This evening the City of Seattle submitted to the U.S. District Court its third-quarter 2022 accountability report. I hope you found this article valuable. If you did, please take a moment to make a contribution to support my ongoing work. Thanks!
Continue readingAnnual Public Safety Survey is open
The City of Seattle’s annual Public Safety Survey, administered by Seattle University, is open. You can fill out the survey here.
Continue reading“The Index” poll – September 2022
The Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce has released its September 2022 poll update for “The Index”. I wish the sample size were bigger — it’s only 700 people — but it’s still a fascinating look into public opinion in Seattle. I hope you found this article valuable. If you did, …
Continue readingSeattle City Auditor report on methamphetamine treatment
Today the Seattle City Auditor released a report investigating and making recommendations on methamphetamine treatment in Seattle and King County. These days the news headlines are dominated by the very serious issues with opioid addiction and overdoses, but meth addiction and overdoses are also skyrocketing. The Auditor’s report argues that …
Continue readingSeattle’s annual greenhouse gas inventory
This week Seattle’s Office of Sustainability and Environment published its biannual inventory on the city’s greenhouse gas emissions. It makes for an interesting read. As might be expected, emissions dropped dramatically in 2020 compared to 2018. It is unclear how much they have already returned to pre-pandemic levels. I hope …
Continue readingBiden administration weighs in on Seattle’s hotel worker healthcare mandate
A legal challenge to Seattle’s ordinance mandating that hotel employers provide healthcare to their employers has been in limbo for a year, waiting for the U.S. Supreme Court to decide whether to take the case. In May, it asked the Solicitor General, the official representative of the federal executive branch, …
Continue readingSeattle Council district map update
The Seattle Redistricting Commission has made another tweak to the proposed new City Council district map, unrolling in part the last tweak it made that moved all of Magnolia into District 6 but pulled part of Fremont into District 7. This new map makes a few other small tweaks. The …
Continue readingCity Council/Mayor’s Office “Term sheet” on developing alternative 911 response
The offices of the Seattle City Council and Mayor Harrell have quietly signed a “term sheet” laying out a cooperative effort to develop “an action plan and timeline for implementing the City’s Alternative 911 Response.” The term sheet involves four main deliverables: 1) An executive-drafted policy document outlining the framework …
Continue readingCity Council staff memo on 2023 budget “general fund” deficit
The Seattle City Council’s staff have published a budget memo detailing the issues with the predicted deficit for the General Fund. It summarizes where the deficit came from, the Mayor’s proposal to deal with it in his proposed 2023 budget, and various options for the Council to consider in building …
Continue readingOffice of Inspector General “Wave 3” sentinel event report on SPD response to 2020 protests
Today the Office of the Inspector General for Public Safety released its “Wave 3” sentinel event report on the Seattle Police Department’s response to protests in the summer of 2020. Wave 3 includes SPD’s abandonment of the East Precinct building, its response (or lack thereof) to 911 calls in the …
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