Neighbors,
Last November voters in King County approved the groundbreaking
Best Starts for Kids tax levy. Throughout the summer, my colleagues at the
Council and I have worked to guide how the County will invest nearly $400
million over the next six years in the most comprehensive child and youth
initiative in the nation. I am proud to announce that earlier this month the
Council completed its work, by passing the final budget allocation.
As I mentioned above, Best Starts for Kids is clearly a
program unlike any other in the nation. Other initiatives tend to focus on
helping people experiencing immediate crisis; in contrast, Best Starts for Kids
will focus on early intervention with the hope of preventing those crises, like
homelessness, domestic violence, and mental illness, altogether.
This means investing in children early in life to promote
positive development. Starting with pre-natal care, nearly half of the revenue
generated by the levy will focus on strategies that invest in children from
birth to age 5, when 92 percent of brain growth occurs. While many jurisdictions
support child and youth development, most notably with preschool, Best Starts
for Kids starts at birth and continues through full brain development at age
24.
The King County Children and Youth Advisory Board, which
includes researchers, educators, community leaders, content experts, and representatives from non-profit organizations throughout the County will monitor the
implementation and progress of Best Starts for Kids. The Board will ensure that
the program can adapt to emerging community needs as the program takes shape. Programs
funded by Best Starts for Kids will roll out in phases with an emphasis on
innovation and adapting proven programs to fit local community needs. A robust
evaluation framework will provide data to course correct along the way.
It has been a long road from the voter’s approval of the
levy to the October 3rd passage of the final piece of legislation.
Best Starts for Kids is a plan for creating the communities that we want to
build in King County. Communities that hold children, youth and families as
integral members of our society, and where we actually put our resources to work supporting this value.
I can truly say that this is the most progressive piece of
legislation that I have worked on in my 16 years as an elected official. I am
proud to have worked on such a revolutionary initiative, and proud to serve the
people of King County who made it possible.
As always, don’t hesitate to contact me with any questions
or concerns.
Yours,
Joe
Addressing Gun Violence
In King County
more people are killed by gun violence than car crashes; 70% of gun-related
deaths are suicides, and we lose $183 million in medical costs and lost productivity
each year. This year, King County is undergoing a major update of our
Comprehensive Plan. As a guiding document, I believe the Comprehensive Plan is
a key place for King County to lay out the principles to address this
challenge.
I am working to
amend the Comprehensive Plan to direct Public Health to collect data on gun
violence. Public Health will work with local partners to create policy
solutions that will make more communities safe, collaborate with housing
funders, planners, and non-profits to identify strategies to increase safety
from gun violence, and to identify opportunities to improve gun safety in
existing affordable housing standards. I expect the Comprehensive Plan to be
adopted before the end of the year, and hope it will include strong and clear
direction to help King County address the senseless violence of guns.
Flood Preparedness
Excess stormwater runoff can cause problems including sewage
back-ups, flooded streets and river contamination. The King County Flood
Control District is working to address these types of issues in two
neighborhoods in our district. In the South Park area the combined sewer system
is under capacity to manage stormwater runoff. The result has been repeated
flooding of street right-of-way and private properties. The South Park 14th
and Concord Sewer Improvement Project will design and construct drainage and
wastewater system conveyance and add storage improvements to reduce surface
flooding and stormwater related sewer backups.
In Tukwila, the Flood Control District is funding
construction of a salmon habitat project along the Duwamish River just west of
East Marginal Way S. called Duwamish Gardens. This will create nearly an acre
of high priority shallow water habitat in the transition zone between fresh and
salt water, promoting salmon recovery within the Green/Duwamish watershed. The
City of Tukwila, supported by flood district funds, has removed buildings,
excavated the site to create mud flats and marsh, planted the slopes with
native vegetation and constructed a short trail and overlook.
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