Snohomish County Council Approves $3.37B 2027-28 Budget on 3-2 Vote, Republicans Dissent
SNOHOMISH COUNTY—In a 3-2 vote, the Snohomish County Council adopts the $3.37 billion biennium 2027-2028 county budget with councilmen Sam Low (R-Lake Stevens) and Nate Nehring (R-Arlington) dissenting. The budget passed by the council is a 4.66% increase to the previous 2025-26 budget and when normalized for rough annualized comparison, a 33.7% increase since 2022. […]
Proposed Tax Increases Fail to Fix Snohomish County Structural Deficit
As families across Snohomish County continue to face rising costs, local government should be looking for ways to ease the financial burden on taxpayers, not add to it. The County Executive’s proposed 2027–2028 budget received by the County Council relies heavily on additional taxes and fees to balance the books. The proposed budget includes nearly […]
Nate Nehring: Tax Dollars Belong in Treatment, Not Syringes and Pipes
Our response to the crisis of drug addiction should be focused on a clear objective: helping people escape addiction and move toward treatment and recovery. Unfortunately, too much of what is called “harm reduction” has moved away from that objective. Many government programs distribute the very paraphernalia used to consume dangerous and illegal drugs, including […]
Sunday is World Cleanup Day 2026
SNOHOMISH COUNTY — Sunday is World Cleanup Day, an annual United Nations observance on September 20 that calls on governments, cities, schools, businesses and individuals to organize activities addressing waste, with a 2026 focus on food waste under the theme “From Clean Plates to Clean Cities.” The U.N. General Assembly proclaimed the day in Resolution […]
September 11: The day that changed America
On September 11, 2001, 19 men associated with the Islamic extremist group al Qaeda hijacked four commercial airplanes – two were crashed into the World Trade Center, one crashed in the Pentagon and the other crashed just outside of Shanksville, Pennsylvania. A total of 2,996 people were killed by this terrorist attack on the U.S. mainland. As […]
Cut Non-Essential Spending First: My No Vote on Snohomish County Tax Increases
Earlier this month, the Snohomish County Council voted to impose two significant tax and fee increases, including a 0.1% countywide sales tax increase and a $20 annual increase in car tab fees for unincorporated Snohomish County. I voted “no” on both. I recognize that Snohomish County faces significant budget challenges. We have growing demands on […]
Snohomish County Data Center Moratorium hearing set for August 19
EVERETT — The Snohomish County Council will hold a public hearing on Wednesday, August 19, on an emergency moratorium it adopted unanimously on June 24 that pauses new data center development in unincorporated areas of the county—meeting information at end of article. Emergency Ordinance 26-026 places a six-month hold on the filing, acceptance, processing or […]
Residents in unincorporated Snohomish County will now pay a new annual vehicle license fee for road maintenance
EVERETT — The Snohomish County Council on Wednesday approved a new $20 annual vehicle license fee on cars registered in unincorporated areas, a measure expected to generate about $6 million a year for road and bridge maintenance. “Let me be clear: I do not take adding a cost for residents lightly, especially at a time […]
Snohomish County Approves 0.1% Sales Tax for Public Safety
EVERETT—The Snohomish County Council voted 3-2 on Wednesday to approve a new 0.1% criminal-justice sales tax expected to generate nearly $24 million a year, a move supporters said was necessary to prevent the loss of roughly 50 sheriff’s deputies, 50 corrections officers, 25 prosecutors and dozens of other public-safety positions. Opponents called the timing premature, […]
Nate’s Corner: Beach Cleanup Removes 130 Pounds of Trash at Meadowdale Beach Park
Our community beach cleanup earlier this month reminded me that even the smallest acts can have a lasting impact. On the morning of July 9, I witnessed the convergence of environmental stewardship, community service, and civic engagement, and I walked away with a renewed sense of hope for our future. Our second annual community beach […]
