Council overrides veto of COVID-19 relief bill, then immediately adjusts it to new fiscal reality (updated)

This afternoon in a special meeting, the City Council overrode Mayor Durkan’s veto of a bill that authorizes the spending of $86 million from the city’s two reserve fund to pay for COVID-19 relief programs. Then it immediately passed a new bill that reduced the amount to $57 million, reflecting the most recent news about the city’s increasing revenue shortfall this year.

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Council approves amendments to force layoffs in SPD, disband Navigation Team, and more

Today the City Council marched through about two dozen amendments to the 2020 budget intended to address calls to partially defund and re-organize the Seattle Police Department. Along the way, they also achieved another long-time goal of progressive advocates: eliminating the Navigation Team. After the vote this afternoon, I recorded an hour-long debrief with Omari Salisbury of Converge Media and Marcus Green of the South Seattle Emerald. It was a great, far-ranging conversation, and I think you’ll enjoy watching it.

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