Bingle proposes resolution opposing vaccine mandates

A week after he was censured for refusing to wear a mask, Spokane City Councilman Jonathan Bingle waded again into pandemic politics.

Bingle introduced a resolution Monday that would formally oppose vaccine mandates.

If approved, the nonbinding resolution would state the council’s opposition to any and all mandatory vaccinations.

The proposal was briefly discussed during the council’s Public Safety and Community Health committee meeting on Monday and will likely be voted on later this month.

There is no imminent vaccine mandate, beyond what is already in place, at the local or state level.

The city of Spokane does not have a vaccine requirement for its employees, except for those subject to the mandate for health care employees, such as firefighters, implemented by Gov. Jay Inslee last year.

The U.S. Supreme Court blocked a federal vaccine-or-test requirement for large employers proposed by President Joseph Biden last month.

Still, Bingle expressed concern about the impact a vaccine mandate would have on the city’s workforce. He pointed to its effect on the Spokane Fire Department, from which seven of 331 employees retired or resigned rather than receive the vaccine when it was required late last year.

An additional 10 firefighters chose one of several options laid out by the city that placed them on a layoff list, according to city spokesman Brian Coddington. They remain in good standing with the city and are eligible to return to work if they get vaccinated or if the mandate is lifted.

The Spokane Fire Department’s overtime costs have soared in recent years. With funding approved by the City Council, the city has embarked on a public overtime study that will analyze the cause of the overtime surge – which Bingle attributed in part to the vaccine requirement.

“I just worry that if we were to institute a wider mandate than just health care workers … we could lose a lot of people,” Bingle said.

While he acknowledged the limitations the Supreme Court’s recent ruling had on the federal government’s desire to implement a vaccine mandate, Council President Breean Beggs argued local and state governments “have historically been granted great public health powers.”

“I will continue to put my strong support and my vote towards saving lives using the best available science,” Beggs said.

“Beggs said he does not have the “qualifications” to propose a vaccine mandate, “but if our local health officer recommended it, I would consider it with appropriate exemptions.”

The council censured Bingle last week – a formal reprimand that carries no tangible consequence – after he refused to wear a mask while at City Hall, a violation of the state’s mask order and city policy.

The anti-mandate resolution is expected to be placed on the council’s Feb. 28 agenda.

Editor’s note: This story was changed on Feb. 9 to update the date on which Bingle’s proposal is expected to be voted. It is now Feb. 28.