DNRP Equity

King County AIMs High

Previous Reports

• 2006 KingStat
• 2005 Measuring for Results
  - 7meg PDF
• 2004 Measuring for Results
  - 4.4meg PDF
• 2003 Measuring for Results
  - 4.3meg PDF

News

• King County performance reporting wins national awards

For many years, the Department of Natural Resources and Parks (DNRP) has used performance information to enhance service delivery, improve program effectiveness and maintain accountability to the public.

We track changes in environmental and community conditions (referred to as "indicators") and reports on our agency's performance in achieving stated goals and targets (referred to as "performance measures").

In 2007, we began posting our performance reports on-line as a way to gather feedback from residents, ratepayers and employees on the effectiveness of the programs DNRP delivers. We also began measuring the equity of service delivery in major program areas in support of the King County Equity and Social Justice Initiative. We evaluated parks and trails, water quality, hazardous waste management and wastewater and solid waste facility locations to identify any disproportionate benefits and burdens that could be addressed through program adjustments or reprioritizations.

We are proud of our success in measuring the impact that our programs are having on the environment and our community — from protecting Puget Sound and providing youth recreation to encouraging resource conservation and reuse. Our goal is to more accurately target our resources to known areas of concern. This approach involves a commitment of resources to monitor water quality, measure forest cover, and track the health of people and the environment.

We have prioritized our scientific and analytical resources to better understanding three primary objectives:

• Effectiveness at achieving results and improving conditions;
• Efficiency of program operations and resource utilization; and
• Fairness and equity of how benefits and burdens are distributed throughout our services areas.

Our performance management challenges for 2008 include:

• Better decision support and performance measurements for capital investments, including parks, infrastructures and buildings;
• More robust assessments of the equity and social justice impacts of planning and policy decisions; and
• Enhancing management capabilities by extending the KingStat performance management process throughout our agency.

DNRP is striving hard to improve its performance information and to involve residents, businesses, partner agencies and other stakeholders in achieving our goal of sustainable, livable communities and a healthy environment.

Thank you for your interest in and contributions toward improved health of our community and environment. We look forward to your feedback.