Despite last-minute drama, Spokane voters will still have a say on anti-camping initiative

In the early afternoon Thursday, it looked like advocates for the homeless had won in court and pulled an anti-camping initiative off the general election ballot. But a judicial ruling mere hours later ensured voters will have a say on the issue after all.

Lawyers this summer have been battling over a proposal put forth by Spokane attorney Brian Hansen that would make Spokane’s anti-camping law far more strict.

The city already bans camping along the Spokane River, near downtown railroad viaducts and near homeless shelters, but Hansen wants to add to that list. He argues that Spokane should also prohibit camping within 1,000 feet of schools, day cares, parks and playgrounds.

The move would make it more difficult for homeless people to legally live in the city, and potentially expose Spokane to lawsuits, but Hansen says the change is needed to protect kids.

Spokane Low Income Housing Consortium Executive Director Ben Stuckart and Jewels Helping Hands, an organization that works to help the homeless, filed a legal challenge to Hansen’s initiative.

Their attorneys argue that the state Legislature put local governments in charge of homelessness planning. Therefore, voters don’t have the right to usurp the Spokane City Council’s authority and amend the city’s camping law through a ballot initiative.

Superior Court Judge Tony Hazel in August declined to pull the proposal from the ballot.

The plaintiffs took the issue to the Washington State Division III Court of Appeals and, for about five hours Thursday, it looked like they’d won. A court commissioner ordered the Spokane County Auditor’s Office to pull the initiative from the ballot.

The auditor’s office moved quickly because it had a Friday deadline to send the final version of the ballot to its print shop. Spokane County Auditor Vicky Dalton left work Thursday afternoon thinking the initiative had been stricken from the ballot and the debate was done.

But at around 4 p.m., a trio of appeals court judges undid the commissioner’s injunction. The anti-camping initiative must appear on the general election ballot, the judges said.

Dalton said she and Spokane County Elections Manager Mike McLaughlin quickly reverted to the original ballot and sent it to the print shop in advance of the Friday deadline. The court’s decision came not a moment too soon.

“This isn’t your normal kind of printer,” Dalton said. “This particular printer prints ballots for a huge part of the western United States, so it’s not like there’s just a couple of customers and things can get shifted around. These print schedules get set months and months in advance.”

In the end, the last-minute change didn’t cause any harm for the auditor’s office – only stress.

“A few more gray hairs for me and Mike,” Dalton said.

The anti-camping measure will appear on the general election ballot, but the legal fight isn’t over.

The court in October plans to hold a hearing on the issue. Dalton said the court could, in theory, decide Hansen’s proposal is invalid after voters have completed and mailed their ballots, and order the auditor’s office not to tabulate votes or release results. Such a ruling would be unusual, but not unprecedented.

Knoll Lowney, one of the attorneys representing Stuckart and Jewels Helping Hands, said he believes his clients still have a strong case.

“We’re confident that ultimately this measure will be declared illegal,” he said.

Attorney Mark Lamb, representing the defendants, said Thursday was one of the most “eventful” days he’s experienced in his more than two decades as a lawyer.

“I’m very pleased that the Court of Appeals recognized the right of the citizens of Spokane to be heard on this critical issue,” he said.