How Commissioners are Selected
The Commission consists of 16 unpaid, citizen members selected by two methods:
Nine members are randomly selected by the Secretary of State from the rolls of registered voters, one from each Congressional District.
Seven members are selected jointly by the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives; one each from:
- private institutions of higher education;
- business;
- professional personnel management;
- the law;
- organized labor; and
- two members are recommended to the President of the Senate and to the Speaker, one by the chair of the Washington State Personnel Resources Board and the other by the presidents of the state's four-year institutions of higher education.
The Secretary of State and the Speaker of the House and President of the Senate send the names of the 16 individuals to the Governor for formal appointment to a four-year term that begins on July 1 and ends on June 30.