Councilmember Nehring's January Newsletter

Dear North County Neighbors,

I hope you all enjoyed celebrating Christmas. I wish you and your families well as we welcome a New Year. Last year was challenging for all of us and I believe we are more resilient and prepared for the days to come. In this month’s newsletter, I will highlight the County’s Legislative Breakfast, our work on economic recovery in Snohomish County, and my presentation to EASC at their Coffee Chat.  

Legislative Breakfast 

Each year, the Snohomish County Council and County Executive host our state legislative delegation for a breakfast and presentation of our legislative priorities for the year. Snohomish County touches seven different legislative districts which means we have 7 State Senators and 14 State Representatives that represent us in the State Legislature in Olympia. Snohomish County sets a legislative agenda to outline our priorities including policy changes and funding requests for the operating and capital budgets at the state level.  

This year’s legislative breakfast was held on Friday, December 11^th via Zoom. We had much of our legislative delegation in attendance and had great discussion about our priorities for the upcoming legislative session. We provided an update on the County budget in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and CARES Act relief funding as well as our various legislative priorities. 

I presented the County’s ongoing support and request for funding for the Regional Apprenticeship Pathways (RAP) Program. The RAP Program is a pre-apprenticeship training program located at Marysville-Pilchuck High School and is open to students from across Snohomish County. We received funding for the first two years of the program in the 2019-2021 biennial budget and we are now asking for funding for the next two years of operations.  

The RAP Program has been a huge success in training the next generation of workers in the building and construction trades. There is a lot of promise in the growth of the program and we look forward to more discussions with legislators in the coming months about the importance of the program for workforce development.  

Economic Recovery 

As businesses and workers continue to struggle through the economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, Snohomish County has launched several campaigns to assist workers and employers. In addition to the direct COVID relief grants to businesses, Snohomish County has used CARES Act funding to help connect displaced workers with employment opportunities in the county. SnoCoWork.com is a website that allows job seekers and employers to connect to help get our residents back to work quickly. The website is free for both parties and is easy to use. I am grateful to Arlington Mayor Barb Tolbert for sharing the idea and to the County staff who launched the website so quickly. Please feel free to share this resource with anyone you know who is looking for work or is looking to hire in Snohomish County.  

Another recent effort in Snohomish County for economic development is called Project ReInvent. Project ReInvent is a partnership between Workforce Snohomish and the Northwest Innovation Research Center. The goal of this partnership is to support new startup businesses with resources, expertise, and strategies to assist with long term success. This is another resource for recently displaced workers who may be looking to start their own companies in Snohomish County.  

EASC Coffee Chat 

On Tuesday, December 15^th, I joined Economic Alliance Snohomish County (EASC) for a Coffee Chat on revitalizing the economy. I was proud to present alongside other business and community leaders to discuss ways that we move forward in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. I shared the work that Snohomish County has done, in partnership with leaders in the private sector, to support businesses and workers including SnoCo Work, our business grants, Support SnoCo (a shop local campaign and website), the RAP Program, our regional collaboration effort with SWISS, and an update on the Cascade Industrial Center (CIC) in Arlington and Marysville. There is a lot of work to do in our economic recovery following the COVID-19 pandemic but we have many great opportunities in the coming months and I look forward to continuing this work in the new year.  

I send out newsletters on a monthly basis to keep you informed about what I am working on and how I am representing the residents of North Snohomish County on the County Council. Please feel free to reach out to me at 425-388-3494 or Nate.Nehring@snoco.org.

Sincerely,

Nate Nehring
Councilman, District 1

Snohomish County Council 3000 Rockefeller Ave., M/S 609 Everett, Washington 98201   8th floor, Robert J. Drewel Building  Phone: 425-388-3494 E-Mail: Nate.Nehring@snoco.org   Russell Wiita, Legislative Aide