Each week on The Newsfeed, host Paris Jackson and a team of veteran journalists dive deep into one topic and provide impactful reporting, interviews and community insights from sources you can trust. Each day this week, this post will be updated with a new story from the team.
For the first time in 16 years, King County has a new Executive at the helm
Story published 05/11/2026
Girmay Zahilay is leading one of the largest local governments in the country.
King County faces a multitude of crises: from homelessness, to major internal financial issues in some departments. We sat down with him to talk about his vision for the office.
Paris Jackson, Cascade PBS: Executive Zahilay, you sit here today as the youngest person to hold this position. You came to Seattle as a child refugee. How has your lived experience framed your vision for King County?
Zahilay: It frames everything. You know, I've experienced King County at its best and at its worst. You know, we came to this country without many resources. We grew up in low-income public housing in South Seattle. We experienced all kinds of issues, like gun violence and communities that need more resources. And I've seen so many people that I've grown up with get into circumstances that we don't want any of our young people to get into. But because of effective local governments, a good job market, public resources, I was able to go from living in public housing and even homeless shelters at one point to now serving as leader of our state's largest local government. And so that is a story that I want to be available to everyone. And that's why I do the work that I do.
You've now been in office for about five months. What would you say has been some of your biggest challenges so far?
The issues are so great and so diverse, and it feels like there are more issues coming out every day. And we have a federal government that's attacking so many of our communities and taking away so many of our resources. We have a climate that's continuing to become more hostile – and I’m talking about the environment - with respect to natural disasters. We have a housing crisis this is contributing to families not being able to make ends meet. Too many people living out on the streets, too many communities being displaced farther and farther south. And so there are just a lot of challenges and a limited number of resources and a limited amount of time per day. And so, the biggest challenge is just getting to everything with the limited resources and the limited time that we have. But I believe that we will keep making progress.
Zahilay’s plans for “Breaking the Cycle” on homelessness in King County
Story published 05/12/2026
The homelessness crisis continues to confound local leaders in Washington. Zahilay says he hopes to tackle the issue with his set of priorities, which he calls “Breaking the Cycle,” acknowledging that there are so many issues contributing to the problem.
Paris Jackson, Cascade PBS: You've been calling your plans and efforts in this area breaking the the cycle. Tell us about what that means as it relates to homelessness.
Zahilay: For sure. I think a lot of people recognize that homelessness, as they see it in King County is not just a lack of shelter. Right? You see so many people out in our community who are going through homelessness and also substance use disorder and mental health issues, violence, maybe they get incarcerated and go to the King County Jail and then after they're discharged from that jail, maybe they're back out on the streets without the proper supports that they need. And so there are just a lot of overlapping issues happening, not to mention any kind of family trauma that I may have initiated all of this, and led people to snowball over many decades.
And so I call it breaking the cycle because it's an acknowledgment of so many different overlapping issues that people are facing, and they are often cyclical, where one issue contributes to the next, contributes to the next. And I want to make sure that through coordination, more resources and more accountability, that we can break that cycle and put everyone on a path to recovery.
You've built this plan on the fact that homelessness is interconnected with so many crises facing the county and Seattle, for example, how can you break through and make sure we're making the right progress?
Yeah, the three category areas that I think about when I think about solving this problem are coordination, resources and accountability. When it comes to coordination, it's the idea that if all of these systems have a role, whether it's the jail or our public health system or our housing system, then they all need to be talking to each other more. They need to coordinate better. They need to catch people who go from one part of the system to the next, and not make it so that somebody exits one part of the system, like our jail, or they leave, you know, sober living or whatever it might be, and they're just back out on the street without the kind of follow-up and resources and stabilization that they need to be healthy and housed again. And so I want that coordination.
Number two is resources. The scale of the housing crisis and the homelessness crisis is so large, that absolutely, we need more resources. We have shelters in King County that are on the verge of closing because we don't have the resources for them. We know that there are so many people who are living outside, and the demand for shelter far outpaces the supply that we have. And so getting more stable resources is a priority for me. And that’s why I want to explore this housing levy concept. I'm not committed to it yet, but having a dedicated source of money, especially in light of all the resources we're losing from the federal government, is key.
And finally, it's accountability. I want to make sure that every single dollar that we collect in taxes goes to its highest use, and there is no waste, there is no fraud, there is no abuse. And we’re funding all of the things that work. And that's what our better government plan is about. It's about holding ourselves accountable to being the highest performing local government in the nation. That is the standard I’m setting and anything less is unacceptable.
You mentioned that levy that you're considering... As you're out day-to-day, where do you think residents stand and swing towards that? Do you think that that's something that could pass if it's brought to voters?
I think people are conflicted, just like I am. I think people see a clear need for more resources with respect to the types of issues that we need to solve. And at the same time, the level of tax sensitivity that I'm seeing in our communities might be at an all-time high because the cost of living is going up. People are feeling like the money that they do have is not going far enough to cover even their basic needs. And so going out and asking people for more taxes right now, it's a tough proposition. And that's why I'm not coming out and saying, we're absolutely doing this. I'm saying we're exploring this. We're going to look at the trade-offs.
