SEATTLE (AP) - Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan and King County Executive Dow Constantine have outlined a proposal to merge services for people experiencing homelessness into one regional authority.
The Seattle Times reports if approved, the authority would oversee all regional homelessness response efforts in Seattle and around King County. That would include outreach, diversion, shelters, rapid re-housing, transitional housing and permanent supportive housing.
The Seattle and King County councils are considering the proposal in response to criticism that homeless services are splintered among multiple agencies, hamstringing the ability to address the crisis.
The estimated first-year budget for the entity is more than $131 million, all from existing funds, including about $56.3 million from King County and roughly $73 million from the city of Seattle.
So far, none of the smaller cities in King County have been asked to contribute financially for the new entity.
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Information from: The Seattle Times, http://www.seattletimes.com
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