Board of Commissioners
There are three Yamhill County Commissioners who are elected to serve terms of four years each.
Click here to find each commissioner's areas of responsibility.
Kathy George - Chair
Kathy is currently serving in her third four-year term as Yamhill County Commissioner, and in 2013 is Chair of the Board. Since she began her service as a commissioner in 2003, she has worked to ensure cost-effective, responsive, and accountable government.
As liaison commissioner to the county's Health & Human Services department, Kathy has prioritized cooperation and coordination between non-profits, faith-based groups, local citizens, and county departments in providing needed services. She has prioritized support-employment services for those with severe mental illnesses so they can live more normal lives. She is liaison commissioner to NorthWest Senior & Disability Services and to the regional Behaviorial Care Network. She serves on the Board of Directors for the newly-established Yamhill County Coordinating Care Organization, whose aim is to improve the health of the community, improve the health care experience of each individual, and improve the affordability of health care.
As commissioner, Kathy formed the Yamhill County Water Task Force, composed of representatives from all ten communities in the county working together to ensure adequate long-term water supplies for local communities. She is also a member of the Association of Oregon Counties Water Committee, which monitors legislation that might affect the water rights of local citizens and cities.
Kathy helped create a Ten-Year Ending Homelessness Plan and Governing Council for Yamhill County, to prevent and eventually eliminate chronic homelessness by helping individuals achieve maximum self-sufficiency through permanent housing and coordinated services.
She serves as liaison commissioner to various other county departments, including Veterans Services. In the past she has served as liaison to the Sheriff’s Office, Community Corrections, District Attorney’s Office, Juvenile Department, Emergency Management, Planning, Parks, and the Clerk’s Office.
Kathy currently serves as chair of the Board of Directors for YCAP, the county's regional food bank and the not-for-profit CAP agency serving low-income members of the community.
She represents the Association of Oregon Counties on the State Interoperability Executive Council (SIEC) and serves as chair of the SIEC Partnership Subcommittee to the State Radio System. Before becoming chair of the Partnership Subcommittee, she served on the governor’s Oregon Broadband Advisory Council.
Kathy worked as a Legislative Assistant in the state legislature from 1995 to 1997.
Click here to e-mail Commissioner George
Mary P. Stern - Vice Chair
Mary was first elected as County Commissioner in November 2002 and is serving her third term and final term.
Mary Stern was born and raised in Waltham, Massachusetts, a western suburb of Boston. Mary graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Criminal Justice from Westfield State College in 1981. She received her Juris Doctorate from Suffolk University Law School in 1991. After graduating from law school, Mary was selected by the U.S. Department of Justice as an Honors Attorney and was assigned to the Federal Bureau of Prisons' Western Regional Office. In August of 1992, she transferred to the Federal Correctional Institution in Sheridan, Oregon, where she served as the Attorney Advisor, and later as Executive Assistant to the Warden. Mary left the prison in 1998 to work at the U.S. District Court in Portland.
Mary and her husband, Matt, live in McMinnville where they are raising their daughter, Sydney. Mary has been involved on the boards of Arts Alliance of Yamhill County, Hillside Communities, Tiny Tots Club, Habitat for Humanity, YCAP, the Oregon Construction Contractors Board and the Oregon Workforce Investment Board. Mary chaired YCAP’s successful $3.2 million capital campaign, resulting in the 2011 opening of a new Food Bank and Client Services Center. In addition to the responsibilities listed on the link, Mary currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Willamette Valley Cancer Foundation, YCAP’s Resource Development Committee, and the Oregon Criminal Justice Commission. In November 2012, Mary was elected by her peers throughout the state as the President of the Association of Oregon Counties; she is the first Yamhill County Commissioner to hold this position in the organization’s 106-year history.
Click here to e-mail Commissioner Stern
Allen Springer- Commissioner
Allen was elected to his first term as County Commissioner in November 2012.
Allen lives in McMinnville with his wife of 23 years, Kerri, who is also his business partner. They have four amazing children. His family has been in McMinnville since 1920. Allen graduated from McMinnville High School, and he has been on an incredible journey working and living in Yamhill County. He and his wife have provided jobs through Allen Springer Construction, Inc., since it was started in 1989, and those years of small business experience have shown him the need for government to be creative in solving the unique economic challenges of our time without additional government regulations or taxation.
Allen served a four-year term as McMinnville City Councilor from 2002 to 2006. He has also served on the Builders’ Advisory Committee, the Oregon Economic Development Committee, and the Ad Hoc Committee for the McMinnville Police Station. He is active in his church and holds chapel services for those in the Sheridan prison.
Allen is honored to continue serving the people of Yamhill County in his new role as County Commissioner, and is committed to supporting public safety, protecting property rights, maintaining an efficient transportation system for the region, and recruiting and expanding local employment opportunities. He is serving as liaison commissioner to various county departments and committees, including Public Works, Emergency Management, Transit, the Assessor’s Office, Court Security, the Solid Waste Advisory Committee, and the Fair Board. Allen believes that the people of Yamhill County are its greatest asset, and welcomes the opportunity to work together to build stronger, safer communities.
Click here to e-mail Commissioner Springer
You may contact the commissioners by phone at (503)434-7501, by individual email, or by mail:
Yamhill County Commissioners Office
535 NE 5TH St.
McMinnville, OR 97128