We're going to make sure that we fix all of these issues that people are seeing in the headlines right now. And at the same time, we can't abandon our commitment to the most vulnerable people in our community. And that means making sure that the big shelter in Soto that is set to close in May of 2027, because we don't have the resources for it, that's a problem because we can't just displace hundreds of unhoused people out into the streets. That's something that our taxpayers and our communities don't want either.
Zahilay explains King County staffing, work in-office changes
Story published 05/13/2026
King County employees have seen some major changes in the workplace since Zahilay took office in November.
In his first weeks in office, Zahilay made sweeping staffing and departmental changes, and announced a plan for employees to work in-office, 3 days a week. Both prompted some vocal opposition from county staff.
Zahilay is the first new County Executive in 16 years, following the departure of longtime Executive Dow Constantine. He believes that played a role in some of the outcry.
Paris Jackson, Cascade PBS: What do you want people to know about the staffing changes and why you made them?
Zahilay: Yeah, I think that King County, because we are not used to administration changes and turnover the way the city of Seattle is, for example. We had the same executive for 16 years, whereas City of Seattle has a new executive every four years, it seems like. That... people are are not used to change at King County. And so the same thing that every new administration does, which is bring in their own people for the executive office, somehow perceived as something different than what it was for us.
We absolutely brought in our own people, like every new administration does. And I absolutely restructured the office around what I believe. I was elected to deliver on, and that is breaking the cycle, better government, being in community and having more presence outside and building for affordability. And so, the changes that you see in my office are restructuring our office to advance those core priorities that I was elected to deliver on.
And I will say that there's not a single function that was lost in the transition. Anyone who is, you know, maybe scrutinizing the changes will not be able to point to a single service that was disrupted, a single function that is no longer happening. Every single function continues to happen. It might be in a department or it might look different. It might be in a different location, but there is no service disruption
In January... you announced a mandatory return to office three days a week. And just in late April, a group of county employees participated in a protest calling the policy counterproductive and a waste of taxpayer money. Why is it important to have county workers in office at least three days a week?
Yeah, first and foremost, it's what the voters and our communities expect. Every time I went out and I talked to people throughout my campaign, they said, we are perceiving lower customer service, lower responsiveness and county government, and we believe that having some kind of more presence will help with customer service and more productivity and more responsiveness.
And as somebody who has seen both sides of being mostly remote versus having a combination of in-person and and remote, I absolutely see a huge difference. There's here's a huge difference in collaboration and productivity and accountability and so that’s why I say that that we need to be in office at least some number of days a week. That being said, there is no doubt that there is a lot of benefit to remote work as well. When people say that it helps them save money to be at home and be with their families and drop their kids off at school, I believe that 100%, as somebody who has two babies myself, I believe that.
And that's why we're implementing a permanent hybrid work, arrangement. If you had proposed this arrangement five years ago, people would have been jumping for joy. Like, oh my goodness, a hybrid work model. That is something that staff and employees would jump for joy for. And so, I believe that we need a balance. I definitely don't support a five day return for office workers. I think it should be, capturing the benefits of both sides. And that's what I'm proposing.
Zahilay weighs in on path forward for Sound Transit
Story published 05/14/2026
Sound Transit is weighing how to deal with a $35 billion-dollar budget shortfall. To do so, it may need to defer some projects and skip others. Zahilay is a Sound Transit Board member, and also nominates new members. In our sit-down interview with him on April 29, we talked with him about the agency’s significant financial challenge.
Pais Jackson, Cascade PBS: You're on the Sound Transit Board and getting light rail to Ballard, West Seattle, and even Everett is costing a lot more than was previously estimated. What do you think it is that King County residents, want to see? Is it getting to Everett or is it these Seattle neighborhoods?
Zahilay: I think first and foremost, they want us to deliver on voter-approved projects within budget. I think those are the two things that they want. They don't want us to abandon any projects that we've committed ourselves to. And they understand that facing a $35 billion deficit means that we have to deliver things on a particular pace and scope that will allow us to deliver within the budget that we have. And so that's what I'm committed to, is not abandoning a single project, continuing to advance all projects forward, and understanding that some things will have to be delayed or changed based on the money that we have.
Moving forward on all projects means that if any projects are shovel-ready and ready to be built right now, we should absolutely build them. And that's why I think that we should build West Seattle, because it is shovel-ready. By the way, shovel-ready is a technical term. And that technical term, has been met with respect to West Seattle. So I think we should build that.
When it comes to Ballard, all of the information that I have received and I've been asking us to go as far as possible in Ballard, is that getting to Market Street, which is the terminal of that station, is not currently affordable. But what I'm asking for is: go as far as possible, be aggressive, be creative. And if that means going one stop up, two stops up - I haven't seen the exact numbers and configurations yet - but I am holding Sound Transit's feet to the fire and making sure whatever is possible and going as far as possible. With an eye toward: we're going to get there eventually, but I want to go as far as possible right now, as soon as we can.
