Community Invited to Participate in Budget Process

Published on September 27, 2022

2023 City Budget - Why It Matters - Penny Sweet STILL.jpg

Media Contact:
David Wolbrecht
Communications Program Manager
dwolbrecht@kirklandwa.gov
(425) 587-3021

KIRKLAND, Wash. – The City of Kirkland is inviting community members to participate in shaping Kirkland’s services and programs during the 2023-2024 City budget process. The City Council is seeking input from the community throughout Fall 2022 while they develop the budget for the next two years.

"Now is the time to weigh in on what matters most to you,” said Kirkland Mayor Penny Sweet. “Kirkland is known for providing an exceptional quality of life, and our budget determines how the City funds services such as police and fire, street and sidewalk maintenance, park operations, housing, and human services. Like everyone else, the City continues to deal with historic inflation, so it’s more important than ever for us to hear what matters most to our community.”

Here are some ways to have your say on how Kirkland’s programs and services are funded:

  • Experiment with balancing the budget through an online interactive tool known as “Balancing Act.”  With this tool, you can choose whether to make changes to Kirkland’s budget by choosing to provide more funding to certain programs by decreasing funding for other programs.  Once submitted through the online tool, your “virtual” budget will provide valuable feedback to the City Council as it works on Kirkland’s next budget. Go to www.kirklandwa.gov/budget to find the link and more information.
  • Participate in an upcoming public hearing. The next scheduled public hearings on the budget are on October 4, November 1, and November 15. There are opportunities to provide comments over Zoom audio/video on a computer or telephone connection as well as in person. Learn more at www.kirklandwa.gov/council.

  • Provide feedback through Our Kirkland.

  • Email budgetfeedback@kirklandwa.gov with your feedback about the budget.

  • Sign up for This Week in Kirkland for weekly updates about City Council decisions and other important City of Kirkland information.

  • Follow the City’s Facebook page or Twitter account for updates on the City's budget process.

The preliminary budget will be presented at the October 25 Special Council Study Session. Adoption of the final 2023-2024 budget is scheduled to take place at the December 13 council meeting. For more information, please visit www.kirklandwa.gov/budget.