About this site
Purpose and Scope
This website, King County AIMs High: Annual Indicators and Measures, is designed to provide information to the public about key community-level indicators and county government performance measures. King County is part of a broader national movement throughout all levels of government that is trying innovative approaches to:
- Use information to assess and improve government performance;
- Increase transparency and accountability by publicly reporting performance results.
Successful organizations rely on performance measures to inform managers and leaders about how well they are reaching their goals and where improvements can be made. This website is designed to help you explore our community's conditions and King County government's performance and to help you assess what actions the public or government should take. This site was created to increase the use of performance information by residents and public officials in decision-making and public debate.
In line with King County's objective to improve the quality of life for county residents, measures and indicators are organized by the following themes:
- Natural Resources;
- Land Use and Transportation;
- Health;
- Safety & Infrastructure;
- Housing & Homelessness;
- Economy;
- Education;
- Equity; and
- Governance.
Why report indicators and performance measures?
Across the U.S., many governments report performance measures that reflect the effectiveness and efficiency of their programs. There are also numerous organizations dedicated to reporting community-level indicators that describe the condition of the community or environment. Very few communities, however, report on both community conditions and agency performance in an integrated way.
King County benefits from the work of local community organizations as well as its own work on indicators. This website maps key county performance measures to relevant community-level indicators to present a holistic picture of community conditions and King County government's efforts to improve those conditions.
The goals of reporting both indicators and measures are:
- To illustrate how King County's services and performance contribute to community conditions;
- To demonstrate how the state of the community shapes the county's decision-making and performance;
- To provide all members of the community (from government, the business community, non-profits, and individual residents) with the opportunity to identify what actions need to be taken to improve community conditions; and
- To increase access to information and support informed public debate.
Indicators
The indicators reported on this site reflect the condition of the community or the environment. Indicators are influenced by many factors and reflect the combined efforts of multiple jurisdictions and organizations. King County government typically has little control over the status of indicators. The county is, however, one of many actors working to influence each indicator.
Each theme is divided into sections. For each section, you will find a discussion of related indicators, what influences those indicators, what role King County government plays in moving the indicators in a positive direction, as well as links to related county performance measures.
The indicators included in this report were provided by King County Benchmark Program , Communities Count , and the King County Department of Natural Resources and Parks . Because indicator data were provided by a number of sources, data collection, methodology, and reporting frequency vary. Historical information is included where available, though reporting years vary. The Technical Notes section on each page includes any relevant information on data collection and analysis for each indicator.
Performance Measures
This site also reports performance measures from King County's seven executive branch departments. These results are intended to help the public understand and evaluate the county's performance in achieving its goals and outcomes. The degree of influence varies by measure; in some cases the measure presents a specific program result, in other cases a measure may be the result of multiple agencies' efforts. The county typically has more influence over its performance measures than community-level indicators.
Each performance measure includes a discussion of the significance of the measure, how King County is doing, what else influences the measure, and what the county's strategies are moving forward.
Performance measures presented on this site were developed by managers and staff at many different levels of the organization, with the ultimate goal of trying to define success or progress towards specific department goals and objectives. The majority of the performance data contained on this site has been compiled from department reports, and may include data provided from contracted agency service providers. Original data sources remain in the individual departments. The executive departments covered in this site are:
- Department of Adult and Juvenile Detention
- Department of Community and Human Services
- Department of Development and Environmental Services
- Department of Executive Services
- Department of Natural Resources and Parks
- Department of Public Health - Seattle and King County
- Department of Transportation
The results currently reported on this site are primarily effectiveness measures, which reflect the extent to which goals, outcomes, or objectives have been achieved. While citizens are concerned with how successful King County government is at providing services and achieving its goals, they are also interested in the cost and quality of products and services. Future versions of this site will provide a wider variety of measures for each goal area, including efficiency and service quality measures.
Data are generally presented for the previous three years. Where applicable, target levels, industry standards, or other comparative data are included. The Technical Notes section on each page includes any relevant information on data collection and analysis for each measure.
King County does not formally audit performance measure data. However, normal quality assurance/quality control processes are in place through routine review by department management, the Executive Office, and Office of Management and Budget.
Public Involvement
Two of the source documents from which many of the indicators are taken, Communities Count and King County Benchmarks , were developed via a public process or with stakeholder input. Communities Count conducted an extensive public process where residents expressed their opinions on what they value and what they are concerned about. Over 1,500 King County residents participated through a random digit dial telephone survey, a series of focus groups, and seven public forums held across the county.
The King County Benchmarks were originally developed via an appointed stakeholder committee that included a diverse membership of elected officials, labor, social service organizations, business, and community non-profit organizations. This committee selected indicators to support the Growth Management Planning Council's assessment of countywide planning policies developed under the state's Growth Management Act . The Growth Management Planning Council is a formal body, consisting of elected officials from King County, Seattle, Bellevue, other cities and towns in King County, special purpose districts, and the Port of Seattle.
At the performance measure level, while a number of the King County executive departments conduct customer surveys for specific services or programs, the executive branch as a whole has not formally involved county residents in the development of specific performance measures or reports. In 2008, the King County Executive Office will embark on a civic engagement process with support from a grant from the National Center for Civic Innovation .
In 2007, the Metropolitan King County Council's Citizen Budget Priorities process obtained county residents' views on how to prioritize county services for the budget. Building on this effort, the Executive Office will seek input from a cross section of residents and stakeholders regarding the content, format, and access for Executive branch performance reporting. The input will be used to revise this site and ensure that it is accessible, relevant, understandable, and useful.
Feedback
We welcome any feedback on the current site, such as:
- Suggestions for more valuable or relevant indicators and measures
- Ideas to improve site navigation
- Additional desired content
- Text or graphs that need clarification
Please contact Michael Jacobson, Performance Management Director, at michael.jacobson@kingcounty.gov so your input can be considered for subsequent updates.
