As we look forward to the long Martin Luther King, Jr. Day weekend, I hope you will join me in reflecting on Dr. King’s legacy. The first thing we need to do is recognize that his fight is not over – it’s our fight now. Inequities and discrimination based on race continue and we can each do our part to educate ourselves, connect with community, and decide how we can help bring Dr. King’s dream to fruition.
On Monday, the City of Bellevue is holding their annual MLK Celebration and Health Fair, which focuses on people and organizations who experience or respond to racial and health inequities. To learn about the inequities in our community and how we can work together to eliminate them, register for the MLK Celebration and Health Fair today.
As part of our annual celebration, King County prepared a video celebrating Dr. King around the theme of his quote “The time is always right to do what’s right” and James Baldwin’s insight that “Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced.”
My top priorities for 2022
 On Tuesday, the King County Council approved leaders and committees for 2022. For a third year, my Council colleagues unanimously elected me to serve as their chair.
2022 looks to be another challenging year at the King County Council, when we will once again need to work collaboratively to meet the evolving and emergent needs of our community as the COVID-19 pandemic continues. This year, we will continue to deliver the services and value we provide as a regional and local government.
Here are my top priorities for 2022:
- Continue responding to and recovering from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic
- Make major steps in law enforcement reform in the King County Sheriff’s Office, starting with appointing a new sheriff
- Continue our focus on providing desperately needed housing and make real progress on addressing our homelessness crisis
- Combat and respond to climate change
- Adopt our biennial budget the most significant policy document the Council considers
I look forward to our work together in the coming year.
COVID crisis is so dire we need the national guard
As the Omicron variant surges, King County has seen a 102% increase in new COVID hospitalizations over the last week at the same time hospitals are experiencing staffing shortages. To respond to this growing crisis, yesterday, Governor Inslee announced that he is deploying members of the Washington National Guard to help staff overburdened hospitals and set up testing sites across the state. I am grateful to these National Guard members for their service during these difficult times.
You can help, too! If you’re not yet vaccinated, get it now. About 80% of patients hospitalized during COVID aren’t vaccinated.
Are you a retired healthcare worker? You can assist with vaccinations, testing, and other medical needs.
Beginning January 19th, your household can order four free at-home COVID-19 tests, courtesy of the federal government.
An election so special it has its own Election Day
 Educating residents on the benefits of native plants and encouraging us to plant our own is just one of the many services KCD provides.
Maintaining our natural resources and preserving our region’s beautiful environment are top priorities for me and for many of you. King Conservation District (KCD) provides landowners, schools, and scientists free information and technical assistance on everything from water quality protection to wildlife habitat enhancement to farm conservation plans.
From January 18th to February 8th, KCD is holding an election for a seat on its Board of Supervisors. This election is unique because ballots will be available online for eligible voters and voters can return their ballots electronically. Prefer a paper ballot? You can print yours and return it by mail or to King County Election’s office.
Spread the word!
Please forward this email widely and invite others to sign-up to my email updates to receive important and timely information for District 6 constituents.
Sincerely,
 Claudia Balducci
King County Council
District 6
|
