Crossposted from Lean in King County On Friday, Deputy King County Executive Fred Jarrett briefed Snohomish County leaders on our successful (and ongoing!) efforts to improve customer service and find greater efficiency in county government. Snohomish County Executive Dave Somers invited Fred to speak with his staff to share the King County story and Lean lessons learned, as Snohomish County moves forward with their STEP Initiative (Service, Technology, Excellence Program). “We appreciate the opportunity to learn from King County’s experience. Fred has been fighting hard to bring better customer service and effective… Read More

Sex trafficking in King County is on the rise, nearly doubling in 2015 according to an Urban Institute study. But King County is fighting to stop sex traffickers and buyers in the county and protect the victims of trafficking. The growing problem came to law enforcement attention when officers on patrol began noticing a growing number of young girls working on the streets. Before long, officers were collecting evidence and bringing it to King County Senior Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Val Richey. “People have this notion that sex trafficking doesn’t happen in the… Read More

Serving as a voice for members of marginalized communities is all in a day’s work for Misdemeanor Practice Director Twyla Carter. Since she began serving as a lawyer in 2007, she has acted as an advocate for her clients, and after recently moving to her current role will be overseeing misdemeanor practice across the four divisions ensuring quality public defense in courts of limited jurisdiction, which includes Seattle Municipal Court and King County District Courts in Redmond, Seattle and Kent. “I view my new role as being at thirty thousand feet and… Read More

The seventh-annual Big Backyard 5K is happening on Sunday, June 5 at Marymoor Park in Redmond. This run/walk is an event for the whole family, and it’s dog and stroller friendly! All participants will receive awesome t-shirts, refreshments, snacks, prizes, and the satisfaction of supporting King County Parks! And thanks to our friends at Harborstone Credit Union, the Big Backyard 5K hoodies that everyone has grown to love will available for purchase until May 13. The chip-timed course winds around the magnificent (but flat) Marymoor Park, and for kids ten and under,… Read More

Crossposted from the HazWasteHelp blog You can’t watch children all the time. So how can you keep them safer? If you have unwanted hazardous products you could get them out of your home and away from curious hands. How can you tell which products under the sink or in the closet are hazardous? Look on the label. If you see the words DANGER or POISON, that means the product is very harmful. If you see the words CAUTION or WARNING, that means the products is somewhat harmful. Read more at HazWasteHelp

Did you know that May is Asthma Awareness month? Asthma impacts nine percent of adults, five percent of kids, and one sea otter in King County. Yes, a sea otter. Last fall, Mishka, a one-year-old sea otter at the Seattle Aquarium was diagnosed with asthma. To learn more about asthma and how it impacts people, and otters, come see Public Health at the Aquarium! Public Health is teaming up with the Seattle Aquarium for Family Science Weekend! Our Community Health Workers and Public Health Director Patty Hayes are helping give stuffed animal check-ups at… Read More

View this video to get the latest information on a few of the most recent King County hot topics. Join host James Lynch for King County @ Your Service. See how King County is expanding its use of a new crime-fighting tool and find out who the 911 Dispatch Center calls when the network has trouble.

Crossposted from the Expanding the Narrative blog My story begins on a Saturday morning in early March.  It was one of those beautiful spring days and I was on a bike ride with my friend Bonnie on the Cedar River Trail.  I had recently finished my immersion role with the King County Facilities Management Division as part of the King County Bridges Fellowship program to develop leaders. So I was thinking about leadership stuff when I heard a loud splash. I slowed down and Bonnie caught up to me, smiled and said “Did… Read More

Employees in south King County got to learn more about what their colleagues are doing to promote Equity and Social Justice into their work at 2016’s third Equity and Social Justice Fair at the Maleng Regional Justice Center on Tuesday, May 24. This is the first year that three ESJ Fairs have been held for County employees, and the fairs provided great opportunities for employees to learn from one another’s challenges and successes in building equity and opportunity for residents and employees across the county. If you were unable to attend one… Read More

In 1991 the State of Washington turned to large employers like King County to help reduce the number of vehicles on Washington’s roads, and the impact those vehicles were having on air quality. That year, the Commute Trip Reduction Law was passed as part of Washington Clean Air Act, requiring employers who have more than 100 employees to offer alternative modes of transportation to and from work. At King County it started with offering employees free transportation on Metro buses. And it didn’t stop there.