Snohomish County Councilman Kirke Sievers wants the employee at the center of a hiring controversy to testify before the County Council’s finance committee.

James Lee, a former campaign worker for County Executive Aaron Reardon, was hired by the county in March to work on economic development issues.

But his hiring as a temporary employee in the Office of Housing and Community Development, at an annual salary rate of $75,524, has drawn the attention of council members.

Sievers said he has asked Craig Ladiser, director of the county’s planning department, to bring Lee to the committee meeting on Tuesday to answer questions.

“Tell us what he’s doing,” Sievers said.

Though the council rarely expresses such interest in a county employee, Lee’s case has been different. Most of the questions raised so far center on his salary and why he’s still on the county payroll as a temporary employee. Temp employees normally work for the county for six months at a stretch. Lee has been on the job for almost eight months.

Bob Derrick, deputy director of the planning department and Lee’s supervisor, said earlier that Lee has been able to stay longer than six months because he’s been helping out on special projects.

Lee has been working on economic development issues, doing research on topics such as the NASCAR racetrack proposal, and exploring possible grant funding for agricultural activities.

Lee did not return calls for comment on Thursday, and did not respond to a reporter’s note left at his office.

Lee, a Harvard graduate, was hired March 1. Derrick said he considered Lee for a job after his resume was passed along by Reardon’s office. Lee’s references weren’t called before he was hired, and he wasn’t picked from a pool of job candidates.

Direct ties exist between Lee and his family and Reardon’s campaign last year for county executive.

Lee was a paid employee of Reardon’s campaign for county executive, and received $25,000 for three months of work. Lee’s mother was involved in one of the more notable controversies that sprang up during the 2003 election after a political action committee she set up was investigated by the state Public Disclosure Commission.

Eun Lee, James Lee’s sister, was also the subject of a campaign mailer sent by Reardon’s campaign. In it, she said Reardon was the only state legislator who would talk to her after she was the victim of an attempted assault.

Council concern over James Lee’s job with the county has stretched across party lines, with Sievers, a Democrat, and Council Chairman John Koster, a Republican, voicing similar concerns.

“That’s a pretty substantial salary,” Koster said.

Council members want to know what hiring rules apply to temporary employees, how many temporary employees are working for the county and how much they are being paid.

“We will be asking those questions,” Koster said.

Then there’s the issue of paying county employees to work on economic development when the council is already contributing $80,000 a year to the Snohomish County Economic Development Council.

In past years, the council has considered pulling back on positions for economic development. Reardon’s proposed 2005 budget, however, calls for more staff so an economic development team can be formed to promote job growth.

The council sets the total number of county employees every year at budget time. This year, the final number will receive widespread interest because of earlier warnings that county jobs will be cut in light of a potential $13.3 million budget deficit next year.

Reporter Brian Kelly: 425-339-3422 or kelly@heraldnet.com.