New public website, www.KingCounty.gov, now live
King County has successfully transitioned our public website (kingcounty.gov) to a new platform! The new website provides a user-centered experience with information that is easier to find, navigate, and understand. The site features a modern design and simplified organization that reflects current best practices. Universal templates offer consistent experiences across departments and encourage “plain language” content written for 5th-8th grade reading levels. Thank you for your patience while we settle into this new and exciting online space! Here’s what you can expect:
- Be prepared for customer questions. Online visitors will see the new King County homepage; your department’s webpages may also look different. Customers may need help navigating to popular web content.
- If issues persist, try clicking “refresh” on your browser window, or clearing your browser history. If that doesn’t work, please contact your department’s Web Content Manager(s) for assistance.
- If you still had web content hosted on the old web platform, your pages have been copied to a short-term page repository (STPR). Pages look different in the STPR, but are publicly accessible and function as usual. Editing content in the STPR will be difficult until your department can rebuild pages in the new Sitecore 10 platform – whenever possible, your team should focus efforts on publishing pages to the new platform. Talk to your Web Content Manager to find out when your new pages will go live in Sitecore 10.
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Tips for clean air indoors on smoky days: A Public Health comic
Crossposted from Public Health Insider
When it’s smoky out, it’s important to do all you can to keep indoor air clean. Check out these tips from our crafter’s corner and don’t forget to visit www.kingcounty.gov/wildfiresmoke for more tips and resources. More information about protecting your health from wildfire smoke, including how to make a DIY box fan filter is at www.kingcounty.gov/wildfire smoke. View the entire comic here.
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Employees, others get an opportunity to test out “zippy” electric vehicles
Crossposted from the DES Express
Fleet Services recently hosted their first “Ride and Drive” event focused solely on light duty electric vehicles, the kind you might drive at work or home one day (or already!). The goal was to provide information and opportunities for King County employees and folks from other agencies to try out electric vehicles, enticing them to consider using them when more become available.
Attendees met first to hear presentations from electric auto makers.
“Ford, Volvo and Mack Trucks all focused on their vehicle electrification programs, what’s available and what we can expect in the next few years,” said Melody Bennett, Climate Change Program Manager in Fleet Services. Read more.
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Kelsey Urban gets a birds-eye view of the county’s potential risks
Crossposted from the DES Express
When your job is to help manage risk for King County, it’s critical to understand what those potential risks are. So, when an opportunity came to get a birds-eye view during a routine King County Sheriff’s Office (KCSO) helicopter flight, Kelsey Urban, the new Deputy Director of the Office of Risk Management Services, jumped at the chance. Brendan McCluskey, Director of Emergency Management, joined in to provide an emergency management perspective. Read more.
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Voters renew Veterans, Seniors and Human Services Levy—continuing nearly two decades of successes
King County voters approved the Veterans, Seniors and Human Services Levy for the fourth time, ensuring that veterans, seniors, and resilient communities can continue to access a broad range of programs and services in King County. Read more in the official press release.
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State retirement plan contributions change Sept. 1, 2023
Employer contribution rates for some of the following retirement plans will change on Sept. 1, 2023, as approved by the State Legislature. The state Pension Funding Council adjusts contribution rates, as needed, to fund the retirement benefits earned by members.
The PERS employer rate will change to 9.53% for all PERS plans.
You will see the new employer contribution amounts under employer-paid benefits on your paystub beginning Sept. 14, 2023.
More information is available on the Washington State Department of Retirement Systems (DRS) website. If you have any questions about the rate change, please contact DRS at 800-547-6657 or recep@drs.wa.gov.
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New Racially Just training for all Executive branch employees
Dear fellow King County employee,
One of our core values is “We are racially just.” This means that we work purposefully and intentionally against racism and discrimination, and toward equity for all by building anti-racist and pro-equity approaches into our work, our policies, our budgeting, and our trainings. It means that we make racial justice a central part of how we work and act as King County employees.
That is why we have launched a new training: We Are Racially Just: Our King County Values at Work. This training will help to ensure each of us understands what it means to be racially just and what we can do in our own work to advance racial justice at King County.
Racial justice necessitates breaking with the status quo, disrupting business as usual, and approaching our work differently. It can be hard work and it can be uncomfortable, but in order to make progress we must lean into one of our pro-equity actions: Get comfortable with discomfort. This training will build our understanding of racial justice and give us tools to help King County become a more anti-racist, pro-equity organization.
Executive branch employees who are computer users will be required to complete this training by Dec. 31, 2023. Employees who are non-computer users will be required to complete this training by September 2024. Employees who do not have regular access to a computer will receive alternative instructions for completing this training. New employees must complete the training within 90 days of their date of hire as part of the onboarding process. To find the training, go to your KC eLearning NEOGOV Learn dashboard.
To see your completed trainings, click on Training and then View Course Transcript. For assistance accessing the trainings, please contact KCIT and open a HelpDesk Ticket. You can do so here online, or by calling the HelpDesk at 206-263-4357.
You will be paid for your time to take this training. Your supervisor will work with you to fit this training within your schedule. If you have any questions, please talk to your supervisor.
Thank you for helping to advance our Racially Just value and moving us closer to our True North: Making King County a welcoming community where every person can thrive.
Sincerely,
Dow Constantine (he/him/his)
King County Executive
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Take care in hot temperatures
The hotter than normal weather we’re experiencing this week can take a toll on our mental and physical health so it’s important to take care of ourselves, our loved ones, and our furry friends.
With the National Weather Service’s Heat Advisory for our area now extended until Thursday, Aug. 17 at 11 p.m., here are some tips from Public Health – Seattle & King County to help you manage the heat. Learn more.
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Website migration starts Monday, Aug. 21 – what to expect
Starting Monday, Aug. 21, King County will begin transitioning our public website (kingcounty.gov) to a new platform. While website migration is underway, site visitors may experience brief, occasional errors. This process is expected to be completed by Wednesday, Aug. 23. KCIT is working with departments’ Web Content Manager(s) to ensure a smooth transition with minimal disruptions, but you can help:
- Be prepared for customer questions. After the transition, online visitors will see the new King County homepage and your department’s new webpages. Your webpages will look different, and customers may need help navigating to popular web content.
- If issues persist, please contact your department’s Web Content Manager(s) for assistance.
Thank you for your patience while we settle into this new and exciting online space. Visit the “KingCounty.gov Refresh” project page to offer feedback or learn more information.
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KCIA hosts Blue Angels for Seafair weekend
The U.S. Navy Blue Angels roared in and out of King County International Airport for this year’s Boeing Seafair Airshow, held Aug. 4 – Aug. 6. The Blue Angels were parked on the airport’s main terminal ramp again this year, making for a close-up show for airport employees and others at the terminal. Read more.
Employee News 