The purpose of the annual Report Card is to hold our elected officials accountable to a principled vision for Seattle. The grades and accompanying analysis provide citizens with the information they need to track the performance of the City Council. The City Council has the power and obligation to meet the changes of today and to prepare for a brighter, greener future. Instead of waiting until election year, let's make sure that councilmembers are always doing the right thing.

• 2010 Report Card (in progress)
• 2009 Report Card (pdf)

Grading Criteria: The grades are based on what councilmembers did and said and how they voted. We ask two questions for each issue:

• Has the councilmember taken the tough, courageous vote necessary to achieve a sustainable outcome for our city?
• Has the councilmember has been a leader who shows creativity, openness to debate, and decisiveness?

We grade councilmembers poorly if they say one thing but do another, or vote in a way inconsistent with the goal of Seattle becoming a sustainable, livable and affordable community. Because so many councilmembers claim they support this goal, we look carefully for signs of what we call the Sustainability Gap—the difference between what elected officials say and what they actually do. Supportive statements and master plans are not enough—we look for action.

Who: The Report Card is produced by Party of the Future, a project of Friends of Seattle.