The Battle Ground City Council signaled Monday, Sept. 15, it will not pursue defending the “3-3-3” C-Tran board structure, despite concerns voiced by some members that the state’s mandate is more about politics than fair representation.
Weeks earlier, on Wednesday, September 3, the C-Tran Board of Directors voted 8-3 to reaffirm a “3-3-3” structure, with three seats each for Vancouver, Clark County, and the small cities. That vote directly defied guidance from the Washington State Department of Transportation, which had warned that the setup could leave C-Tran out of compliance with state law and ineligible for transportation grants after Oct. 1.
WSDOT has pushed for a proportional “4-3-2” arrangement, allocating four seats to Vancouver, three to Clark County, and two to small cities. State officials say anything less would underrepresent the county’s largest city and risk $10 million in annual grant funding. Ridgefield and other small cities have argued that the 3-3-3 plan is the only way to prevent Vancouver from controlling the board outright, since three of the county’s five districts overlap with Vancouver’s growth area.
The board structure issue comes at a time when smaller cities have argued against the potential inclusion of light rail in the I-5 bridge replacement project. While Vancouver and most County Councilors support the project, smaller cities remain hesitant to approve a countywide tax increase for light rail, which primarily benefits Vancouver. In March, Battle Ground’s city council approved a resolution 4-3 opposing the inclusion of light rail.
“Just to say the quiet part out loud, this law was a political tool, and I think it's going to be used in that way, and I don't think the 3-3-3 is going to be successful,” Battle Ground Mayor Troy McCoy said last week.
Victoria Ferrer, who stood in for Mayor McCoy during the Sept. 3 C-Tran meeting, agreed, saying the process was sidelining smaller cities.
“I agree with you, Mayor, it is political, and that just bothers me that we're in this position because of it,” she said. “It also makes me not want to just lie down and take it either.”
Councilmember Tricia Davis said she felt Battle Ground had a responsibility to stand with Ridgefield and others.
“I think that we should be standing with the rest of the smaller cities to try to get our voice, to get that representation,” Davis said.
Still, most members expressed reluctance to fund a court challenge, citing the potential high costs and low odds of success.
“I don't think it's going to be a fight we're going to win just because, like you said, it is a political thing right now. I think it's gonna be very costly for us,” councilmember Shane Bowman said.
McCoy added bluntly that pursuing the case would likely backfire.
“You punched the 800-pound gorilla, and you hope they don't punch back,” McCoy said. “We are a small city at the end.”
The council majority ultimately directed its representative not to pursue the 3-3-3 model at the C-Tran composition board meeting, leaving other small cities to decide if they will continue the legal push.
The next C-Tran board composition meeting is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. Sept. 22 at 10600 NE 51st Circle in Vancouver.
