SILVERDALE — After hearing public testimony, it was a “no-brainer,” as one resident called it, when the Kitsap County Board Commissioners adopted a policy for the county to maintain a working relationship with the local tribes.

The decision came during a public hearing Nov. 24 at which the commissioners took testimony on the Kitsap County Countywide Planning Policies, which were developed and recommended by the Kitsap Regional Coordinating Council earlier this year.

Of the nine issues on the table, the policy for the county to continue working with the Port Gamble S’Klallam and Suquamish Tribes sparked the majority of the evening’s testimony.

At a work study session earlier this month, Commissioner Jan Angel had proposed changing the policy language and removing the word “government” in association with the tribe, Commissioner Chris Endresen explained Tuesday.

The policy language describes how the county and tribes should work together on land use, growth and planning issues.

In a room of about 100 people, approximately 30 residents signed up to testify on the tribal issue alone. Most of them encouraged the commissioners not to remove the word “government” from the policy and to continue, if not strengthen, the communication lines between the county and the tribes.

Susan Leavell of Bremerton said she believes the document is important to creating a strong relationship.

“The way to understand each other is communication,” she said. “I respect this document, I support this document. We need to keep communicating with each other and respecting each other.”

Fran Korten of Bainbridge Island said the tribes are just like any other federal entity and should be treated and respected as such. If the county wants to conduct responsible planning, it needs to communicate with all entities involved, including the tribes, Korten said.

“I am honored as a non-native person that the tribal council people here are wanting to work with us,” she added.

Suquamish tribal member Merle Hayes explained how the tribe already has government-to-government relationships on a state level with Gov. Gary Locke and the Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife.

“It’s kind of embarrassing when you have people in the county who want to change that,” Hayes said, noting that tribe has a lot to offer the county and both parties could benefit from working together.

“Our concerns are your concerns,” he said. “We can have smart growth, we just have to be smart about it. We are a government and it’s a slap in the face when someone wants to take it away and not use it.”

As the county commissioners prepared to adopt the policy, Angel clarified her position and said she was concerned with the policy at first.

“I had questions about it — I did my research and I’m very comfortable with it,” she said.

Commissioner Chris Endresen said the next step will be to set up a meeting with the tribes to start talks.