Councilmember Kettle calls for a regional approach to address the homelessness crisis

Today, Councilmember Bob Kettle (District 7) released the following statement after Mayor Katie B. Wilson announced King County and the City of Seattle’s joint plan for the King County Regional Homelessness Authority (KCRHA).

“We have a regional homelessness problem on our local streets of Seattle,” said Councilmember Kettle. “We need, in turn, a regional approach to address the homelessness crisis that we face. To abandon the regional approach now would place us back at square one, increase our costs in a time of fiscal constraint, lose the investments we’ve made, forego our governance reforms, and put in further jeopardy federal funding.

“It’s now time to complete the work to create a strong regional approach to homelessness.”  

Today at noon, King County Executive Girmay Zahilay and Seattle Mayor Katie B. Wilson shared details about the County and City’s plans to stabilize, right size, and reset KCRHA and discuss the future of the regional homelessness response.  The joint plan includes immediate steps to stabilize the agency, bolster fiscal controls, and help KCRHA maintain compliance with federal funding requirements. The changes follow an independent forensic evaluation released in April that identified significant concerns related to KCRHA’s financial management, governance structure, and internal controls. 

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