Perry applauds key investments in District 3 with approval of 2025 budget

November 19, 2024

King County Councilmember Sarah Perry on Tuesday announced over $2.5 million in key investments to support District 3 communities with the passage of the 2025 King County budget. 

"In our 2025 budget, we prioritized limited resources in response to the highest priorities for our community members. This includes ensuring an effective public safety response, emphasizing our infrastructure investments such as roads and culverts, prioritizing environmental protections for salmon, waterways, and our open spaces, and advocating for support in housing and development, including the much-needed investment toward permitting and code enforcement,” said Perry. “I'm particularly excited to share our investments in District 3 and am looking forward to seeing the impact of these investments for years to come!" 

The $10.2 billion approved budget built on the Executive’s proposal and Perry led the addition of key investments in her district, including but not limited to: 

•  Funding for four Code Enforcement Officers in the Department of Local Services to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of the code enforcement process to reduce the case backlog and increase the ability to address both critical and low priority violations at a higher quality level. 

•  $330K to elevate the Comprehensive Plan’s Rural Economic Strategies, reviewing how the rural economy has changed since 2014 and is anticipated to change in the next two decades. It will also evaluate housing needs for permanent and seasonal farmworkers, tourism and economic development, and existing strategies to create a sustainable and vibrant rural economy. 

•  $150K to the Issaquah Teen Garage to support two part-time licensed mental health counselors who offer both wrap-around and drop-in models of care. 

•  $100K each to Pride Across the Bridge and SnoValley Pride to help them in staffing and events in supporting the 2SLGBTQIA+ community on the Eastside in both urban and rural communities. 

•  $50K to further efforts to support salmon and habitat in Lake Sammamish and working to support the work of the kokanee work group through the removal of invasive weeds in the lake. 

•  $50K for a study to explore alternatives to driving alone to Snoqualmie Pass particularly in the winter, to reduce congestion, reduce safety hazards, and expand access to the Pass. 

•  $20K to support Empower Youth Network in their work around youth suicide prevention. 

Perry played a crucial role on the Budget Leadership Team, spending many hours developing a budget that serves the needs of the district and the county as a whole. She worked to engage the community in the process, ensuring that her district values were represented throughout the budget. 

“I am grateful for the opportunity to work hard with the Council's Budget Leadership Team, hosting community meetings and engaging in conversations with many individuals and community organizations over months to pass this 2025 budget," Perry said. 

Overall, the budget maintained fundamental services across the county, as well as provided necessary investments in public safety, housing, transit and more.