The Future We Choose:
Partnerships and Service
Snohomish
County’s Budget for 2019
 Executive Somers Delivers Budget Address for 2019
We’re living in a moment of significant
change across Snohomish County and the Puget Sound region. Change is evident in our climate, our
economy, and our landscapes. In our
daily lives we see it everywhere: From technological changes shaping how we
shop and drive and learn, to our growing population putting pressure on our
housing costs and transportation system.
As we address challenges and take advantage
of opportunities, it’s essential that we pause for a moment and ask ourselves: What
is the future we choose to create?
We all know that our costs of doing business
are rising faster than our revenues. This reality requires us to re-imagine how we do business and how we provide
the services our residents need and expect. The answer for 2019 is to become more
efficient and more effective. I truly believe there are many things we can do to improve our
service to the public, improve the working conditions of our employees, and do
so even in the face of limited resources.
Partnerships
and Collaboration
Partnerships and collaboration are critical
to our continued success as a community, because they help us identify and
implement the most sensible solutions for our most stubborn challenges. That’s why I’m very proud to say that this year’s budget has been marked
by the most bipartisan and collaborative process in the county’s history.
We took a new approach this year with the county council. Council members were invited into
the budget making process early and often. We shared with them insights about our
decision-making. We wanted to open and extend ourselves to ensure there would
be no surprises and that we could put forward a balanced budget that
reflects the values of our community.
We also spent considerable time listening to
our residents. The values of our community guide our strategic decisions. We know that public safety
is the top priority. We know that taxpayers feel the burden of paying for
federal, state, and local needs. We know that many—but not all—are benefiting from our growing economy. We have heard about housing affordability, education,
the needs of our seniors, transportation, our beautiful parks, opioids, and all
the other issues that the public most cares about. These priorities from our
community are reflected in the budget I present today.
We must acknowledge that we are all facing
challenges that don’t respect city or county borders. From Stanwood to Index,
Edmonds to Everett, and Mill Creek to Granite Falls, we are all in this
together.
We are grateful for the outstanding work
accomplished with our state and federal partners. They have been instrumental in
helping us bring more state and federal funds to the county to address pressing
needs in job training, housing, transportation, the opioid epidemic, and more.
We are very thankful for our strong
partnership with the Navy and veteran community. We are continually looking for
ways to provide additional support to Snohomish County’s service members, veterans,
and their families.
We are working hard to make our case for Boeing’s
New Midmarket Airline, the NMA, to be built right here. We want Boeing to
thrive in our community now and for the next 100 years. I established the
county’s NMA Task Force to ensure we are working with the county council, cities,
ports, educational institutions, and others to put our best foot forward to
further grow this partnership that has lasted for decades. In the 2019 budget,
we are investing to make sure we will have an aggressive recruitment effort. We
are ready to compete and succeed in landing the NMA.
Service
I want Snohomish County to be a great place
to work. I want to recruit and retain the best workforce possible. I want there
to be pride in a job well done. This is the future we choose. We can only do
this with the help of everyone who works at Snohomish County.
Today, I am launching STEP (Service, Technology, and Excellence Program) 2.0 to bring a new
burst of energy to our effort. In STEP 1.0, we launched the initiative,
established our continuous improvement office to lead our efforts, and started
down the path of organizational transformation. We want to guide the people who
do the work so that they can better serve our customers. These were great first
steps and started the process of culture change and improved service.
With STEP 2.0, we will be expanding our efforts
by adding to our leadership development program. We will work on multiple
fronts, with diverse tools, and bring greater efficiency and effectiveness to
everything we do.
In the past couple of years, we have
successfully consolidated our enhanced Emergency Communications Office into
DEM, enabling significant advances in our emergency preparedness. Our 911 systems have joined together and now our emergency radio system is looking to do the same. We have also consolidated elsewhere and will
continue to look for efficiencies in how we are structured. This work will
continue in 2019. If there are efficiencies to be found, we will pursue them.
Conclusion
For me, the budget is not just about dollars
and cents. It’s about our priorities. Our values. How we want to improve life
in our community. Yes, we balanced our budget for 2019. Yes, we avoided
significant cuts and any lay-offs because of the strong economy. We once again
made public safety our number one priority. We have started the courthouse
renovation project, saving upwards of $86 million. If all goes as planned, in
2019 our residents will be able to fly out of Paine Field, the airport of choice,
to destinations across the country. While our county infrastructure is
aging, we have a plan to address it. We have improved the fund balance to
better handle the next economic downturn. These are the facts you’ll see in the
budget book we hand to Council today.
Change is here, and we are ready for it. With our
partnerships and a dedication to service, we will be able to create the future
we choose for Snohomish County.
 Executive Somers hands proposed 2019 budget to Council Chair Wright
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