Snohomish County Councilmember Brian Sullivan has announced he will run for county treasurer. Sullivan, who said he has worked on budgets across many levels of government, is running to replace incumbent treasurer Kirk Sievers, who is term limited.

“I’ve always worked toward creating a Snohomish County with strong fiscal health and great services that taxpayers can trust,” he said. “It only feels natural that my next role should be managing the county’s treasury and protecting the hard-earned tax dollars of its residents.”

A former mayor and state legislator before serving on the council, Sullivan said he has a range of budgetary experience at all levels of government. He noted that he has been a strong advocate on the county council for a rainy-day fund and played a key role in passing a Snohomish County finance reform package, which set aside millions of dollars in reserves for future needs or in the case of an emergency.

“I’ve worked on 12 city budgets, 11 county budgets, and 3 state budgets,” said Sullivan. “I know the ins-and-outs of financial decision-making, I’m a strong believer in fiscal accountability, balanced budgets, and the need for long term planning. Each year the county’s treasury invests millions and collects taxes across the county. I’ll look for opportunities to meet these duties with a greater appreciation of the needs of our community.”

Sullivan said he hopes to create a more transparent treasurer’s office, with helpful tools and an improved focus on customer service. He aims to create a new online dashboard service that will allow better project tracking and a record of where investments have been made.

“With many in Snohomish County facing challenges from rising costs of living, I want to look at ways to build trust and provide needed assistance,” Sullivan said. “I will look at programs like incremental payments, partial tax payments and other reforms that can ease the tax burden on seniors, working families and other vulnerable groups throughout the Snohomish County.”