Seattle, Washington
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Contents |
[edit] Website evaluation
This website was reviewed on March 18, 2012.
[edit] The good
- City council members are listed with contact and term information.[2] Other elected officials are listed with phone numbers and an email form.[3]
- Meeting schedules, agendas, minutes, and videos are posted.[4]
- A staff directory is posted.[5]
- Budgets are posted.[6]
- Audits are posted.[7]
- Bid opportunities and contracts are posted.[8]
- Zoning[9] and building permit information is posted.[10]
- The budget for the city's department of intergovernmental relations is posted.[11]
- Business tax rates are posted.[12]
- Information on, procedures, and contacts are posted for making public records requests.[13]
[edit] The bad
- Email addresses are not available for elected officials other than city council members.
- The site does not disclose whether the city belongs to any Taxpayer-funded lobbying associations.
[edit] Elected officials
[edit] Mayor
Seattle's mayor is Mike McGinn.[14]
[edit] City council
| Name | Position | Term |
|---|---|---|
| Sally J. Clark (President) | 9 | 2012-2015 |
| Sally Bagshaw | 4 | 2010-2013 |
| Tim Burgess | 7 | 2012-2015 |
| Richard Conlin | 2 | 2010-2013 |
| Jean Godden | 1 | 2012-2015 |
| Bruce A. Harrell | 3 | 2012-2015 |
| Nick Licata | 6 | 2010-2013 |
| Mike O'Brien | 8 | 2010-2013 |
| Tom Rasmussen | 5 | 2012-2015 |
[edit] Budget
[edit] 2012
| Area | Expenditures | % of Total |
|---|---|---|
| Utilities & Transportation | $2.3 billion | 58% |
| Public Safety | $534.3 million | 14% |
| Neighborhoods & Dev. | $117.2 million | 3% |
| Health & Human Svcs | $134.3 million | 4% |
| Arts, Culture & Rec. | $274.5 million | 7% |
| Funds, Subfunds, Other | $48.1 million | 1% |
| Administration | $510.9 million | 13% |
| Total All Funds | $3.9 billion | 100% |
[edit] 2013
The city is required by law to have a balanced budget. Seattle anticipates at $42 million budget deficit for 2013, meaning the city will need to address this through cuts and/or increasing revenue.[15]
[edit] Taxes
[edit] Open records compliance
In 2008, a report by Washington state Auditor Brian Sonntag was critical of Seattle's government for the way it handled public records requests under the Washington Public Records Act. Sonntag said the city's compliance with requests was "inefficient" and fell short "of the legal requirements of the state's Public Records Act. In only two of 10 cases did the city meet the state's compliance standards." Each department in the city has its own rules for complying with requests, and people who submit requests are required to submit them to specific departments, since there is no central processing office.[16]
The Seattle Post-Intelligencer conducted a survey in 2007 of 270 law-enforcement agencies in the state of Washington; this survey found that the only agencies in the state that were less responsive to public records requests that the Seattle Police Department were "police agencies operated by sovereign Indian tribes not subject to the state's open records law."[16]
The Seattle City Council has an Open Government Committee. The Seattle City Council voted unanimously on April 27, 2009 to implement legislation that will increase transparency. The legislation is planned to take effect by November 1, 2009. [17]
[edit] External links
- See sample transparency legislation at the Sunshine Standard
- Washington on State Budget Solutions
- City government website
- Historylink.org provides a collection of articles on the history of Seattle and Washington. See especially their history of Seattle and King County.
- Seattle City Council is committed to open government, April 10, 2009
[edit] References
- ↑ U.S. Census "Quick Facts," Accessed March 18, 2012
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Seattle.gov "City Council Contact," Accessed March 18, 2012
- ↑ Seattle.gov "Elected Officials," Accessed March 18, 2012
- ↑ Seattle.gov "Committees & Agendas," Accessed March 18, 2012
- ↑ Seattle.gov "Staff Directory," Accessed March 18, 2012
- ↑ Seattle.gov "City Budget," Accessed March 18, 2012
- ↑ Seattle.gov "CAFRs," Accessed March 18, 2012
- ↑ Seattle.gov "Purchasing," Accessed March 18, 2012
- ↑ Seattle.gov "Land Use Planning," Accessed March 18, 2012
- ↑ Seattle.gov "Permits," Accessed March 18, 2012
- ↑ Seattle.gov "2012 Budget: Administration," Accessed March 18, 2012
- ↑ Seattle.gov "Taxes," Accessed March 18, 2012
- ↑ Seattle.gov "Public Disclosure," Accessed March 18, 2012
- ↑ Seattle.gov "City Officials," Accessed March 19, 2012
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 Seattle.gov "2012 Adopted Budget: Introduction," Accessed March 19, 2012
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 Seattle Times, "Guest column: Seattle falls short of state open-government standards", March 27, 2009
- ↑ Council approves ordinance to increase 'transparency', Ballard News-Tribune, April 27, 2009
