Councilmember Nehring's October Newsletter

Snohomish County, Washington sent this bulletin at 10/01/2023 06:00 AM PDT

Dear North County Neighbors,

Lynnwood Building Bridges Event

On Tuesday, September 12th, Councilmember Mead and I hosted the third community event as part of our Building Bridges Tour. These events focus on bringing together community members from diverse backgrounds and political persuasions to discuss political polarization and how to promote more civil discourse in politics and within our communities.

The September 12th event was held at the Lynnwood branch of Sno-Isle Libraries. The room was packed with over 75 community members engaging in great discussion and learning from each other. We heard common themes related to the root causes of polarization including media, fear, and social isolation. We also heard great feedback about combating polarization which included in-person gatherings as well as dialogue to promote understanding.

In The News

Editorial: Spanning growing political divide by giving a listen – Everett Herald, Sept. 7

Paper or plastic? Snohomish County may require businesses to take cash – Everett Herald, Sept. 11

Common ground cultivated at ‘Building Bridges’ event – MyEdmondsNews, Sept. 13

Snohomish County invests $1.5 million in Digital Equity and Broadband Access – Lynnwood Times, Sept. 18

The 2023 Building Bridges Tour will culminate with a large community event in Everett later this year. Keep an eye on future newsletters for more information about that event. You can read more about the Lynnwood Event in this MyEdmondsNews article.

Politics Fulbright course at Universidad Austral

I had the opportunity to be a guest presenter for a Politics Fulbright course at Universidad Austal in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The course was taught by former U.S. Congressman, Brian Baird. It was great to talk with 70+ students about county government, the next generation of elected leaders, and the importance of civility and bringing people together during times of divisiveness.

Executive Proposes 2024 Budget

On Tuesday, September 26th, Snohomish County Executive Dave Somers proposed his 2024 recommended budget. In a presentation at the County Campus in Everett, Executive Somers shared the challenges facing the County’s finances including the fact the expenditures are growing faster than revenues. Because of this, new programs and staffing are generally limited in the proposed budget.

Over the next month, the County Council will take a deep dive into the Executive’s budget. We will hear directly from County department directors and independently elected officials about their budgets and any changes proposed by the County Executive.

After budget presentations, the Council will go to work deliberating on what changes to make to the recommended budget and ultimately adopting the final budget in early November. There are multiple opportunities for the public to comment throughout the budget process. On October 11th, the Council will host a Community Budget Forum at 6:00 PM. We are also scheduled to hold budget hearings on October 24th at 6:00 PM and November 8th at 10:30 AM. All of those meetings will be held both in-person and via Zoom. You can learn more about those meetings and how to participate at the Council’s Meeting Webpage.

If you have specific ideas or suggestions for the budget, or have any questions about the process, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me at any time by emailing Nate.Nehring@snoco.org.

Fentanyl Discussion

The fentanyl and meth epidemic has impacted every community across our county, state, and country. Addressing this epidemic is one of my priorities on the County Council. On Thursday, September 28th, I had the opportunity to join other elected officials and public safety leaders at a lunch discussion with author Sam Quinones. Sam is the author of “Dreamland” and The Least of Us” where he chronicles the drug epidemic which has ravaged communities.

During the lunch discussion last week, Sam highlighted the difference between the drugs on the street now versus the days of heroin and cocaine. The synthetic drugs we are seeing now are much more potent, cheap, and accessible than drugs of the past. This has created a situation unlike those we have faced in the past. Because of this, we need new approaches.

Sam highlighted the high rate of treatment refusal among those on the street. He suggested that we need to be focused on involuntary treatment to give those who are addicted to fentanyl and meth a chance for detox and clarity to get themselves on a better path. This is something they are increasingly unlikely to do if left to their own devices on the street.

I appreciated Sam’s thoughts as he shared his perspective after reporting on these issues for years. To learn more about Sam and the books he has authored, you visit his website at this link.

"You've Been Served" Event

The Washington State District and Municipal Court Judges’ Association (WDMCJA) hosts an annual “You’ve Been Served” event where state, county, and city elected officials are invited to one of our local courts to participate in a statewide hybrid gathering to learn more about the work happening in our district and municipal courts. This year’s event was held on Wednesday, September 27th. Hosted by District Court Judge Beth Fraser and Everett Municipal Court Judge Amy Kaestner, I joined other county and city elected officials at the Everett Municipal Court for this year’s event.

At the event we heard from Washington Chief Justice Steve González and other judicial officers about the innovative work happening in our local courts, particularly in specialty courts such as community court, drug court, and mental health court. These specialty courts are focused not only on accountability but also addressing the underlying causes of the situation defendants find themselves in. I appreciated the opportunity to learn more about this work and how we can support it moving forward.

9/11 Ceremony and NCRF Training Center Grand Opening

This year, several ceremonies were held across the County to honor the lives lost 22 years ago on September 11th, 2001. This was also the day of the grand opening for the new Fire Training Center at North County Regional Fire. We had the opportunity to tour the training center following the ceremony. This new, state of the art facility will give local firefighters and other first responders a regional center for critical training. It is a great investment for our region and will be used for years to come.

Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office New Hires

In September, Sheriff Fortney shared that the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office met their goal of 100 new hires in 2023. This is a great early achievement and as a result, the goal for the full year has been extended to 150 new hires. As staffing issues continue to cause problems for law enforcement agencies throughout the state, it is great to hear that so many new hires are coming to work for the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office.

County EV Test Drive

Snohomish County has started replacing aging vehicles with electric replacements as part of our fleet electrification program. In September, I had the chance to tour some of the new EVs with our Facilities & Fleet team. We got a tour of the new Facilities work van and Ford Mustang Mach E which will be one of the fleet pool vehicles.

The Fleet team is doing a great job identifying the right EVs for our needs and I look forward to this program expanding in the coming years.

DNR Carbon Sequestration Forest Panel Discussion

The state legislature has provided the Department of Natural Resources with funding to swap certain older timber trust lands with younger forest lands in an effort to combat carbon impacts on the environment. The proposal has raised many questions about the impacts to the timber industry and local economy, funding for the local beneficiaries including schools, and environmental impacts.

At our County Council General Legislative Session on Wednesday, September 27th, we hosted a panel discussion including representatives from the Department of Natural Resources, American Forest Resources Council, Center for Responsible Forestry, Washington State Association of Counties, Tulalip Tribes, and the Sultan School District. The panel discussed some of the pros and cons of the program as well as the impacts of program implementation. Ultimately the County Council will take a vote on any swaps that occur in Snohomish County.

I appreciate all of the panelists for sharing information and their perspectives on the CSF program. I look forward to learning more and ultimately taking action on this proposal at a future Council meeting

Evergreen State Fair

The annual Evergreen State Fair in Monroe wrapped up on Labor Day (September 4th). This year’s fair was another great event with a variety of exhibits, great food, concerts, rodeo, rides, and much more. I would like to thank all of the fair staff, volunteers, vendors, and exhibitors who put so much effort every year into the fair.

This year, turnout at the fair was a bit down compared to last year. We had about 10% less attendees at the 2023 fair compared to 2022. Even with less attendees overall, our concert ticket sales were up 7% and the rodeo had another year of two sold-out shows.

My family and I enjoy the fair every year and can’t wait for another great event next 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 425-512-4810 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