Drafter
Clerk 04/19/2004
Title
A MOTION accepting the final report of the commission on governance and thanking the members of the commission for outstanding service to the citizens of King County.
Body
WHEREAS, the metropolitan King County council adopted Ordinance 14514 creating the King County commission on governance to examine and make recommendations on the portfolio of services, operations and structure of the county, including:
1. Whether or not the service areas historically funded by the current expense fund should be provided to the public by King County;
2. How each of the current expense service areas should be provided to ensure long-term efficiency and accountability on the part of King County;
3. How each of the current expense service areas should be paid for by King County to ensure adequate long-term funding; and
4. How the county's governance structure and governance policies should be changed, if at all; and
WHEREAS the members of the commission represented a variety of professional backgrounds, opinions and geographical areas within King County, and
WHEREAS, the commission held a series of twenty-six regular working meetings and two community forums to collect information, receive public testimony, discuss ideas and develop recommendations, and
WHEREAS, the commission conducted a thoughtful analysis of human services issues and the challenges associated with providing such services in the region, and
WHEREAS, the commission conducted a thorough review of the county's law, safety and justice system, and
WHEREAS, the commission conducted a detailed appraisal of various management issues, including organizational structures, labor management policies, service delivery systems and financial management practices, among others, and
WHEREAS, the commission conducted a comprehensive review of the county's governance system, structures and policies, including a comparative analysis with other jurisdictions around the country, and
WHEREA,S the commission has, after extensive research and deliberation, provided the county with numerous recommendations for improvements ranging from broad themes to specific changes, and
WHEREAS, the members of the commission were selfless in their commitment and tireless in their effort to identify issues, research options and develop solutions for the betterment of King County government and as a public service to the citizens King County, and
WHEREAS, the commission on governance transmitted their final report to the Metropolitan King County Council on March 31, 2004, and
WHEREAS, the council shall review the recommendations and consider the most appropriate methods for implementation, whether through changes to internal county processes, adopting legislation or new policies, referring potential charter amendments to a vote of the public, advocating for changes to state law or federal regulations or working to build coalitions to improve or modify existing systems that involve multiple jurisdictions;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT MOVED by the Council of King County:
That we accept the final report of the commission on governance and thank Dave Gering, co-chair, Steve Goldblatt, co-chair, Richard Bonewits, Richard Derham, Mark Endresen, Arun Jhaveri, Sharon Maeda, Jim Montgomery, Bill Ptacek, Kathleen L. Royer and Steve Williamson for their outstanding service to the citizens of King County. The
council also thanks Berk & Associates for their outstanding work to provide professional facilitation and research services to the commission.