RCW 43.180.090 Selection of bond counsel—Written policies to be adopted.

(1) The commission shall adopt written policies to provide for the selection of bond counsel. The policies shall provide for the creation and maintenance of a roster of attorneys whom the commission believes possess the requisite special expertise and professional standing to provide bond counsel opinions which would be accepted by the underwriters, bondholders, and other members of the financial community, and which would be in furtherance of the public interest in obtaining the lowest possible interest rates on the bonds issued by the commission. Any attorney may apply to have his or her name placed on the roster, but may not be placed on the roster unless the attorney demonstrates to the commission's satisfaction that the attorney would issue the kind of opinions required by this section.

(2) Prior to selecting an attorney or attorneys to provide bond counsel services, the commission shall provide all attorneys on the roster with a notice of its intentions to select bond counsel and shall invite each of them to submit to the commission his or her fee schedule for providing bond counsel services. The commission shall have wide discretion in selecting the attorney or attorneys it considers to be most appropriate to provide the services, but in the exercise of this discretion the commission shall consider all submitted fee schedules and the public interest in achieving both savings in bond counsel fees and issuance of bonds on terms most favorable to the commission. At least once every two calendar years, the commission shall select anew an attorney or attorneys to serve as bond counsel. However, the commission may retain an attorney for longer than two years when necessary to complete work on a particular bond issue. An attorney previously retained may be selected again but only after the commission has provided other attorneys on the roster with an opportunity to be selected and has made the fee schedule review required under this subsection. In addition to or as an alternative to retaining counsel for a period of time, the commission may appoint an attorney to serve as counsel in respect to only a particular bond issue.

[ 1983 c 161 § 9.]