Councilmember Teresa Mosqueda (Position 8, Citywide), Chair of the Housing, Health, Energy and Workers’ Rights Committee, joined with her City Council colleagues to pass the 2019-2020 Budget by a vote of 8-1 today.
“I want to thank Budget Chair Bagshaw for her leadership during this process and juggling nine different Council priorities. Our city’s needs are tremendous, and we had to make some tough choices to address monumental tasks, such as taking on homelessness and building more housing, with no new revenue,” said Councilmember Mosqueda.
“We need additional revenue to further invest in our seniors, our families, our children and the most vulnerable, which is why we must to continue to work with labor, community advocates and our Council colleagues to advance long-term legislative solutions to address issues plaguing our city, including our housing crisis, homelessness and public health investments.”
Councilmember Mosqueda championed key investments to advance investments in childcare, health services, shelter workers, restorative justice, and more equitable investments in housing and food services across Seattle. The following budget adds are just a few of the priorities championed by Councilmember Mosqueda and included in the final budget:
Supporting a Strong Economy:
- Investing in capital to launch a childcare facility in a city-owned downtown building
- Providing a 2 percent inflationary increase to shelter worker provider agencies who help support our homeless populations get counseling, find housing and access the services and supports they need
Building healthy communities:
- Preparing for and preventing communicable disease outbreaks by investing in partnerships with regional partners
- Funding for an air and noise pollution study for Beacon Hill to support residents impacted by SeaTac flight plan changes
- Saving money by redirecting funds from jail services to restorative justice reform efforts
A City works for all its residents:
- Ensuring the City has a full, fair and accurate 2020 Census count by adding an FTE to prepare for community, business and governmental coordination to promote federal investments in the City and representation at the national level
- Included a commitment through budget language to analyze racial equity and identify more equitable growth strategies of our development plans prior to the Comprehensive Plan design