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AN ORDINANCE that adopts the 2009 Annual Budget and makes appropriation for the operation of county agencies and departments and capital improvements for the fiscal year beginning January 1, 2009, and ending December 31, 2009.
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BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF KING COUNTY:
SECTION 1. Findings: The council makes the following findings of fact:
A. King County government is responsible for providing a variety of services to all residents of the county. These include: regional services, such as criminal justice, public health, wastewater treatment and public transportation; subregional services through contracts with many suburban cities for police protection, jail services and municipal court services; and local services to unincorporated areas, such as police protection, roads, surface water management, local parks and land use regulation.
B. As the legislative branch of government, the metropolitan King County council sets policy for the county. It funds county services through the exercise of its authority to adopt an annual budget for the county. To provide these services, the council adopts a 2009 budget totaling $4.9 billion, of which $627.8 million is in the general fund.
C. King County faces an unprecedented projected revenue shortfall of $93.4 million specifically in its general fund. This shortfall is attributable to state law that limits the revenues that may be collected by counties from the property tax. The growth in the amount of property taxes levied by counties is one percent per year plus the revenues from new construction and building improvements. This rate of growth is far below the rate of inflation. This limit on the growth of property taxes, the county's primary revenue source, has created a structural gap between revenues and expenditures when inflation and other cost-increasing factors are higher than the revenue growth limit. Compounding this ongoing structural gap is turmoil in world financial markets ...
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