WHEREAS, the current Charter of the City of Seattle, established March 12, 1946, is the City's "constitution," and sets out general provisions concerning the City's powers and operation; and

WHEREAS, unlike the Charter of the State of Washington and the United States Constitution, the Charter of the City of Seattle has no preamble; and

WHEREAS, the purpose of a preamble is to establish a general set of principles for the purposes, organization, and affairs of the City of Seattle; and

WHEREAS, the City of Seattle, like any other municipality or organization, can benefit from recognizing a common set of principles and values; NOW THEREFORE,

BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SEATTLE, THE MAYOR CONCURRING, THAT:

Section 1: Subject to the approval of a proposition by a majority of the qualified electors casting votes thereon, the Charter of the City of Seattle is amended to add prior to Article I:

"PREAMBLE

Under authority conferred by the Constitution of the State of Washington, the People of the City of Seattle enact this Charter as the Law of the City for the purpose of protecting and enhancing the health, safety, environment, and general welfare of the people; to enable municipal government to provide services and meet the needs of the people efficiently; to allow fair and equitable participation of all persons in the affairs of the City; to provide for transparency, accountability, and ethics in governance and civil service; to foster fiscal responsibility; to promote prosperity and to meet the broad needs for a healthy, growing City."

Section 2. The King County Director of Records and Elections, as ex officio supervisor of elections, is hereby requested to call a special election and is directed to submit the charter amendment proposed herein to the qualified electors of the City at the election on November 6, 2007.

Section 3. The City Clerk shall certify to the Director of the Department of Records and Elections of King County as Supervisor of Elections the charter amendment proposed herein in the form of a ballot title prepared by the City Attorney pursuant to RCW 29A.36.071, and shall certify a copy of the proposed Charter amendment, and the same shall be published by the City Clerk in accordance with state law.

Adopted by the City Council the _____ day of _____________, 2007, and signed by me in open session in authentication of its adoption this _____ day of ________________, 2007. ________________________________________ President __________ of the City Council

THE MAYOR CONCURRING: ______________________________ Mayor

Filed by me this ______ day of _________________, 2007. ________________________________________ City Clerk

07/30/07 (Ver. 4) ta