The Clallam County Elections Department recently earned state-level recognition for successfully completing its emergency preparedness plan.

The department formally was commended by the Office of the Secretary of State at an awards ceremony on June 10 during the 2015 Washington State Elections Conference in SeaTac.

The plan, known as a Continuity of Operations Plan, is designed to ensure that essential departmental functions and services such as conducting elections, holding candidate filing, and facilitating voter registration, continue during an emergency.

It was developed by the county’s three-person Elections Department that includes Voter Registration Coordinator Julie Maxion, Elections Supervisor Ken Hugoniot and Elections Assistant Renee Mizar, along with Auditor Shoona Riggs.

“In completing the (plan), our Elections Department is proactively participating in the countywide effort to develop emergency preparedness plans for all county offices,” Riggs said. “We are already building on this success by creating similar plans for each department within the Auditor’s Office as well.”