New Public Safety Spending In Proposed King County Budget

SEATTLE — King County Executive Dow Constantine on Monday released a slate of new investments focused on public safety included in his latest biennial budget proposal. The millions in spending would support several departments including the sheriff's office, public health and King County Metro.

"To deliver genuine community safety and uphold our highest values, we must invest in the programming and workforce that will both stop immediate harm and get to root causes to prevent future offenses,” Constantine said Monday. “By breaking down silos, working with community-based organizations, and broadening our options beyond just the traditional responses, we can help end harmful cycles and implement new partnerships that bring about systemic change.”

Here are the plan's four key goals:

• Deploying a highly trained and coordinated safety network by filling 200 key county vacancies and providing the latest training, supporting community safety programming, and reimagining the Sheriff’s Office.
• Ensuring safe and appropriate places for people in crisis by expanding behavioral health, restoring jail services, identifying youth detention replacements, and seeking alternative options for the Seattle jail.
• Being data-informed and responsive to community needs by prioritizing diversion and intervention programs in hotspots and preventing repeat offenses; and
• Providing accountability and victim support by reducing the pandemic-created criminal legal backlog, supporting victim restitution, and partnering with other governments in safety planning and implementation.

Constantine's office said more than $22 million would help further efforts to clear pandemic-era backlogs in the legal system, particularly focused on felony cases. The county said funding approved last year helped cut the backlog in felony cases from 2,975 to 1,418, and the new funding aims to address most of the remaining cases by next summer.

An estimated $21 million would fund security officers deployed to buses, bus stops and transit centers. Roughly $5 million would pay for all deputies to be equipped with body-worn cameras, and another $2 million would establish a new gun violence unit and pay for more detectives to investigate major crimes.

Here is a list of what's included in the proposal, per the executive's office:

• $2.4 million to fund the Vital program’s support of 80 individuals who are frequent utilizers of the jail by addressing their underlying housing, health, and other basic needs, disrupting their cycle of crime.
• $7.3 million to provide community-based accountability and services to 850 youth who committed non-violent crimes via Restorative Community Pathways, an evidence-based program that reduces recidivism.
• $2.0 million to fund record expungement and legal financial obligation relief related to now-vacated marijuana convictions.
• $5 million to provide all Sheriff patrol deputies with body-worn cameras. Deployment of cameras and associated training will be phased in over the next three years.
• $9 million to support 52 Regional Peacekeepers Collective, trusted messengers delivering a community-led approach to gun violence prevention including critical incident response, hospital-based referrals, and hot spot remediation activities.
• $2 million to create a new unit in the Sheriff’s Office focused on reducing gun violence and to add additional detectives in the major crimes unit.
• $2.1 million to launch 4 new co-responder units so behavioral health professionals can address crises together with law enforcement.
• $21 million to support 140 Metro transit security officers providing support and visibility on Metro buses, transit centers, and stops.
• $5.1 million to support Metro SaFE Reform Initiatives, including a new partnership with Community & Human Services Department and community-based organizations to connect people in crisis on and near Metro transit with resources and services.

"Public safety must be the top priority for any local government. During times of crisis like the ones we’re experiencing now, we achieve that safety through collaboration, creativity, and root cause analysis,” said King County Councilmember Girmay Zahilay. “The investments announced today will help us solve the tough problems our region is facing, respond to community needs, and help keep our neighborhoods safe."

More specifics about proposals headed for the 2023-24 budget will be released next week, and the King County Council is scheduled to host public hearings on the plans through October.