🌼 Spring Edition - Auditor’s Office Quarterly News and Updates

Snohomish County, Washington sent this bulletin at 03/11/2025 09:15 AM PDT

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Auditor's Office: Animal Services, Elections, Licensing, and Recording

Now Available: 2024 Auditor's Office At A Glance report

The Snohomish County Auditor’s Office is pleased to present our 2024 Auditor’s Office At A Glance. This report highlights our office’s key accomplishments in 2024 and shares a brief look at what we’re focused on in 2025.

In this year’s Auditor's Office At A Glance, you can read about how we listened to suggestions from pet owners to improve our pet licensing process, how we opened a top-notch elections facility to enhance election security and transparency ahead of the Presidential election, and how our recorded documents notification tool is helping Snohomish County residents monitor recorded document activity related to their property. Take a moment to check out the report.

Read our 2024 At A Glance ➡

2024 Auditor's Office At A Glance report thumbnail

Annual Disability Advisory Committee Meeting for Elections

Snohomish County Elections is dedicated to ensuring every voter has the opportunity to cast a private and independent ballot. If you’re interested in learning more or have questions, ideas, or suggestions regarding voter accessibility in Snohomish County, we invite you to attend our annual Disability Advisory Committee meeting on Tuesday, March 25, 2025, at 10:00 a.m.

This annual meeting provides an important opportunity to collaborate with committee members and community partners to help us enhance the accessibility of our services and ensure transparent, accessible voting for all. This year, attendees can choose to participate in the meeting either in person on the Snohomish County campus or virtually via Zoom.

This year’s meeting will focus on:

Reviewing Current Efforts: Evaluation of our ongoing initiatives aimed at improving accessibility.

Exploring New Approaches: Discussion of strategies to further enhance the voting experience for individuals with disabilities.

If you plan to attend, please RSVP so we can ensure proper planning for both in-person and online participation. To RSVP for in-person attendance, fill out this Microsoft Form, or to RSVP for virtual participation, register on Zoom.

Register to attend in-person ➡

Register to attend via Zoom ➡

Transfer or Recycle Your Old License Plates

Do you have unwanted Washington or out-of-state license plates and aren’t sure what to do with them? Before tossing them, consider your options. You can save money and reduce waste by transferring your old plates to another similar vehicle registered and titled in your name. It’s an easy process that can be done in-person at a local vehicle licensing office or by mail. To learn how, visit the Washington State Department of Licensing's website.

If transferring your plates isn’t an option, you can bring them to a local licensing office or Snohomish County Licensing, and we will recycle them for you for free!

Snohomish County Licensing works with a local metal recycling company to recycle unwanted license plates from any state. For more information, contact Snohomish County Licensing.

Disaster Preparedness for Pets

Disasters can strike without warning, and during emergencies, your pets will depend on you even more for their safety and well-being. That’s why it’s essential to include them in your family’s emergency plan. By preparing in advance for the unexpected, you can ensure your furry family members remain safe when disaster strikes.

Keep these key tips in mind as you prepare:

Make a Plan: If you need to evacuate during a disaster, take your pets with you— if it’s not safe for you, it’s not safe for them. Plan ahead by identifying pet-friendly hotels, boarding facilities, and emergency care options like friends or family. For livestock and large animals, ensure you have a plan for transport and shelter, and know where to find facilities that can accommodate them in an emergency.

Build a Pet Disaster Preparedness Kit: Create two emergency kits – a large one for sheltering in place and a lightweight version for evacuation. Include the basics like food, water, medications, important documents, and other pet-specific supplies. Review them regularly to ensure the contents, especially foods and medicines, stay fresh. For more tips and a helpful checklist on what to include in your pet’s emergency kit, use the CDC's Pet Disaster Preparedness Kit.

Stay Informed: Pay attention to local and statewide emergency alerts and sign up for Snohomish County Emergency Alerts and Smart911. Follow evacuation or shelter-in-place instructions and be prepared to make decisions based on evolving situations.

Thinking About Running for Office?