Let's talk about Graham. The Graham Street station, here in the Seattle area. Is that likely on the chopping block?
I want us to build that. You know, when it comes to infill stations, which are stations in between existing stations, that is a far less expensive proposition than building a whole new line like West Seattle or Ballard or whatever it might be. And so I think we should build it. I think that the communities over there deserve it. They've been asking for it for a long time. Same as Boeing Access Road. And so every anything that we could can do, I want to leave no stone unturned on advancing those infill stations as well.
Zahilay aiming to build trust, transparency amid troubling audits
Story published 05/15/2026
King County Executive Girmay Zahilay has had to take on two major financial cleanup projects since taking office late last year.
One came to light last August, before he was in office. An audit of the Department of Community and Human Services found potential fraud and numerous improper payments for contractors, and made recommendations for needed improvements. In April, the first follow-up audit of that department found it has made significant progress.
Also in April, a new audit of the King County Regional Homelessness Authority found at least $13 million in funds were unaccounted for.
In our sit-down interview with Executive Zahilay, which we conducted on April 29th, we asked him about both of these crises.
Paris Jackson, Cascade PBS: As you have stepped into office, you've inherited a set of financial troubles in a few King County departments and also agencies. Is the county working fast enough to provide that transparency that folks are looking for?
Zahilay: I believe DCHS is moving very aggressively to meet all of the requirements to solve these problems. They are on pace to achieve all of the recommendations in the audit - the famous audit that everybody knows about now. All ten recommendations are on pace to be achieved. That means fraud prevention training. It means more site visits to actually put eyes and ears on programing to make sure that there's that accountability. It means assessing and moving away from risky payment models. It means better invoicing that all of those recommendations are on track to be met. And I think there is way more work that we can and should and must do. And that is my expectation. Again, my central priority as the new executive is to make King County the best run local government in the nation. Anything less is unacceptable.
And so those are the types of changes that you'll see through my better government executive order, or the work that we're doing to hold King County Regional Homelessness Authority accountable. That is a top priority.
And we're going to get into those agencies, right back to the King County Regional Homeless Authority that report or audit, rather, found at least $13 million in funds were unaccounted for. You said it raised serious concerns about internal controls and fiscal management of that agency. Two King County Council members are calling to disband that agency. You haven't gone that far. What kind of changes... are you considering based upon, the steps that the agency has taken?
I would say that those findings in that forensic report were shocking and unacceptable. And in the short term, the Seattle Mayor and I have put forward a list of requirements for the agency to respond to that will stabilize the organization, that will hold it accountable, that will have them respond to us in writing by May 8th, the types of changes that they need to make and explanations for those shocking findings. So in the short term, a lot of changes need to happen. The status quo is unacceptable.
What we do in the long term is something that needs to be carefully vetted and understood before we take drastic actions like treating this agency like it's a light switch that can turn on and off. It's not. There are contracts. There is federal funding at risk. There are people's jobs. And most importantly, there are services that we don't want to disrupt to the people who are living unhoused on the ground and so all options are on the table. We are aggressively assessing all those options. At the same time, as the county executive or as the Seattle mayor, no one's going to accept it if we say we're getting rid of this agency, and we don't have an answer for what comes next, right? We have to have the requisite level of confidence that whatever changes we make, whether that's within this organization or away from this organization, are going to be better than what we have. And that takes a lot of work. It requires us to move urgently, but methodically and thoughtfully at the same time.
Let's get back to talking about the Department of Community and Human Services. Taxpayers are looking for, from what we've heard, transparency. How do you plan to ensure that taxpayers receive that transparency and that trust in this department?
My better government executive order last month is designed to achieve accountability. It’s designed to move us to becoming the highest t performing organization that we can. And it’s designed to have the transparency that you're talking about, because that's exactly what taxpayers deserve. And it's exactly what the communities who benefit from our services deserve.
And so, a few things that we're doing are, number one, we have hired an internal audit director. This is somebody who is going to look at all of our departments across all of our, functions in King County and identify any risks, make recommendations for what needs to change, make recommendations for how we can hold every department accountable and protect taxpayer dollars. They are regularly going to host an accountability subcabinet, which brings together all of our department directors with the internal audit director, leading to share best practices, identify issues, hold people accountable, and they're also making recommendations for how we structure our accountability systems.
So we need a central place for people to call if they see fraud and they want to report fraud. We need a central place to investigate those issues. And now those are the systems they are going to be building out.
We're also, for the first time in history, going to do a base budget analysis. That means unlike what usually happens - which is, King County kind of rolls over 90% of the budget from one biennium to the next and just makes changes on the margins. Instead, we’re going to build our budgets from the ground up. That's going to allow us to take a microscope and look at all of our programs everywhere that we're spending money, find cost savings, find the programs that are delivering results, sunset the programs that are not delivering results and really and truly hold ourselves accountable financially.
