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Councilmember Dave Gossett September 19, 2008
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Snohomish County Council
3000 Rockefeller Ave. M/S 609
Everett, Washington 98201
 
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Snohomish County Council
3000 Rockefeller Ave., M/S 609
Everett, Washington 98201
 
Office: 8th floor, Robert J. Drewel Building
Phone: 425-388-3494

County Council Concludes 

Community Budget Forums
 

Hundreds Urge Cost-Effective Funding for Public Health, Mental

Health & Self-Help Programs

 

The Snohomish County Council went on the road in Sept. to introduce local residents to the process of producing the county's budget, to highlight the serious problems facing county finances, and to ask the public for their funding priorities as the county deals with declining revenues and increasing demands for services.

The county anticipates a $9.6 million budget shortfall through the end of this year, with revenues continuing far below expectations into the next 2009-2010 biennium.

"People are deeply concerned about the Executive's proposed service cuts," said Councilmember Dave Gossett. "Hearing from our citizens is a crucial part of the budget process."

200 Turn Out 

Budget forums were held in Arlington, Silver Firs and concluded in Edmonds Monday night, Sept. 15. All the forums were well attended, with roughly 200 attendees overall.

A large majority of forum attendees asked the council to balance possible reductions in county services across the board, rather than making sharp cuts to effective people-oriented services, including the Health District, Senior Centers, and Family Support Centers. Others begged the council to restore Project Self-Sufficiency and the staffing for the Office of Children's Affairs. Supporters of the county's new Human Rights Commission also asked for staffing.
Mental Health

Additionally, the county council was urged by many to approve a one-tenth of one percent sales tax dedicated to treating mental health and addiction victims. The state legislature has authorized counties to impose this tax and many have, including Skagit and King counties.

"I was impressed by the testimony in favor of enacting the 1/10 of one percent sales tax for mental health and drug and alcohol addiction services," said Councilmember Gossett. "These preventive services not only improve people's lives but make us all safer by reducing crime."

The Health District 

While the Health District is a separate organization, all five county councilmembers sit on the board. The other 10 board members are city elected officials. At the recent forums the county council heard many requests for additional health district funding.

Health District Director Gary Goldbaum has proposed drastic service cuts. Councilmember Dave Gossett again made it clear that those cuts were off the table.

"The Board of Health met last week," said Gossett, "and we said we are not going down that road. We will be looking at a variety of strategies to deal with this," he said, adding that if cuts prove necessary, direct service programs should be last on the list, not first in line.

"I want to thank all the people who turned out," said Gossett. "The testimony made it clear we need to take a very hard look at the Executive's proposed cuts. We need to put people first."
  2009-2010 County Budget

Continuing Public Participation Opportunities

The County Council is committed to public participation in the preparation of Snohomish County's first biennial budget for the years 2009 and 2010. Reaffirming their commitment to open, transparent government, the council recently opened several new lines of communication, including a targeted web-based response form.

The council's budget commentary web form can be found by going to the county's homepage at www.snoco.org and entering "comment on the budget" into the "Search For" box located in the middle top of the homepage. Then click on Comment on the 2009-2010 Recommended Budget, fill out the information requested and enter your comments.

Comments about the 2009-10 proposed county budget will be made a part of the public record, which must include your name, address, city, state, and zip code.

Citizens can also contact the county council directly by e-mail at Contact.Council@snoco.org, or by letter to Snohomish County Council, 3000 Rockefeller Ave. M/S 609, Everett, Washington 98201.

Budget Panels

The council will scrutinize every taxpayer dollar they allocate in the county's 2009-2010 budget through the lenses of three panels that support the council's overarching theme of "Sustaining & Enhancing the Quality of Life for Snohomish County Residents." The panels are:

·     Panel 1 "Mobile, Livable & Sustainable Communities," chaired by Councilmember Mike Cooper.

·     Panel 2 "Safe & Healthy Communities," chaired by Councilmember Dave Gossett.

·     Panel 3 "Public Accountability," chaired by Councilmember John Koster.

The public is welcome to attend all panel meetings, as well as all meetings and hearings on the budget. Panel meetings and hearings may also be viewed live on the council's webcasting site - see details below. The schedule of these meetings and hearings follows:

Committee of the Whole Budget Deliberations

11 am Wednesday: Sept. 24, & Oct 29 

Budget Panel Meetings

·      Panel 1: Mobile, Livable & Sustainable Communities
  9 am - 12 pm: Oct. 7, Oct. 14, & Oct. 21

·      Panel 2: Safe & Healthy Communities
  1 - 4 pm: Oct. 8, Oct. 15, & Oct. 22

·      Panel 3: Public Accountability
   9 am -12 pm: Oct 9, Oct 16 & Oct. 23

Budget Public Hearings Schedule

Public Hearing on the Executive's Proposed Budget Ordinance
& the Biennial Public Forum on County Operations
   Wed., Oct. 1, at11 am

Public Hearing on the 2009-2010 Biennial Budget
   Wed., Nov. 5 at 10:30 am & 6:30 pm

Possible date for continuation ofPublic Hearing on the 2009-2010 Biennial Budget
   Monday, Nov. 24 at 10:30 am

Most council meetings are held in the Henry M. Jackson Board Room, in the Robert J. Drewel Building, on the County Campus at 3000 Rockefeller Ave, Everett. Please call 425-388-3494 to confirm meeting schedules.

All Council Meetings and Hearings Are Webcast Live  

To view all county council meetings and hearings live or archived go to the county's homepage at
www.snoco.org and enter "Council Webcasts" into the "Search For" box located in the middle top of the homepage.

County's Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program Helps Families Cope with Winter's Harsh Heating Bills

Low-income county residents can expect to continue receiving financial help with their heating bills this winter. This week the county council approved a contract allowing Snohomish County to receive almost $1.5 million for direct energy assistance. These funds will be distributed to qualified low-income residents by the Energy Assistance division of the county's Human Services Department.  

The department expects to receive additional federal Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) funding early next year. Additional funding also comes from Puget Sound Energy's HELP program and Cascade Natural Gas' Washington Energy Assistance Fund.

 
"This program helps so many people," said County Councilmember Dave Gossett. "In the last heating season they served 4,589 households with grants averaging $408 per household to help pay for their heating costs.
 
About 78 percent of the households receiving assistance heat with electricity and about 20 percent heat with natural gas. The remainder use fuel oil or propane.

 
I hope you found this eNEWSLETTER to be informative and useful. You can make it even more valuable by suggesting topics and issues for future newsletters. Please contact me at 425-388-3494, or e-mail Dave.Gossett@snoco.org. If you would like to share this newsletter, select the Forward email link below.
Sincerely,
 

Dave Gossett
Snohomish County