AN ORDINANCE relating to the organization of City government; creating an Office of Economic and Revenue Forecasts; adding a new Chapter 3.44 to, amending Section 3.39.010 and 3.39.035 of, and repealing Section 3.40.060 and Chapter 3.82 of the Seattle Municipal Code.
Agenda Item five Council. Bill 120124 Relating to the Organization of City Government Creating an Office of Economic and Revenue Forecasts, the committee recommends the bill pass. Thank you so much, Madam Clerk. As Chair of the committee again, I'll provide the committee report and then happy to open it up to any additional comments on the bill. Colleagues, I'm excited to be voting on this legislation today after nearly nine months of collaborative negotiations with the executive to develop this legislation. I believe that establishing the Office of Economic and Revenue Forecasts will create a more open, transparent and robust forecasting process that will enhance both the Council's and the public's access to and understanding of the city's budgetary forecasts. The implementation of this office should also improve the dynamic between future councils and future mayors by building a stronger foundation of trust and balance between the branches as it relates to the development of the city's budget priorities. There are two prominent events during 2020 forecasting process that highlighted for me and many others how important it is to level the playing field between the council and the mayor's office with regard to our access to information related to the city's forecasting process. Those events prompted me, my staff and central staff, to look at alternative models for how governmental bodies develop their budget forecasts. And indeed, both Washington State and King County utilize independent forecasting offices that are outside of the legislative and executive branches. King County went so far as to pursue a voter approved charter amendment in 2008 in order to create their Office of Economic and Financial Analysis. Fortunately, based on my and central staff's review of the analysis conducted by our City Attorney's Office, we at the City Council are able to establish our own independent office in a manner consistent with our city charter. And the legislation we're voting on today is reflective of all of the feedback that we received from the city attorney's review and their legal advice upon its creation. The Economic Revenue Forecast Office would provide independent forecasts and economic analysis, fulfilling the policy intent of the Council budget action that this Council previously took. And that was included in the 2021 budget that was adopted. It would also consist of three and a half full time equivalents through a combination of newly created positions and transferred positions from our city budget Office and Finance and Administrative Services. This new office would be headed by a director who would be hired by and report to a new forecast council comprised of the mayor, the city finance director, the council president and the Council Budget Chair, or their respective designees. The Forecast Council would be responsible for providing oversight of the new office and for approving the forecasts. The Governance and Education Committee did have a conversation and presentation on this particular proposed piece of legislation and unanimously recommended that the Council bill be passed and adopted by the full Council. And I'd like to encourage my colleagues to join us in voting to adopt this legislation. Are there any comments on the bill? Councilman Strauss, please. I think your council president will be supporting this legislation today. I think this is a smart choice to remove a city, but to create a an office forecast office that is not tied to either the executive or the council. I'm just going to take this moment to really share kudos of the city budget office. Last year during the recession and reopening of our of our economy. Because as compared to the state level the city budget office really did an amazing job of making accurate predictions that we could work off of as compared to the state that did a little bit had a bigger drop and a bigger rebound. So I know that we have the tools and I know that our city budget office is doing great work. And I think that this year legislation today is the next great step. Thank you, council president. Thank you, Councilmember Strauss. Really appreciate that. Any other customer, Herbold, please. Thank you. Just really quickly, I also want to thank you, Council President Gonzales, for moving forward. The intent that the council expressed again under your leadership during the budget discussions last year to create this independent office. This is, I think, considered a best practice and really appreciate knowing that moving forward, whether or not it's at times when there are increased revenue forecasts or or potential reductions in revenue, that the Council will have access to that information as opposed to sort of the current practice where an often we find it out at the same time when there are budget proposals to. To cut or add. So it will allow us as the body that is most responsive, engaged with the public to to give input to those budget discussions and decisions. Thank you. Thank you. Councilmember Herbold, Councilmember Peterson, please. Thank you. Council President. I wanted to also explain my support for this new office. There were some articles written about this proposal recently that delved into legal issues and looking at the city charter. And I think that it was healthy to to to raise these issues. I did some additional research, got additional comfort with with that aspect of it from a from a practical standpoint, having worked for a budget chair many years ago and the timing of these revenue forecasts has also been a source of frustration. And so I think it's important to to have both branches collaborating on on this. This data about what the revenues are going to be, how we're predicting them, and having that information at the same time so that we're so that legislative branch isn't sitting around waiting. When is this information going to come so that we can then figure out how to make decisions since we ultimately have to adopt the budget and decide whether to amend it. So I was really pleased when you brought this proposal up and then the more to geologists I've done, it seems like it's going to be good for the city that we have this information at the same time, both the executive and legislative branches. So thank you for bringing that forward. Thank you, Councilor Pearson. Appreciate that. Any additional comments on the bill? I've not seen any other hands raised, so I'll go ahead and closes out. I think Councilmember Peterson stole the words right out of my mouth. And that's the note that I wanted to end on, is that I think that as the budget appropriation authority, it has seemed odd to me in the six years that I have served on the council to oftentimes feel like we are caught on the back of our heels when we're receiving revenue forecast changes in the middle of and sometimes towards the end of our budgeting processes. So I think that this bill will allow for more equitable access to information and to more timely access to relevant information in a way that will really allow and facilitate for the co-equal branches of government at government, at the city of Seattle, to really function like co-equal branches of government, and to make sure that both of us have an opportunity to really fulfill our duty and obligation as both the budget proposer and the budget doctors for the City Government. So I'm excited about an opportunity to advance this bill and appreciate the ongoing support of my colleagues in the effort to advance this this important, important piece of legislation. Did want to thank did want to thank Cody writer in my office for all of his hard work over the last nine months, as well as Ali Pankey and Tom McPhail. And also, of course, appreciate the the collaborative opportunity that we had with the city budget office and with other members of the executive to come up with a shared plan and vision on how this can be achieved in a way that fulfills both the executive's desire and ours as well. So with that being said, I'm going to go ahead and close that debate and ask that to please call the roll and the passage of the bill. GROSS Yes. HERBOLD Yes. Suarez. Guy. Lewis Yes. Morales Yes. Rosetta, I. Peterson I. So want. Yes. And Council President Gonzalez High. Line in favor. And unopposed. The bill passes and the chair will sign it. Will the court please affix my signature to the legislation on my behalf? Is there any further business to come before the Council? Right. Hearing that, colleagues, this does conclude the items of business on today's agenda. Our next regularly scheduled city council meeting is scheduled for Monday, July 26, 2021, at 2:00 PM. I hope everyone has a wonderful afternoon. We are here to thank you.