I believe public safety means ensuring our population has access to food, education, healthcare, and housing - all basic essentials that impact the overall well-being of a community, and play a direct role in minimizing crime. Reducing poverty results in a decrease in crimes of desperation; providing support to fill the gaps in the lives of community members like offering food or rent assistance when families are going hungry or at risk of losing their home, or offering access to healthcare when they get sick, mitigates the inherent risk and dangers that result from experiencing these types of dire circumstances. I believe it means having neighborhoods that are safe to walk and commute in, whether that means identifying areas that need sidewalk improvements or expansion, or implementing traffic features that reduce unsafe driving and accidents. I believe it means when someone is in crisis, we have appropriate professionals able to respond to meet their needs in that moment.

I believe there is always room for improvement, and we can acknowledge the gaps in our system by counting the number of people who fall through the cracks and are negatively impacted by preventable circumstances. I have focused on funding these basic support systems and improving access to food, education, housing, and healthcare for both mental and physical needs. I have worked to prioritize high-risk areas in the city that desperately need infrastructure improvements to address safety concerns like school children walking on busy streets with no sidewalks. I have also pushed to expand our ability to provide effective and appropriate crisis response to those in need. We have made progress, but we still have much work to be done to create a community that is safe and secure for all those who call Burien home.

I was a proponent of creating the crisis co-response team we have partnering with police, but I believe that is just the first step. I believe we need to implement an independent crisis response program, as seen in other cities across the country. These programs not only provide a level of support police are unable to provide, but also reduce response times for police when they do get called to address dangerous and violent crime by allowing them to focus on situations where they are needed most, while mental and behavioral health specialists handle situations where they are better suited. I believe in implementing education for the public - especially our youth - on ways they can find support instead of resorting to crime, and on the true impacts crime has.

I believe housing is a vital part of public safety; no one can be safe without a home, without protection from the elements, somewhere they can engage in basic hygiene practices for ezssntial health, somewhere they can rest and get sufficient sleep, somewhere they can feel secure and not be in a constant state of anxiety (which has proven health impacts). When we talk about public safety, we absolutely must factor in housing as a part of that conversation.

Part of the discussion ongoing in our city right now is sending a levy to the voters for approval, which can help address our impending financial deficit. It is clear we need to take multiple steps to break even in affording the level of services we have now - which, based on our population growth, will not be sufficient to properly support our community in years to come. Small increases in B&O taxes and utility taxes can help us make up the difference, but I believe in maintaining exemptions for small businesses, and providing assistance for lower income individuals for which these increases would pose a substantial burden. I believe we need to use our power as a city to lobby for reform of our state's regressive tax structure, which puts the heavy lifting on those who have less while allowing wealthier individuals to pay less, so our cities will no longer be put in situations where we have to pinch pennies and nickel and dime our residents just to establish basic fiscal stability.