According to research by the Pew Charitable Trusts, Washington is the only state with a negative “rainy day fund.” This is in contrast to the nationwide trend leading to record amounts accumulated in states’ rainy day funds. The state does have other reserves it can draw on in times of …
Continue readingA Tale of Three Homelessness Dashboards
The surest sign that someone new is in charge of the response to the homelessness crisis is that they publish a new “dashboard.” Both Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell and the King County Regional Homeless Authority (KCRHA) have recently published new dashboards, each presenting their own unique spin on the crisis. …
Continue readingKing County Regional Homeless Authority Proposed 2023 Budget
Last week the Governing Committee of the King County Regional Homeless Authority approved a proposed 2023 budget for the organization of $227,403,776, an increase of more than $66 million over the 2022 budget. Here is the presentation to the Governing Committee on the proposed budget. It contains a significant amount …
Continue readingKing County plan for City Hall Park
As reported by the Seattle Times this morning, the King County Executive prepared a report in January on what it would do to address safety and security concerns in City Hall Park and to establish a hygiene center nearby, should the transfer of the property from the City of Seattle …
Continue readingCDC mask mandate appeal
In April, a U.S. District Court judge in Florida struck down the Center for Disease Control’s mask mandate. Earlier this week, the U.S. government filed a brief with the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals to try to overturn the lower court’s ruling. I hope you found this article valuable. If …
Continue readingSPD Sexual Assault/Child Abuse Unit Staffing Memo
As first reported by the Seattle Times, in April SPD Sgt. Pamela St. John sent this memo to Interim Chief Adrian Diaz detailing the extreme understaffing in the department’s sexual assault/child abuse investigations unit, and the impact that it is having on the unit’s ability to complete investigations. I hope …
Continue readingGallup poll on police reform
Last week Gallup released the results of a recent poll on Americans’ views on reforming police departments. According to the poll, the vast majority of Americans believe that there need to be reforms, though there is a split between those who prefer major reforms versus more measured ones. More Black …
Continue readingLow Income Housing Institute report to City Council
This week the Low Income Housing Institute, which operates nearly all of the city’s “Tiny House” villages along with other permanent supportive housing and affordable housing projects, is presenting a status report to the Seattle City Council. Here are the slides they submitted in advance. The slides provide status updates …
Continue readingSeattle City Auditor Status Report on Implementation of Recommendations
The Seattle City Auditor issues a report approximately annually (it’s been fourteen months since the last status report) on the status of city departments’ implementation of its recommendations from audit reports that it has issued over the past few years. This year, the report is shorter, with a link to …
Continue readingSeattle Comprehensive Plan “engagement hub”
The City of Seattle has published an “engagement hub” for residents to learn about and provide input into the upcoming major update to the city’s Comprehensive Plan, which Mayor Harrell has dubbed the “One Seattle Plan.” The web site includes: A survey for residents to provide input. Act fast; the …
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