“Having an office charged with the single focus of large capital project oversight will avoid costly mistakes and provide us with better accountability for project budgets,” said Councilmember Hague, Chair of the Council’s Operating Budget Panel. “It’s our fiduciary responsibility to maximize and protect precious taxpayer dollars. An independent, arms-length review of major capital projects is an important step.”

“The Council and County taxpayers need expert, independent oversight of our major capital projects,” said Councilmember Ferguson, Chair of the Capital Budget Panel. “This year, for example, we were presented with project schedule, budget and scope changes that added millions of taxpayer dollars for major projects. If major changes are made to any project, we need to know if they are justified and acceptable.”

The concept for the new Office of Capital Project Oversight was developed by Councilmembers now writing the 2007 King County Budget. The Office will be a pilot project for 2007. It will be a distinct oversight and performance assurance section within the King County Auditor’s office, which is an independent agency of the King County Council.

“‘Earning Public Trust’ is a major theme of ‘Priorities For People,’ the framework the Council set for the 2007 budget process,” said Councilmember Dow Constantine, Chair of the Annual Budget Reconciliation and Adoption Committee. “By ramping up our oversight of large capital projects we can ensure King County taxpayers get the maximum return on their investment of public funds.”

“This new office will provide better up-front evaluation and management of construction contracts and project scope, with the intent of saving money and preventing cost overruns,” said Councilmember Kathy Lambert, vice-chair of the Annual Budget Reconciliation and Adoption Committee. “It also will implement existing policies this Council already has adopted for managing the cost of large capital projects.”

For the pilot project, the office will be staffed by 2 term-limited employees who will oversee the work of expert consultants brought in to examine four priority capital projects: the Harborview Ninth and Jefferson Building, the Brightwater treatment plant, the King County Jail’s Integrated Security Project and Jail Health Electronic Records project, and the Accountable Business Transformation project for integration of payroll, finance, human resource and budget management. The office will also evaluate whether any erosion to Council-mandated procurement practices has occurred. Total estimated costs for the pilot project are $620,000, to be funded by charges to the projects under scrutiny.

“When it comes to large construction projects, citizens expect government to hold the line with their tax dollars,” said Council Chair Larry Phillips. “Independent legislative branch oversight of capital projects will help assure accountability in delivering projects on time and on budget.”

“It will be extremely beneficial to have independent professionals examining the progress of major King County capital public works projects,” said Councilmember Larry Gossett, the Council’s Vice Chair of Policy and Administration. “Placing this oversight function in the legislative branch ensures its independence.”

The King County Auditor will develop a new work program that maintains a “bright line” between her audit functions and the oversight provided by the new office, and report back to the Council by the end of January, 2007.

The Office of Capital Project Oversight is one of the significant new policy measures Councilmembers will write into the final King County Budget, which is scheduled for adoption on Nov. 20.