Ron Sims
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F. Ron Sims, born in 1948, is currently the King County Executive. He has twice run unsuccessfully for higher office: United States Senator in 1994 and Governor of Washington in 2004.
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[edit] Early life
Sims was born in Spokane, Washington, to Reverend James C. Sims Sr. and Lydia T. Sims. He graduated from Lewis and Clark High School and attended Central Washington University in Ellensburg, where he earned a B.A. in psychology. Between graduation and his election to the King County Council he worked in the office of the Washington State Attorney General, for the Federal Trade Commission, for the juvenile offenders program of the city of Seattle, and as an aide in the state senate. He is an ordained Baptist minister.
[edit] Political Life
In 1985, Sims was first elected to the King County Council and was subsequently re-elected two more times, 1989 and 1993. During his first term, he and fellow Councilman Bruce Laing successfully led a campaign to have the county rededicate its name in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. [1] (this change was not officially recognized by the state until July 25, 2005). [2]
In 1994, he was defeated by Republican incumbent Slade Gorton in an election for the United States Senate.
In 1996, he was appointed to the position of King County Executive after the previous holder of the office, Gary Locke, was elected governor of Washington. He was re-elected by wide margins to the position in 1997, 2001 and 2005. As King County Executive, Sims has been instrumental in maintaining a balanced budget for the county by encouraging unincorporated areas of King County to incorporate into new cities or join existing cities and by slashing the county budget while maintaining core services. The county currently has the highest available credit rating of the top three US rating companies. [3]
On July 29, 2003, he announced that he would seek the Democratic nomination for Washington state governor in the 2004 elections. Sims made news in the campaign when he proposed replacing the state sales tax and business and occupation tax with a progressively graduated income tax. In the primary election held on September 14, 2004, Sims lost to state Attorney General Christine Gregoire.
Sims has been outspoken in his support of legalizing same-sex marriage in Washington state. Although he has refused to issue marriage licences to same-sex couples, stating that it was not the business of state officials to practice civil disobedience, he has encouraged same-sex couples to sue the county in order to have the courts decide.
Sims serves as president of the National Democratic County Officials.
[edit] Controversial Decisions
- On April 29, 2004, Sims announced his intention to temporarily locate a Tent City on county-owned land near Bothell, Washington and gave the King County Council 90 days to determine a more permanent location within the county for the tent city to be located. [4] Due to the public outcry against this proposal, in May 2005, the Council voted to have a one year moratorium prohibiting the siting of homeless encampments on public land pending a review by the Executive of the availability, suitability, and appropriateness of using county-owned land. [5] Due to a lack of support within the council, Sims never conducted this review and the moratorium remains in place, effectively banning the use of public land.
- On October 26, 2004, the King County Council passed the Critical Area Ordinance [6] to protect environmentally sensitve areas (such as wetlands and streams) and restrict development in hazardous areas (such as floodplains and landslide prone steep slopes). This drew the ire of many property rights groups and rural landowners as the ordinance prevented land owners from developing areas of their property that met the critical area definition. [7]
- On May 16, 2005, Sims announced the county's intention to purchase a 47 mile long railroad corridor that runs parallel to Interstate 405 and convert the rail corridor into multi-use corridor, of which the primary use would be an expansion of the county's trail system. [8] This announcement raised concerns from the owners, employees, and customers of the Spirit of Washington Dinner Train and concerned citizens and lawmakers over whether Sims intended to tear up the rails and bring the popular train to an end. [9]
[edit] Personal
Sims and his wife, Cayan Topacio, live in the Mount Baker neighborhood of Seattle. They have three sons: Douglas, Daniel, and Aaron.
