Budget Wrap Up, Transgender Day of Remembrance, December 16 In-District Office Hours UPDATE, Call for Public Comment on Source of Income Discrimination

Home » Budget Wrap Up, Transgender Day of Remembrance, December 16 In-District Office Hours UPDATE, Call for Public Comment on Source of Income Discrimination

Budget Wrap Up

I’ve been writing to you weekly since September with updates on the deliberations on the proposed 2017-2018 budget.  This will be my last budget update of the year because on Monday, the City Council adopted the 2017 City of Seattle budget and 2017-2022 Capital Improvement Plan.

As part of the biennial budget process, the Council also “endorsed” a 2018 budget that will serve as the base for next year’s budget process.

Earlier in the day, before the Full Council vote, the Budget Committee met one last time to consider items held from the November 16 meeting.

The Council adopted one addition item I was lead sponsor on: creation of a Child Care Mitigation Fund, to address the displacement of before-and-after school child care from Seattle School District buildings. The funding would be available for use by the District and to child care providers to make arrangements to keep child care on-site at schools or assist in relocating where providers would otherwise be displaced. This is funded in 2017 through cuts in funding for currently vacant positions in various City departments.

Last week’s newsletter noted a number of items I worked on; here’s a link to the summary of all the changes the Council made; the lead sponsor is listed at the end, though many of the proposals had additional co-sponsors.

The budget includes funding for 72 additional police officers in 2017-2018, as part of the 2015-2019 plan to hire an additional 200 officers, along with funding for a variety of items that will enhance transparency and accountability.

Transgender Day of Remembrance

Last Sunday, I had the honor of participating in the Transgender Day of Remembrance. Every year, on November 20, transgender communities and their allies gather to remember the lives lost to anti-transgender violence that year and to celebrate and support those who survive. In 2016, at least 24 transgender people were murdered in the United Sates. The majority of those killed in 2016 were transgender women of color.

Please take a moment to honor the lives of these courageous people: Monica Loera, 43; Jasmine Sierra, 52; Kayden Clarke, 24; Veronica Banks Cano, mid-30s; Maya Young, 25; Demarkis Stansberry, 30; Kedarie/Kandicee Johnson, 16; Quartney Davia Dawsonn-Yochum, 32; Shante Isaac, 34; Keyonna Blakeney, 22; Tyreece Walker, 32; Mercedes Successful, 32; Amos Beede, 38; Goddess Diamond, 20; Deeniquia Dodds, 22; Dee Whigam, 25; Skye Mockabee, 26; Erykah Tijerina, 36; Rae’Lynn Thomas, 28; T.T. Safore, mid-20s; Crystal Edmonds, 32; Jazz Alford, 30; Brandi Bledsoe, 32; Noonie Norwood, 30.

As chair of the Council committee that provides oversight for civil rights issues, I have started to work with the City Auditor’s office to determine how we are using the data SPD collects from reported hate crimes, how we analyze that data for trends that eventually influence resource allocations, and whether these crimes are investigated and prosecuted as bias crimes. Check out my blog post on this effort.

We are also working to help those in our city family of public servants by developing a new City of Seattle transgender employment policy. We must ensure that our workforce is supported by management and coworkers when endeavoring to be their true selves in the work place.

I am proud to sponsor legislation next month to change the LGBT Commission name to include the Q in LGBTQ. Queer scholars and activists have reclaimed the term “queer” to establish a sense of community and assert a distinct politicized identity that is civically engaged. Queer identities may be adopted to seek a broader, more inclusive term that encompasses one’s full humanity.

Finally, we are working to insure LGBTQ housing equity in implementation of our 2016 Housing Levy. Across every Census division in the U.S. Seattle has the least developed services for LGBTQ older adults and their families. Unlike most large cities, we are also running behind on developing housing for LGBTQ seniors. The Council, in putting the housing levy on the ballot, named LGBTQ seniors as a priority population for levy housing production. Next we need to make sure this happens now that the levy has passed.

In-District Office Hours, UPDATE

I will be at the South Park Community Center (8319 8th Avenue S) on Friday, December 16, from 3:30 pm – 7:00pm. The reason for the truncated hours is that there is a Special Full Council meeting scheduled for 2pm on that day.

The final meeting of the day will begin at 6:30pm. These hours are walk-in friendly, but if you would like to let me know you’re coming in advance you can email my scheduler Alex Clardy (alex.clardy@seattle.gov).

Call for Public Comment on Source of Income Discrimination

The Seattle Office for Civil Rights (SOCR) has proposed Administrative Rules for the new source of income protections that amended the City of Seattle’s Open Housing Ordinance (SMC 14.08, CB118755). Members of the public have until 5 p.m. on Friday, December 2, 2016 to comment on the proposed rules.

The Rules provide guidance regarding several provisions of the ordinance, including:

  • Alternative source of income;
  • Short term subsidies; and
  • First-in-time provision.

The full text of the rules is available at http://www.seattle.gov/civilrights/civil-rights/fair-housing/source-of-income-protection-ordinance. For more information, please call 206-684-4514. This information is available in other formats on request for people with disabilities. Language assistance services also are available on request.

Please send comments to rulecomment@seattle.gov or in writing by December 2 to:

Seattle Office for Civil Rights

810 Third Ave., Suite 750

Seattle, WA  98104-1627

Attn: Source of Income Protections Rule Comment