The Seattle-King County Asset Building Collaborative will be having their annual Financial Fitness day on March 31^st. They have joined with over 40 community partners to be able to bring community members FREE financial services. These services include everything from one-on-one help filling out a tax return, printing and analyzing free credit reports, opening bank accounts, creating a household budget, working with a financial planner, applying for public benefits (food, utilities, child care, health insurance, social security), learning how to start a business, shredding…

This blog was prepared by United Way Worldwide for its member organizations

In the budget that has been approved by Congress, and is expected to be signed by President Obama, we are pleased to share that the majority of programs that United Way has prioritized have stayed intact or even increased in funding. Given the conomic and political landscape, this is good news. Please see below for highlights of FY2012 program funding in our building block areas. Note: There is an additional 0.189 percent across…

When United Way of King County board member and CEO of the new tech company Pirq asked Bill Gates how cash strapped startups could create a culture of giving back to the community, Gates told him to build a way to give back into the actual business model of the company.   That’s exactly what Sun did with the ‘Deals for Meals’ program.

Pirq is a new smartphone app that  connects users to great deals at restaurants and cafe’s in real time, where…

Agreement on increasing the federal debt ceiling was reached on August 2, the final day (identified by Treasury Secretary Geithner) before the federal government would default on its financial obligations because it had run out of money and could no longer borrow to pay bills.  A bipartisan compromise was reached by the House and Senate but neither body, the President, the Pentagon, or interest and advocacy groups was particularly happy with the outcome.   The National Senior Corps Association has done an excellent summary…

Guest blogger, Kelly Rider of the Housing Development Consortium, discusses the benefits of the Veterans and Human Services Levy to our community.

On or around July 29^th, you will receive your 2011 Primary Ballot in your mail. That’s just one week away, and the renewal of the King County Veterans & Human Services Levy is Proposition 1 on that ballot.  

The current Veterans & Human Services Levy was passed by nearly 58% of the voters in 2005, but it is set to expire at the…

Thanks to the combined advocacy of our United Way constituents nd partner organizations, United Way of King County was able to achieve many of its legislative asks even in one of the most challenging economic years on record.  Below is a summary of the outcomes of our main advocacy efforts for FY 2011-2013.

 2011-2013 Budget Outcomes

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Recently the legislature made significant changes to Disability Lifeline (HB 2082) for FY 2011-2013.  It eliminated the current Disability Lifeline Program effective October 1, but preserved medical services for eligible clients.  In place of the old program, it created 3 new programs—the aged, blind and disabled program (similar to the current DL-X and is the only program to keep cash assistance grants), pregnant woman assistance program, and the Essential Needs and Housing Support program funded at $64 million and offered to those eligible for…

The State budget passed by the Washington State Legislature (and not yet approved by the Governor) has moderate to severe reductions in health and human services funding for low income King County residents particularly those who are not eligible for Medicaid funding.  These cuts in prevention and intervention services will likely result in more people using emergency rooms, becoming homeless and incarcerated.

Basic Needs and Housing:

Disability Lifeline – Eliminates Disability Lifeline Program effective October 1 and creates three new programs Aged, Blind, and Disabled…

This post was written by guest blogger, Erin Milliren, an AmeriCorps volunteer with the Bridge to Basics program, a partnership between United Way of King County, Within Reach, the City of Seattle and Americorps 

Hi, my name is Erin Milliren. I am one of the four AmeriCorps service members who staff the Bridge to Basics outreach team. Based out of WithinReach in North Seattle, we travel all throughout King County. We visit food banks, public libraries, WorkSource offices and public service centers.…

The April revenue reports are in and the picture is not rosy.  Public officials were hoping that the slight increase seen in the last revenue forecast would continue, but those hopes were dashed when Arun Raha, the state’s economist, announced that the April revenue level was 1.8% below the previous month (when the unanticipated revenue from collection of back taxes is excluded from the calculation). 

With thoughts of unanticipated revenue from existing revenue sources out of the picture, several other issues are holding…