OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Seattle City Council Briefing – July 27, 2026: OIR Summer Briefing and Gun Violence Response

City Council — Monday, July 27, 2026
BodySeattle, Washington
SessionCity Council
DateMonday, July 27, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 1:06:01

Transcript — Verbatim
0:17

Yeah, we could do they don't have the rights for that financially.

0:22

So they have to.

0:23

Hey, good afternoon.

0:24

Today is July 27, 2026.

0:27

The council briefing will come to order.

0:29

It is 2 03 p.m.

0:30

Clerk, will you please call the roll?

0:33

Councilmember Saka.

0:34

Here.

0:35

Councilmember Strauss.

0:36

Councilmember Foster.

0:37

Here.

0:38

Councilmember Warz.

0:39

Here.

0:39

Councilmember Kettle?

0:40

Here.

0:41

Councilmember Lynn?

0:42

Here.

0:42

Councilmember Rink.

0:43

Councilmember Rivera.

0:45

Present.

0:45

Council President Hollingsworth.

0:47

Here.

0:47

Seven present.

0:48

Awesome.

0:48

And Councilmember Strauss is excused, and so is Councilmember Rink as well.

0:54

If there's no objections, the minutes of June 29th, 2026 will be adopted.

1:00

Hearing no objection, the minutes are adopted.

1:03

Today, colleagues, we have one presentation from the Office of Intergovernmental Relations.

1:08

There are no proclamations.

1:10

There are two executive sessions at the end of this meeting.

1:13

And there are nine items on the introduction referral calendar.

1:17

We are going to begin, and I want to thank uh Director Hashimi and then also Sam Reed from the Office of Intergovernmental Refairs.

1:25

Um they will begin their briefing.

1:27

Colleagues, just to set them up, and I'm apologize, I didn't, I should invite y'all to the table earlier.

1:32

My bad, uh, Director Hashimi, but uh a lot of you have all asked for updates from our intergovernmental uh relations department.

1:42

Uh so thank you all, especially Councilmember Kettle.

1:44

Um said that wanted more frequency of updates, and so as you all know, we have and Councilmember Strauss is present for the record.

1:53

Um, as you all know, um, we have had uh our trig figuring out our flow with council briefings, and there's a ton of legislation that is getting passed through, and so wanted to make sure that we're utilizing our council briefings accordingly.

2:09

Uh and this is the one of those meetings where we have our intergovernmental relations department.

2:14

So, Director Hashimi, Sam Reed, thank you for joining us.

2:17

You all can get started with your presentation.

2:19

And colleagues, if you could hold your questions to the end so we can get through it, and then I will call on you for questions.

2:25

Director.

2:26

Wonderful.

2:26

Thank you.

2:27

Good afternoon, Council President Hollingsworth and Council members.

2:30

Thank you for having us today.

2:32

I'm Mina Hoshemi, Director of the Office of Intergovernmental Relations.

2:37

And I'm Sam Reid, Deputy Director of the Office of Intergovernmental Relations.

2:41

Sam joined OIR in late April after serving 10 years at the Department of Neighborhoods, most recently as deputy director, and we are very lucky to have his expertise and his passion now at OAR.

2:54

And we're excited to be here today to brief council and the public on our work.

2:58

The Office of Intergovernmental Relations, or OIR, represents and advances Seattle's interests across local, regional, tribal, state, federal, and international governments.

3:09

We lead the city's intergovernmental advocacy, offering strategic guidance and working closely with the mayor, city council, city attorney, and all city departments to shape policy and funding strategies at every level of a government to ensure the city's interests are represented in critical decision-making venues.

3:27

We oversee the development and alignment of the city's federal and state lobbying agendas and strategies to ensure coordinated effective lobbying, and we partner with governments, agencies, and stakeholders to advance shared policy priorities and secure critical funding.

3:43

OAR manages key memberships that strengthen Seattle's influence and access to policymakers at the regional national levels, including Association of Washington Cities, Puget Sound Regional Council, the U.S.

3:56

Conference of Mayors, and more.

3:58

Next slide, please.

3:59

As of April 2026, OIR is fully staffed.

4:03

In addition to Deputy Director Reed, we are also pleased to welcome government operations and protocols coordinator Patty Camacho.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Public Safety████████████████████████████████████████████44%
Intergovernmental Coordination███████████████████████████████31%
Procedural██████████10%
Youth Programs████████8%
Public Engagement███3%
Public Transit██2%
Community Engagement██2%
Summary of Proceedings

Seattle City Council Briefing – July 27, 2026

Meeting convened at 2:03 p.m. and adjourned at 5:05 p.m. Council President Hollingsworth presided. Seven members were present; the official minutes list Dan Strauss as excused and Alexis Mercedes Rinck as a late arrival, but the transcript indicates both were excused. The June 29, 2026 Council Briefing minutes were approved without objection.

Consent Calendar

  • Approval of the June 29, 2026 Council Briefing minutes.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Only written public comment was accepted; no oral testimony was presented.

