The City of Burien serves as a planner, facilitator, and funder for support systems that help people through economic and personal crisis and provide low-and moderate-income persons with opportunities to succeed. The Human Services Division of the City Manager’s Department administers the Human Services Fund.

The City takes one of the following three roles in human services, depending on the need:

• Planner: assess and anticipate needs and develop appropriate policy and program responses.
• Facilitator: convene and engage others in community problem-solving to develop and improve services.
• Funder: disburse federal Community Development Block Grant and General Fund dollars to support a network of services which respond to community needs.

Community Services

The City of Burien contracts with nonprofit agencies to provide programs and services.

• Information and phone numbers for available services in our local social services directory.
• List of 2017-2018 human services organizations receiving funding.
• Call 2-1-1 to find health and human services in King County.

2019–2020 Human Services Funding

For 2019–2020, the City of Burien anticipates allocating approximately $370,000 per year. This includes a Council-approved change to the human services funding formula to $6.50 per capita as well as approximately $45,000 in funding from the Community Development Block Grant program.

Human services funding under the general fund is allocated on a biennial basis through a competitive application process.
Funding priority is given to programs that help Burien community members to:

• Have secure, affordable housing, and food adequate to their needs.
• Be safe from violence within their families, neighborhoods, and communities.
• Be healthy, physically and mentally.
• Have the education and job skills that lead to employment in living wage jobs.
• Have early childhood education and youth success.

Human Services Commission

The Human Services Commission is an advisory body to the City Council responsible for providing advice and recommendations related to human services issues. Duties and responsibilities of the Human Services Commission include:

1. Identify and assess the human services needs in the City.
2. Recommend priorities and approaches to address human services needs within the City.
3. Review human services funding requests submitted to the City and make funding allocation recommendations.
4. Review performance of human services agencies/programs that are funded by the City.

Agendas and minutes for all Council, advisory board and commission meetings are available in the Meeting Center.