| | Dan Hammill | Bellingham City Council Member; Chair, Public Health, Safety, Justice & Equity Com…

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