MARCH 2001
| GENERAL ASSEMBLY AGENDA |
On March 29, the region's elected leaders will gather at the Meydenbauer Center in downtown Bellevue for the Regional Council's annual General Assembly meeting. In addition to the normal business of adopting the budget and electing a new president and vice president, members will have an opportunity to learn more about Destination 2030, the Puget Sound region's comprehensive transportation plan that's now being developed.
The General Assembly business meeting from 3:30-6 p.m. will include action on the Regional Council's budget and work program for fiscal years 2002-2003, election of new officers, and a briefing on Destination 2030. Governor Gary Locke will address the General Assembly, speaking about transportation in the 2001 Legislature. A social hour from 6-7 p.m. will give officials a chance to meet and greet their colleagues from around the region. During dinner, the Assembly will honor winners of the VISION 2020 Awards, celebrating exceptional efforts to promote better quality of life and achieve the region's growth and transportation strategy.
A second General Assembly meeting to take action on adoption of Destination 2030 is scheduled for May 24 (see the timeline below). For more information about the upcoming General Assembly meetings, contact Sylvia Nelson at (206) 464-7518, e-mail snelson@psrc.org. Click here for a copy of the Agenda.
Public Hearing on Destination 2030 -- April 10
A public hearing on the draft Destination 2030 plan is scheduled for April 10, 3-7 p.m., in the Regional Council's Board Room, 1011 Western Avenue, Seattle. For more information, contact Sheila Rogers at (206) 464-5815, srogers@psrc.org.
Puget Sound Region to Receive $2.98 Million for Transit Service
The Regional Council and five of the region's transit agencies will receive $2.98 million from the Federal Transit Administration's Jobs Access and Reverse Commute program.
This is the second year in a row the region has been successful in winning funding through this grant program. Last year, the region received $1.9 million. The additional funds will continue some of the successful efforts initiated in 2000 and will also fund new projects and programs through 2001 and into 2002.
The Jobs Access and Reverse Commute grant program contributes to new or expanded transportation services that connect people to jobs and other employment related services. Jobs Access projects include shuttles, vanpools, new bus routes and connector services to mass transit and guaranteed ride home programs for welfare recipients and low-income persons.
Reverse Commute projects provide transportation services to suburban employment centers from urban, rural and other suburban locations. The Jobs Access and Reverse Commute program is intended to establish a coordinated regional approach to job access challenges. All projects funded under this program must be the result of a collaborative planning process that includes Metropolitan Planning Organizations such as the Puget Sound Regional Council, transportation providers, human service agencies, public housing, child care organizations, employers and other stakeholders.
The Puget Sound Regional Council coordinated the grant application, and was awarded $50,000 to oversee the administration of the grant and to lead evaluation efforts. The remaining $2.93 million will go to regional transit agencies to be applied directly to new and expanded transit service and programs providing better jobs access and reverse commute service. Specifically, the award money will go to the following projects:
Community Transit: $300,000
Regional Council to Host Census Workshop on April 17
The Puget Sound Regional Council will host an all-day census workshop on April 17 featuring representatives from the U.S. Census Bureau, the Washington State Office of Financial Management, and Regional Council staff. Topics will include: contents of census data files and how they will be used; how to access census data through the Internet; census geography in the Puget Sound region; and data products that will be available at the national, state and local levels.
Registration information will be posted on the Web at psrc.org in mid-March. For more information, contact Neil Kilgren at (206) 464-7964, nkilgren@psrc.org, or Gail Boyd at (206) 464-7890, gboyd@psrc.org.
High Tech Sector Contributing to Strong Regional Economy
Because employment data lag by a year, the figures in this Trend don't reflect recent well-publicized dot-com layoffs. The effects of these layoffs on the regional economy will be better understood once 2000 and 2001 employment data are analyzed.
Boeing jobs are still extremely important, particularly for certain subareas of the region. Snohomish County relies heavily on Boeing employment. In 1999, Boeing accounted for over 15 percent of the county's employment, compared to just under 6 percent for high tech. For the same year, Boeing provided nearly 5 percent of the jobs in King County.
Among the four counties, most of the high technology growth occurred in King County. From 1995 to 1999, the number of high tech employees in King County grew by over 32,000, raising the proportion of high tech jobs in the county from 5.6 percent to 8.1 percent. Regionwide the percentage of high tech employment grew from 5.3 percent in 1995 to 6.7 percent in 1999. (Note that not all technology jobs are accounted for in these figures. For example, dot-coms involved in sales are often counted as retail.)
For more information about this Trend, contact Amanda Kochanek at (206) 587-5667, e-mail akochanek@psrc.org.
Back Issues
Sound Transit: $1,000,000 Pierce Transit: $650,000
King County Metro: $630,000 Kitsap Transit: $350,000
For more information, contact Ned Conroy at (206) 587-5670 or nconroy@psrc.org.
Job Growth by County, 1995-1999 
Note:1 Covered jobs are defined as those jobs covered under the state's unemployment insurance program. This does not include proprietors, enlisted personnel and others. 2 High Technology is defined as those jobs in the following categories: Biotech, Chemicals and Allied Products, Computer Related, Electronic Equipment, Instruments and Related Products, Software, and Telecommunications. Aerospace has not been included in this definition of high technology, although aerospace jobs are certainly high technology. However, removing them from the definition, for the purposes of this article, helps to demonstrate other employment trends in the region.
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March 2000
M - F - 10 a.m. - 3 p.m. - Other times by appointment - 206-464-7532