Your guide to the Metropolitan King County Council 2010 Seated (from left): Larry Gossett, Jane Hague (Council Vice Chair), Bob Ferguson (Council Chair), Julia Patterson, and Larry Phillips. Standing (from left): Jan Drago, Reagan Dunn, Peter von Reichbauer, and Kathy Lambert . As your Metropolitan King County Council, we oversee • wastewater treatment and solid waste management; the 14th most populous county in the nation and the • regional parks, open space and trails; and second largest government in Washington State. With • elections, records, and licensing. 1.9 million people living within 2,134 square miles, King County has a population larger than 14 states and The nine members of the King County Council each covers more territory than the state of Rhode Island. represent a geographic district of about 200,000 resi- dents. Councilmembers are elected on a nonpartisan Our dedicated employees provide quality regional basis and serve four-year terms. services every day to county residents. We are also the local government for the 350,000 people who live in The Council has four standing committees that oversee the urban and rural unincorporated areas and provide specific government functions, and a Committee of the services by contract to many of the county’s 39 cities. Whole that includes all Councilmembers and examines issues of interest to the entire Council. As the legislative branch of county government, the Council sets policies, enacts laws, and adopts budgets We also work closely with elected officials from local that guide an array of services for this region, including: jurisdictions on three regional committees that address our common interests in matters of policy, transit, and • the criminal justice system of prosecutors and public water quality. defenders, District and Superior Courts, juvenile detention and adult jails; By carefully scrutinizing every ordinance, motion, and • the King County Sheriff’s Office, which directly serves budget over many years, the Council has identified and residents of unincorporated areas and contracts with implemented hundreds of millions of dollars in savings many cities to provide police protection; and efficiencies. • public health and human services; • Metro Transit bus service and county roads; Get agendas, minutes, and meeting videos online at: www.kingcounty.gov/council Message from the Council Chair King County provides critical The Council is improving accountability by enhancing services that you rely on every oversight of high-risk capital projects, such as Brightwater. day. We operate buses, To make government more accountable, we will continue maintain the wastewater to perform audits and follow through on their system, manage courts and recommendations to improve services. jails, and deliver direct services, such as police protection for For example, the Council recently faced a $213 million unincorporated communities. budget shortfall for Metro Transit and a proposed nine As Chair, my priority is to percent cut to bus service. Instead of business as usual, ensure that we provide these we required a comprehensive audit of Metro’s operations. services in a fiscally prudent, By implementing efficiencies identified in the audit and Bob Ferguson reprioritizing existing funds, we balanced Metro’s budget Council Chair accountable, and transparent manner. and preserved bus service. Like the state and other local governments, King County We are increasing transparency by improving the process of faces significant budget challenges during this economic responding to public records requests and making the budget downturn. We continue to take fiscally responsible action, easier to understand, so you know how your tax dollars are including: spent. • balancing the 2010 budget; Let me know how we are doing, and please use this resource • setting aside millions of dollars in a rainy day fund; and guide to contact your representative and become engaged in • maintaining a stellar bond rating, which saves taxpayer county government. It is an honor to serve you. dollars by lowering borrowing costs. The county budget King County is the tax collector for all taxing districts within the county. Although the property tax check you Where your property tax dollar goes 50 ¢ write is payable to King County, the county receives only 17 cents for every dollar. The rest goes to other agencies (see bar graph at left). The county budget is composed of two separate funds: 17¢ 18 ¢ dedicated funds and the general fund. Dedicated funds 13¢ is the largest portion, at 87% of the total county budget. Dedicated funds can be utilized only for specific 2¢ purposes, such as transit, sewage treatment, and voter- approved programs. Port of