Candidate filing for the 2025 ballot begins on Monday, May 5 and runs through Friday, May 9. More than 180 local offices are up for election in Snohomish County this year. Whether you are a first-time candidate, already an elected official, or on the fence about running for office, Snohomish County Elections is here to provide support through workshops and resources designed to help explain the process of filing and running for public office in Snohomish County.

In April we are offering a series of four candidate workshops that will cover how to file for office, campaign finance laws, guidelines for the Local Voters’ Pamphlet, and other important candidate information. The dates for the workshops are:

Workshop #1: April 7 at Mountlake Terrace Library, 3:30 to 4:30 p.m.

Workshop #2: April 9 at Marysville Library, 3:30 to 4:30 p.m.

Workshop #3: April 11 at the Snohomish County campus, 1:30 to 2:30 p.m.

Virtual Workshop: April 14 on Zoom, 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. (This session will be recorded and available on our website for later viewing)

Campaign Finance Presentation with PDC: April 26 at the Snohomish County Campus, 10 to 11:30 a.m.

Additional information including a complete list of offices up for election, workshop details, candidate filing fees, and position qualifications is available on our website. Contact Snohomish County Elections at (425) 388-3444 or elections@snoco.org with questions.

Navigating Your Post-Wedding Name Change

Changing your last name after marriage is a personal decision, and there is no legal requirement for either party to do so. However, if you decide to make the change, you’ll need to provide a certified copy of your marriage certificate to each agency individually. Since there is no centralized process for updating your name across all organizations, each agency must be notified separately.

Start by updating your name with the Social Security Administration (SSA). Once your name is officially changed with the SSA, updating it with other agencies will be easier because they can use the SSA’s records to confirm your new legal name. From there, you can move on to updating your name with various agencies and organizations, including:

Immigration Services

Passport Office

Department of Licensing (State Driver’s License or Identification Card)

Snohomish County Elections (voter registration)

Banking Institution

Insurance Companies

Your Employer

To order a certified copy of your marriage certificate, visit Snohomish County Recording in Everett or order copies online. To learn more, visit the Recording Division's website.

The Role of Pro and Con Committees

Local elections play a crucial role in shaping our communities, and pro and con committees help voters make informed decisions by providing opposing perspectives on ballot measures.

When a local jurisdiction places a measure on the ballot, they appoint members of the public to serve on these committees. The pro committee writes a statement in favor of the measure, while the con committee writes one against it. Both committees also have the opportunity to rebut each other’s arguments. These statements are published in the local voters’ pamphlet.

Each jurisdiction’s legislative authority appoints up to three members to each committee. If the jurisdiction does not appoint these committees by the deadline, the County Auditor issues a media release and publishes information on the county elections website seeking applicants. If nobody comes forward to serve on a committee, the Auditor will note this in the voters’ pamphlet.

Pro and con committees adhere to specific rules regarding word limits, deadlines, and the use of rebuttal statements to ensure a fair process. By offering a “debate” in print, pro and con committees ensure that voters can hear both sides of an issue before casting their vote.

A person holding a local voters pamphlet open to pro con statements

For more information on how to get involved in a pro or con committee, visit the Snohomish County Elections website or contact your local jurisdiction.

About the Snohomish County Auditor’s Office

Through the dedicated work of 46 public employees, the nonpartisan Auditor’s Office registers voters and conducts elections; issues pet and kennel licenses; responds to animal-related safety incidents; licenses cars, boats, and other vehicles; records property and other legal documents; issues marriage licenses; and performs many other customer-focused vital government services.

Elected Auditor Garth Fell has led the office in Washington’s third largest county since 2020 and is a nationally certified elections administrator who has overseen nearly 100 elections over his 25-year career. Auditor Fell also serves as treasurer of the Washington State Association of County Auditors and as a member of the Washington State Recording Standards Commission.

For more information, including opportunities to observe ballot processing at our new Elections Center, visit snoco.org/auditor; follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and X; or email us at auditor@snoco.org. You can view our annual reports and learn more about the Auditor's Office here.