As we open our ballots and ponder who should get our valuable vote we should spend a bit of time exploring a free resource at our fingertips, the Public Disclosure Commission (PDC) website https://www.pdc.wa.gov/. The PDC is a state agency that houses the information candidates and political committees are required to report about donations to their campaigns and how they have spent the funds.
Author: Site Admin
What does affordable housing mean in Skagit? And will more market-rate, single-family homes meet the need?
Clearly, everyone has to be able to “afford” a house or apartment in order to buy or rent housing. However, obtaining housing is not a problem for everyone. When your wealth or income is high enough, the amount you spend on housing is a matter of choice. It is unlikely that there is a house in Skagit County that Bill Gates can’t afford, for example.
First Steps to Fix Skagit County’s Housing Crisis
Affordable housing has become a core economic issue for communities throughout our country. For Washington State (and many other communities), it is not a singular issue and has many complex elements.
Global Crises in the Skagit
The Covid-19 pandemic is a global tragedy, from Skagit County to County Cork, from Kolkata to Kenya. In response, a multiplicity of strict national and regional rules have arisen all over the world. We have no choice. The alternative is sickness and death. Fortunately …
Skagit County Shoreline Areas at Risk with Woefully Outdated Management Plan?
Ask almost any Skagit resident what they love about their home county, and closeness to water usually rates right up at the top. Skagit is loaded with stunning shoreline areas, beautiful and productive wetlands, and scenic lakes.
All Children Have a Right to Play: The Need for Inclusive Playgrounds in Skagit County
As the grandmother of a young boy with Cerebral Palsy who uses a wheelchair and a walker for his mobility, I have become painfully aware of the ways in which typical playgrounds exclude those with disabilities. ADA compliance does not guarantee usability.
Time to RETHINK Plastic in Skagit County?
Think it’s time to RETHINK our personal and societal relationship to single-use consumer items? Starting with, but not limited to, single-use plastic items? Me too!
Public Records Requests to Skagit County yield blackout and then deluge of irrelevant data
In 2019, Home Rule Skagit, a local organization working for transparency, accountability, and broader representation in Skagit County government made Public Records Requests to look at particular County records related to the campaign they had conducted in 2018. In response to their first request, the 732 documents received from Skagit County Public Information Officer Cori Russell were almost completely blacked out, sometimes including the dates. In response to a second request, 7.128 gigabytes of information were turned over having little to do with the materials requested. What is going on?
Candidate Eligibility – who is watching?
A recent problem with the Mount Vernon mayoral race has raised an important issue regarding how candidates file for office and who verifies their eligibility for that office. The issue is larger than this one election and we should all be informed.
A Missed Opportunity
When elected leaders choose to avoid transparency and deny citizen involvement, we need to ask why. An important recent example illustrates this too familiar pattern in Skagit County government. This year, the crucial job of County Administrator was filled without the opportunity for residents to hear from the candidates, learn about them, or share with our County Commissioners ideas about a position that affects us all. We’re once again left with the impression that the Commissioners prefer the people of Skagit County just quietly pay their county taxes and then show no interest in government. Why is the County Administrator position important to all Skagit residents? Read on.