Other King Cities & Schools Seattle districts County Towns The smaller share of the county budget (13%), is the general fund that pays for critical day-to-day services General fund expenditures for 2010 not supported by other revenues. Three quarters of the general fund (76%) goes to support state-mandated Other, 2% criminal justice and public safety services, with the remainder paying for other programs, such as health Capital improvement, 1% Law, safety, and human services. (See pie chart at left.) and justice, General Counties across the state face a structural gap between 76% government,16% revenue and cost of services. While expenses rise 4-5 Physical environment, 1% percent a year, state law limits increases in property taxes to 1 percent plus revenue from new construction. Public health, 4% The projected deficit, or difference between revenue and costs, is $60 million for 2011. Previous deficits More information at www.kingcounty.gov/council/budget were $56 million in 2010, and $93 million in 2009. King County’s urban and rural landscape LAKE BOTHELL FOREST SHORELINE PARK KENMORE WOODINVILLE 1 DUVALL SKYKOMISH KIRKLAND EDMOND YARROW R HUNTS 4 POINT POINT CLYDE CARNATION 3 HILL 6 S MEDINA BEAUX 2 ARTS AMMAMISH MERCER S ISLAND ISSAQUAH NEWCASTLE SNOQUALMIE RENTON NORTH 8 BEND BURIEN TUKWILA NORMANDY SEATAC Vashon PARK Island 5 DES MOINES Incorporated city and KENT Isl y ur a APLE M COVINGTON M Urban unincorporated community VALLEY 9 0Uninco1234rporat5 ed6789 King Co10unty MILES 0510 FEDERAL WAY A BLACK Council district boundary 7 DIAMOND KILOMETERS ALGONA MILTON PACIFIC MajorInco urbanrporat unincorporateded city areas Eastgate Urban unincorporated community East Federal Way ENUMCLAW East Renton FairwoodUnincorporated King County Juanita / Finn Hill / Kingsgate Kent CoNortheastuncil distri (to bect annexedboundar toy City of Kent in July) Klahanie North Highline (to be annexed to City of Burien in April) West Hill / Skyway Contact information Which Council district do I live in? The King County Council meets Mondays Clerk of the Council Enter your address at at 11:00 a.m. on the 10th floor of the King E-mail: [email protected] www.kingcounty.gov/ County Courthouse. You can watch all Telephone: (206) 296-0364 council/councilmembers meetings held in the chambers live on King County TV, cable channel 22, and online at Online our Web site. Agendas, minutes, and archived Visit the Council Web site to sign up for RSS feeds video of past meetings are also available of agendas and minutes, Twitter updates, and more. online at www.kingcounty.gov/council. Dist. Councilmember Phone E-mail Mailing address Metropolitan King County Council 1 Bob Ferguson 296-1001 [email protected] King County Courthouse 2 Larry Gossett 296-1002 [email protected] 516 Third Avenue, 12th Floor 3 Kathy Lambert 296-1003 [email protected] Seattle, WA 98104-3272 4 Larry Phillips 296-1004 [email protected] 5 Julia Patterson 296-1005 [email protected] Telephone 6 Jane Hague 296-1006 [email protected] (206) 296-1000, Toll-free: (800) 325-6165 7 Peter von Reichbauer 296-1007 [email protected] Fax: (206) 296-0198 8 Jan Drago 296-1008 [email protected] TTY/TDD: (206) 296-1024 9 Reagan Dunn 296-1009 [email protected] Committees and special governments The King County Council reviews proposed legisla- Regional committees tion through a number of standing committees that oversee specific government functions. Councilmem- Regional Policy bers work closely with elected officials from local juris- Countywide plans and policies on issues such as human services, solid waste, public health, and criminal justice. dictions on regional committees that address common Second Wednesdays at 3:00 p.m. interests in policy, transit, and water quality. In addition, Chair: Peter von Reichbauer Councilmembers serve as the Board of Supervisors Vice Chair: Auburn Mayor Pete Lewis of two special-purpose governments, created under Members: Reagan Dunn, Bob Ferguson authority provided by the State Legislature. Suburban Cities Association Members: Issaquah Mayor Ava Frisinger, Federal Way Deputy Mayor Dini Duclos, Newcastle Council committees City Councilmember Sonny Putter City of Seattle Members: Councilmember Tim Burgess, Committee of the Whole Councilmember Sally Clark Legislation and issues of interest to the entire Council, including the county strategic plan and labor policy. Regional Transit Wednesdays at 9:30 a.m. Transit services; facilities such as bus shelters, park & ride Chair: Jane Hague lots, and bus bases; and passenger and operator safety. Vice Chair: Larry Phillips Third Wednesdays at 3:00 p.m. Members: All Councilmembers Chair: Larry Gossett Vice Chair: Kathy Huckabay, Samammish City Council Budget and Fiscal