Discussion Items

1. Office of Intergovernmental Relations (OIR) Summer Briefing Director Mina Hashemi and Deputy Director Sam Read presented OIR’s work across six lines of business: federal, state, regional, tribal, international, and public development authorities. Highlights included:

  • Preparation for the 2027 state legislative session, with OIR collecting priorities from departments and councilmembers.
  • Regional successes: King County Transportation District sales tax (0.1%) – Seattle’s annual share rose from ~$1.9 million to ~$4.7 million after the city successfully advocated to remove a cap on its share.
  • Sound Transit adopted an updated system plan; work continues on ST3 program, including expanding bonding authority.
  • World Cup planning: OIR supported consular visits, tribal law enforcement mutual aid, and facilitated human trafficking sessions reaching 200 attendees. HB 1515 (alcohol service in fan zones) expires in 2027; next steps are being coordinated.
  • Tribal relations staff participated in NCAI conference, though Councilmember Juarez requested more formal reporting on such engagements.
  • Councilmember Kettle urged earlier notification on state legislation affecting public safety (e.g., ALPR bill) and asked that OIR dual-track communications with council committees. Councilmembers Foster and Rivera shared their involvement with the Association of Washington Cities.

2. Preview of City Council Actions and Gun Violence Discussion Councilmembers addressed the July 26 shooting at Seattle Center (three fatalities, multiple injuries) and other shootings over the weekend on Capitol Hill, Aurora, and Rainier Beach. Key themes:

  • Council President Hollingsworth advocated for implementing the National Network for Safe Communities model (proven 40-60% gun violence reduction in other cities).
  • Councilmembers Saka, Strauss, Juarez, Foster, Lynn, and Kettle expressed condolences, praised first responders, and called for comprehensive action including gun control, youth violence prevention, and a public health approach.
  • Councilmember Rivera reported on the Families Education Preschool Promise (FEP) INE plan moving to full council vote.
  • Councilmember Saka announced the Transportation, Waterfront and Seattle Center Committee passed a skybridge construction ordinance.
  • Councilmember Strauss noted the mid-year supplemental budget amendments were due July 24; revenue forecast is August 7.
  • Councilmember Foster announced an amendment for youth homelessness prevention partnership with the Raikes Foundation.
  • Councilmember Kettle highlighted the Freedom Plain National Tour documents arriving in Seattle and a nonprofit Jazz Ed.
  • Councilmember Lynn noted the Cannabis and Public Safety bill (CP) with amendments for council vote tomorrow.

Key Outcomes

  • Minutes approved.
  • OIR presentation received; no formal vote. OIR will provide quarterly updates and meet with councilmembers on 2027 priorities.
  • Upcoming votes: FEP INE plan (July 28), Junk Fees legislation amendments due July 27, public drug use ordinance (July 28 committee), transportation ordinances, and mid-year supplemental budget.
  • Executive Session I on litigation convened at 3:08 p.m., extended from an estimated end of 5:00 p.m. to 5:15 p.m., and concluded at 5:05 p.m. The meeting adjourned immediately thereafter.

Meeting Transcript

Yeah, we could do they don't have the rights for that financially. So they have to. Hey, good afternoon. Today is July 27, 2026. The council briefing will come to order. It is 2 03 p.m. Clerk, will you please call the roll? Councilmember Saka. Here. Councilmember Strauss. Councilmember Foster. Here. Councilmember Warz. Here. Councilmember Kettle? Here. Councilmember Lynn? Here. Councilmember Rink. Councilmember Rivera. Present. Council President Hollingsworth. Here. Seven present. Awesome. And Councilmember Strauss is excused, and so is Councilmember Rink as well. If there's no objections, the minutes of June 29th, 2026 will be adopted. Hearing no objection, the minutes are adopted. Today, colleagues, we have one presentation from the Office of Intergovernmental Relations. There are no proclamations. There are two executive sessions at the end of this meeting. And there are nine items on the introduction referral calendar. We are going to begin, and I want to thank uh Director Hashimi and then also Sam Reed from the Office of Intergovernmental Refairs. Um they will begin their briefing. Colleagues, just to set them up, and I'm apologize, I didn't, I should invite y'all to the table earlier. My bad, uh, Director Hashimi, but uh a lot of you have all asked for updates from our intergovernmental uh relations department. Uh so thank you all, especially Councilmember Kettle. Um said that wanted more frequency of updates, and so as you all know, we have and Councilmember Strauss is present for the record. Um, as you all know, um, we have had uh our trig figuring out our flow with council briefings, and there's a ton of legislation that is getting passed through, and so wanted to make sure that we're utilizing our council briefings accordingly. Uh and this is the one of those meetings where we have our intergovernmental relations department. So, Director Hashimi, Sam Reed, thank you for joining us. You all can get started with your presentation. And colleagues, if you could hold your questions to the end so we can get through it, and then I will call on you for questions. Director. Wonderful. Thank you. Good afternoon, Council President Hollingsworth and Council members. Thank you for having us today. I'm Mina Hoshemi, Director of the Office of Intergovernmental Relations. And I'm Sam Reid, Deputy Director of the Office of Intergovernmental Relations.

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