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The Elmer City council approved Michael Humiston as a new council member at their June 14 meeting.

“I enjoy living here, and feel that by serving on the council I can do my part to help support the community,” Humiston said later.

Humiston, who was born in Bremerton and raised in Tacoma, received a law degree from the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill in 1990, and also studied European Union law at the University of Amsterdam.

“My three areas of expertise are criminal defense, child welfare, and federal Indian law,” Humiston explained. ”I currently serve as conflicts counsel and guardian ad litem in the Colville Tribal Court.”

Humiston returned to Washington in 2012, and has lived in Elmer City since 2014.

“I learned something about the issues facing the town while working with the tribes’ Planning and Zoning Department,” Humiston said. “I’ve also been concerned ever since I went to renew my car registration and found I needed to pay $20 more for a town assessment. That was probably when I decided that town government is worth paying attention to.”

Elmer City’s Public Works Director Jimmer Tillman said he’s happy to have someone with a legal background on the council, something that could come in handy with issues such as Elmer City feuding with Coulee Dam over the cost of lift pumps to make a new wastewater treatment plant Coulee Dam is building work for Elmer City, as well.