4600-00. Legislative Department

Meeting materials from various short-term and special City Council committees.

The materials in this collection reflect the work and functions of the Central Staff Director and Central Staff Analysts and includes digital correspondence, drafts, proposals, memos, and research materials concerning a variety of topics assigned to Central Staff Analysts.

Correspondence, memoranda, reports, studies, and staff reports related to issues that come before the City Council for consideration. Also includes copies of City Council work programs and policy planning agendas. A large portion of the material relates to regional planning issues, especially water, electrical power, transportation, and governance.

Minutes of City Council when it sits as a committee. Committee of the Whole meets to discuss issues that cross the jurisdiction of two or more Council committees or when issues are considered of such importance that the full Council deems it appropriate to meet as a committee. From 1980 to the present Committee of the Whole minutes are included with the regular meeting minutes.

Weekly listing of all City Council meetings, regular and special committee meetings, public hearings, and the schedule for Channel 28, the City-owned government access cable television station. First named the Hearings Calendar, the schedules were later called "Two-Week Look Ahead."

Formal photos of City Council, councilmembers, City Engineers, and Board of Aldermen.

Lists of proposed legislation and Clerk Files introduced to City Council and subsequently referred to committees. Includes Council Bill and Clerk File numbers, title of document, name of sponsoring Councilmember, and committee to which document was referred.

Agendas, correspondence, staff reports, notes, and other materials related to the City Council's weekly briefings meetings. The meetings provide Council members the opportunity to apprise one another of issues that will be coming to the Council and to receive briefings from other City staff on programs, projects, and issues of concern for the Council. The meetings were formerly known as the City Council Business Meetings. Note that there are some years missing from the series.

News releases issued by the City Council and its various committees covering the full range of issues that come before the Council, hearing dates and schedules, and resolutions.

Collection includes Legislative Department offices, councilmember portraits, council chambers, City Hall, mayors, events, and celebrations.

Background materials for City Council members for issues discussed at Committee of the Whole meetings. Includes summary of issues, proposals, draft legislation, calendar of meetings, and table of contents.

Publications produced by the department, including informational brochures about City Council, employee newsletters, materials sent out by individual Councilmembers, and publications of the Office of the City Clerk, including the City Records Management Program and the Seattle Municipal Archives.

Log maintained by City Council for claims against the City. Includes date, person or corporate entity filing claim, claim number, and nature of the claim. In some instances entry also includes notation of whether claim was allowed, Council Bill number of legislation authorizing payment, fund claim drawn on, and amount to be paid.

Record of license applications considered by City Council, organized by date introduced to the Council. Includes license number, business license number, business name, address, whether new or a renewal, and the Council action taken.

Reports, correspondence, and staff notes regarding the policy planning process. A 1977 Resolution established a collaborative process by which the Mayor and City Council would develop agreed upon policies. The Agendas were devised as two-year documents that were updated annually. The process created a policy catalog and index to policies to be accessible to the public and City officials.

Reports of suggested changes by the City Council to departmental proposed budgets during annual budget deliberations. For most years, this series includes summaries of votes by Councilmembers. Also includes reports of estimated city revenues.

Correspondence, working papers, testimony, petitions, reports, and recommendations relating to zoning and mapping of neighborhood commercial areas. Includes four boxes of code, policy, mapping, and publicity files and seven boxes of individual zoning cases arranged by region of the City. Case files include pre-project zoning designation, Mayor's recommendation, Council committee recommendation, and final Council decision.

Correspondence, working papers, testimony, petitions, reports, recommendations, and draft legislation relating to a new industrial commercial areas zoning code.

Correspondence, memoranda, reports, and recommendations regarding the major institutions policy in the Seattle land use code. A major institution is a public or private organization providing educational, religious, medical, or recreational services to a community, and that dominates an area based on the amount of land owned and number of staff, clients, or visitors, and traffic impacts.

Records relating to audits done by the Seattle City Council's Central Staff.

Records from the City Council Advisory Panel on Police Accountability.

Zoning case files for residential areas, arranged by neighborhood.

Records of City Council's Communications Director.